Rapid decline in protein kinase Cgamma levels in the synaptosomal fraction of rat hippocampus after ischemic preconditioning.

Neurons can be preconditioned against ischemic damage by a brief sublethal period of ischemia, applied several days before the second insult. Here we report on changes in the distribution and the levels of protein kinase Cgamma (PKCgamma) in nonconditioned and preconditioned rat hippocampal CA1 and neocortex regions after a 9 min ischemic episode induced by two-vessel occlusion ischemia. At the end of the second ischemia we found significantly lower levels of PKCgamma in the CA1 region but not neocortex of preconditioned brains than in non-conditioned brains. Protein kinase Cgamma levels in both CA1 and neocortex decrease simultaneously in the cytosolic fractions. We conclude that PKCgamma is translocated to cell membranes during ischemia and is rapidly removed or degraded during the second otherwise lethal ischemic insult in preconditioned brains. The data suggest that ischemic preconditioning enhances downregulation of cell signaling mediated by PKCgamma and may thereby provide neuroprotection.     

Activation of Akt/protein kinase B contributes to induction of ischemic tolerance in the CA1 subfield of gerbil hippocampus.

Apoptosis plays an important role in delayed neuronal cell death after cerebral ischemia. Activation of Akt/protein kinase B has been recently reported to prevent apoptosis in several cell types. In this article the authors examine whether induction of ischemic tolerance resulting from a sublethal ischemic insult requires Akt activation. Sublethal ischemia gradually and persistently stimulated phosphorylation of Akt-Ser-473 in the hippocampal CA1 region after reperfusion. After lethal ischemia, phosphorylation of Akt-Ser-473 showed no obvious decrease in preconditioned gerbils but a marked decrease in nonconditioned gerbils. Changes in Akt-Ser-473 phosphorylation were correlated with changes in Akt activities, as measured by an in vitro kinase assay. Intracerebral ventricular infusion of wortmannin before preconditioning blocked both the increase in Akt-Ser-473 phosphorylation in a dose-dependent manner and the neuroprotective action of preconditioning. These results suggest that Akt activation is induced by a sublethal ischemic insult in gerbil hippocampus and contributes to neuroprotective ischemic tolerance in CA1 pyramidal neurons.     

Protection of rat hippocampus against ischemic neuronal damage by pretreatment with sublethal ischemia

We examined whether preconditioning with sublethal ischemia protects against neuronal damage following subsequent lethal ischemic insults. Forebrain ischemia for 3 min in Wistar rats increased heat shock protein-70 immunoreactivity in the hippocampal CA1 subfield but produced no neuronal damage. Preconditioning with 3 min of ischemia followed by 3 days of reperfusion protected against hippocampal CA1 neuronal damage following 6 and 8 min of ischemia but not damage after 10 min of ischemia. The result strongly suggests that stress response induced by sublethal ischemia protects against ischemic brain damage.     

Changes in protein tyrosine phosphorylation in the rat brain after cerebral ischemia in a model of ischemic tolerance.

A brief period of sublethal cerebral ischemia, followed by several days of recovery, renders the brain resistant to a subsequent lethal ischemic insult, a phenomenon termed ischemic preconditioning or tolerance. Ischemic tolerance was established in the rat two-vessel occlusion model of ischemia, induced by occlusion of both carotid arteries in combination with hypotension. Ischemic preconditioning (3 minutes) provided maximal neuroprotection when induced 2 days prior to a lethal ischemic insult of 9-minute duration. Neuroprotection persisted for at least 8 weeks. Since neurotransmission has been implicated in ischemic cell death, the effect of ischemic preconditioning on tyrosine phosphorylation of proteins and on the levels of glutamate receptor subunits in hippocampus and neocortex was studied. Regional levels of tyrosine phosphorylation of proteins in general and the N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor subunit NR2 in particular are markedly enhanced after ischemia in nonconditioned brains, in both the synaptosomal fraction and the whole-tissue homogenate of rat neocortex and hippocampus, but recover to control levels only in the preconditioned brain. Ischemic preconditioning selectively induces a decrease in the levels of the NR2A and NR2B subunits and a modest decrease in the levels of NR1 subunit proteins in the synaptosomal fraction of the neocortex but not hippocampus after the second lethal ischemia. It was concluded that ischemic preconditioning prevents a persistent change in cell signaling as evidenced by the tyrosine phosphorylation of proteins after the second lethal ischemic insult, which may abrogate the activation of detrimental cellular processes leading to cell death.     

