Reduction in antioxidant enzyme expression and sustained inflammation enhance tissue damage in the subacute phase of spinal cord contusive injury

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Traumatic spinal cord injury (SCI) forms a disadvantageous microenvironment for tissue repair at the lesion site. To consider an appropriate time window for giving a promising therapeutic treatment for subacute and chronic SCI, global changes of proteins in the injured center at the longer survival time points after SCI remains to be elucidated.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Through two-dimensional electrophoresis (2DE)-based proteome analysis and western blotting, we examined the differential expression of the soluble proteins isolated from the lesion center (LC) at day 1 (acute) and day 14 (subacute) after a severe contusive injury to the thoracic spinal cord at segment 10. In situ apoptotic analysis was used to examine cell apoptosis in injured spinal cord after adenoviral gene transfer of antioxidant enzymes. In addition, administration of chondroitinase ABC (chABC) was performed to analyze hindlimb locomotor recovery in rats with SCI using Basso, Beattie and Bresnahan (BBB) locomotor rating scale.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Our results showed a decline in catalase (CAT) and Mn-superoxide dismutase (MnSOD) found at day 14 after SCI. Accordingly, gene transfer of SOD was introduced in the injured spinal cord and found to attenuate cell apoptosis. Galectin-3, β-actin, actin regulatory protein (CAPG), and F-actin-capping protein subunit β (CAPZB) at day 14 were increased when compared to that detected at day 1 after SCI or in sham-operated control. Indeed, the accumulation of β-actin⁺immune cells was observed in the LC at day 14 post SCI, while most of reactive astrocytes were surrounding the lesion center. In addition, chondroitin sulfate proteoglycans (CSPG)-related proteins with 40-kDa was detected in the LC at day 3-14 post SCI. Delayed treatment with chondroitinase ABC (chABC) at day 3 post SCI improved the hindlimb locomotion in SCI rats.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Our findings demonstrate that the differential expression in proteins related to signal transduction, oxidoreduction and stress contribute to extensive inflammation, causing time-dependent spread of tissue damage after severe SCI. The interventions by supplement of anti-oxidant enzymes right after SCI or delayed administration with chABC can facilitate spinal neural cell survival and tissue repair.</p

Reduction in antioxidant enzyme expression and sustained inflammation enhance tissue damage in the subacute phase of spinal cord contusive injury

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Traumatic spinal cord injury (SCI) forms a disadvantageous microenvironment for tissue repair at the lesion site. To consider an appropriate time window for giving a promising therapeutic treatment for subacute and chronic SCI, global changes of proteins in the injured center at the longer survival time points after SCI remains to be elucidated.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Through two-dimensional electrophoresis (2DE)-based proteome analysis and western blotting, we examined the differential expression of the soluble proteins isolated from the lesion center (LC) at day 1 (acute) and day 14 (subacute) after a severe contusive injury to the thoracic spinal cord at segment 10. In situ apoptotic analysis was used to examine cell apoptosis in injured spinal cord after adenoviral gene transfer of antioxidant enzymes. In addition, administration of chondroitinase ABC (chABC) was performed to analyze hindlimb locomotor recovery in rats with SCI using Basso, Beattie and Bresnahan (BBB) locomotor rating scale.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Our results showed a decline in catalase (CAT) and Mn-superoxide dismutase (MnSOD) found at day 14 after SCI. Accordingly, gene transfer of SOD was introduced in the injured spinal cord and found to attenuate cell apoptosis. Galectin-3, β-actin, actin regulatory protein (CAPG), and F-actin-capping protein subunit β (CAPZB) at day 14 were increased when compared to that detected at day 1 after SCI or in sham-operated control. Indeed, the accumulation of β-actin⁺immune cells was observed in the LC at day 14 post SCI, while most of reactive astrocytes were surrounding the lesion center. In addition, chondroitin sulfate proteoglycans (CSPG)-related proteins with 40-kDa was detected in the LC at day 3-14 post SCI. Delayed treatment with chondroitinase ABC (chABC) at day 3 post SCI improved the hindlimb locomotion in SCI rats.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Our findings demonstrate that the differential expression in proteins related to signal transduction, oxidoreduction and stress contribute to extensive inflammation, causing time-dependent spread of tissue damage after severe SCI. The interventions by supplement of anti-oxidant enzymes right after SCI or delayed administration with chABC can facilitate spinal neural cell survival and tissue repair.</p

