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He GQ, Chen Y, Liao HJ, Xu WM, Zhang W, He GL. Associations between Huwe1 and autophagy in rat cerebral neuron oxygen‑glucose deprivation and reperfusion injury. Mol Med Rep 2020; 22:5083-5094. [PMID: 33173969 PMCID: PMC7646962 DOI: 10.3892/mmr.2020.11611] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/11/2019] [Accepted: 07/15/2020] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Autophagy and the ubiquitin proteasome system (UPS) are two major protein degradation pathways involved in brain ischemia. Autophagy can compensate for UPS impairment-induced cellular dysfunction. HECT, UBA and WWE domain containing E3 ubiquitin protein ligase 1 (Huwe1), an E3 ubiquitin ligase, serves critical roles in nervous system plasticity, regeneration and disease. However, the role of Huwe1 in autophagy in brain ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury remains unknown. The aim of the present study was to investigate the crosstalk between autophagy and the UPS in brain ischemia. The present study established an oxygen-glucose deprivation and reperfusion (OGD/R) model in rat primary cortex neurons in vitro. Lentiviral interference was used to silence the expression of Huwe1. An autophagy promoter (rapamycin), an autophagy inhibitor (wortmannin) and a JNK pathway inhibitor (SP600125) were also used in the current study. Cellular autophagy-related proteins, including Beclin-1, autophagy related (ATG) 7, ATG5, ATG3 and microtubule associated protein 1 light chain 3 α, and apoptosis-related proteins, such as P53, cleaved caspase 3, Bax and Bcl2, were detected via western blotting and immunocytochemistry. Neuronal apoptosis was evaluated using a TUNEL assay. The results demonstrated that silencing Huwe1 increased the expression levels of autophagy-related proteins at 24 h after OGD/R. Treatment with a JNK inhibitor or cotreatment with Huwe1 shRNA significantly increased autophagy. Rapamycin increased apoptosis under OGD/R conditions. However, treatment with Huwe1 shRNA decreased the number of TUNEL-positive cells at 24 h after OGD/R. Cotreatment with Huwe1 shRNA and wortmannin alleviated neuronal apoptosis under OGD/R conditions compared with cotreatment with DMSO. Collectively, the present results suggested that silencing Huwe1 was accompanied by a compensatory induction of autophagy under OGD/R conditions. Furthermore, the JNK pathway may be a key mediator of the interaction between Huwe1 and autophagy in response to UPS impairment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guo-Qian He
- Key Laboratory of Birth Defects and Related Diseases of Women and Children, Ministry of Education, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, P.R. China
| | - Yan Chen
- Key Laboratory of Birth Defects and Related Diseases of Women and Children, Ministry of Education, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, P.R. China
| | - Hui-Juan Liao
- Key Laboratory of Birth Defects and Related Diseases of Women and Children, Ministry of Education, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, P.R. China
| | - Wen-Ming Xu
- Key Laboratory of Birth Defects and Related Diseases of Women and Children, Ministry of Education, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, P.R. China
| | - Wei Zhang
- Department of Medical Oncology, Sichuan Cancer Hospital and Institute, Sichuan Cancer Center, Cancer Hospital Affiliated to School of Medicine, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, P.R. China
| | - Guo-Lin He
- Key Laboratory of Birth Defects and Related Diseases of Women and Children, Ministry of Education, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, P.R. China
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Hanas JS, Hocker JRS, Lerner MR, Couch JR. Distinguishing and phenotype monitoring of traumatic brain injury and post-concussion syndrome including chronic migraine in serum of Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans. PLoS One 2019; 14:e0215762. [PMID: 31026304 PMCID: PMC6485717 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0215762] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/10/2018] [Accepted: 04/08/2019] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and persistent post-concussion syndrome (PCS) including chronic migraine (CM) are major health issues for civilians and the military. It is important to understand underlying biochemical mechanisms of these conditions, and be able to monitor them in an accurate and minimally invasive manner. This study describes the initial use of a novel serum analytical platform to help distinguish TBI patients, including those with post-traumatic headache (PTH), and to help identify phenotypes at play in these disorders. The hypothesis is that physiological responses to disease states like TBI and PTH and related bodily stresses are reflected in biomolecules in the blood in