Peripheral neuroglial death induced by cisplatin administration in newborn rats

N-acetylcysteine Microparticles Reduce Cisplatin-induced RSC96 Schwann Cell Toxicity

Objectives

Cisplatin is known to cause inner ear dysfunction. There is growing evidence that cisplatin-induced demyelination of spiral or Scarpa's ganglion neurons may play an additional role in drug-induced ototoxicity alongside afferent neuron injury. As Schwann cells produce myelin, there may be an opportunity to reduce ototoxic inner ear damage by promoting Schwann cell viability. This work describes a cellular model of cisplatin-induced Schwann cell injury and investigates the ability of the antioxidant N-acetylcysteine to promote Schwann cell viability. A local delivery system of drug-eluting microparticles was then fabricated, characterized, and investigated for bioactivity.

Methods

RSC96 rat Schwann cells were dosed with varying concentrations of cisplatin to obtain a dose curve and identify the lethal concentration of 50% of the cells (LC 50 ). In subsequent experiments, RSC96 cells were co-treated with cisplatin and both resuspended or eluted N-acetylcysteine. Cell viability was assessed with the CCK8 assay.

Results

The LC 50 dose of cisplatin was determined to be 3.76 μM (p=2.2 × 10 -16 ). When co-dosed with cisplatin and therapeutic concentration of resuspended or eluted N-acetylcysteine, Schwann cells had an increased viability compared to cells dosed with cisplatin alone.

Conclusion

RSC96 Schwann cell injury following cisplatin insult is characterized in this in vitro model. Cisplatin caused injury at physiologic concentrations and N-acetylcysteine improved cell viability and mitigated this injury. N-acetylcysteine was packaged into microparticles and eluted N-acetylcysteine retained its ability to increase cell viability, thus demonstrating promise as a therapeutic to offset cisplatin-induced ototoxicity.

Lay Summary

Cisplatin is a chemotherapeutic agent known to cause balance and hearing problems through damage to the inner ear. This project explored cisplatin injury in a Schwann cell culture model and packaged an antioxidant into microparticles suitable for future drug delivery applications.

Role of innate immunity in chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy

It has become increasingly clear that the innate immune system plays an essential role in the generation of many types of neuropathic pain including that which accompanies cancer treatment. In this article we review current findings of the role of the innate immune system in contributing to cancer treatment pain at the distal endings of peripheral nerve, in the nerve trunk, in the dorsal root ganglion and in the spinal dorsal horn.

Effects of Oxaliplatin Treatment on the Enteric Glial Cells and Neurons in the Mouse Ileum

Oxaliplatin, currently used for treatment of colorectal and other cancers, causes severe gastrointestinal side effects, including nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and constipation that are attributed to mucosal damage. However, delayed onset and long-term persistence of these side effects suggest that damage to the enteric nervous system (ENS) regulating physiological function of the gastrointestinal tract may also occur. The ENS comprises myenteric and submucosal neurons and enteric glial cells (EGCs). This study aimed to investigate the effects of oxaliplatin treatment on enteric neurons and EGCs within the mouse ileum. BALB/c mice received repeated intraperitoneal injections of oxaliplatin (3 mg/kg, 3 injections/week). Tissues were collected 3, 7, 14, and 21 days from the commencement of treatment. Decreases in glial fibrillary acidic protein-immunoreactive (IR) EGCs and protein gene product 9.5/β-Tubulin III-IR neurons as well as increase in s100β-IR EGCs after chronic oxaliplatin administration were observed in both the myenteric and submucosal plexi. Changes in EGCs were further observed in cross-sections of the ileum at day 14 and confirmed by Western blotting. Alterations in EGCs correlated with loss of myenteric and submucosal neurons in the ileum from oxaliplatin-treated mice. These changes to the ENS may contribute to the mechanisms underlying gastrointestinal side effects associated with oxaliplatin treatment.

