Biomedical subjects

Paul A Rosenberg

Publications and source records attributed to Paul A Rosenberg.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2006

Alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazole propionate receptor subunit composition and cAMP-response element-binding protein regulate oligodendrocyte excitotoxicity.

Developing oligodendrocytes (OLs) are highly vulnerable to glutamate excitotoxicity. Although OL excitotoxicity is mainly mediated by alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazole propionate (AMPA) receptors (AMPARs) and is Ca2+-dependent, the molecular basis for AMPAR-mediated Ca2+ influx in OLs remains largely unclear. Ca2+ permeability of AMPARs is inversely correlated with the abundance of the AMPAR subunit glutamate receptor 2 (GluR2). Here we report that GluR2-containing and GluR2-lacking AMPARs are co-expressed in individual OLs and that a subset of AMPARs on each OL are Ca2+-permeable and mediate OL excitotoxicity. Virus-mediated overexpression of GluR2 reduces OL excitotoxicity, whereas expression of its unedited form GluR2(Q) enhances the excitotoxicity. These findings indicate that GluR2 critically controls OL excitotoxicity. During OL excitotoxicity, the transcriptional factor cAMP-response element-binding protein (CREB) is transiently phosphorylated and subsequently down-regulated. Virus-mediated expression of a constitutively active form of CREB, both in cultured OLs in vitro and in developing cerebral white matter in vivo, up-regulates GluR2, inhibits Ca2+ permeability, and protects OLs from excitotoxicity. Overall, these data suggest that targeting GluR2-lacking AMPARs or CREB may be a useful strategy for treating nervous system disorders associated with OL excitotoxicity.

Animals↗

PubMed2006

Oligodendrocyte excitotoxicity determined by local glutamate accumulation and mitochondrial function.

Developing oligodendrocytes (OL precursors, pre-OLs) express alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid (AMPA) subtype glutamate receptors (AMPARs) and are highly vulnerable to hypoxic-ischemic or oxygen-glucose deprivation (OGD)-induced excitotoxic injury, yet the mechanisms of injury remain unclear. Here we investigated the role of glutamate accumulation and mitochondrial function in OGD-induced pre-OL toxicity in vitro. Bulk glutamate concentration in the culture medium did not increase during OGD and OGD-conditioned medium did not transfer toxicity to naïve cells. Facilitation of glutamate diffusion by constant agitation of the culture reduced, while inhibition of glutamate diffusion by increasing medium viscosity with dextran enhanced, OGD-induced pre-OL injury. Depletion of extracellular glutamate by the glutamate scavenging system, glutamate-pyruvate transaminase plus pyruvate, attenuated pre-OL injury during OGD. Together these data suggest that local glutamate accumulation is critical for OGD toxicity. Interestingly, under normoxic conditions, addition of glutamate to pre-OLs did not cause receptor-mediated toxicity, but the toxicity could be unmasked by mitochondrial impairment with mitochondrial toxins. Furthermore, OGD caused mitochondrial potential collapse that was independent of AMPAR activation, and OGD toxicity was enhanced by mitochondrial toxins. These data demonstrate that pre-OL excitotoxicity is exacerbated by mitochondrial dysfunction during OGD. Overall, our results indicate that OGD-induced pre-OL injury is a novel form of excitotoxicity caused by the combination of local glutamate accumulation that occurs without an increase in bulk glutamate concentration and mitochondrial dysfunction. Therapeutic strategies targeting local glutamate concentration and mitochondrial injury during hypoxia-ischemia may be relevant to human disorders associated with pre-OL excitotoxicity.

Animals↗

PubMed2006

Intracellular zinc release and ERK phosphorylation are required upstream of 12-lipoxygenase activation in peroxynitrite toxicity to mature rat oligodendrocytes.