disease-specific manner. Leave one out (serum sample) cross validations (LOOCV) and sample randomizations were utilized to distinguished serum samples from the following TBI patient groups: TBI +PTSD + CM + severe depression (TBI "most affected" group) vs healthy controls, TBI "most affected" vs TBI, TBI vs controls, TBI + CM vs controls, and TBI + CM vs TBI. Inter-group discriminatory p values were ≤ 10-10, and sample group randomizations resulted in p non-significant values. Peptide/protein identifications of discriminatory mass peaks from the TBI "most affected" vs controls and from the TBI plus vs TBI minus CM groups yielded information of the cellular/molecular effects of these disorders (immune responses, amyloidosis/Alzheimer's disease/dementia, neuronal development). More specific biochemical disease effects appear to involve blood brain barrier, depression, migraine headache, autoimmunity, and autophagy pathways. This study demonstrated the ability for the first time of a novel, accurate, biomarker platform to monitor these conditions in serum, and help identify biochemical relationships leading to better understanding of these disorders and to potential therapeutic approaches.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jay S. Hanas
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Oklahoma College of Medicine, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States of America
- Department of Surgery, University of Oklahoma College of Medicine, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States of America
- Veterans Administration Hospital, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States of America
| | - James R. S. Hocker
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Oklahoma College of Medicine, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States of America
| | - Megan R. Lerner
- Department of Surgery, University of Oklahoma College of Medicine, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States of America
| | - James R. Couch
- Department of Neurology, University of Oklahoma College of Medicine, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States of America
- Department of Neurology, Veterans Administration Hospital, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States of America
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Vandenbark AA, Meza-Romero R, Benedek G, Offner H. A novel neurotherapeutic for multiple sclerosis, ischemic injury, methamphetamine addiction, and traumatic brain injury. J Neuroinflammation 2019; 16:14. [PMID: 30683115 PMCID: PMC6346590 DOI: 10.1186/s12974-018-1393-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/17/2018] [Accepted: 12/27/2018] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Neurovascular, autoimmune, and traumatic injuries of the central nervous system (CNS) all have in common an initial acute inflammatory response mediated by influx across the blood-brain barrier of activated mononuclear cells followed by chronic and often progressive disability. Although some anti-inflammatory therapies can reduce cellular infiltration into the initial lesions, there are essentially no effective treatments for the progressive phase. We here review the successful treatment of animal models for four separate neuroinflammatory and neurodegenerative CNS conditions using a single partial MHC class II construct called DRa1-hMOG-35-55 or its newest iteration, DRa1(L50Q)-hMOG-35-55 (DRhQ) that can be administered without a need for class II tissue type matching due to the conserved DRα1 moiety of the drug. These constructs antagonize the cognate TCR and bind with high affinity to their cell-bound CD74 receptor on macrophages and dendritic cells, thereby competitively inhibiting downstream signaling and pro-inflammatory effects of macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) and its homolog, d-dopachrome tautomerase (D-DT=MIF-2) that bind to identical residues of CD74 leading to progressive disease. These effects suggest the existence of a common pathogenic mechanism involving a chemokine-driven influx of activated monocytes into the CNS tissue that can be reversed by parenteral injection of the DRa1-MOG-35-55 constructs that also induce anti-inflammatory macrophages and microglia within the CNS. Due to their ability to block this common pathway, these novel drugs appear to be prime candidates for therapy of a wide range of neuroinflammatory and neurodegenerative CNS conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arthur A Vandenbark
- Neuroimmunology Research, R&D-31, VA Portland Health Care System, 3710 SW U.S. Veterans Hospital Rd., Portland, OR, 97239, USA. .,Department of Neurology, Oregon Health & Science University, 3181 SW Sam Jackson Park Rd, Portland, OR, 97239, USA. .,Department of Molecular Microbiology & Immunology, Oregon Health & Science University, 3181 SW Sam Jackson Park Rd, Portland, OR, 97239, USA.
