Statements in which the resource exists as a subject.
PredicateObject
rdf:type
lifeskim:mentions
pubmed:issue
1
pubmed:dateCreated
2001-12-25
pubmed:abstractText
Oxidative stress mediated by nitric oxide (NO) and its toxic metabolite peroxynitrite has previously been associated with motor neuron degeneration in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Degenerating spinal motor neurons in familial and sporadic ALS are typically surrounded by reactive astrocytes expressing the inducible form of NO synthase (iNOS), suggesting that astroglia may have a pathogenic role in ALS. We report here that a brief exposure of spinal cord astrocyte monolayers to peroxynitrite (0.25-1 mM) provoked long-lasting reactive morphological changes characterized by process-bearing cells displaying intense glial fibrillary acidic protein and iNOS immunoreactivity. Furthermore, peroxynitrite caused astrocytes to promote apoptosis of embryonic motor neurons subsequently plated on the monolayers. Neuronal death occurred within 24 hr after plating, as evidenced by the presence of degenerating motor neurons positively stained for activated caspase-3 and nitrotyrosine. Motor neuron death was largely prevented by NOS inhibitors and peroxynitrite scavengers but not by trophic factors that otherwise will support motor neuron survival in the absence of astrocytes. The bacterial lipopolysaccharide, a well-known inflammatory stimulus that induces iNOS expression in astrocytes, provoked the same effects on astrocytes as peroxynitrite. Thus, spinal cord astrocytes respond to extracellular peroxynitrite by adopting a phenotype that is cytotoxic to motor neurons through peroxynitrite-dependent mechanisms.
pubmed:grant
pubmed:language
eng
pubmed:journal
pubmed:citationSubset
IM
pubmed:chemical
pubmed:status
MEDLINE
pubmed:month
Jan
pubmed:issn
0360-4012
pubmed:author
pubmed:copyrightInfo
Copyright 2002 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
pubmed:issnType
Print
pubmed:day
1
pubmed:volume
67
pubmed:owner
NLM
pubmed:authorsComplete
Y
pubmed:pagination
21-9
pubmed:dateRevised
2007-11-14
pubmed:meshHeading
pubmed-meshheading:11754077-Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, pubmed-meshheading:11754077-Animals, pubmed-meshheading:11754077-Animals, Newborn, pubmed-meshheading:11754077-Apoptosis, pubmed-meshheading:11754077-Astrocytes, pubmed-meshheading:11754077-Cell Communication, pubmed-meshheading:11754077-Cell Size, pubmed-meshheading:11754077-Cell Survival, pubmed-meshheading:11754077-Cells, Cultured, pubmed-meshheading:11754077-Enzyme Inhibitors, pubmed-meshheading:11754077-Fluorescent Antibody Technique, pubmed-meshheading:11754077-Free Radical Scavengers, pubmed-meshheading:11754077-Gliosis, pubmed-meshheading:11754077-Lipopolysaccharides, pubmed-meshheading:11754077-Motor Neurons, pubmed-meshheading:11754077-Nitric Oxide, pubmed-meshheading:11754077-Nitric Oxide Synthase, pubmed-meshheading:11754077-Peroxynitrous Acid, pubmed-meshheading:11754077-Phenotype, pubmed-meshheading:11754077-Rats, pubmed-meshheading:11754077-Receptor, Nerve Growth Factor, pubmed-meshheading:11754077-Spinal Cord
pubmed:year
2002
pubmed:articleTitle
Peroxynitrite triggers a phenotypic transformation in spinal cord astrocytes that induces motor neuron apoptosis.
pubmed:affiliation
Departamento de Histología y Embriología, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de la República, Montevideo, Uruguay.
pubmed:publicationType
Journal Article, Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S., Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't