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Udo MSB, da Silva MAA, de Souza Prates S, Dal'Jovem LF, de Oliveira Duro S, Faião-Flores F, Garcia RCT, Maria-Engler SS, Marcourakis T. Anhydroecgonine methyl ester, a cocaine pyrolysis product, contributes to cocaine-induced rat primary hippocampal neuronal death in a synergistic and time-dependent manner. Arch Toxicol 2021; 95:1779-1791. [PMID: 33674969 DOI: 10.1007/s00204-021-03017-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2020] [Accepted: 02/25/2021] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
Abstract
Crack cocaine users are simultaneously exposed to volatilized cocaine and to its main pyrolysis product, anhydroecgonine methyl ester (AEME). Although the neurotoxic effects of cocaine have been extensively studied, little is known about AEME or its combination. We investigated cell death processes using rat primary hippocampal cells exposed to cocaine (2 mM), AEME (1 mM) and their combination (C + A), after 1, 3, 6 and 12 h. Cocaine increased LC3 I after 6 h and LC3 II after 12 h, but reduced the percentage of cells with acid vesicles, suggesting failure in the autophagic flux, which activated the extrinsic apoptotic pathway after 12 h. AEME neurotoxicity did not involve the autophagic process; rather, it activated caspase-9 after 6 h and caspase-8 after 12 h leading to a high percentage of cells in early apoptosis. C + A progressively reduced the percentage of undamaged cells, starting after 3 h; it activated both apoptotic pathways after 6 h, and was more neurotoxic than cocaine and AEME alone. Also, C + A increased the phosphorylation of p62 after 12 h, but there was little difference in LC3 I or II, and a small percentage of cells with acid vesicles at all time points investigated. In summary, the present study provides new evidence for the neurotoxic mechanism and timing response of each substance alone and in combination, indicating that AEME is more than just a biological marker for crack cocaine consumption, as it may intensify and hasten cocaine neurotoxicity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mariana Sayuri Berto Udo
- Departament of Clinical and Toxicological Analysis, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | | | - Sara de Souza Prates
- Departament of Clinical and Toxicological Analysis, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Leandro Ferreira Dal'Jovem
- Departament of Clinical and Toxicological Analysis, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Stephanie de Oliveira Duro
- Departament of Clinical and Toxicological Analysis, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Fernanda Faião-Flores
- Departament of Clinical and Toxicological Analysis, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Raphael Caio Tamborelli Garcia
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Institute of Environmental, Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Federal University of São Paulo, Diadema, SP, Brazil
| | - Silvya Stuchi Maria-Engler
- Departament of Clinical and Toxicological Analysis, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Tania Marcourakis
- Departament of Clinical and Toxicological Analysis, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil.
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