| | - Roberto Meza-Romero
- Neuroimmunology Research, R&D-31, VA Portland Health Care System, 3710 SW U.S. Veterans Hospital Rd., Portland, OR, 97239, USA.,Department of Neurology, Oregon Health & Science University, 3181 SW Sam Jackson Park Rd, Portland, OR, 97239, USA
| | - Gil Benedek
- Present Address: Tissue Typing and Immunogenetics Laboratory, Hadassah Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Halina Offner
- Neuroimmunology Research, R&D-31, VA Portland Health Care System, 3710 SW U.S. Veterans Hospital Rd., Portland, OR, 97239, USA.,Department of Neurology, Oregon Health & Science University, 3181 SW Sam Jackson Park Rd, Portland, OR, 97239, USA.,Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, Oregon Health & Science University, 3181 SW Sam Jackson Park Rd, Portland, OR, 97239, USA
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He GQ, Xu WM, Liao HJ, Jiang C, Li CQ, Zhang W. Silencing Huwe1 reduces apoptosis of cortical neurons exposed to oxygen-glucose deprivation and reperfusion. Neural Regen Res 2019; 14:1977-1985. [PMID: 31290456 PMCID: PMC6676871 DOI: 10.4103/1673-5374.259620] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
HECT, UBA and WWE domain-containing 1 (Huwe1), an E3 ubiquitin ligase involved in the ubiquitin-proteasome system, is widely expressed in brain tissue. Huwe1 is involved in the turnover of numerous substrates, including p53, Mcl-1, Cdc6 and N-myc, thereby playing a critical role in apoptosis and neurogenesis. However, the role of Huwe1 in brain ischemia and reperfusion injury remains unclear. Therefore, in this study, we investigated the role of Huwe1 in an in vitro model of ischemia and reperfusion injury. At 3 days in vitro, primary cortical neurons were transduced with a control or shRNA-Huwe1 lentiviral vector to silence expression of Huwe1. At 7 days in vitro, the cells were exposed to oxygen-glucose deprivation for 3 hours and reperfusion for 24 hours. To examine the role of the c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK)/p38 pathway, cortical neurons were pretreated with a JNK inhibitor (SP600125) or a p38MAPK inhibitor (SB203508) for 30 minutes at 7 days in vitro, followed by ischemia and reperfusion. Neuronal apoptosis was assessed by TUNEL assay. Protein expression levels of JNK and p38MAPK and of apoptosis-related proteins (p53, Gadd45a, cleaved caspase-3, Bax and Bcl-2) were measured by western blot assay. Immunofluorescence labeling for cleaved caspase-3 was performed. We observed a significant increase in neuronal apoptosis and Huwe1 expression after ischemia and reperfusion. Treatment with the shRNA-Huwe1 lentiviral vector markedly decreased Huwe1 levels, and significantly decreased the number of TUNEL-positive cells after ischemia and reperfusion. The silencing vector also downregulated the pro-apoptotic proteins Bax and cleaved caspase-3, and upregulated the anti-apoptotic proteins Gadd45a and Bcl-2. Silencing Huwe1 also significantly reduced p-JNK levels and increased p-p38 levels. Our findings show that downregulating Huwe1 affects the JNK and p38MAPK signaling pathways as well as the expression of apoptosis-related genes to provide neuroprotection during ischemia and reperfusion. All animal experiments and procedures were approved by the Animal Ethics Committee of Sichuan University, China in January 2018 (approval No. 2018013).
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Affiliation(s)
- Guo-Qian He
- Department of Pediatrics, Key Laboratory of Birth Defects and Related Diseases of Women and Children (Sichuan University), Ministry of Education, West China Second University Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China
| | - Wen-Ming Xu
- Joint Laboratory of Reproductive Medicine, Key Laboratory of Birth Defects and Related Diseases of Women and Children (Sichuan University), Ministry of Education, West China Second University Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China
| | - Hui-Juan Liao
- Joint Laboratory of Reproductive Medicine, Key Laboratory of Birth Defects and Related Diseases of Women and Children (Sichuan University), Ministry of Education, West China Second University Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China
| | - Chuan Jiang
- Joint Laboratory of Reproductive Medicine, Key Laboratory of Birth Defects and Related Diseases of Women and Children (Sichuan University), Ministry of Education, West China Second University Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China
| | - Chang-Qing Li
- Department of Neurology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Wei Zhang
- Department of Medical Oncology, Sichuan Cancer Hospital & Institute, Sichuan Cancer Center, Cancer Hospital Affiliated to School of Medicine, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China
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Jiang X, Yang J, Li H, Qu Y, Xu W, Yu H, Tong Y. Huwe1 is a novel mediator of protection of neural progenitor L2.3 cells against oxygen‑glucose deprivation injury. Mol Med Rep 2018; 18:4595-4602. [PMID: 30221657 DOI: 10.3892/mmr.2018.9430] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2017] [Accepted: 07/25/2018] [Indexed: 11/05/2022] Open
Abstract
