scholarly journals NXP031 Improves Cognitive Impairment in a Chronic Cerebral Hypoperfusion-Induced Vascular Dementia Rat Model through Nrf2 Signaling

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (12) ◽  
pp. 6285
Author(s):  
Jae-Min Lee ◽  
Joo-Hee Lee ◽  
Min-Kyung Song ◽  
Youn-Jung Kim

Vascular dementia (VaD) is a progressive cognitive impairment caused by a reduced blood supply to the brain. Chronic cerebral hypoperfusion (CCH) is one cause of VaD; it induces oxidative stress, neuroinflammation, and blood-brain barrier (BBB) disruption, damaging several brain regions. Vitamin C plays a vital role in preventing oxidative stress-related diseases induced by reactive oxygen species, but it is easily oxidized and loses its antioxidant activity. To overcome this weakness, we have developed a vitamin C/DNA aptamer complex (NXP031) that increases vitamin C’s antioxidant efficacy. Aptamers are short single-stranded nucleic acid polymers (DNA or RNA) that can interact with their corresponding target with high affinity. We established an animal model of VaD by permanent bilateral common carotid artery occlusion (BCCAO) in 12 week old Wistar rats. Twelve weeks after BCCAO, we injected NXP031 into the rats intraperitoneally for two weeks at moderate (200 mg/4 mg/kg) and high concentrations (200 mg/20 mg/kg). NXP031 administration alleviates cognitive impairment, microglial activity, and oxidative stress after CCH. NXP031 increased the expression of basal lamina (laminin), endothelial cell (RECA-1, PECAM-1), and pericyte (PDGFRβ); these markers maintain the BBB integrity. We found that NXP031 administration activated the Nrf2-ARE pathway and increased the expression of SOD-1 and GSTO1/2. These results suggest that this new aptamer complex, NXP031, could be a therapeutic intervention in CCH-induced VaD.

Author(s):  
Elaheh Ghasemi ◽  
Faezeh Afkhami Aghda ◽  
Mohammad Ebrahim Rezvani ◽  
Azadeh Shahrokhi Raeini ◽  
Zeynab Hafizibarjin ◽  
...  

AbstractBackgroundThe vascular changes due to cerebrovascular damage, especially on the capillaries, play a vital role in causing vascular dementia. Increasing oxidative stress can lead to tissue damage while reducing brain blood flow. The use of factors reducing the oxidative stress level can decrease the brain damages. Sulfur dioxide (SO2) is one of the most important air pollutants that lead to the development of severe brain damage in large quantities. However, studies have recently confirmed the protective effect of SO2 in cardiac ischemic injury, atherosclerosis and pulmonary infections.MethodsThe permanent bilateral common carotid artery occlusion (BCAO) method was used to induce chronic cerebral hypoperfusion (CCH). Two treatment groups of SO2 were studied. The animal cognitive performance was evaluated using the Morris water maze. Hippocampal tissue damage was examined after 2 months of BCAO. In the biochemical analysis, the activity of catalase and lipid peroxidation of the hippocampus was studied.ResultsNeuronal damage in hippocampus, as well as cognitive impairment in ischemia groups treated with SO2 showed a significant improvement. Catalase activity was also significantly increased in the hippocampus of treated groups.ConclusionsAccording to the results, SO2 is likely to be effective in reducing the CCH-caused damages by increasing the antioxidant capacity of the hippocampus.


Author(s):  
Luting Poh ◽  
David Y. Fann ◽  
Peiyan Wong ◽  
Hong Meng Lim ◽  
Sok Lin Foo ◽  
...  

AbstractChronic cerebral hypoperfusion is associated with vascular dementia (VaD). Cerebral hypoperfusion may initiate complex molecular and cellular inflammatory pathways that contribute to long-term cognitive impairment and memory loss. Here we used a bilateral common carotid artery stenosis (BCAS) mouse model of VaD to investigate its effect on the innate immune response – particularly the inflammasome signaling pathway. Comprehensive analyses revealed that chronic cerebral hypoperfusion induces a complex temporal expression and activation of inflammasome components and their downstream products (IL-1β and IL-18) in different brain regions, and promotes activation of apoptotic and pyroptotic cell death pathways. Polarized glial cell activation, white matter lesion formation and hippocampal neuronal loss also occurred in a spatiotemporal manner. Moreover, in AIM2 knockout mice we observed attenuated inflammasome-mediated production of proinflammatory cytokines, apoptosis and pyroptosis, as well as resistance to chronic microglial activation, myelin breakdown, hippocampal neuronal loss, and behavioural and cognitive deficits following BCAS. Hence, we have demonstrated that activation of the AIM2 inflammasome substantially contributes to the pathophysiology of chronic cerebral hypoperfusion-induced brain injury and may therefore represent a promising therapeutic target for attenuating cognitive impairment in VaD.