p21Cip1/WAF1 regulates radial axon growth and enhances motor functional recovery in the injured peripheral nervous system

Recent studies have provided evidence that p21Cip1/WAF1 has not only cell cycle-associated activities but also other biological activities like neurite elongation. To investigate the role of p21Cip1/WAF1 in the in vivo axonal regeneration in the peripheral nervous system, we developed a p21Cip1/WAF1 knockout (KO) mice sciatic nerve injury model. We performed quantitative assessments of the functional, histological, and electrophysiological recoveries after sciatic nerve injury in p21Cip1/WAF1 KO mice and compared the results with those of the wild-type mice. p21Cip1/WAF1 KO mice showed a significant delay of the motor functional recovery between 21 and 42 days after sciatic nerve injury. The values of motor conduction velocity in p21Cip1/WAF1 KO mice were significantly lower than those in the wild-type mice on postoperative day 28. The mean percent neural tissue and the mean nerve axon width of p21Cip1/WAF1 KO mice were significantly less than those of the wild-type mice, which was caused by hyperphosphorylation of neurofilaments. Therefore, p21Cip1/WAF1 was considered to be involved in radial axon growth and to be essential for the motor functional recovery following peripheral nervous system injury.     

ATP-sensitive potassium channels (K(ATP)) in retina: a key role for delayed ischemic tolerance

The objectives of the present study were to determine the localization of K(ATP) channels in normal retina and to evaluate their potential roles in ischemic preconditioning (IPC) in a rat model of ischemia induced by increased intraocular pressure (IOP). Brown Norway rats were subjected to sublethal 3-, lethal 20- and 40-min ischemia and the functional recovery was evaluated using electroretinography. The time interval between ischemic insults ranged from 1 to 72 h. The effects of K(ATP) channel blockade on IPC protection were studied by treatment with 0.01% glipizide. IPC was mimicked by injection of K(ATP) channel openers of 0.01% (-)cromakalim or 0.01% P1060 72 h before 20-min ischemia. Co-expression of K(ATP) channel subunits Kir6.2/SUR1 was observed in the retinal pigment epithelium, inner segments of photoreceptors, outer plexiform and ganglion cell layers and at the border of the inner nuclear layer. In contrast to a 20- or 40-min ischemia, a 3-min ischemia induced no alteration of the electroretinogram (ERG) and constituted the preconditioning stimulus. An ischemic challenge of 40 min in preconditioned rats induced impairment of retinal function. However, animals preconditioned 24, 48 and 72 h before 20-min ischemia had a significant improvement of the ERG. (-)Cromakalim and P1060 mimicked the effect of IPC. Glipizide significantly suppressed the protective effects of preconditioning. In conclusion, activation of K(ATP) channels plays an important role in the mechanism of preconditioning by enhancing the resistance of the retina against a severe ischemic insult.     

Differential role of mGlu1 and mGlu5 receptors in rat hippocampal slice models of ischemic tolerance

Activation of glutamate receptors has been proposed as a key factor in the induction of ischemic tolerance. We used organotypic rat hippocampal slices exposed to 30 min oxygen-glucose deprivation (OGD) to evaluate postischemic pyramidal cell death in the CA1 subregion. In this model, 10 min exposure to OGD 24 h before the exposure to toxic OGD was not lethal and reduced the subsequent OGD neurotoxicity by approximately 53% (ischemic preconditioning). Similarly, a 30 min exposure to the group I mGlu receptor agonist DHPG (10 microM) significantly reduced OGD neurotoxicity 24 h later (pharmacological preconditioning). Ischemic tolerance did not develop when either the selective mGlu1 antagonists LY367385 and 3-MATIDA or the AMPA/KA antagonist CNQX were present in the incubation medium during exposure to sublethal OGD. Neither the NMDA antagonist MK801 nor the mGlu5 antagonist MPEP affected the preconditioning process. On the other hand, pharmacological preconditioning was prevented not only by LY367385 or CNQX, but also by MPEP. In preconditioned slices, the toxic responses to AMPA or NMDA were reduced. The neurotoxicty of 100 microM DHPG in slices simultaneously exposed to a mild (20 min) OGD was differentially altered in the two preconditioning paradigms. After ischemic preconditioning, DHPG neurotoxicity was reduced in a manner that was sensitive to LY367385 but not to MPEP, whereas after pharmacological preconditioning it was enhanced in a manner that was sensitive to MPEP but not to LY367385. Our results show that mGlu1 and mGlu5 receptors are differentially involved in the induction and expression of ischemic tolerance following two diverse preconditioning stimuli.     