Peroxynitrite toxicity has been implicated in the pathogenesis of white matter injury. The mechanisms of peroxynitrite toxicity to oligodendrocytes (OLs), the major cell type of the white matter, are unknown. Using primary cultures of mature OLs that express myelin basic protein, we found that 3-morpholinosydnonimine, a peroxynitrite generator, caused toxicity to OLs. N,N,N',N'-tetrakis (2-pyridylmethyl)ethylenediamine, a zinc chelator, completely blocked peroxynitrite-induced toxicity. Use of FluoZin-3, a specific fluorescence zinc indicator, demonstrated the liberation of zinc from intracellular stores by peroxynitrite. Peroxynitrite caused the sequential activation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase 42/44 (ERK42/44), 12-lipoxygenase, and generation of reactive oxygen species, which were all dependent upon the intracellular release of zinc. The same cell death pathway was also activated when exogenous zinc was used. These results suggest that in addition to preventing the formation of peroxynitrite, useful strategies in preventing disease progression in pathologies in which peroxynitrite toxicity plays a critical role might include maintaining intracellular zinc homeostasis, blocking phosphorylation of ERK42/44, inhibiting activation of 12-lipoxygenase, and eliminating the accumulation of reactive oxygen species.

Animals↗

PubMed2006

Histological study of periradicular tissue responses to uninfected and infected devitalized pulps in dogs.

Uninfected necrotic tissue, such as that which follows a myocardial or cerebral infarct, is capable of inducing an inflammatory reaction. Eventually, the infarct is organized by granulation tissue. Why then, does uninfected devitalized pulp tissue, such as in traumatized teeth, not cause periradicular inflammation and does not become organized by granulation tissue? Four beagle dogs were used in this experiment. A total of 48 teeth, which included 24 maxillary and 24 mandibular incisors, were aseptically devitalized, leaving residual pulp tissues in the root canals, and equally divided into two groups. Group A (24 uninfected): A sterile cotton pellet was placed deep into the canal orifice before the pulp chamber and access opening were closed with a layer of zinc-oxide eugenol cement followed by glass ionomer cement. Group B (24 infected): The teeth were left open to the oral cavity for 7 days and then closed with a cotton pellet and zinc-oxide eugenol and glass ionomer cement. The animals were sacrificed one year after the experiment and prepared for histological examination of periradicular tissue responses to uninfected and infected devitalized pulp tissues. The results indicate that uninfected devitalized pulp tissues did not continuously release inflammatory mediators and cause persistent periradicular inflammation over a period of one year. However, infected devitalized pulp tissues induced various degrees of periradicular inflammation. Only the apical few millimeters of uninfected devitalized pulp tissue in the root canals were organized by granulation tissue from vital periodontal ligament tissue.

Animals↗

PubMed2006

Nitric oxide-induced adenosine inhibition of hippocampal synaptic transmission depends on adenosine kinase inhibition and is cyclic GMP independent.

Adenosine is an important inhibitory neuromodulator that regulates neuronal excitability. Several studies have shown that nitric oxide induces release of adenosine. Here we investigated the mechanism of this release. We studied the effects of nitric oxide on evoked field excitatory postsynaptic potentials (fEPSPs) recorded in the CA1 area of rat hippocampal slices. The nitric oxide donor 1,1-diethyl-2-hydroxy-2-nitroso-hydrazine sodium (DEA/NO; 100 microm) depressed the fEPSP by 77.6 +/- 4.1%. This effect was abolished by the adenosine A1 antagonist 8-cyclopentyl-1,3-dipropylxanthine (DPCPX; 400 nm), indicating that the nitric oxide effect was mediated by adenosine accumulation. The DEA/NO effect was unaltered by the 5'-ectonucleotidase inhibitor alpha,beta-methylene-adenosine 5'-diphosphate (AMP-CP; 100 microm), indicating that extracellular adenosine did not derive from ATP or cAMP release. The guanylyl cyclase inhibitor 1H-[1,2,4]oxadiazole[4,3-a]quinoxaline-1-one (ODQ; 5 microm) did not affect nitric oxide depression of the fEPSPs, indicating that nitric oxide-mediated adenosine release was not mediated through a cGMP signaling cascade. This conclusion was confirmed by the observation that 8-(4-chlorophenylthio)-guanosine-3',5'-cyclic monophosphate (8-pCPT-cGMP; 1 mm) reversibly depressed the fEPSP by 24.9 +/- 4.5%, but this effect was not blocked by adenosine antagonists. Adenosine kinase inhibitor 5-iodotubercidin (ITU; 7 microm) occluded the nitric oxide effects by 74%, suggesting that inhibition of adenosine kinase activity contributes to adenosine release. In conclusion, exogenous nitric oxide evokes adenosine release by a cGMP-independent pathway. Intracellular cGMP elevation partially inhibits the fEPSP but not through adenosine release. Although a direct block of adenosine kinase by nitric oxide can not be excluded, the depression of adenosine kinase activity may be due to inhibition by its own substrate adenosine.