Antioxidants ◽  
2022 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 130
Author(s):  
Jae-Min Lee ◽  
Joo Hee Lee ◽  
Min Kyung Song ◽  
Youn-Jung Kim

Aging is a neurodegenerative disease that leads to cognitive impairment, and an increase in oxidative stress as a major cause is an important factor. It has been reported that aging-related cognitive impairment is associated with increased oxidative damage in several brain regions during aging. As a powerful antioxidant, vitamin C plays an important role in preventing oxidative stress, but due to its unstable chemical properties, it is easily oxidized and thus the activity of antioxidants is reduced. In order to overcome this easily oxidized vulnerability, we developed NXP032 (vitamin C/DNA aptamer complex) that can enhance the antioxidant efficacy of vitamin C using an aptamer. We developed NXP032 (vitamin C/DNA Aptamin C320 complex) that can enhance the antioxidant efficacy of vitamin C using an aptamer. In the present study, we evaluated the neuroprotective effects of NXP032 on aging-induced cognitive decline, oxidative stress, and neuronal damage in 17-month-old female mice. NXP032 was orally administered at 200 mg/kg of ascorbic acid and 4 mg/kg of DNA aptamer daily for eight weeks. Before the sacrifice, a cognitive behavioral test was performed. Administration of NXP032 alleviated cognitive impairment, neuronal damage, microglia activity, and oxidative stress due to aging. We found that although aging decreases the Nrf2-ARE pathway, NXP032 administration activates the Nrf2-ARE pathway to increase the expression of SOD-1 and GSTO1/2. The results suggest that the new aptamer complex NXP032 may be a therapeutic intervention to alleviate aging-induced cognitive impairment and oxidative stress.


2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (18) ◽  
pp. 6929
Author(s):  
Dong Bin Back ◽  
Bo-Ryoung Choi ◽  
Jung-Soo Han ◽  
Kyoung Ja Kwon ◽  
Dong-Hee Choi ◽  
...  

Post-stroke dementia (PSD) is a major neurodegenerative consequence of stroke. Tauopathy has been reported in diverse neurodegenerative diseases. We investigated the cognitive impairment and pathomechanism associated with tauopathy in a rat model of PSD by modeling acute ischemic stroke and underlying chronic cerebral hypoperfusion (CCH). We performed middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) surgery in rats to mimic acute ischemic stroke, followed by bilateral common carotid artery occlusion (BCCAo) surgery to mimic CCH. We performed behavioral tests and focused on the characterization of tauopathy through histology. Parenchymal infiltration of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) tracers after intracisternal injection was examined to evaluate glymphatic function. In an animal model of PSD, cognitive impairment was aggravated when BCCAo was combined with MCAO. Tauopathy, manifested by tau hyperphosphorylation, was prominent in the peri-infarct area when CCH was combined. Synergistic accentuation of tauopathy was evident in the white matter. Microtubules in the neuronal axon and myelin sheath showed partial colocalization with the hyperphosphorylated tau, whereas oligodendrocytes showed near-complete colocalization. Parenchymal infiltration of CSF tracers was attenuated in the PSD model. Our experimental results suggest a hypothesis that CCH may aggravate cognitive impairment and tau hyperphosphorylation in a rat model of PSD by interfering with tau clearance through the glymphatic system. Therapeutic strategies to improve the clearance of brain metabolic wastes, including tau, may be a promising approach to prevent PSD after stroke.


2015 ◽  
Vol 35 (8) ◽  
pp. 1249-1259 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhen Jing ◽  
Changzheng Shi ◽  
Lihui Zhu ◽  
Yonghui Xiang ◽  
Peihao Chen ◽  
...  