Hypoxic‑ischemic encephalopathy is one of the most notable causes of brain injury in newborns. Cerebral ischemia and reperfusion lead to neuronal damage and neurological disability. In vitro and in vivo analyses have indicated that E3 ubiquitin protein ligase (Huwe1) is important for the process of neurogenesis during brain development; however, the exact biological function and the underlying mechanism of Huwe1 remain controversial. In the present study, neural progenitor cells, L2.3, of which we previously generated from rat E14.5 cortex, were used to investigate the role of Huwe1 and its effects on the downstream N‑Myc‑Delta‑like 3‑Notch1 signaling pathway during oxygen‑glucose deprivation (OGD). To evaluate the role of Huwe1 in L2.3 cells, transduction, cell viability, lactate dehydrogenase, 5‑bromo‑2'deoxyurine incorporation, western blotting and immunocytochemical assays were performed. The results of the present study indicated that Huwe1 rescued L2.3 cells from OGD‑induced insults by inhibiting proliferation and inducing neuronal differentiation. In addition, Huwe1 was suggested to mediate the survival of L2.3 cells by inhibiting the activation of the N‑Myc‑Notch1 signaling pathway. Of note, the effects of Huwe1 on Notch1 signaling were completely abolished by knockdown of N‑Myc, indicating that Huwe1 may require N‑Myc to suppress the activation of the Notch1 signaling in L2.3 cells. The determination of the neuroprotective function of the Huwe1‑N‑Myc‑Notch1 axis may provide insight into novel potential therapeutic targets for the treatment of ischemic stroke.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoqin Jiang
- Department of Anesthesiology, West China Second Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, P.R. China
| | - Jiyun Yang
- Center for Human Molecular Biology and Genetics, Institute of Laboratory Medicine, The Key Laboratory for Human Disease Gene Study of Sichuan, Sichuan Academy of Medical Sciences and Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, P.R. China
| | - Hedong Li
- Department of Pediatrics, West China Second University Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, P.R. China
| | - Yi Qu
- Department of Pediatrics, West China Second University Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, P.R. China
| | - Wenming Xu
- Department of Pediatrics, West China Second University Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, P.R. China
| | - Haiyan Yu
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, West China Second Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, P.R. China
| | - Yu Tong
- Department of Pediatrics, West China Second University Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, P.R. China
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He GQ, Xu WM, Li JF, Li SS, Liu B, Tan XD, Li CQ. Huwe1 interacts with Gadd45b under oxygen-glucose deprivation and reperfusion injury in primary Rat cortical neuronal cells. Mol Brain 2015; 8:88. [PMID: 26698301 PMCID: PMC4690333 DOI: 10.1186/s13041-015-0178-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/27/2015] [Accepted: 12/08/2015] [Indexed: 01/31/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Growth arrest and DNA-damage inducible protein 45 beta (Gadd45b) is serving as a neuronal activity sensor. Brain ischemia induces the expression of Gadd45b, which stimulates recovery after stroke and may play a protective role in cerebral ischemia. However, little is known of the molecular mechanisms of how Gadd45b expression regulated and the down-stream targets in brain ischemia. Here, using an oxygen-glucose deprivation and reperfusion (OGD/R) model, we identified Huwe1/Mule/ARF-BP1, a HECT domain containing ubiquitin ligase, involved in the control of Gadd45b protein level. In this study, we also investigated the role of Huwe1-Gadd45b mediated pathway in BDNF methylation. Results We found that the depletion of Huwe1 by lentivirus shRNA mediated interference significantly increased the expression of Gadd45b and BDNF at 24 h after OGD. Moreover, treatment with Cycloheximide (CHX) inhibited endogenous expression of Gadd45b, and promoted expression of Gadd45b after co-treated with lentivirus shRNA-Huwe1. Inhibition of Gadd45b by lentivirus shRNA decreased the expression levels of brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and phosphorylated cAMP response element-binding protein (p-CREB) pathway, while inhibition of Huwe1 increased the expression levels of BDNF and p-CREB. Moreover, shRNA-Huwe1 treatment decreased the methylation level of the fifth CpG islands (123 bp apart from BDNF IXa), while shRNA-Gadd45b treatment increased the methylation level of the forth CpG islands (105 bp apart from BDNF IXa). Conclusions These findings suggested that Huwe1 involved in the regulation of Gadd45b expression under OGD/R, providing a novel route for neurons following cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury. It also indicated that the methylation of BDNF IXa was affected by Gadd45b as well as Huwe1 in the OGD/R model. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13041-015-0178-y) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guo-qian He
- Department of Neurology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, 400010, China.