Adenosine↗

PubMed2005

Cellular and subcellular mRNA localization of glutamate transporter isoforms GLT1a and GLT1b in rat brain by in situ hybridization.

GLT1, the predominant glutamate transporter of the forebrain, exists in two splice variant isoforms, i.e., GLT1a and GLT1b. Although GLT1 was originally detected only in astrocytes, we have recently demonstrated that GLT1a protein is expressed by neurons in the hippocampus as well. In the present study, the mRNA distribution patterns for the two isoforms were examined throughout the rat brain by using nonisotopic in situ hybridization and variant-specific RNA probes. Both isoforms were expressed in neuronal subgroups outside the hippocampus, such as in the cerebral cortex layer VI, or the neurons in the olfactory tubercle. As was the case in the hippocampus, GLT1a was the predominant transcript in neurons in these regions as well. Both GLT1 isoforms were widely expressed in astrocytes throughout the brain. GLT1a mRNA expression in astrocytes showed noticeable variation in labeling intensity in subregions of the hippocampus and other areas, whereas GLT1b expression in astrocytes was relatively homogeneous. On the subcellular level, GLT1a mRNA was expressed primarily in astrocyte processes, whereas GLT1b mRNA was more restricted to the astrocyte cell body. The two isoforms showed similar distributions in the subfornical organ and in tanycytes of the third ventricle. However, GLT1 expression in the pineal gland and the retina was due primarily to GLT1b, whereas GLT1a was more strongly expressed in Bergman glia in the cerebellum. These findings suggest that the expression of the two GLT1 isoforms is regulated by different mechanisms. Moreover, the function of the two isoforms may be subject to different regulatory processes.

Animals↗

PubMed2005

Peroxynitrite generated by inducible nitric oxide synthase and NADPH oxidase mediates microglial toxicity to oligodendrocytes.

Reactive microglia in the CNS have been implicated in the pathogenesis of white matter disorders, such as periventricular leukomalacia and multiple sclerosis. However, the mechanism by which activated microglia kill oligodendrocytes (OLs) remains elusive. Here we show that lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced death of developing OLs is caused by microglia-derived peroxynitrite, the reaction product of nitric oxide (NO) and superoxide anion. Blocking peroxynitrite formation with nitric oxide synthase inhibitors, superoxide dismutase mimics, or a decomposition catalyst abrogated the cytotoxicity. Only microglia, but not OLs, expressed inducible NO synthase (iNOS) after LPS challenge; microglia from iNOS knockout mice were not cytotoxic upon activation. The molecular source for superoxide was identified as the superoxide-generating enzyme NADPH oxidase. The oxidase was activated upon LPS exposure, and its inhibition prevented microglial toxicity toward OLs. Furthermore, microglia isolated from mice deficient in the catalytic component of the oxidase, gp91(phox), failed to induce cell death. Our results reveal a role for NADPH oxidase in LPS-induced OL death and suggest that peroxynitrite produced by iNOS and NADPH oxidase in activated microglia may play an important role in the pathogenesis of white matter disorders.

Animals↗

PubMed2005

Do procedural errors cause endodontic treatment failure?

BACKGROUND: This article reviews the effect of endodontic procedural errors, such as underfilling, overfilling, root perforations and separated instruments, on the outcome of endodontic therapy. TYPES OF STUDIES REVIEWED: Filling the root canal more than 2 millimeters from the radiographic apex (underfilling) or beyond the radiographic apex (overfilling), perforations of the root canal system and instrument separation are possible complications of endodontic therapy. Although these procedural errors may have different causes, they all may affect the outcome of treatment. RESULTS: Endodontic procedural errors are not the direct cause of treatment failure; rather, the presence of pathogens in the incompletely treated or untreated root canal system is the primary cause of periradicular pathosis. Procedural errors typically are due to several factors. Among them is a lack of understanding of the root canal anatomy, the principles of mechanical instrumentation and tissue wound healing. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: Procedural errors impede endodontic therapy, thus increasing the risk of treatment failure, especially in teeth with necrotic pulps and periradicular lesions. However, procedural errors often are preventable.

