Biphasic effects of statins on neuron cell functions under oxygen-glucose deprivation and normal culturing conditions via different mechanisms.

While there is a growing interest in the use of statins, HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors, to treat neurodegenerative diseases, statins are associated with conflicting effects within the central nervous system (CNS) without clear evidence of the underlying mechanisms. This study systematically investigated effects of four statins (atorvastatin, pitavastatin, cerivastatin, and lovastatin) on neuronal cells under pathological condition using an in vitro model depicting ischemic injury, as well as tested under physiological condition. All four statins at micromolar concentrations display toxic effects on neuron cells under physiological condition. Atorvastatin and cerivastatin but not pitavastatin or lovastatin at nanomolar concentrations display protective effects on neuron cells under ischemic injury condition, via decreased ischemic injury-induced oxidative stress, oxidative damage, and inflammation. Mechanistically, atorvastatin, pitavastatin, and lovastatin induces neuron cell apoptosis via prenylation-independent manner. Other mechanisms are involved in the pro-apoptotic effect of cerivastatin. Prenylation is not involved in the protective effects of statins under ischemic injury condition. Our work provides better understanding on the multiple differential effects of statins on neuron cells under physiological condition and ischemic injury, and elucidate their underlying mechanisms, which may be of relevance to the influence of statins in CNS.

Atorvastatin disrupts primary human brain microvascular endothelial cell functions via prenylation-dependent mitochondrial inhibition and oxidative stress.

Primary human brain microvascular endothelial cell (HBMEC) is the major component of the blood-brain barrier (BBB). Atorvastatin, a HMG-CoA reductase inhibitor, is a cholesterol-lowering drug commonly used to reduce the risk for cardiovascular disease. Numerous studies have reported the pleiotropic effects of atorvastatin on endothelial cells, but the findings are controversial and inconclusive. In addition, little is known about the biological effects of atorvastatin on HBMEC. In this work, we demonstrate that atorvastatin at micromolar but not nanomolar concentrations induces dysfunctions of a number of HBMEC events, including differentiation into capillary network, migration and growth but not cell adhesion. We further show that the inhibitory effects of atorvastatin on HBMEC are independent of angiogenesis stimulators. Atorvastatin induces HBMEC apoptosis even in the presence of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and serum. Mechanism studies indicate that atorvastatin at micromolar concentration leads to protein prenylation inhibition, mitochondrial dysfunction and thereby subsequent oxidative stress and damage in HBMEC. Rescue experiments confirm that atorvastatin inhibits HBMEC functions via prenylation-dependent mitochondrial inhibition. Our work reveals the inhibitory effects of atorvastatin on HBMEC and suggests the possible negative influence of atorvastatin in blood-brain barrier.

Brain-Wide Mapping of Afferent Inputs to Accumbens Nucleus Core Subdomains and Accumbens Nucleus Subnuclei.

The nucleus accumbens (NAc) is the ventral part of the striatum and the interface between cognition, emotion, and action. It is composed of three major subnuclei: i.e., NAc core (NAcC), lateral shell (NAcLS), and medial shell (NAcMS), which exhibit functional heterogeneity. Thus, determining the synaptic inputs of the subregions of the NAc is important for understanding the circuit mechanisms involved in regulating different functions. Here, we simultaneously labeled subregions of the NAc with cholera toxin subunit B conjugated with multicolor Alexa Fluor, then imaged serial sections of the whole brain with a fully automated slide scanning system. Using the interactive WholeBrain framework, we characterized brain-wide inputs to the NAcC subdomains, including the rostral, caudal, dorsal, and ventral subdomains (i.e., rNAcC, cNAcC, dNAcC, and vNAcC, respectively) and the NAc subnuclei. We found diverse brain regions, distributed from the cerebrum to brain stem, projecting to the NAc. Of the 57 brain regions projecting to the NAcC, the anterior olfactory nucleus (AON) exhibited the greatest inputs. The input neurons of rNAcC and cNAcC are two distinct populations but share similar distribution over the same upstream brain regions, whereas the input neurons of dNAcC and vNAcC exhibit slightly different distributions over the same upstream regions. Of the 55 brain regions projecting to the NAcLS, the piriform area contributed most of the inputs. Of the 72 brain regions projecting to the NAcMS, the lateral septal nucleus contributed most of the inputs. The input neurons of NAcC and NAcLS share similar distributions, whereas the NAcMS exhibited brain-wide distinct distribution. Thus, the NAcC subdomains appeared to share the same upstream brain regions, although with distinct input neuron populations and slight differences in the input proportions, whereas the NAcMS subnuclei received distinct inputs from multiple upstream brain regions. These results lay an anatomical foundation for understanding the different functions of NAcC subdomains and NAc subnuclei.