| | - Wen-ming Xu
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Joint Laboratory of Reproductive Medicine, Sichuan University-The Chinese University of Hongkong Joint Laboratory for Reproductive Medicine (SCU-CUHK), Institute of Women and Children's Health, West China Second University Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610041, China.
| | - Jin-fang Li
- Department of Neurology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, 400010, China.
| | - Shuai-shuai Li
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Joint Laboratory of Reproductive Medicine, Sichuan University-The Chinese University of Hongkong Joint Laboratory for Reproductive Medicine (SCU-CUHK), Institute of Women and Children's Health, West China Second University Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610041, China.
| | - Bin Liu
- Department of Neurology, Shandong Provincial Qianfoshan Hospital, Jinan, 250000, China.
| | - Xiao-dan Tan
- Department of Neurology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, 400010, China.
| | - Chang-qing Li
- Department of Neurology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, 400010, China.
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HLA-DRα1-mMOG-35-55 treatment of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis reduces CNS inflammation, enhances M2 macrophage frequency, and promotes neuroprotection. J Neuroinflammation 2015; 12:123. [PMID: 26104759 PMCID: PMC4481122 DOI: 10.1186/s12974-015-0342-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2015] [Accepted: 06/11/2015] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Background DRα1-mouse(m)MOG-35-55, a novel construct developed in our laboratory as a simpler and potentially less immunogenic alternative to two-domain class II constructs, was shown previously to target the MIF/CD74 pathway and to reverse clinical and histological signs of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) in DR*1501-Tg mice in a manner similar to the parent DR2β1-containing construct. Methods In order to determine whether DRα1-mMOG-35-55 could treat EAE in major histocompatibility complex (MHC)-mismatched mice and to evaluate the treatment effect on central nervous system (CNS) inflammation, C57BL/6 mice were treated with DRα1-mMOG-35-55. In addition, gene expression profile was analyzed in spinal cords of EAE DR*1501-Tg mice that were treated with DRα1-mMOG-35-55. Results We here demonstrate that DRα1-mMOG-35-55 could effectively treat EAE in MHC-mismatched C57BL/6 mice by reducing CNS inflammation, potentially mediated in part through an increased frequency of M2 monocytes in the spinal cord. Microarray analysis of spinal cord tissue from DRα1-mMOG-35-55-treated vs. vehicle control mice with EAE revealed decreased expression of a large number of pro-inflammatory genes including CD74, NLRP3, and IL-1β and increased expression of genes involved in myelin repair (MBP) and neuroregeneration (HUWE1). Conclusion These findings indicate that the DRα1-mMOG-35-55 construct retains therapeutic, anti-inflammatory, and neuroprotective activities during treatment of EAE across MHC disparate barriers. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12974-015-0342-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Midbrain dopamine neurons in Parkinson's disease exhibit a dysregulated miRNA and target-gene network. Brain Res 2015; 1618:111-21. [PMID: 26047984 DOI: 10.1016/j.brainres.2015.05.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 83] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2015] [Revised: 05/09/2015] [Accepted: 05/15/2015] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
The degeneration of substantia nigra (SN) dopamine (DA) neurons in sporadic Parkinson׳s disease (PD) is characterized by disturbed gene expression networks. Micro(mi)RNAs are post-transcriptional regulators of gene expression and we recently provided evidence that these molecules may play a functional role in the pathogenesis of PD. Here, we document a comprehensive analysis of miRNAs in SN DA neurons and PD, including sex differences. Our data show that miRNAs are dysregulated in disease-affected neurons and differentially expressed between male and female samples with a trend of more up-regulated miRNAs in males and more down-regulated miRNAs in females. Unbiased Ingenuity Pathway Analysis (IPA) revealed a network of miRNA/target-gene associations that is consistent with dysfunctional gene and signaling pathways in PD pathology. Our study provides evidence for a general association of miRNAs with the cellular function and identity of SN DA neurons, and with deregulated gene expression networks and signaling pathways related to PD pathogenesis that may be sex-specific.
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