Bacterial Infections↗

PubMed2004

Peroxynitrite-induced neuronal apoptosis is mediated by intracellular zinc release and 12-lipoxygenase activation.

Peroxynitrite toxicity is a major cause of neuronal injury in stroke and neurodegenerative disorders. The mechanisms underlying the neurotoxicity induced by peroxynitrite are still unclear. In this study, we observed that TPEN [N,N,N',N'-tetrakis (2-pyridylmethyl)ethylenediamine], a zinc chelator, protected against neurotoxicity induced by exogenous as well as endogenous (coadministration of NMDA and a nitric oxide donor, diethylenetriamine NONOate) peroxynitrite. Two different approaches to detecting intracellular zinc release demonstrated the liberation of zinc from intracellular stores by peroxynitrite. In addition, we found that peroxynitrite toxicity was blocked by inhibitors of 12-lipoxygenase (12-LOX), p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK), and caspase-3 and was associated with mitochondrial membrane depolarization. Inhibition of 12-LOX blocked the activation of p38 MAPK and caspase-3. Zinc itself induced the activation of 12-LOX, generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), and activation of p38 MAPK and caspase-3. These data suggest a cell death pathway triggered by peroxynitrite in which intracellular zinc release leads to activation of 12-LOX, ROS accumulation, p38 activation, and caspase-3 activation. Therefore, therapies aimed at maintaining intracellular zinc homeostasis or blocking activation of 12-LOX may provide a novel avenue for the treatment of inflammation, stroke, and neurodegenerative diseases in which the formation of peroxynitrite is thought to be one of the important causes of cell death.

Adenosine Triphosphate↗

PubMed2004

Zaprinast stimulates extracellular adenosine accumulation in rat pontine slices.

Adenosine appears to be an endogenous somnogen. The lateral dorsal tegmental/pedunculopontine nucleus (LDT/PPT) located in the mesopontine tegmentum is important in the regulation of arousal. Neurons in this nucleus are strongly hyperpolarized by adenosine and express neuronal nitric oxide synthase. Zaprinast is a cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterase inhibitor, and has been shown in the hippocampal slice to inhibit the field excitatory postsynaptic potential. This action could be blocked by an adenosine receptor antagonist, and therefore is presumably due to adenosine release stimulated by zaprinast. In the present study we tested the effect of zaprinast on extracellular adenosine accumulation in pontine slices containing the LDT. Zaprinast at 10 microM evoked an increase in extracellular adenosine concentration. This effect was blocked by impermeant inhibitors of 5'-nucleotidase, indicating that the extracellular adenosine was derived from extracellular AMP. However, inhibitors of cAMP degradation had little or no effect on zaprinast-evoked adenosine accumulation, suggesting that extracellular cAMP was not the source. Removal of extracellular calcium inhibited the effect of zaprinast. These results demonstrate that a pathway exists by which zaprinast stimulates extracellular adenosine accumulation, and the presence of this pathway in the pontine slice suggests the possibility that it may be relevant for the regulation of behavioral state.

Adenosine↗

PubMed2004

Role of metabotropic glutamate receptors in oligodendrocyte excitotoxicity and oxidative stress.