A circuit view of deep brain stimulation in Alzheimer's disease and the possible mechanisms.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is characterized by chronic progressive cognitive deterioration frequently accompanied by psychopathological symptoms, including changes in personality and social isolation, which severely reduce quality of life. Currently, no viable therapies or present-day drugs developed for the treatment of AD symptoms are able to slow or reverse AD progression or prevent the advance of neurodegeneration. As such, non-drug alternatives are currently being tested, including deep brain stimulation (DBS). DBS is an established therapy for several neurological and psychiatric indications, such as movement disorders. Studies assessing DBS for other disorders have also found improvements in cognitive function, providing the impetus for clinical trials on DBS for AD. Targets of DBS in AD clinical trials and animal model studies include the fornix, entorhinal cortex (EC), nucleus basalis of Meynert (NBM), and vertical limb of diagonal band (VDB). However, there is still no comprehensive theory explaining the effects of DBS on AD symptoms or a consensus on which targets provide optimal benefits. This article reviews the anatomy of memory circuits related to AD, as well as studies on DBS rescue of AD in these circuits and the possible therapeutic mechanisms.

Different influences on mitochondrial function, oxidative stress and cytotoxicity of antibiotics on primary human neuron and cell lines.

Although antibiotics are generally well tolerated, their toxic effects on the central nervous system have been gained attention. In this study, we systematically investigated the neuron toxicity of antibiotics from six different classes. We show that clinically relevant concentrations of metronidazole, tigecycline, azithromycin and clindamycin but not ampicillin or sulfamethoxazole induce apoptosis of human primary neuron cells and lines. Notably, tigecycline, azithromycin and clindamycin cause neuron cell oxidative damage whereas metronidazole has no effect on reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, suggesting that metronidazole induces neuron death via ROS-independent mechanism. Tigecycline, azithromycin and clindamycin induce mitochondrial dysfunctions via targeting different mitochondrial respiratory complexes, leading to mitochondrial membrane potential disruption and energy crisis. The deleterious effects of antibiotics are reversed by pretreatment of neuron cells with antioxidant. Our work highlights the different influences of antibiotics on mitochondrial dysfunction, oxidative damage and cytotoxicity in neuron cells. We also provide a strategy to prevent the neurotoxicity.

Induction of Mitochondrial Dysfunction and Oxidative Damage by Antibiotic Drug Doxycycline Enhances the Responsiveness of Glioblastoma to Chemotherapy.

BACKGROUND Inducing mitochondrial dysfunction has been recently demonstrated to be an alternative therapeutic strategy for cancer treatment. Doxycycline is an antibiotic that has been shown to have anti-cancer activities in various cancers by way of targeting mitochondria. In this work, we examined whether doxycycline can be repurposed for glioblastoma treatment. MATERIAL AND METHODS The effects of doxycycline on the growth, survival, and mitochondrial metabolisms of glioblastoma were investigated. The efficacy of a combination of doxycycline with temozolomide was examined using xenograft mouse model in total number of 40 mice. RESULTS Doxycycline targeted glioblastoma cell lines, regardless of their origin, through inhibiting growth and inducing cell death, accompanied by a significant decrease in proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) and increase in cleaved caspase-3. In addition, doxycycline significantly sensitized glioblastoma cell response to temozolomide in vitro and in vivo. Mechanistically, doxycycline disrupted mitochondrial functions through decreasing mitochondrial membrane potential and mitochondrial respiration. Inducing mitochondrial dysfunctions by using doxycycline led to energy crisis, oxidative stress, and damage as shown by the decreased levels of ATP and the elevated levels of mitochondrial superoxide, intracellular ROS, 8-OHdG, protein carbonylation, and lipid peroxidation. An antioxidant N-acetyl-L-cysteine (NAC) significantly abolished the anti-proliferative and pro-apoptotic effects of doxycycline, demonstrating that doxycycline acts on glioblastoma via inducing oxidative stress. CONCLUSIONS In our study, we show that the antibiotic doxycycline is effective in targeting glioblastoma through inducing mitochondrial dysfunctions and oxidative stress. Our work also demonstrated the importance of mitochondrial metabolism in glioblastoma.