Cisplatin-induced apoptosis in cultures of human Schwann cells

To investigate the sensitivity of human Schwann cells to cisplatin (cis-DDP), different approaches to estimate DNA damage were used: the comet assay, morphological evaluation of the granular condensation of nuclear chromatin and the terminal transferase-mediated dUTP nick-end-labelling (TUNEL) method. The number of micronuclei (MNi), as a sign of cisplatin-induced genotoxicity, was counted. DNA damage assessed by the comet assay was already evident after 1.5 microM cisplatin treatment at all exposure times (24, 48, and 72 h). Initial morphological changes characterised by the granular condensation of nuclear chromatin were detectable after 24 h exposure to 25 microM cis-DDP, while an increased number of apoptotic cells, determined by the TUNEL method, was noted after 48 h exposure to the same concentration. The first significant increase in the number of MNi was observed in cells treated with 75 microM cis-DDP for 24 h. We demonstrate that the comet assay is a highly sensitive method for measuring cisplatin induced DNA damage. Morphological observation revealed advanced as well as less prominent alterations in the nuclear chromatin. In contrast, the TUNEL method detected only those cells with advanced DNA fragmentation.

Role of ERK activation in cisplatin-induced apoptosis in A172 human glioma cells

Cisplatin activates multiple signal transduction pathways associated with cell survival and apoptosis in various cell types. The present study was undertaken to determine the role of extracellular signal-regulated protein kinase (ERK), a member of the mitogen-activated protein kinase family, in cisplatin-induced apoptosis in human glioma cells. Cisplatin resulted in apoptosis in a dose- and time-dependent manner. Cisplatin-induced apoptosis was prevented by the hydrogen peroxide scavenger pyruvate and the antioxidant N-acetylcysteine, but not by the superoxide scavenger tiron. Western blot analysis demonstrated that cisplatin treatment induced time-dependent activation of ERK, which was inhibited by chemical inhibitors of the MEK signaling pathway (PD98059 and U0126) and N-acetylcysteine. These inhibitors prevented cisplatin-induced cell death. Transient transfection of constitutive active MEK1 increased cisplatin-induced apoptosis. Cisplatin resulted in a reduction in mitochondrial membrane potential and its effect was prevented by N-acetylcysteine and PD98059. Caspase inhibitors (Boc-D-FMK and zDEVD-FMK) protected against cisplatin-induced cell death. Cisplatin-induced activation of caspase-3 was inhibited by N-acetylcysteine and PD98059. Taken together, these findings suggest that the ERK activation plays an active role in mediating cisplatin-induced apoptosis of human glioma cells and functions upstream of mitochondrial dysfunction and caspase activation to the initiate the apoptotic signal.

The effect of Ginkgo extract EGb761 in cisplatin-induced peripheral neuropathy in mice

Neuroprotective effect of Ginkgo biloba extract EGb761 in cisplatin (cis-diamminedi-chloroplatinum, or CDDP)-induced peripheral neuropathy was investigated. Swiss albino mice were treated with CDDP, 2 mg/kg ip twice a week for nine times. One group of the animals also received EGb761 in the drinking water at an estimated dosage of 100 mg/kg per day. Two other groups received vehicle (control) or EGb761 only. Development of neuropathy was evaluated with changes in sensory nerve conduction velocity (NCV). Following the treatments, dorsal root ganglia (DRGs) were microscopically examined and some were cultured for 3 days. EGb761 proved effective in preventing the reduction in NCV (P < 0.0001) caused by CDDP. CDDP caused a decrease in the number of migrating cells (P < 0.01) and in the length of outgrowing axons (P < 0.01) while EGb761 treatment prevented the latter. CDDP led to smaller nuclear and somatic sizes in neurons (P < 0.01), while with EGb761 co-administration, both were close to control values. Animals having EGb761 only had similar results with controls. In conclusion, EGb761 was found to be effective in preventing some functional and morphological deteriorations in CDDP-induced peripheral neuropathy.