Culture of central nervous system neurons on electrospun polymer fiber-covered surfaces

University of Patras;University of Ioannina;National Technical University of Athens;University of Thessaly;Univ. Ioannina, Unit Med. Technol. Intelligent Inf. Syst.10th IEEE International Workshop on Biomedical Engineering, BioEng 2011 -- 5 October 2011 through 7 October 2011 -- Kos Island -- 87603As the world population ages, the need for alternative therapies for neurodegenerative diseases is increasing. Neuronal tissue engineering is one of the most promising methods for creating in vitro disease models and therapies as well as regeneration of lost brain tissue due to neurodegenerative diseases. But due to inherent difficulties of culturing neurons and glia in vitro, studies in this field proceeds slowly. Our aim is to produce surfaces that nerve cells can attach and grow on in vitro. Electrospun chitosan fibers that are shown to be suitable for neurons to grow were produced in three different chemical compositions. New born hippocampal neurons and PC12 model cells were cultured on these surfaces and their interaction with the surfaces were investigated. The cells interact with electrospun fibers and these surfaces can be used for cell replacement in future clinical applications, providing new possibilities to treat human neurodegenerative diseases. © 2011 IEEE

Cocaine- And amphetamine-regulated transcript promoter regulated by nicotine in nerve growth factor-treated PC12 cells

PubMed: 315641172-s2.0-85073124852Nicotine and cocaine- and amphetamine-regulated transcripts (CART) have several overlapping functions, such as the regulation of reward, feeding behavior, stress response, and anxiety. Previous studies showed that nicotine regulates CART expression in various brain regions. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying this regulation are not known. This study investigated the regulatory effect of nicotine on promoter activity of the CART gene in PC12 cells, which were differentiated into a neuronal phenotype by nerve growth factor (NGF) treatment. Two vectors containing reporter genes (Gaussia luciferase or mCherry) and the 1,140-bp upstream of the transcriptional start site of the mouse CART gene are used to analyze the CART promoter activity. Transient transfection of PC12 cells with either vector displayed strong promoter activity in both undifferentiated and differentiated PC12 cells. CART promoter activity in the PC12 cell line is increased by forskolin or NGF treatment. In differentiated PC12 cells, exposure to 50 nM nicotine for 6 h increased CART promoter activity. However, treatment with higher nicotine doses for 6 h and treatment with all nicotine doses for 24 h showed no effect. A nicotine concentration of 50 nM is comparable to brain nicotine levels experienced by chronic smokers over long periods of time. Taken together, these data indicate that nicotine may exert some of its actions through the regulation of CART transcription in the brain. © 2019 Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest.Ege ÜniversitesiThis work presents the results of Muzeyyen Ugur’s Master’s thesis, which was supported by Ege University Research Fund Grant13-SBE-006