Developing oligodendrocytes (OLs) are highly vulnerable to excitotoxicity and oxidative stress, both of which are important in the pathogenesis of many brain disorders. OL excitotoxicity is mediated by ionotropic glutamate receptors (iGluRs) of the alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid/kainate type on these cells. Here we report that metabotropic GluRs (mGluRs) are highly expressed in OL precursors but are down-regulated in mature OLs. Activation of group 1 mGluRs attenuates OL excitotoxicity by controlling downstream oxidative stress after iGluR overactivation and also prevents nonexcitotoxic forms of oxidative stress by inhibiting reactive oxygen species accumulation and intracellular glutathione loss. The modulating effect of group 1 mGluRs on hypoxic-ischemic OL injury is not due to iGluR endocytosis that occurs in neurons in response to mGluR activation but requires activation of PKC alpha after G protein coupling to phospholipase C. Our results reveal a previously undescribed role for mGluRs in limiting OL injury and suggest that targeting group 1 mGluRs may be a useful therapeutic strategy for treating disorders that involve excitotoxic injury and/or oxidative stress to OLs.

Animals↗

PubMed2004

Glutamate receptor-mediated oligodendrocyte toxicity in periventricular leukomalacia: a protective role for topiramate.

Periventricular leukomalacia is a form of hypoxic-ischemic cerebral white matter injury seen most commonly in premature infants and is the major antecedent of cerebral palsy. Glutamate receptor-mediated excitotoxicity is a predominant mechanism of hypoxic-ischemic injury to developing cerebral white matter. We have demonstrated previously the protective effect of AMPA-kainate-type glutamate receptor blockade in a rodent model of periventricular leukomalacia. The present study explores the therapeutic potential of glutamate receptor blockade for hypoxic-ischemic white matter injury. We demonstrate that AMPA receptors are expressed on developing human oligodendrocytes that populate fetal white matter at 23-32 weeks gestation, the period of highest risk for periventricular leukomalacia. We show that the clinically available anticonvulsant topiramate, when administered post-insult in vivo, is protective against selective hypoxic-ischemic white matter injury and decreases the subsequent neuromotor deficits. We further demonstrate that topiramate attenuates AMPA-kainate receptor-mediated cell death and calcium influx, as well as kainate-evoked currents in developing oligodendrocytes, similar to the AMPA-kainate receptor antagonist 6-nitro-7-sulfamoylbenzo-(f)quinoxaline-2,3-dione (NBQX). Notably, protective doses of NBQX and topiramate do not affect normal maturation and proliferation of oligodendrocytes either in vivo or in vitro. Taken together, these results suggest that AMPA-kainate receptor blockade may have potential for translation as a therapeutic strategy for periventricular leukomalacia and that the mechanism of protective efficacy of topiramate is caused at least in part by attenuation of excitotoxic injury to premyelinating oligodendrocytes in developing white matter.

Animals↗

PubMed2004

Glutathione peroxidase-catalase cooperativity is required for resistance to hydrogen peroxide by mature rat oligodendrocytes.

Oxidative mechanisms of injury are important in many neurological disorders, including hypoxic-ischemic brain damage. Cerebral palsy after preterm birth is hypothesized to be caused by hypoxic-ischemic injury of developing oligodendrocytes (OLs). Here we examined the developmental sensitivity of OLs to exogenous hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) with stage-specific rat oligodendrocyte cultures. We found that H2O2 itself or that generated by glucose oxidase was more toxic to developing than to mature OLs. Mature OLs were able to degrade H2O2 faster than developing OLs, suggesting that higher antioxidant enzyme activity might be the basis for their resistance. Catalase expression and activity were relatively constant during oligodendrocyte maturation, whereas glutathione peroxidase (GPx) was upregulated with a twofold to threefold increase in its expression and activity. Thus, it appeared that the developmental change in resistance to H2O2 was caused by modulation of GPx but not by catalase expression. To test the relative roles of catalase and GPx in the setting of oxidative stress, we measured enzyme activity in cells exposed to H2O2 and found that H2O2 induced a decrease in catalase activity in developing but not in mature OLs. Inhibition of GPx by mercaptosuccinate led to an increase in the vulnerability of mature OLs to H2O2 as well as a reduction in catalase activity. Finally, H2O2-dependent inactivation of catalase in developing OLs was prevented by the GPx mimic ebselen. These data provide evidence for a key role for GPx-catalase cooperativity in the resistance of mature OLs to H2O2-induced cell death.

Animals↗

PubMed2004

The glutamate transporter GLT1a is expressed in excitatory axon terminals of mature hippocampal neurons.

