Study ofαB-Crystallin Expression in Gerbil BCAO Model of Transient Global Cerebral Ischemia

αB-crystallin (α-BC), the fifth member of mammalian small heat shock protein family (HspB5), is known to be expressed in many tissues and has a distinctive interaction with cytoskeleton components. In this study, we investigated thatα-BC and microtubule-associated protein-2 (MAP-2), a neuron-specific cytoskeleton protein, were coexpressed in neurons of Gerbil cortex, while in subcortex Gerbil brains, we found that several MAP-2-negative glia cells also expressα-BC. When subjected to 10-minute bilateral carotid artery occlusion (BCAO), an increment was observed inα-BC-positive cells after 6-hour reperfusion and peaked at around 7 days after. In the same circumstances, the number and the staining concentration of MAP-2 positive neurons significantly decreased immediately after 6-hour reperfusion, followed by a slow recovery, which is consistent with the increase ofα-BC. Our results suggested thatα-BC plays an important role in brain ischemia, providing the early protection of neurons by giving intracellular supports through the maintenance of cytoskeleton and extracellular supports through the protection of glia cells.