Estrogen modulates neuronal Bcl-xL expression and β-amyloid-induced apoptosis:: Relevance to Alzheimer's disease

被引:337
作者
Pike, CJ [1 ]
机构
[1] Univ Calif Irvine, Inst Brain Aging & Dementia, Gillespie Neurosci Res Facil 1113, Irvine, CA 92697 USA
关键词
estrogen; Bcl-x(L); apoptosis; Alzheimer's disease; neuroprotection; beta-amyloid;
D O I
10.1046/j.1471-4159.1999.721552.x
中图分类号
Q5 [生物化学]; Q7 [分子生物学];
学科分类号
071010 ; 081704 ;
摘要
Recent findings indicate that estrogen is neuroprotective, a cellular effect that may contribute to its clinical benefits in delaying the development of Alzheimer's disease. In this report, we identify a novel neuronal action of estrogen that may contribute to its neuroprotective mechanism(s). Specifically, we report that estrogen significantly increases the expression of the anti-apoptotic protein Bcl-x(L) in cultured hippocampal neurons. This effect presumably reflects classic estrogen transcriptional regulation, as we identified a putative estrogen response element in the bcl-x gene. Estrogen-induced enhancement of Bcl-x(L) is associated with a reduction in measures of beta-amyloid-induced apoptosis, including inhibition of both caspase-mediated proteolysis and neurotoxicity. A similar relationship between estrogen, Bcl-x(L) expression, and resistance to degeneration was also observed in human hippocampus. We report neuronal colocalization of estrogen receptor and Bcl-x(L) immunoreactivities that is most prominent in hippocampal subfield CA3, a region that shows relatively little immunoreactivity to paired helical filament-1, a marker of Alzheimer's disease neurodegeneration. These data suggest a novel mechanism of estrogen neuroprotection that may be relevant to estrogen's suggested ability to modulate neuronal viability across the life span, from neural sexual differentiation and development through age-related neurodegenerative conditions.
引用
收藏
页码:1552 / 1563
页数:12
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