HFS-Triggered AMPK Activation Phosphorylates GSK3ß and Induces E-LTP in Rat Hippocampus In Vivo.

BACKGROUND: The AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is a sensor of cellular energy and nutrient status, with substantial amount of cross talk with other signaling pathways, including its phosphorylation by Akt, PKA, and GSK3ß. AIMS: Various signaling pathways and energy-consuming transport of glutamate receptors subunits are required in synaptic plasticity. However, it is unknown which energy sensors integrate the signaling pathways in these processes. In this article, we elucidated the role of AMPK activation and GSK3ß phosphorylation after HFS during the inducement of early-phase long-term potentiation (E-LTP). METHODS: Synaptic LTP in vivo was induced by high-frequency stimulation (HFS at 200 Hz at a 5-s interval). In addition, phosphorylation of AMPK and glycogen synthase kinase 3ß (GSK3ß) were measured using Western blotting. The amount of hippocampal AMP, ADP and ATP was measured by HPLC. RESULTS: We showed that the phosphorylation of AMPK and GSK3ß was significantly increased by HFS in vivo. HFS-induced AMPK activation occurred via increased (AMP + ADP)/ATP ratio and activation of Ca(2+) /calmodulin-dependent kinase kinase beta (CaMKKß). Pharmacological inhibition of AMPK by compound C (CC) prevented HFS-induced inhibitory phosphorylation of GSK3ß and the induction of LTP in dentate gyrus (DG) area in vivo. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings reveal that HFS-triggered AMPK activation phosphorylates GSK3ß and induces E-LTP in vivo.

Aging-related alterations in the expression and distribution of GluR2 and PICK1 in the rat hippocampus.

Deficit in synaptic plasticity in the hippocampus frequently occurs during normal aging. Although the protein level and calcium permeability of AMPARs alter with aging, the alteration of AMPARs and their regulatory proteins during aging are far from understanding. Dynamics of GluR2 subunit are dependent on the function of protein interacting with Cα kinase 1 (PICK1), PKCα and calcineurin (CaN). Here, we firstly show that the expression of PICK1 and CaN B decreased significantly in the hippocampus of old rats compared to that of young and adult rats. The decrease was accompanied by a reduction of GluR2 and PKCα and an increase in CaN A. Next, we found that in young and adult rats, the distribution of PICK1 and GluR2 diffused in the cytoplasm of hippocampal neurons, but closely around perinuclear in the hippocampal neurons of old rats. These results suggest that the expression of GluR2, PICK1, PKCα and CaN B significant decreased in the hippocampus and these alterations may lead to altered distribution of GluR2 and PICK1 during aging.

The cytotoxic mechanism of malondialdehyde and protective effect of carnosine via protein cross-linking/mitochondrial dysfunction/reactive oxygen species/MAPK pathway in neurons.

The accumulation of malondialdehyde (MDA), a lipid peroxidation by-product that has been used as an indicator of cellular oxidation status, is significantly increased in many neurological diseases such as brain ischemia/reperfusion, Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease in vivo. In the present study, we found that MDA treatment in vitro reduced cortical neuronal viability in a time- and dose-dependent manner and induced cellular apoptosis as well as necrosis simultaneously. Furthermore, exposure to MDA led to accumulation of intracellular reactive oxygen species, dysfunction of mitochondria (denoted by the loss of mitochondrial transmembrane potential (Δψm)) and activation of JNK and ERK. Carnosine exhibited better protection against MDA-induced cell injury than antioxidant N-acetyl-cysteine (NAC) with its multi-potency, which alleviated MDA-induced protein cross-linking, Δψm decrease, reactive oxygen species burst, JNK and ERK activation. In conclusion, our results suggest that MDA induced cell injury in vitro via protein cross-linking and successive mitochondrial dysfunction, and the activation of reactive oxygen species-dependent MAPK signaling pathway. Carnosine alleviated all these alterations induced by MDA, but NAC merely inhibited Bcl-2 family-related activation of JNK and ERK. These results prompt the possibility that carnosine, but not other conventional antioxidants, can protect neurons against MDA-induced injury through decomposition of protein cross-linking toxicity and may serve as a novel agent in the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases.