脑缺血耐受与细胞凋亡及p53、p21、Bax表达关系的实验研究

目的　探讨大鼠局灶性缺血预处理的脑保护作用与细胞凋亡及凋亡相关因子p5 3、p2 1和Bax的关系。方法　采用线栓法阻塞大鼠大脑中动脉造成脑缺血预处理和致死性缺血模型 ,图像分析测算相对梗死体积 ,使用TUNEL染色标记神经细胞凋亡 ,免疫组化染色观察p5 3、p2 1和Bax蛋白表达。结果　与致死缺血组比较 ,缺血预处理组梗死体积减少 4 6 % (P <0 0 5 ) ,半暗区TUNEL阳性细胞数和p5 3阳性细胞数均明显降低 (均P <0 0 5 ) ,p2 1和Bax阳性细胞数无显著变化 (均P >0 0 5 )。结论　缺血预处理可能通过抑制严重缺血后p5 3表达 ,减轻神经细胞凋亡 ,发挥脑保护作用。p2 1和Bax在脑缺血耐受形成中可能不起重要作用。     

Cerebral ischemic preconditioning induces lasting effects on CA1 neuronal survival, prevents memory impairments but not ischemia-induced hyperactivity

In ischemic preconditioning, prior exposure to a short 3-min global ischemia provides substantial protection against the deleterious effects of a subsequent prolonged ischemic insult in rats. The objective of the present study was to determine if the neuronal protection induced by ischemic preconditioning influence functional recovery following a 6-min ischemic insult in rats. Animals received either sham-operation, a 3-min ischemia, a preconditioning 3-min global ischemia followed 3 days later by a 6-min global ischemia or a single 6-min global ischemia. Open field habituation, memory performance in the 8-arm radial maze and object recognition were assessed at different intervals following ischemia. Our findings revealed that preconditioning reversed ischemia-induced spatial memory deficits in the 8-arm radial maze, as suggested by significant reduction of working memory errors in preconditioned as compared to ischemic animals. Preconditioning also attenuated ischemia-induced object recognition deficits at short-term intervals. Nonetheless, preconditioning failed to alter ischemia-induced hyperactivity as demonstrated by enhanced behavioral activity in the open field in both preconditioned and ischemic animals compared to 3-min ischemic and sham-operated rats. CA1 cell counts revealed significant neuronal sparing in preconditioned animals that was observed 6-month following reperfusion. Together, these findings suggest that neuronal survival in preconditioned rats is associated with significant improvements of hippocampal-dependent memory functions and, further support that ischemia-induced hyperactivity may not solely depend on selective neuronal damage to hippocampal neurons.     

Protective preconditioning by transient global ischemia in the rat: components of delayed injury progression and lasting protection distinguished by comparisons of depolarization thresholds for cell loss at long survival times.

Robust ischemic preconditioning has been shown in rodent brain, but there are concerns regarding the persistence of neuron protection. This issue was examined in rat hippocampus following 4-vessel occlusion (4-VO) ischemia, using DC shifts characteristic of ischemic depolarization to reproducibly define insult severity. Preconditioning ischemia producing 2 to 3.5 mins depolarization was followed at intervals of 2, 5, or 7 days by test insults of varied duration, after which CA1 counts were obtained at 1, 2, 4, or 12 weeks. Neuron loss in naive animals increased with depolarization time longer than 4 mins regardless of postischemic survival interval. Preconditioning 2, 5, or 7 days before test insults prolonged the injury threshold evaluated at 1 week survival to 15, 9, or 6 mins, respectively, showing robust protection and a rapid decay of the protected state. However, by 2 weeks survival after preconditioning at a 2-day interval, the injury threshold dramatically regressed from 15 to 9 mins. Thereafter protection remained relatively stable through 1 month, but slight progression of neuron injury was evident at 3 months. Inflammatory responses were seen in both naive and preconditioned hippocampi throughout this interval, appropriate to the extent of neuron injury. These studies show distinct components of transient and lasting protection after ischemic preconditioning. Finally, it was found that ischemic depolarization was delayed by approximately 1 min in optimally preconditioned rat hippocampus, in contrast to previous results in the gerbil, identifying one specific mechanism by which insult severity is reduced in this model.     

