Acute interactions between L-DOPA and the neurotoxic effects of 1-methyl-4-phenylpyridinium or 6-hydroxydopamine in mice

The Class I-Specific HDAC Inhibitor MS-275 Decreases Motivation to Consume Alcohol and Relapse in Heavy Drinking Rats

BACKGROUND

New strategies for the treatment of alcohol dependence are a pressing need, and recent evidence suggests that targeting enzymes involved in epigenetic mechanisms seems to have great potential. Among these mechanisms, alteration of histone acetylation by histone deacetylases is of great importance for gene expression and has also been implicated in addiction. Here, we examined whether intra-cerebroventricular administration of MS-275, a class I-specific histone deacetylase inhibitor, could alter ethanol self-administration, motivation to consume ethanol, and relapse in heavy drinking rats.

METHODS

Male Long Evans rats trained to self-administer high levels of ethanol received intra-cerebroventricular micro-infusions of MS-275 (250 µM, 500 µM, and 1000 µM) 3 hours prior to the self-administration sessions.

RESULTS

First, we demonstrated that intra-cerebroventricular infusion of MS-275 increases acetylation of Histone 4 within the nucleus accumbens nucleus accumbens and the dorsolateral striatum. Second, we observed that MS-275 decreases ethanol self-administration by about 75%. We found that 2 consecutive daily injections are necessary to decrease ethanol self-administration. Additionally, the dose-response curve test indicated that MS-275 has a U-shape effect on ethanol self-administration with the dose of 500 µM as the most efficient dose. Furthermore, we showed that MS-275 also diminished the motivation to consume ethanol (25% decrease), and finally, we demonstrated that MS-275 reduced relapse (by about 50%) and postponed reacquisition even when the treatment was stopped.

CONCLUSIONS

Our study confirms the potential therapeutic interest of targeting epigenetic mechanisms in excessive alcohol drinking and strengthens the interest of focusing on specific isoforms of histone deacetylases.

Effect of adenosine A(2A) receptor antagonists and L-DOPA on hydroxyl radical, glutamate and dopamine in the striatum of 6-OHDA-treated rats

A_2A adenosine receptor antagonists have been proposed as a new therapy of PD. Since oxidative stress plays an important role in the pathogenesis of PD, we studied the effect of the selective A_2A adenosine receptor antagonists 8-(-3-chlorostyryl)caffeine (CSC) and 4-(2-[7-amino-2-(2-furyl)[1,2,4]triazolo[2,3-a][1,3,5]triazin-5-ylamino]ethyl)phenol (ZM 241385) on hydroxyl radical generation, and glutamate (GLU) and dopamine (DA) extracellular level using a microdialysis in the striatum of 6-OHDA-treated rats. CSC (1 mg/kg) and ZM 241385 (3 mg/kg) given repeatedly for 14 days decreased the production of hydroxyl radical and extracellular GLU level, both enhanced by prior 6-OHDA treatment in dialysates from the rat striatum. CSC and ZM 241385 did not affect DA and its metabolites, 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (DOPAC) and homovanilic acid (HVA) extracellular levels in the striatum of 6-OHDA-treated rats. l-DOPA (6 mg/kg) given twice daily for two weeks in the presence of benserazide (3 mg/kg) decreased striatal hydroxyl radical and glutamate extracellular level in 6-OHDA-treated rats. At the same time, l-DOPA slightly but significantly increased the extracellular levels of DOPAC and HVA. A combined repeated administration of l-DOPA and CSC or ZM 241385 did not change the effect of l-DOPA on hydroxyl radical production and glutamate extracellular level in spite of an enhancement of extracellular DA level by CSC and elevation of extracellular level of DOPAC and HVA by ZM 241385. The data suggest that the 6-OHDA-induced damage of nigrostriatal DA-terminals is related to oxidative stress and excessive release of glutamate. Administration of l-DOPA in combination with CSC or ZM 241385, by restoring striatal DA-glutamate balance, suppressed 6-OHDA-induced overproduction of hydroxyl radical.

