scholarly journals Losartan Reverses Hippocampal Increase of Kynurenic Acid in Type 1 Diabetic Rats: A Novel Procognitive Aspect of Sartan Action

2019 ◽  
Vol 2019 ◽  
pp. 1-8
Author(s):  
Iwona Chmiel-Perzyńska ◽  
Adam Perzyński ◽  
Bartosz Olajossy ◽  
Paulina Gil-Kulik ◽  
Janusz Kocki ◽  
...  

Patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) type 1 and 2 are at a higher risk of cognitive decline and dementia; however, the underlying pathology is poorly understood. Kynurenic acid (KYNA), endogenous kynurenine metabolite, displays pleiotropic effects, including a blockade of glutamatergic and cholinergic receptors. Apart from well-known glial origin, kynurenic acid is robustly synthesized in the endothelium and its serum levels correlate with homocysteine, a risk factor for cognitive decline. Studies in an experimental DM model suggest that a selective, hippocampal increase of the kynurenic acid level may be an important factor contributing to diabetes-related cognitive impairment. The aim of this study was to assess the effects of chronic, four-week administration of losartan, angiotensin receptor blocker (ARB), on the brain KYNA in diabetic rats. Chromatographic and rt-PCR techniques were used to measure the level of KYNA and the expression of genes encoding kynurenine aminotransferases, KYNA biosynthetic enzymes, in the hippocampi of rats with streptozotocin-induced DM, treated with losartan. The effect of losartan on KYNA synthesis de novo was also evaluated in vitro, in brain cortical slices. The hippocampal increase of KYNA content occurred in diabetic rats treated and nontreated with insulin. Losartan did not affect KYNA levels when administered per se to naïve or diabetic animals but normalized KYNA content in diabetic rats receiving concomitantly insulin. The expression of CCBL1 (kat 1), AADAT (kat 2), and KAT3 (kat 3) genes did not differ between analyzed groups. Low concentrations of losartan did not affect KYNA production in vitro. The neuroprotective effect of ARBs in diabetic individuals may be, at least partially, linked to modulation of KYNA metabolism. The ability of ARB to modulate synthesis of KYNA in diabetic brain does not seem to result from changed expression of genes encoding KATs. We propose possible involvement of angiotensin AT4 receptors in the observed action of losartan.

1999 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 882-888 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul J. Flynn ◽  
Richard J. Reece

ABSTRACT Saccharomyces cerevisiae responds to pyrimidine starvation by increasing the expression of four URA genes, encoding the enzymes of de novo pyrimidine biosynthesis, three- to eightfold. The increase in gene expression is dependent on a transcriptional activator protein, Ppr1p. Here, we investigate the mechanism by which the transcriptional activity of Ppr1p responds to the level of pyrimidine biosynthetic intermediates. We find that purified Ppr1p is unable to promote activation of transcription in an in vitro system. Transcriptional activation by Ppr1p can be observed, however, if either dihydroorotic acid (DHO) or orotic acid (OA) is included in the transcription reactions. The transcriptional activation function and the DHO/OA-responsive element of Ppr1p localize to the carboxyl-terminal 134 amino acids of the protein. Thus, Ppr1p directly senses the level of early pyrimidine biosynthetic intermediates within the cell and activates the expression of genes encoding proteins required later in the pathway. These results are discussed in terms of (i) regulation of the pyrimidine biosynthetic pathway and (ii) a novel mechanism of regulating gene expression.


2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Amber R Paulson ◽  
Maureen O’Callaghan ◽  
Xue-Xian Zhang ◽  
Paul B Rainey ◽  
Mark R H Hurst

Abstract The function of microbes can be inferred from knowledge of genes specifically expressed in natural environments. Here, we report the in vivo transcriptome of the entomopathogenic bacterium Yersinia entomophaga MH96, captured during initial, septicemic, and pre-cadaveric stages of intrahemocoelic infection in Galleria mellonella. A total of 1285 genes were significantly upregulated by MH96 during infection; 829 genes responded to in vivo conditions during at least one stage of infection, 289 responded during two stages of infection, and 167 transcripts responded throughout all three stages of infection compared to in vitro conditions at equivalent cell densities. Genes upregulated during the earliest infection stage included components of the insecticidal toxin complex Yen-TC (chi1, chi2, and yenC1), genes for rearrangement hotspot element containing protein yenC3, cytolethal distending toxin cdtAB, and vegetative insecticidal toxin vip2. Genes more highly expressed throughout the infection cycle included the putative heat-stable enterotoxin yenT and three adhesins (usher-chaperone fimbria, filamentous hemagglutinin, and an AidA-like secreted adhesin). Clustering and functional enrichment of gene expression data also revealed expression of genes encoding type III and VI secretion system-associated effectors. Together these data provide insight into the pathobiology of MH96 and serve as an important resource supporting efforts to identify novel insecticidal agents.