Effect of ischemic preconditioning on the expression of putative neuroprotective genes in the rat brain

Previous studies have demonstrated that sublethal ischemic insults protect from subsequent ischemia in the intact brain. There are two windows for the induction of tolerance by ischemic preconditioning (IPC). One occurs within 1 h following IPC, and the other one develops from 1 to 3 days after IPC. The goal of this study was to determine whether IPC neuroprotection may be mediated by expression of known neuroprotective genes and to characterize the temporal and spatial expression patterns of these genes. IPC was produced by bilateral carotid artery occlusions and hypotension (50 mmHg) for 2 min. After various survival times, the expression of MAP-2, brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), c-jun, c-fos, nerve growth factor (NGF) and HSP70 was assessed by in situ hybridization of coronal brain sections with 35S labeled probes. BDNF, NGF, and c-jun were significantly upregulated in the hippocampus. c-fos was detected in the hippocampus, cortex and striatum. HSP70 mRNA was induced in the cortex, hippocampus, striatum, and thalamus. MAP-2 showed no change in expression, confirming previous studies that no cell death occurs following IPC. The increase in expression of these stress-related, neurotrophic and immediate early genes in response to a mild preconditioning insult may help mediate the protection of vulnerable neurons to subsequent lethal ischemic insults.     

Ischemic preconditioning: a long term survival study using behavioural and histological endpoints

In this study we sought to determine if ischemic preconditioning provided long term behavioral and histological protection. A second goal was to see if ischemic preconditioning conveys its protective effect on CA1 neurons by altering post-ischemic brain temperature. While preconditioning episodes of short duration ischemia (i.e. 1.5 min) provided significant histological protection of CA1 pyramidal cells against a subsequent severe ischemic insult (i.e. 5 min), this did not result in complete behavioural protection. Preconditioned ischemic animals initially displayed habituation deficits in an open field test that were comparable to untreated ischemic gerbils. A significant decline in CA1 preservation in preconditioned animals was observed when survival time was extended from 10 (81% protection) to 30 (53% protection) days. In addition, protection was not observed in the subiculum and CA2 sector of the hippocampus where consistent damage was observed in 21/22 gerbils. Ischemic preconditioning did not markedly affect post-ischemic brain temperature suggesting that the observed protection was not due to a reduction in temperature during or after the severe ischemic insult. The lack of functional protection within the first 10 days after ischemia, along with the decline of cellular preservation over time, suggests that this paradigm may not provide permanent protection.     

预缺血诱导大鼠CA1神经元中蛋白伴侣hsp70的表达并抑制蛋白聚集物的形成

目的 研究预缺血对蛋白伴侣hsp70表达和蛋白聚集物形成的影响,探讨其可能的脑保护机制.方法 采用大鼠双侧颈总动脉暂时夹闭法建立全脑缺血模型.大鼠分为3min缺血组,10min缺血组以及预缺血组.苏木素-伊红染色,光镜下随机计数分析预缺血后海马CA1区死亡神经元数量变化.免疫组织化学及激光扫描共聚焦显微镜法观察蛋白伴侣hsp70在CAI区神经元内的分布.差速离心分离细胞浆、细胞核及蛋白聚集物.蛋白印迹法检测不同缺血状态下海马CA1神经元内蛋白聚集物含量的变化,以及胞浆、胞核及蛋白聚集物内蛋白伴侣hsp70含量的变化.结果 组织学检查显示预缺血能够显著减少海马CA1区神经元死亡数量.预缺血诱导海马CA1区神经元内蛋白伴侣hsp70在再灌注后24h表达.预缺血处理后,海马CA1区神经元内蛋白聚集物显著减少.预缺血诱导的蛋白伴侣hsp70与再缺血形成的异常蛋白结合在一起并防止其聚集.结论 预缺血可能通过诱导蛋白伴侣hsp70的表达和抑制再缺血后蛋白聚集物的形成,减少再缺血引起的神经元死亡.     