Effect of adenosine A(2A) receptor antagonists on L-DOPA-induced hydroxyl radical formation in rat striatum

A(2A) adenosine receptor antagonists have been proposed as a new therapy for Parkinson's disease (PD). Since oxidative stress plays an important role in the pathogenesis of PD, we studied the effect of the selective A(2A) adenosine receptor antagonists 8-(3-chlorostyryl)caffeine (CSC) and 4-(2-[7-amino-2-(2-furyl)[1,2,4]triazolo[2,3-a][1,3,5]triazin-5-ylamino]ethyl)phenol (ZM 241385) on L: -3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine (L: -DOPA)-induced hydroxyl radical generation using in vivo microdialysis in the striatum of freely moving rats. L: -DOPA (100 mg/kg; in the presence of benserazide, 50 mg/kg) given acutely or repeatedly for 14 days generated a high level of hydroxyl radicals, measured by HPLC with electrochemical detection, as the product of their reaction with p-hydroxybenzoic acid (PBA). CSC (1 mg/kg) and ZM 241385 (3 mg/kg) decreased haloperidol (0.5 mg/kg)-induced catalepsy, while at low doses of 0.1 and 0.3 mg/kg, respectively, they did not display an effect. CSC (1 and 5 mg/kg) and ZM 241385 (3 and 9 mg/kg) given acutely, or CSC (1 mg/kg) and ZM 241385 (3 mg/kg) given repeatedly, increased the production of hydroxyl radicals in dialysates from rat striatum. Both acute and repeated administration of CSC (0.1 and 1 mg/kg) and ZM 241385 (3 mg/kg) decreased L: -DOPA-induced generation of hydroxyl radicals. However, a high single dose of either CSC (5 mg/kg) and ZM 241385 (9 mg/kg) markedly potentiated the effect of L: -DOPA on hydroxyl radical production. The increase in hydroxyl radical production by acute and chronic injection of CSC and ZM 241385 may be related to the increased release of dopamine (DA) and its metabolism in striatal dialysates. Similarly, increased DA release following a single high dose of CSC or ZM 241385 appears to be responsible for augmentation of L: -DOPA-induced hydroxyl radical formation. Conversely, the inhibition of L: -DOPA-induced production of hydroxyl radical by single and repeated low doses of CSC or repeated low doses of ZM 241385 may be related to reduced DA metabolism. Summing up, A(2A) antagonists, used as a supplement of L: -DOPA therapy, depending on the dose used, may have a beneficial or adverse effect on ongoing neurodegenerative processes and accompanying oxidative stress.

Recherche d’une toxicité du 3,4-dihydroxyphénylacétaldéhyde (DOPAL) in vitro et in vivo

This work was carried out in order to evaluate the in vitro and in vivo toxicity of 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetaldehyde (DOPAL). This aldehyde is formed from dopamine (DA) by monoamine oxidases (MAO) and is mainly oxidised to 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid by brain aldehyde dehydrogenases (ALDH), or eventually reduced to 3,4-dihydroxyphenylethanol by aldose/aldehyde reductases. In vitro, catecholaminergic SH-SY5Y cells were incubated with DA and disulfiram (DSF), an irreversible inhibitor of ALDH. As evidenced by MTT assays, a 24-h treatment with 10(-4) M DA and/or 10(-6) M DSF followed by a 24-h incubation in a drug-free medium evidenced that the toxicity of each of these drugs was potentiated by the second drug. HPLC measurements demonstrated that this drug association induced an early DOPAL production that could result in a delayed cell toxicity. For in vivo studies, male Sprague-Dawley rats were treated with L-DOPA-benserazide, which increases the production of DOPAL by MAO, and DSF. An acute injection of DSF (100mg/kg i.p.) and L-DOPA/benserazide (100mg/kg+25mg/kg, 24h later) significantly increased the DOPAL striatal level. However, a 30-day treatment with DSF (100mg/kg i.p., once every two days) and L-DOPA/benserazide (100mg/kg+25mg/kg, twice a day) did not affect both indexes used to assess the integrity of the nigro-striatal dopaminergic terminals (i.e. the striatal content in DA and the binding to the vesicular monoamine transporter on striatal membranes). These results do not support the hypothesis of a DOPAL toxicity and argue against the toxicity of L-DOPA therapy.