Atypical Antipsychotic Drug Olanzapine Deregulates Hepatic Lipid Metabolism and Aortic Inflammation and Aggravates Atherosclerosis

Background/Aims: Olanzapine, an atypical antipsychotic drug, has therapeutic effects for schizophrenia. However, clinical reports indicate that patients taking atypical antipsychotic drugs are at high risk of metabolic syndrome with unclear mechanisms. We investigated the effect of olanzapine on atherosclerosis and the mechanisms in apolipoprotein E-null (apoE-/-) mice. Methods: ApoE-/- mice were used as in vivo models. Western blot analysis was used to evaluate protein expression. Conventional assay kits were applied to assess the levels of cholesterol, triglycerides, free cholesterol, cholesteryl ester, fatty acids, glycerol, and cytokines. Results: Daily treatment with olanzapine (3 mg/kg body weight) for four weeks increased mean arterial blood pressure and the whitening of brown adipose tissue in mice. In addition, olanzapine impaired aortic cholesterol homeostasis and exacerbated hyperlipidemia and aortic inflammation, which accelerated atherosclerosis in mice. Moreover, lipid accumulation in liver, particularly total cholesterol, free cholesterol, fatty acids, and glycerol, was increased with olanzapine treatment in apoE-/- mice by upregulating the expression of de novo lipid synthesis-related proteins and downregulating that of cholesterol clearance- or very low-density lipoprotein secretion-related proteins. Conclusion: Olanzapine may exacerbate atherosclerosis by deregulating hepatic lipid metabolism and worsening hyperlipidemia and aortic inflammation

Ligand-Activated Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptor- Protects Against Ischemic Cerebral Infarction and Neuronal Apoptosis by 14-3-3 Upregulation

Thiazolidinediones (TZD) were reported to protect against ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury. Their protective actions are considered to be PPAR-γ (peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ)-dependent. However, it is unclear how PPAR-γ activation confers resistance to I/R

Molecular and evolutionary genetics of the X-linked visual pigment genes in humans and New World monkeys

Normal humans have one red and at least one green visual pigment genes. These genes are tightly linked as tandem repeats on the X chromosome and each of them has six exons. There is only one X-linked visual pigment gene in New World monkeys (NWMs) but the locus has three polymorphic alleles encoding red, yellow and green visual pigments, respectively. The spectral properties of the squirrel monkey and the marmoset (both NWMs) have been studied and partial sequences of the three alleles are available. To study the evolutionary history of these X-linked opsin genes in humans and NWMs, coding and intron sequences of the three squirrel monkey alleles and the three marmoset alleles were amplified by PCR followed by subcloning and sequencing. Introns 2 and 4 of the human red and green pigment genes were also sequenced. The results obtained are as follows: (1) The sequences of introns 2 and 4 of the human red and green opsin genes are significantly more similar between the two genes than are coding sequences, contrary to the usual situation where coding regions are better conserved in evolution than are introns. The high similarities in the two introns are probably due to recent gene conversion events during evolution of the human lineage. (2) Phylogenetic analysis of both intron and exon sequences indicates that the phylogenetic tree of the available primate opsin genes is the same as the species tree. The two human genes were derived from a gene duplication event after the divergence of the human and NWM lineages. The three alleles in each of the two NWM species diverged after the split of the two NWMs but have persisted in the population for at least 5 million years. (3) Allelic gene conversion might have occurred between the three squirrel monkey alleles. (4) A model of additive effect of hydroxyl-bearing amino acids on spectral tuning is proposed by treating some unknown variables as groups. Under the assumption that some residues have no effect, it is found that at least five amino acid residues, at positions 178 (3 nm), 180 (5 nm), 230 ($-$4 nm), 277 (9 nm) and 285 (13 nm), have linear spectral tuning effects. (5) Adaptive evolution of the opsin genes to different spectral peaks was observed at four residues that are important for spectral tuning