2021 ◽  
Vol 35 ◽  
pp. 205873842110314
Author(s):  
Fei Zeng ◽  
Jierong Luo ◽  
Hong Han ◽  
Wenjie Xie ◽  
Lingzhi Wang ◽  
...  

Hyperglycemia-induced oxidative stress plays important roles in the development of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), which is a common complication in diabetic patients. The Nrf2-Keap1 pathway is important for cell antioxidant protection, while its role in exogenous antioxidant mediated protection against NAFLD is unclear. We thus, postulated that antioxidant treatment with allopurinol (ALP) may attenuate diabetic liver injury and explored the underlying mechanisms. Control (C) and streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetes rats (D) were untreated or treated with ALP for 4 weeks starting at 1 week after diabetes induction. Serum levels of alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate transaminase (AST), production of lipid peroxidation product malondialdehyde (MDA), and serum superoxide dismutase (SOD) were detected. Liver protein expressions of cleaved-caspase 3, IL-1β, nuclear factor-erythroid-2-related factor-2 (Nrf2), heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1), P62, Kelch-like ECH-associated protein 1 (Keap1), and LC3 were analyzed. In vitro, cultured rat normal hepatocytes BRL-3A were grouped to normal glucose (5.5 mM, NG) or high glucose (25 mM, HG) and treated with or without allopurinol (100 µM) for 48 h. Rats in the D group demonstrated liver injury evidenced as increased serum levels of ALT and AST. Diabetes increased apoptotic cell death, enhanced liver protein expressions of cleaved-caspase 3 and IL-1β with concomitantly increased production of MDA while serum SOD content was significantly reduced (all P < 0.05 vs C). In the meantime, protein levels of Nrf2, HO-1, and P62 were reduced while Keap1 and LC3 were increased in the untreated D group as compared to control ( P < 0.05 vs C). And all the above alterations were significantly attenuated by ALP. Similar to our findings obtained from in vivo study, we got the same results in in vitro experiments. It is concluded that ALP activates the Nrf2/p62 pathway to ameliorate oxidative stress and liver injury in diabetic rats.


Cells ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (8) ◽  
pp. 2002
Author(s):  
Maria Pilar Solis-Hernandez ◽  
Carla Martín ◽  
Beatriz García ◽  
Natalia Pérez-López ◽  
Yolanda García-Mesa ◽  
...  

Small leucine-rich proteoglycans (SLRPs) regulate different processes and undergo significant alterations in various diseases. Colon carcinomas (CCs) are heterogeneous pathologies with important clinical and molecular differences depending on their location, which makes it interesting to analyze the alterations in SLRPs in right- and left-sided tumors (RS- and LSCCs). SLRP transcription levels were studied in 32 CCs using qPCR compared to healthy colon mucosae samples from the same patients, 20 of them from LSCCs and the remaining 12 from RSCCs. Protein expression of genes with significant differences in their transcriptions was analyzed by immunohistochemistry. The alterations observed were related to survival data. The arrangement of transcription of SLRPs was quite similar in ascending and descending colon, but RS- and LSCCs displayed different patterns of alteration, with a greater number of deregulations occurring in the latter. The analysis of protein expression also indicated changes in the location of these molecules, largely moving to the cell interior. While podocan underexpression showed a trend toward better outcomes, no differences were observed in terms of overall survival. In vitro studies using the HT29 tumor cell line suggest that deregulation of SLRPs could affect cell proliferation. SLRPs constitute new differential markers of RS- and LSCCs, showing differences dependent on the anatomical location of the tumor.


2018 ◽  
Vol 35 (4) ◽  
pp. 413-422 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dominika Wcisło-Dziadecka ◽  
Joanna Gola ◽  
Beniamin Grabarek ◽  
Urszula Mazurek ◽  
Ligia Brzezińska-Wcisło ◽  
...  

Genetika ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 46 (1) ◽  
pp. 287-301 ◽  
Author(s):  
Biljana Bufan ◽  
Jasmina Djikic ◽  
Mirjana Nacka-Aleksic ◽  
Zorica Stojic-Vukanic ◽  
Mirjana Dimitrijevic ◽  
...  

Experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) is an animal model of multiple sclerosis, a prototype of Th1/Th17-mediated organ-specific autoimmune disease. In the rat, susceptibility to development of these diseases is shown to be strain-and age-dependent. In adult rats of distinct strains, it correlates with splenic dendritic cell (DC) subset composition, which also exhibit age-related changes. The aim of this study was to examine influence of aging on: i) Albino Oxford (relatively resistant to EAE) and Dark Agouti (susceptible to EAE) rat development of EAE and ii) their splenic conventional (OX62+) DC population in respect to its subset composition and expression of mRNAs for proinflammatory and immunosuppressive cytokines. We used 3month-old (young) and 26-month-old (aged) rats of AO and DA strain. The rats were immunized for EAE with rat spinal cord homogenate in complete Freund?s adjuvant and clinical course of the disease was followed. Fresh OX62+DCs were examined for the expression of CD4 (using flow cytometry) and genes encoding cytokines influencing DC activation/maturation (TNF-? and IL-6) using RT-PCR. Additionally, in vitro lipopolysaccharide (LPS) activated/matured DCs were examined for the expression of genes encoding cytokines controlling Th1/Th17 cell polarization using RT-PCR. With aging, AO rats became more susceptible, whereas DA rats largely lose their susceptibility to the induction of EAE. In AO rats aging shifted CD4+:CD4DC ratio towards CD4-cells, producing large amount of proinflammatory cytokines, whereas in DA rats CD4+:CD4-DC ratio remained stable with aging. In fresh DCs from rats of both the strains the expression of TNF-? mRNA increased with aging, whereas that of IL-6 mRNA decreased and increased in DCs from AO and DA rats, respectively. Following in vitro LPS stimulation OX62+ DCs from aged AO rats up-regulated the expression of mRNA for IL-23p19 (specific subunit of IL-23; crucial for sustained IL-17 production) and IL-1? (positive IL-17 regulator), whereas down-regulated the expression of IL-10 (negative IL-17 regulator) when compared with young strain-matched rats. In DA rats aging incresed IL-23p19 mRNA expression in LPS-stimulated DCs, whereas exerted the opposing effects on the expression of mRNAs for IL-10 and IL-1? compared to AO rats. Irrespective of the rat strain, aging did not influence mRNA expression for IL-12p35 (driving Th1 polarization) in DCs. Overall, results suggest role of changes in the expression of genes encoding proinflammatory and immunosuppressive cytokines in development of age-related alterations in rat susceptibility to EAE induction.


2014 ◽  
Vol 34 (suppl_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Xuedong Tong ◽  
Regis Moreau ◽  
Qiaozhu Su

Activation of the sterol regulatory element-binding proteins (SREBPs), a step regulated by a cluster of ER-resident proteins, Insig-1, Insig-2 and SCAP, is rate limiting in hepatic de novo lipogenesis. We previously reported that feeding R-alpha-lipoic acid (LA) to ZDF (fa/fa) rats improves severe hypertriglyceridemia and lowers abdominal fat mass by inhibiting expression of genes involved in hepatic long-chain fatty acids and triacylglycerol syntheses. In this study, we characterized a novel mechanism of action of LA that explains its triacylglycerol lowering properties. Dietary LA activates liver specific transcription factor cAMP responsive element binding protein H (CREBH), which in turn enhances transcription and translation of Insig-1 and Insig-2. Chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) assay demonstrated interaction between CREBH and the promoter of Insig-2 but not Insig-1. The increased abundance of Insig-1 and Insig-2 proteins contributes to sequester SREBP-1c and SREBP-2 in the ER and prevents their translocation to the Golgi apparatus where they would become activated. As a consequence, mRNA expression of genes involved in fatty acid and cholesterol synthesis, including FASN, ACC, SCD-1, HMGCR and LDL receptor, were significantly decreased in LA-fed animals versus pair-fed controls. Concomitantly, the assembly and secretion of very-low-density lipoproteins (VLDL) by primary hepatocytes were suppressed in the LA-fed ZDF rats as indicated by the decrease in VLDL-associated apolipoprotein B and apolipoprotein E. In vitro, treating a rat McA-RH7777 hepatoma cells with LA (200 micromole) activated CREBH, induced expression of Insig-1 and Insig-2, and hindered the palmitic acid-induced synthesis of triacylglycerol. This study provides new mechanistic insight into the triacylglycerol lowering properties of LA and supports the therapeutic potential of LA against hypertriglyceridemia.


2012 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 42-44
Author(s):  
Grace Moscoso-Solorzano ◽  
Gianna Mastroianni-Kirsztajn

Cyclophilin A (CypA) belongs to the peptidyl-prolil isomerase (PPlase) family of proteins and it is also known as the cellular receptor for cyclosporine A (CsA). CsA binds to CypA and inhibits the PPIase activity, but the CypA-CsA complex also binds to calcineurin that promotes the expression of genes encoding cytokines and other proteins required for immune response. In addition, the polymorphism variation of CypA promoter seems to have an influence on the expression of CypA in in vitro studies. CypA was also implicated in inflammatory processes (such as, among others, those observed in rheumatoid arthritis, atherosclerotic disease, nephrotoxicity) and it can be secreted by cells in response to inflammatory stimuli. CypA can also have a role in the molecular mechanisms by which CsA induces nephroxicity but these remain poorly understood. Recent studies suggest that CsA inhibition of CypA PPlase activity is a possible mechanism of this drug toxicity. In addition, CypA overexpression could be protective against CsA nephrotoxicity. Finally, the putative common mechanism by which CypA could be involved in CsA nephrotoxicity and tissue injury is related to its proinflammatory effects in cells.


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