Ischemic preconditioning ameliorates excitotoxicity by shifting glutamate/gamma-aminobutyric acid release and biosynthesis

Excitotoxicity is recognized to play a major role in cerebral ischemia-induced cell death. The main goal of the present study was to define whether our model of ischemic preconditioning (IPC) promotes a shift from excitatory to inhibitory neurotransmission during the test ischemia to diminish metabolic demand during the reperfusion phase. We also determined whether gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) played a role in IPC-induced neuroprotection. Ten minutes of cerebral ischemia was produced by tightening the carotid ligatures bilaterally following hypotension. Samples of microdialysis perfusate, representing extracellular fluid, were analyzed for amino acid content by HPLC. IPC promoted a robust release of GABA after lethal ischemia compared with control rats. We also observed that the activity of glutamate decarboxylase (the predominant pathway of GABA synthesis in the brain) was higher in the IPC group compared with control and ischemic groups. Because GABAA receptor up-regulation has been shown to occur following IPC, and GABAA receptor activation has been implicated in neuroprotection against ischemic insults, we tested the hypothesis that GABAA or GABAB receptor activation was neuroprotective during ischemia or early reperfusion by using an in vitro model (organotypic hippocampal slice culture). Administration of the GABAB agonist baclofen during test ischemia and for 1 hr of reperfusion provided significant neuroprotection. We concluded that increased GABA release in preconditioned animals after ischemia might be one of the factors responsible for IPC neuroprotection. Specific activation of GABAB receptor contributes significantly to neuroprotection against ischemia in organotypic hippocampal slices.     

Extracellular signal-regulated kinase and c-Jun N-terminal protein kinase in ischemic tolerance.

The alterations and involvement of extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) and c-Jun N-terminal protein kinase (JNK) activation were examined in the hippocampal CA1 region in a rat model of global brain ischemic tolerance. Western blotting study showed that ERK activation (diphosphorylation) level was decreased (3.75-, 0.56-, and 0.23-fold vs sham control) and JNK activation level was increased (3.82-, 4.63-, and 5.30-fold vs sham control) 3 days after more severe ischemic insults (6 min, 8 min, and 10 min of ischemia, respectively). These alterations were significantly prevented by pretreatment with preconditioning ischemia, which also provided neuronal protection against ischemic injury. Inhibition of ERK activation after preconditioning ischemia by PD98059, a specific ERK kinase inhibitor, significantly prevented the inhibitory effects of preconditioning ischemia on both JNK activation and ischemic injury. The results suggest that ERK activation after preconditioning ischemia may result in the prevention of JNK activation and thus be involved in the protective responses in ischemic tolerance in hippocampal CA1 region.     

Nitric oxide is involved in anoxic preconditioning neuroprotection in rat hippocampal slices

Sublethal anoxia/ischemia protects against subsequent damaging insults in intact brain or hippocampal slices. To help further understand mechanisms underlying anoxic/ischemic preconditioning, we tested three hypotheses which were that: (a) anoxic preconditioning (APC) improves electrical recovery in rat hippocampal slices; (b) anoxic preconditioning requires nitric oxide (NO); and (c) anoxic preconditioning blocks mitochondrial dysfunction that occurs following re-oxygenation after anoxia. Control hippocampal slices underwent a single 'test' anoxic insult. Experimental slices were preconditioned by 3 short anoxic insults prior to the 'test' insult. Evoked potentials (EPs), and NADH redox status were recorded prior to, during and after preconditioning and/or 'test' anoxic insults. To examine the role of NO, studies sought to determine whether APC could be produced by the NO donor, DEA/NO, and whether APC could be inhibited by NO synthase (NOS) inhibitor (7-nitroindazole). EP amplitudes recovered significantly better after reoxygenation in preconditioned slices and after NO-emulated preconditioning (90.0+/-17.7% and 90.0+/-21.3%, respectively, n=9, ** p<0.01, vs. 17.0+/-7.9%, n=9, in control slices). Inhibition of NOS blocked APC protection (6.8+/-6.8%, n=9). The intensity of NADH hyperoxidation was not significantly different among groups following 'test' anoxia. These data confirm that preconditioning by anoxia improves electrical recovery after anoxia in hippocampal slices. Evidence supports that NO from constitutive hippocampal NOS may be involved in the neuroprotection afforded by preconditioning by a mechanism that does not change the apparent mitochondrial hyperoxidation after anoxia.