Reversal of aging-associated hippocampal synaptic plasticity deficits by reductants via regulation of thiol redox and NMDA receptor function.

Deficits in learning and memory accompanied by age-related neurodegenerative diseases are closely related to the impairment of synaptic plasticity. In this study, we investigated the role of thiol redox status in the modulation of the N-methyl-d-aspartate receptor (NMDAR)-dependent long-term potentiation (LTP) in CA1 areas of hippocampal slices. Our results demonstrated that the impaired LTP induced by aging could be reversed by acute administration of reductants that can regulate thiol redox status directly, such as dithiothreitol or ß-mercaptoethanol, but not by classical anti-oxidants such as vitamin C or trolox. This repair was mediated by the recruitment of aging-related deficits in NMDAR function induced by these reductants and was mimicked by glutathione, which can restore the age-associated alterations in endogenous thiol redox status. Moreover, antioxidant prevented but failed to reverse H(2)O(2) -induced impairment of NMDAR-mediated synaptic plasticity. These results indicate that the restoring of thiol redox status may be a more effective strategy than the scavenging of oxidants in the treatment of pre-existing oxidative injury in learning and memory.

Existence and distinction of acid-evoked currents in rat astrocytes.

Astrocytes are vital structures that support and/or protect neighboring neurons from pathology. Although it is generally accepted that glutamate receptors mediate most astrocyte effects, acid-evoked currents have recently attracted attention for their role in this regard. Here, we identified the existence and characteristics of acid-sensing ion channels (ASICs) and the transient receptor potential vanilloid type 1 (TRPV1) in astrocytes. There were two types of currents recorded under the application of acidic solution (pH 6.0) in cultured rat astrocytes. Transient currents were exhibited by 10% of the astrocytes, and sustained currents were exhibited by the other 90%, consistent with the features of ASIC and TRPV1 currents, respectively. Western blotting and immunofluorescence confirmed the expression of ASIC1, ASIC2a, ASIC3, and TRPV1 in cultured and in situ astrocytes. Unlike the ASICs expressed in neurons, which were mainly distributed in the cell membrane/cytoplasm, most of the ASICs in astrocytes were expressed in the nucleus. TRPV1 was more permeable to Na(+) in cultured astrocytes, which differed from the typical neuronal TRPV1 that was mainly permeable to Ca(2+). This study demonstrates that there are two kinds of acid-evoked currents in rat astrocytes, which may provide a new understanding about the functions of ligand-gated ion channels in astrocytes.

PI3K integrates the effects of insulin and leptin on large-conductance Ca2+-activated K+ channels in neuropeptide Y neurons of the hypothalamic arcuate nucleus.

The adipocyte-derived hormone leptin and the pancreatic beta-cell-derived hormone insulin function as afferent signals to the hypothalamus in an endocrine feedback loop that regulates body adiposity. They act in hypothalamic centers to modulate the function of specific neuronal subtypes, such as neuropeptide Y (NPY) neurons, by modifying neuronal electrical activity. To investigate the intrinsic activity of these neurons and their responses to insulin and leptin, we used a combination of morphological features and immunocytochemical technique to identify the NPY neurons of hypothalamic arcuate nucleus (ARC) and record whole cell large-conductance Ca(2+)-activated potassium (BK) currents on them. We found that both of the hormones increase the peak amplitude of BK currents, shifting the steady-state activation curve to the left. The effect of both insulin and leptin can be prevented by pretreatment with inhibitors of tyrosine kinase and phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K) but not MAPK. These data indicate that PI3K-mediated signals are the common regulators of BK channels by insulin and leptin and mediated the two hormones' identical activatory effects on ARC NPY neurons. The effect of insulin and leptin together was similar to that of insulin or leptin alone, and leptin or insulin pretreatment did not lead to insulin- or leptin-sensitizing effects, respectively. These intracellular signaling mechanisms may play key roles in regulating ARC NPY neuron activity and physiological processes such as the control of food intake and body weight, which are under the combined control of insulin and leptin.