Abstract
Background and Purpose-: Cerebral preconditioning provides insights into endogenous mechanisms that protect the brain from ischemic injury. Hypoxia and the anesthetic isoflurane are powerful preconditioning agents. Recent data show that sphingosine 1-phosphate receptor stimulation improves outcome in rodent models of stroke. Endogenous sphingosine 1-phosphate levels are controlled by the expression and activity of sphingosine kinases (SPK). We hypothesize that SPK upregulation mediates preconditioning induced by isoflurane and hypoxia and reduces ischemic injury. Methods-: Male wild-type C57BL/J, SPK1 -/- and SPK2 -/- mice were exposed to isoflurane or hypoxia preconditioning before transient middle cerebral artery occlusion. Infarct volume and neurological outcome were measured 24 hours later. SPK inhibitors (SKI-II and ABC294640) were used to test the involvement of SPK2. Expressions of SPK1, SPK2, and hypoxia-inducible factor 1α were determined. Primary cultures of mouse cortical neurons were exposed to isoflurane before glutamate-or hydrogen peroxide-induced cell death. Results-: Isoflurane preconditioning and hypoxia preconditioning significantly reduced infarct volume and improved neurological outcome in wild-type and SPK1 -/- mice but not in SPK2 -/- mice. Pretreatment with SKI-II or ABC294640 abolished the isoflurane preconditioning-induced tolerance. Western blot showed a rapid and sustained increase in SPK2 level, whereas SPK1 level was similar between preconditioned mice and controls. Hypoxia-inducible factor 1α was upregulated in wild-type isoflurane-preconditioned mice but not in SPK2 -/-. Isoflurane preconditioning protected primary neurons against cell death, which was abolished in ABC294640-treated cells. Conclusions-: Applying genetic and pharmacological approaches, we demonstrate that neuronal SPK2 isoform plays an important role in cerebral preconditioning.
Original language | English (US) |
---|---|
Pages (from-to) | 199-204 |
Number of pages | 6 |
Journal | Stroke |
Volume | 43 |
Issue number | 1 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Jan 2012 |
All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes
- Clinical Neurology
- Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine
- Advanced and Specialized Nursing