Increased Phosphorylation of Ets-like Transcription Factor-1 in Neurons of Hypoxic Preconditioned Mice

Alpha-synuclein differentially reduces surface expression of N-methyl-d-aspartate receptors in the aging human brain

The aging brain is associated with reduced cell surface expression of N-methyl-d-aspartate receptors (NMDARs), but the mechanism remains poorly understood. In the present study, we showed that in the striatum and hippocampus but not the cerebellum and parietal cortex, levels of α-synuclein monomers and oligomers increased with age, which correlated negatively with the expression of GluN1, and positively with the expression of total Rab5B. The oligomer-α-synuclein exhibited a stronger correlation with the expression of surface GluN1 and total Rab5B. In MES23.5 cells, the monomer- or oligomer-α-synuclein were shown to increase in a manner dependent on the concentrations of the added monomers and oligomers. Again, the oligomer-α-synuclein showed more potent effects than the monomer-α-synuclein on surface GluN1 and total Rab5B expression. Accordingly, the oligomer-treated cells showed a greater reduction in NMDA-evoked Ca²⁺ influx than the monomer-treated cells, which was largely inhibited by pistop2, a clathrin inhibitor. These results suggest that the age-dependent accumulation of α-synuclein monomers and oligomers differentially contributes to the reduction in surface NMDAR expression in selective brain regions.

Analysis of long non-coding RNA expression profiles in neonatal rats with hypoxic-ischemic brain damage

Hypoxic-ischemic brain damage (HIBD) which is a common cause of acute mortality and neurological dysfunction in neonates still lacks effective therapeutic methods. Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) were demonstrated to play a crucial role in many diseases. To give a foundation for subsequent functional studies of lncRNAs in HIBD, we investigated the profiling of lncRNAs and messenger RNAs (mRNAs) using neonatal HIBD rat model. Six neonatal rats were divided into sham-operated group (n = 3) and HIBD group (n = 3) randomly. Deep RNA sequencing was implemented to find out the meaningful lncRNAs and mRNAs. Quantitative real-time PCR was used to validate expressions of lncRNAs and mRNAs. The Gene Ontology (GO) and kyoto encyclopedia of genes a genomes (KEGG) database were used to predict functions of lncRNAs. A total of 328 differentially expressed lncRNAs (177 down-regulated vs 151 up-regulated) and 7157 differentially expressed mRNAs (2552 down-regulated vs 4605 up-regulated) were identified. The Quantitative real-time PCR results showed significant differential expressions of five lncRNAs and five mRNAs which were consistent with the RNA-Seq data. Gene ontology and KEGG analysis showed these lncRNAs and their expression-correlated mRNAs were closely related to the Janus tyrosine kinase-signal transducer and activator of transcription (JAK-STAT) signaling pathway, NF-kappa B signaling pathway, Toll-like receptor signaling pathway, calcium signaling pathway, Notch signaling pathway, mitogen activated protein kinase signaling pathway, neuroactive ligand-receptor interaction pathway and more. The results of our study identified the characterization and expression profiles of lncRNAs in neonatal HIBD and may be a basis for further therapeutic research. OPEN SCIENCE BADGES: This article has received a badge for *Open Materials* and *Open Data* because it provided all relevant information to reproduce the study in the manuscript and because it made the data publicly available. The data can be accessed at https://osf.io/yf3da/. The complete Open Science Disclosure form for this article can be found at the end of the article. More information about the Open Practices badges can be found at https://cos.io/our-services/open-science-badges/.

Alpha-synuclein overexpression increases phospho-protein phosphatase 2A levels via formation of calmodulin/Src complex