GLT1 is the major glutamate transporter of the brain and has been thought to be expressed exclusively in astrocytes. Although excitatory axon terminals take up glutamate, the transporter responsible has not been identified. GLT1 is expressed in at least two forms varying in the C termini, GLT1a and GLT1b. GLT1 mRNA has been demonstrated in neurons, without associated protein. Recently, evidence has been presented, using specific C terminus-directed antibodies, that GLT1b protein is expressed in neurons in vivo. These data suggested that the GLT1 mRNA detected in neurons encodes GLT1b and also that GLT1b might be the elusive presynaptic transporter. To test these hypotheses, we used variant-specific probes directed to the 3'-untranslated regions for GLT1a and GLT1b to perform in situ hybridization in the hippocampus. Contrary to expectation, GLT1a mRNA was the more abundant form. To investigate further the expression of GLT1 in neurons in the hippocampus, antibodies raised against the C terminus of GLT1a and against the N terminus of GLT1, found to be specific by testing in GLT1 knock-out mice, were used for light microscopic and EM-ICC. GLT1a protein was detected in neurons, in 14-29% of axons in the hippocampus, depending on the region. Many of the labeled axons formed axo-spinous, asymmetric, and, thus, excitatory synapses. Labeling also occurred in some spines and dendrites. The antibody against the N terminus of GLT1 also produced labeling of neuronal processes. Thus, the originally cloned form of GLT1, GLT1a, is expressed as protein in neurons in the mature hippocampus and may contribute significantly to glutamate uptake into excitatory terminals.

Animals↗

PubMed2004

Developmental lag in superoxide dismutases relative to other antioxidant enzymes in premyelinated human telencephalic white matter.

Periventricular leukomalacia (PVL) involves free radical injury to developing oligodendrocytes (OLs), resulting from ischemia/reperfusion, particularly between 24 and 32 gestational weeks. Using immunocytochemistry and Western blots, we tested the hypothesis that this vulnerability to free radical toxicity results, in part, from developmental lack of superoxide dismutases (SOD)-1 and -2, catalase, and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) in the telencephalic white matter of the human fetus. During the period of greatest PVL risk and through term (> or = 37 weeks), expression of both SODs (for conversion of O2- to H2O2) significantly lagged behind that of catalase and GPx (for breakdown of H2O2), which, in contrast, superseded adult levels by 30 gestational weeks. Our data indicate that a developmental "mismatch" in the sequential antioxidant enzyme cascade likely contributes to the vulnerability to free radical toxicity of the immature cerebral white matter, which is "unprepared" for the transition from a hypoxic intrauterine to an oxygen-rich postnatal environment. All enzymes, localized to astrocytes and OLs, had higher-than-adult expression at 2 to 5 postnatal months (peak of myelin sheath synthesis), suggesting an adaptive mechanism to protect against lipid peroxidation during myelin sheath (lipid) synthesis. The previously unrecognized dissociation between the expression of the SODs and that of catalase and GPx in the fetal period has potential implications for future antioxidant therapy in PVL.

Aged↗

PubMed2004

Elevation of intracellular cAMP evokes activity-dependent release of adenosine in cultured rat forebrain neurons.

Adenosine is an important regulator of neuronal excitability. Zaprinast is a cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterase inhibitor, and has been shown in the hippocampal slice to suppress excitation. This action can be blocked by an adenosine receptor antagonist, and therefore is presumably due to adenosine release stimulated by exposure to zaprinast. To explore the mechanism of this phenomenon further, we examined the effect of zaprinast on adenosine release itself in cultured rat forebrain neurons. Zaprinast significantly stimulated extracellular adenosine accumulation. The effect of zaprinast on adenosine appeared to be mediated by increasing intracellular cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) and activation of protein kinase A (PKA): (i) zaprinast stimulated intracellular cAMP accumulation; (ii) a cAMP antagonist (Rp-8-Br-cAMP) significantly reduced the zaprinast effect on adenosine; (iii) an inhibitor of phosphodiesterase (PDE)1 (vinpocetine) and an activator of adenylate cyclase (forskolin) mimicked the effect of zaprinast on adenosine. We also found that zaprinast had no effect on adenosine in astrocyte cultures, and tetrodotoxin completely blocked zaprinast-evoked adenosine accumulation in neuronal cultures, suggesting that neuronal activity was likely to be involved. Consistent with a dependence on neuronal activity, NMDA receptor antagonists (MK-801 and D-APV) and removal of extracellular glutamate by glutamate-pyruvate transaminase blocked the effect of zaprinast. In addition, zaprinast was shown to stimulate glutamate release. Thus, our data suggest that zaprinast-evoked adenosine accumulation is likely to be mediated by stimulation of glutamate release by a cAMP- and PKA-dependent mechanism, most likely by inhibition of PDE1 in neurons. Furthermore, regulation of cAMP, either by inhibiting cAMP-PDE activity or by stimulating adenylate cyclase activity, may play an important role in modulating neuronal excitability. These data suggest the existence of a homeostatic negative feedback loop in which increases in neuronal activity are damped by release of adenosine following activation of glutamate receptors.

