Potassium 2-(1-hydroxypentyl)-benzoate attenuates neuronal apoptosis in neuron-astrocyte co-culture system through neurotrophy and neuroinflammation pathway

Potassium 2-(1-hydroxypentyl)-benzoate (d,l-PHPB), a new drug candidate for ischemic stroke at the phase II clinic trial, has been shown to protect neurons by inhibiting oxidative injury and reducing neuron apoptosis in previous studies. But the mechanisms of d,l-PHPB remain to be studied. In this study, a neuron-astrocytes co-culture system was used to elucidate the roles of astrocytes in neuroprotection of d,l-PHPB under oxygen-glucose deprivation/reoxygenation (OGD/R) condition. Our data showed that d,l-PHPB reduced neuronal apoptosis in mono-culture system and this effect was enhanced in neuron-astrocyte co-culture system under the OGD/R condition. Meanwhile, d,l-PHPB obviously increased the levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and nerve growth factor (NGF), which were mainly secreted from astrocytes, in the co-culture system after OGD/R. The PI3K/AKT and ERK signaling pathways as well as the p-TRKA/B receptors were involved in the process. In addition, the levels of TNF-and IL-1secreted from astrocytes after OGD/R were markedly reduced after d,l-PHPB treatment, which was mainly due to the suppression of phosphorylated p38. In conclusion, the present study demonstrates that the neuroprotective effects of d,l-PHPB were improved by astrocytes, mainly mediated by increasing the release of BDNF/NGF and attenuating inflammatory cytokines.

Effects of fluoxetine on protein expression of potassium ion channels in the brain of chronic mild stress rats

The purpose of this study is to investigate the expression of major potassium channel subtypes in the brain of chronical mild stress (CMS) rats and reveal the effects of fluoxetine on the expression of these channels. Rats were exposed to a variety of unpredictable stress for three weeks and induced anhedonia, lower sucrose preference, locomotor activity and lower body weight. The protein expressions were determined by Western blot. CMS significantly increased the expression of Kv2.1 channel in frontal cortex but not in hippocampus, and the expression level was normalized after fluoxetine treatment. The expression of TREK-1 channel was also obviously increased in frontal cortex in CMS rats. Fluoxetine treatment might prevent this increase. However, the expression of Kv3.1 and Kv4.2 channels was considerably decreased in hippocampus after CMS, and was not affected by fluoxetine. These results suggest that different subtypes of potassium channels are associated with the pathophysiology of depression and that the therapeutical effects of fluoxetine may relate to Kv2.1 and TREK-1 potassium channels.