Alpha-synuclein (α-Syn) is the principal protein component of Lewy bodies, a pathological hallmark of Parkinson's disease (PD). This protein may regulate protein phosphatase 2A (PP2A) activity, although the molecular mechanisms for α-Syn-mediated regulation of PP2A and the potential neuroprotective actions of PP2A against PD-associated pathology remain largely unexplored. We found that α-Syn gene overexpression in SK-N-SH cells and primary neurons led to PP2A/C phosphorylation at Y307, a known target of Src kinase, and consequent phosphatase inhibition. In addition, phospho-activated Src (p-Y416 Src, pSrc) was higher in SK-N-SH cells and primary neurons overexpressing α-Syn. Thus, α-Syn may promote Src activation and PP2A inactivation, leading to hyperphosphorylation of proteins. Immunoprecipitation revealed higher calmodulin/Src complex formation in α-Syn-overexpressing cells and α-Syn transgenic mice. A TUNEL apoptosis assay and an MTT cell viability assay demonstrated that the PP2A activator C2-ceramide protected neurons against α-Syn-induced cell injury. Buffering the Ca(2+) elevations induced by α-Syn overexpression ameliorated the cytotoxicity of α-Syn. Our findings define a potential molecular mechanism for α-Syn-mediated regulation of PP2A through formation of the calmodulin/Src complex, activation of Src, and Src-mediated phospho-inhibition of PP2A. Overexpression of α-Syn may lead to neurodegeneration in PD in part by suppressing the endogenous neuroprotective activity of PP2A.

Phosphorylation of p38 MAPK mediates hypoxic preconditioning-induced neuroprotection against cerebral ischemic injury via mitochondria translocation of Bcl-xL in mice

Hypoxic preconditioning (HPC) initiates intracellular signaling pathway to provide protection, but the role of p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (p38 MAPK) in HPC-induced neuroprotection against cerebral ischemic injuries is a matter of debate. In this study, we found that HPC could reduce 6h middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO)-induced infarct volume, edema ratio and cell apoptosis, as well as enhancing the up-regulated p38 MAPK phosphorylation (P-p38 MAPK) levels in the peri-infarct region of mice after 6h MCAO. However, intracerebroventricular injection of p38 MAPK inhibitor SB203580 abolished this HPC-induced neuroprotection. HPC significantly increased the translocation of anti-apoptotic Bcl-2-related protein Bcl-xL from the cytosol to the mitochondria in the peri-infarct region of MCAO mice. Interestingly, the results of reciprocal immunoprecipitation showed that Bcl-xL and P-p38 MAPK were coimmunoprecipitated reciprocally only in the peri-infarct region of HPC and MCAO treated mice, while Bcl-xL and total p38 (T-p38 MAPK), not P-p38 MAPK, could be coimmunoprecipited by each other in the brain of normal control mice. In addition, we found SB203580 significantly decreased P-p38 MAPK levels, and inhibited HPC-induced mitochondria translocation of Bcl-xL in the brain of HPC and MCAO treated mice. Taken together, our findings suggested that P-p38 MAPK mediates HPC-induced neuroprotection against cerebral ischemic injury via mitochondria translocation of Bcl-xL, which might be a key anti-cell apoptotic mechanism of HPC.

The role of ERK-1/2 in the N/OFQ-induced inhibition of delayed rectifier potassium currents

Nociceptin/orphanin FQ (N/OFQ) is an endogenous opioid-like heptadecapeptide involved in many neurocognitive functions, including learning and memory. Our previous report showed that N/OFQ inhibits the delayed rectifier potassium current (I(K)), and this effect is associated with protein kinase C (PKC) activation. Therefore, we wanted to determine if extracellular signal-regulated kinase-1/2 (ERK-1/2) signaling is regulated by N/OFQ and associated with the effect of N/OFQ on the I(K). In the current study, we tested if N/OFQ and two PKC activators [phorbol 12,13-dibutyrate (PDBu) and ingenol 3,20-dibenzoate (IDB)] affected the phosphorylation level of ERK-1/2 and its nuclear substrate, ETS-like transcription factor-1 (Elk-1), using western blots. In addition, we tested if ERK-1/2 affected the N/OFQ-induced inhibition of the I(K) by using whole-cell patch-clamp recordings in acutely dissociated rat parietal cortical neurons. We found that N/OFQ, PDBu, and IDB increased the amount of phosphorylated ERK-1/2 and Elk-1; U0126, a specific inhibitor for ERK-1/2, attenuated the inhibitory effect of N/OFQ on the I(K). These data suggest that the ERK-1/2 pathway, at least in part, mediates the inhibitory effect of N/OFQ on the I(K) in acutely dissociated rat cerebral parietal cortical neurons.