Distribution and regulation of galanin receptor 1 messenger RNA in the forebrain of wild type and galanin-transgenic mice

To learn more about molecular alterations in the brain that occur as a consequence of either the chronic excess or absence of peptide neurotransmitters, we examined the impact of genetically manipulating the neuropeptide galanin on the expression of one of its cognate receptors, galanin receptor 1. First, we examined the distribution of galanin receptor 1 messenger RNA in the mouse forebrain, and found it to be abundantly expressed in many brain regions, including in numerous hypothalamic and other forebrain regions associated with neuroendocrine function. The distribution of galanin receptor 1 messenger RNA in the mouse was similar to previous reports in the rat, with additional expression noted in the caudate putamen and in several midbrain regions. Next, using quantitative in situ hybridization, we measured cellular levels of galanin receptor 1 messenger RNA in the brains of mice that either overexpress galanin (galanin transgenic) or lack a functional galanin gene (galanin knockout). We report that relative to wild-type controls, the expression of galanin receptor 1 messenger RNA was increased in discrete areas of the brain in galanin-transgenic mice, but that depletion of galanin/noradrenergic innervation to the hypothalamus with the neurotoxin 6-hydroxydopamine did not alter levels of galanin receptor 1 messenger RNA. We also report that levels of galanin receptor 1 messenger RNA were not different between galanin-knockout and wild-type mice. These results suggest that compensatory adjustments in the expression of cognate receptors represent one mechanism by which the developing nervous system attempts to maintain homeostasis in response to overexpression of a peptidergic transmitter. However, the lack of significant changes in galanin receptor 1 messenger RNA in galanin-knockout mice suggests that developmentally programmed levels of receptor expression are maintained even in the complete absence of ligand.

Astrocyte delivery of glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor in a mouse model of Parkinson's disease

Primary astrocytes were genetically modified ex vivo to express recombinant glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) and subsequently were tested for their ability to provide neuroprotection to dopaminergic neurons in a 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) mouse model of Parkinson's disease. A replication-defective retrovirus was constructed, which contained the rat GDNF sequence and a sequence encoding a beta-galactosidase (beta-gal)/neomycin phosphotransferase fusion protein, linked via an internal ribosomal entry site. Murine astrocytes transduced with this vector secreted GDNF into the culture media at the rate of 115 +/- 34 pg/24 h/10(5) cells and expressed cytoplasmic beta-gal, whereas control nontransduced astrocytes were negative for GDNF production and cytoplasmic beta-gal expression. Mice that received implants of GDNF-producing astrocytes into the striatum or nigra displayed elevated levels of GDNF compared to mice that received control nontransduced astrocytes. In addition, tissue content of GDNF was increased bilaterally and in brain regions both proximal and distal to the graft, even though astrocyte migration away from the graft site did not occur. Importantly, GDNF-producing astrocytes provided marked neuroprotection of nigral dopaminergic perikarya, and partial protection of striatal dopaminergic fibers, when implanted into the midbrain 6 days prior to a retrograde 6-OHDA lesion, as assessed by tyrosine hydroxylase immunohistochemistry. Similarly, GDNF-producing astrocytes prevented the acquisition of amphetamine-induced rotational behavior in 6-OHDA-treated mice and completely prevented dopamine depletion within the substantia nigra, as assessed by high-performance liquid chromatography. These results indicate that continuous exposure to low levels of GDNF provided by transgenic astrocytes provides marked neuroprotection of nigral dopaminergic neurons. (c)2002 Elsevier Science (USA).