Statements in which the resource exists as a subject.
PredicateObject
rdf:type
lifeskim:mentions
pubmed:issue
4
pubmed:dateCreated
2002-9-24
pubmed:abstractText
Erythropoietin (EPO), a renal cytokine regulating haematopoiesis, is also produced by different cell types within the central nervous system, where it acts via the activation of specific receptors. Current evidence shows that EPO exerts neurotrophic and neuroprotective activities in different in vivo and in vitro models of brain damage. In the present study we investigated the effects of EPO on primary cultures of rat cortical microglia and astrocytes. We found that: (i) EPO exerted a marked stimulatory effect on microglial cell viability, assessed through the MTS assay, whereas astrocytes were almost unaffected; (ii) the cytokine increased microglial cell population size in a concentration-dependent manner; however, as microglia cultures undergo spontaneous apoptosis after separation from astrocytes, the apparent effect on cell proliferation could be attributed to EPO antagonism of normal apoptosis; (iii) subsequent flow cytometry analysis on microglial cells demonstrated both the trophic role of factor(s) released by astrocytes in mixed cultures, and the putative anti-apoptotic action of EPO; (iv) the latter was further confirmed through the assessment of gene expression of anti- and pro-apoptotic factors, which showed that EPO is able to shift the Bcl : Bax ratio towards a net anti-apoptotic effect; (v) EPO did not affect the pro-inflammatory function of microglial cells.
pubmed:language
eng
pubmed:journal
pubmed:citationSubset
IM
pubmed:chemical
pubmed:status
MEDLINE
pubmed:month
Aug
pubmed:issn
0953-816X
pubmed:author
pubmed:issnType
Print
pubmed:volume
16
pubmed:owner
NLM
pubmed:authorsComplete
Y
pubmed:pagination
584-92
pubmed:dateRevised
2011-11-17
pubmed:meshHeading
pubmed:year
2002
pubmed:articleTitle
Erythropoietin exerts anti-apoptotic effects on rat microglial cells in vitro.
pubmed:affiliation
Institute of Pharmacology, Catholic University Medical School, Rome, Italy.
pubmed:publicationType
Journal Article