Adenosine↗

PubMed2004

Developmental up-regulation of MnSOD in rat oligodendrocytes confers protection against oxidative injury.

Periventricular leukomalacia, the predominant pathological lesion underlying cerebral palsy in premature infants, is thought to be the result of hypoxic-ischemic injury to the cerebral white matter. The main cell type injured is the developing oligodendrocyte (OL), which has been shown to be more sensitive than mature OLs to both excitotoxic and oxidative mechanisms of injury. A maturation dependence of OL vulnerability to cystine deprivation-induced glutathione depletion has been previously demonstrated in culture. We hypothesized that mitochondria could be involved in this toxicity by generating superoxide and that increased superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity in mature OLs may account for their greater resistance. Cystine deprivation toxicity was found to be associated with mitochondrial dysfunction and intracellular superoxide accumulation in developing OLs. CuZnSOD protein expression and enzyme activity was similar along the OL lineage. In contrast, MnSOD was up-regulated in mature OLs, as manifested by a 53% increase in its expression and a four-fold increase in its activity. Overexpressing MnSOD in developing OLs was associated with a protective effect on mitochondrial membrane potential and a decrease in cell death induced by mild cystine deprivation. The greater challenge presented by total cystine deprivation was resistant to MnSOD overexpression and appeared to be related to hydrogen peroxide toxicity. These data suggest a primary involvement of superoxide in glutathione depletion toxicity in developing OLs, and suggest an important role for MnSOD in the resistance observed in mature OLs.

Adenosine Triphosphate↗

PubMed2004

Nitric oxide-induced cell death in developing oligodendrocytes is associated with mitochondrial dysfunction and apoptosis-inducing factor translocation.

Reactive nitrogen species are thought to be involved in both hypoxic-ischemic and cytokine-induced brain injury, including periventricular leukomalacia (PVL), the major pathological substrate of cerebral palsy in premature infants. PVL appears to be the result of perinatal inflammatory events and hypoxic-ischemic injury to the cerebral white matter. The chronic disturbance of myelination resulting from PVL suggests that developing oligodendrocytes (OLs) are involved in its pathogenesis. We hypothesized that nitric oxide (NO) could participate in the pathogenesis of PVL through a toxic effect on developing OLs. Using primary cultures of highly enriched OLs we found that NO is toxic to developing OLs (O4+, O1-, MBP-), with an EC50 value of 236 +/- 125 microm of DETANOnoate. Peroxynitrite formation does not appear to be involved in NO toxicity in developing OLs, as determined by the failure of peroxynitrite scavengers as well as superoxide dismutase overexpression to prevent NO-induced toxicity. Similarly, several pathways involving PARP, excitotoxicity, guanylyl cyclase and caspase activation were not related to NO toxicity to developing OLs. NO toxicity to OLs resulted in ATP depletion and loss of mitochondrial membrane potential (DeltaPsi) in developing OLs. Apoptosis-inducing factor (AIF) has been shown to be involved in caspase-independent cell death, and we found that AIF translocated from mitochondria into the nucleus upon NO exposure. In conclusion, we suggest that the vulnerability of developing OLs to NO involves mitochondrial dysfunction and translocation of AIF from mitochondria to nuclei.

Animals↗