Chronic cerebral hypoperfusion (CCH) induces cognitive impairment, but the compensative mechanism of cerebral blood flow (CBF) is not fully understood. The present study mainly investigated dynamic changes in CBF, angiogenesis, and cellular pathology in the cortex, the striatum, and the cerebellum, and also studied cognitive impairment of rats induced by bilateral common carotid artery occlusion (BCCAO). Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) techniques, immunochemistry, and Morris water maze were employed to the study. The CBF of the cortex, striatum, and cerebellum dramatically decreased after right common carotid artery occlusion (RCCAO), and remained lower level at 2 weeks after BCCAO. It returned to the sham level from 3 to 6 weeks companied by the dilation of vertebral arteries after BCCAO. The number of microvessels declined at 2, 3, and 4 weeks but increased at 6 weeks after BCCAO. Neuronal degeneration occurred in the cortex and striatum from 2 to 6 weeks, but the number of glial cells dramatically increased at 4 weeks after BCCAO. Cognitive impairment of ischemic rats was directly related to ischemic duration. Our results suggest that CCH induces a compensative mechanism attempting to maintain optimal CBF to the brain. However, this limited compensation cannot prevent neuronal loss and cognitive impairment after permanent ischemia.


Circulation ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 130 (suppl_2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tzu -Hsien Tsai ◽  
Sarah Chua ◽  
Jiunn-Jye Sheu ◽  
Steve Leu ◽  
Hon Kan Yip

Background: Sitagliptin, a new anti-diabetic drug that inhibits dipeptidyl peptidase (DPP)-4 enzyme activity, has been reported to possess neuroprotective property. We tested the protective effect of sitagliptin against chronic cerebral hypoperfusion (CHP) in mice after bilateral carotid artery stenosis (BCAS). Methods: Thirty C57BL/6 mice were divided into three groups: Sham control (SC) (n=10), CHP (n=10), CHP-sitagliptin (orally 600mg/kg/day) (n=10). Working memory was assessed with novel-object recognition test. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was performed at day 0 and day 90 after BCAS procedure prior to sacrifice. Results: Immunohistochemical (IHC) staining showed significantly enhanced microglia activation, astrocytosis, and demyelinating change of white matter in CHP group than in SC but the changes were significantly suppressed after sitagliptin treatment (all p<0.01). The mRNA expressions of inflammatory (TNF-α, MCP-1and MMP-2) and apoptotic (Bax) biomarkers showed an identical pattern, whereas the anti-inflammatory (IL-10) and anti-apoptotic (Bcl-2) biomarkers showed an opposite pattern compared to that of IHC among all groups (all p<0.01). The protein expressions of oxidative stress (NOX-I, NOX-II, nitrotyrosin, oxidized protein), inflammatory (NF-κB, TNF-α and MMP-2), apoptotic (mitochondrial Bax, cleaved PARP), and DNA-damage (γ-H2AX) markers showed an identical pattern, while expression pattern of anti-apoptotic marker (Bcl-2) was opposite to that of IHC (all p<0.01). Glycogen-like peptide-1 receptor protein expression progressively increased from SC to CHP-sitagliptin (p<0.01). The short-term working-memory loss and cortical-matter reduction on MRI-T2 showed a pattern identical to that of IHC in all groups (all p<0.01). Conclusion: Sitagliptin protected against cognitive impairment and brain damage in a murine CHP model. Key words: chronic cerebral hypoperfusion, sitagliptin, oxidative stress inflammation


2008 ◽  
Vol 24 (5) ◽  
pp. 305-313 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhi-You Cai ◽  
Yong Yan ◽  
Shan-Quan Sun ◽  
Jun Zhang ◽  
Liang-Guo HUANG ◽  
...  

2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
Xiaochen Bi ◽  
Yanfei Feng ◽  
Zemin Wu ◽  
Jianqiao Fang

Electroacupuncture has shown protective effects on cognitive decline. However, the underlying molecular mechanisms are not clear. The present study was conducted to determine whether the cognitive function was ameliorated in cerebral hypoperfusion rats following electroacupuncture and to investigate the role of miR-137/NOX4 axis. In this study, chronic cerebral hypoperfusion (CCH) model was established by bilateral common carotid artery occlusion. Electroacupuncture treatment attenuated brain injury in CCH model group via regulating miR-137/NOX4 axis. Furthermore, the data of neuronal apoptosis and oxidative stress were observed. Our findings indicated that (1) neuronal apoptosis and oxidative stress in CCH rats were significantly increased compared with control group; (2) the animal cognitive performance was evaluated using the Morris water maze (MWM). The results showed that electroacupuncture therapy ameliorated spatial learning and memory impairment in cerebral hypoperfusion rats; and (3) electroacupuncture therapy reduces neuronal apoptosis and oxidative stress by activating miR-137/NOX4 axis. These results suggest that electroacupuncture therapy for CCH may be mediated by miR-137/NOX4 axis. Electroacupuncture therapy may act as a potential therapeutic approach for chronic cerebral hypoperfusion.


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