Journal of neuroscience research
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Inflammation and oxidative stress play major roles in the pathogenesis after spinal cord injury (SCI). Here, we examined the neuroprotective effects of Angelica dahuricae radix (ADR) extract after SCI. ADR extract significantly decreased the levels of proinflammatory factors such as tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-1β (IL-1β), interleukin-6 (IL-6), inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) in a lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-activated microglial cell line, BV2 cells. ⋯ In addition, ADR extract inhibited p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase activation and pronerve growth factor expression in microglia after SCI. Furthermore, ADR extract significantly inhibited caspase-3 activation following apoptotic cell death of neurons and oligodendrocytes, thereby improving functional recovery after injury. Thus, our data suggest that ADR extract provides neuroprotection by alleviating inflammation and oxidative stress and can be used as an orally administered therapeutic agent for acute SCI.
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The activation of microglia and astrocytes in the spinal cord is involved in the progress of cancer pain. Propentofylline (PPF), a glial modulating agent, alleviates pain hypersensitivity in neuropathic pain models. The present study investigated the potential roles of PPF in a preclinical rat model of bone caner pain established by inoculating Walker 256 cells into the left tibia. ⋯ Immunohistochemistry and ELISA showed that microglia and astrocytes in the spinal cord were activated, and the production of glia-derived proinflammatory cytokines interleukin-1β (IL-1β), IL-6, and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) markedly increased at day 12 postinoculation in the cancer group. Intrathecal injection of PPF (10 μg/10 μl) significantly inhibited the activation of spinal glial cells and the expression of proinflammatory cytokines. These results suggest that the glial modulating agent PPF has antiallodynic effects on bone cancer pain and has potential utility for clinical treatment of cancer pain.
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Alterations in glycogen synthase kinase-3β (GSK3β) and protein phosphatase-2A (PP2A) have been proposed to be involved in the abnormal tau phosphorylation and aggregation linked to Alzheimer's disease (AD). Interconnections between GSK3β and PP2A signaling pathways are well established. Targeting tau kinases was proposed to represent a therapeutic strategy for AD. ⋯ Both compounds exhibit higher selectivity toward GSK3 compared with other tau kinases (for 6-BIDECO, IC50 is 0.03 μM for GSK3, >10 μM for CDK1, and 10 μM for CDK5; for 6-BIMYEO, IC50 is 0.11 μM for GSK3, 1.8 μM for CDK1, and 0.9 μM for CDK5). We show that 6-BIDECO and 6-BIMYEO used at micromolar concentrations are not neurotoxic and potently reversed tau phosphorylation and apoptosis induced by OKA. The neuroprotection by these compounds should be further validated in animal models of AD.
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The mammalian nicotinamide-adenine dinucleotide (NAD)-dependent deacetylase Sirt1 impacts different processes involved in the maintenance of brain integrity and in the pathogenic pathways associated with several neurodegenerative disorders, including Alzheimer's disease. Here we used human Sirt1 transgenic mice to demonstrate that neuron-specific Sirt1 overexpression promoted neurite outgrowth and improved cell viability under normal and nutrient-limiting conditions in primary culture systems and that Sirt1-overexpressing neurons exhibited higher tolerance to cell death or degeneration induced by amyloid-β1-42 oligomers. Coincidentally, we found that enhanced Sirt1 expression in neurons downregulated the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) protein levels and its phosphorylation without changes in its mRNA levels, which was accompanied by concomitant inhibition of the mTOR downstream signaling activity as revealed by decreased p70S6 kinase (p70S6K) phosphorylation at Thr389. ⋯ Correspondingly, the mTOR inhibitor rapamycin markedly improved neuronal cell survival in response to nutrient deprivation and significantly enhanced neurite outgrowth in wild-type mouse neurons. The protective effect of rapamycin was extended to neurons even with Sirt1 siRNA knockdown that displayed developmental abnormalities compared with siRNA control-treated cells. Collectively, our findings suggest that Sirt1 may act to promote growth and survival of neurons in the central nervous system via its negative modulation of mTOR signaling.
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Calcium influx via N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA)-subtype glutamate receptors (NMDARs) regulates the intracellular trafficking of NMDARs, leading to long-lasting modification of NMDAR-mediated synaptic transmission that is involved in development, learning, and synaptic plasticity. The present study investigated the contribution of such NMDAR-dependent synaptic trafficking in spinal dorsal horn to the induction of pain hypersensitivity. Our data showed that direct activation of NMDARs by intrathecal NMDA application elicited pronounced mechanical allodynia in intact mice, which was concurrent with a specific increase in the abundance of NMDAR subunits NR1 and NR2B at the postsynaptic density (PSD)-enriched fraction. ⋯ The NR2BR redistribution at synapses after NMDA challenge was associated with a significant increase in NR2B phosphorylation at Tyr1472, a catalytic site by Src family protein tyrosine kinases (SFKs) that has been shown to prevent NR2B endocytosis. Intrathecal injection of a specific SFKs inhibitor, PP2, to block NR2B tyrosine phosphorylation eliminated NMDA-induced NR2BR synaptic expression and also attenuated the mechanical allodynia. These data suggested that activation of spinal NMDARs was able to accumulate NR2BR at synapses via SFK signaling, which might exaggerate NMDAR-dependent nociceptive transmission and contribute to NMDA-induced nociceptive behavioral hyperresponsiveness.