Neuroscience
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The most promising therapeutic approach to finding the cure for devastating demyelinating conditions is the identification of clinically safe pharmacological agents that can promote differentiation of endogenous oligodendrocyte precursor cells (OPCs). Here we show that the breast cancer medication tamoxifen (TMX), with well-documented clinical safety and confirmed beneficial effects in various models of demyelinating conditions, stimulates differentiation of rat glial progenitors to mature oligodendrocytes in vitro. Clinically applicable doses of TMX significantly increased both the number of CNPase-positive oligodendrocytes and protein levels of myelin basic protein, measured with Western blots. ⋯ In contrast to TMXC and 4-hydroxy-TMX, endoxifen also induced astrogliogenesis, but independent of the ER activation. In sum, we showed that the TMX prodrug and its two main metabolites (4-hydroxy-TMX and endoxifen) promote ER-dependent oligodendrogenesis in vitro, not reported before. Given that differentiating effects of TMX were achieved with clinically safe doses, TMX is likely one of the most promising FDA-approved drugs for the possible treatment of demyelinating diseases.
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It has previously been shown in rats that acute administration of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) exerts a dose-dependent effect on simple locomotor activity, with low doses of THC causing hyper-locomotion and high doses causing hypo-locomotion. However the effect of acute THC administration on cortical movement representations (motor maps) and skilled learned movements is completely unknown. It is important to determine the effects of THC on motor maps and skilled learned behaviors because behaviors like driving place people at a heightened risk. ⋯ Dosages of 1.0mg/kg and 2.5mg/kg THC reduced the number of reach attempts but did not affect percentage of success or the kinetics of reaching on the single pellet skilled reaching task. Rats that received 2.5mg/kg THC did show an increase in latency of forelimb removal on the bar task, while dose-dependent effects of THC on unskilled locomotor activity using the rotorod and horizontal ladder tasks were not observed. Rats may be employing compensatory strategies after receiving THC, which may account for the robust changes in motor map expression but moderate effects on behavior.
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Schizophrenia is conceptualized as a neurodevelopmental disorder in which developmental alterations in immature brain systems are not clear. Rats with neonatal ventral hippocampal lesions (NVHL) can exhibit schizophrenia-like behaviors, and these rats have been widely used to study the developmental mechanisms of schizophrenia. The nuclear restricted protein/brain (NRP/B) is a nuclear matrix protein that is critical for the normal development of the neuronal system. ⋯ The expressions of NeuN were decreased accordingly. In vitro experiment showed the NRP/B knockdown can decrease the Tuj1 expression in cultured cortical neurons. The data suggest that NVHL induces a change in NRP/B expression that affects neurons in the developmental period.
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Activation of P2X7 receptor (P2X7R), a purinergic receptor, expressed by neurons is well-known to induce their death, but whether or not their sensitivity to ATP depends on its expression levels remains unclear. Here, we examined the effect of the expression level of P2X7Rs on cell viability using pure neuron cultures, co-cultures with astrocytes derived from SJL- and ddY-strain mice, and mouse P2X7R-expressing HEK293T cell systems. Treatment of pure neuron cultures with 5mM ATP for 2h, followed by 3-h incubation in fresh medium, resulted in death of both types of neurons, and their death was prevented by administration of P2X7R-specific antagonists. ⋯ The ATP-induced neuronal death was greater for SJL-neurons than for ddY-ones, this being correlated with the expression level of P2X7R in them, and the same results were obtained for the HEK293T cell systems. Co-culture of neurons with astrocytes increased the ATP-induced neuronal death compared to the case of pure neuron cultures. Overall, we reveal that neuronal vulnerability to ATP depends on the expression level of P2X7R, and co-existence of astrocytes exacerbates ATP-induced neuronal death.