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Perinatal nicotine exposure increases vulnerability of hypoxic-ischemic brain injury in neonatal rats: role of angiotensin II receptors.

ABSTRACT: Maternal cigarette smoking increases the risk of neonatal morbidity. We tested the hypothesis that perinatal nicotine exposure causes heightened brain vulnerability to hypoxic-ischemic (HI) injury in neonatal rats through aberrant expression patterns of angiotensin II type 1 (AT(1)R) and type 2 (AT(2)R) receptors in the developing brain.Nicotine was administered to pregnant rats through subcutaneous osmotic minipumps. HI brain injury was determined in 10-day-old pups. AT(1)R and AT(2)R expression patterns were assessed through Western blotting, quantitative polymerase chain reaction, immunofluorescence, and confocal imaging.Perinatal nicotine exposure significantly increased HI brain infarct size in male, but not female, pups. In fetal brains, nicotine caused a decrease in mRNA and protein abundance of AT(2)R but not AT(1)R. The downregulation of AT(2)R persisted in brains of male pups, and nicotine treatment resulted in a significant increase in methylation of CpG locus 3 bases upstream of TATA-box at the AT(2)R gene promoter. In female brains, there was an increase in AT(2)R but a decrease in AT(1)R expression. Both AT(1)R and AT(2)R expressed in neurons but not in astrocytes in the cortex and hippocampus. Central application of AT(1)R antagonist losartan or AT(2)R antagonist PD123319 increased HI brain infarct size in both male and female pups. In male pups, AT(2)R agonist CGP42112 abrogated nicotine-induced increase in HI brain infarction. In females, PD123319 uncovered the nicotine's effect on HI brain infarction.Perinatal nicotine exposure causes epigenetic repression of the AT(2)R gene in the developing brain resulting in heightened brain vulnerability to HI injury in neonatal male rats in a sex-dependent manner.

SUBMITTER: Li Y

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3429721 | biostudies-literature | 2012 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Perinatal nicotine exposure increases vulnerability of hypoxic-ischemic brain injury in neonatal rats: role of angiotensin II receptors.

Li Yong Y Xiao Daliao D Dasgupta Chiranjib C Xiong Fuxia F Tong Wenni W Yang Shumei S Zhang Lubo L

Stroke 20120626 9

<h4>Background and purpose</h4>Maternal cigarette smoking increases the risk of neonatal morbidity. We tested the hypothesis that perinatal nicotine exposure causes heightened brain vulnerability to hypoxic-ischemic (HI) injury in neonatal rats through aberrant expression patterns of angiotensin II type 1 (AT(1)R) and type 2 (AT(2)R) receptors in the developing brain.<h4>Methods</h4>Nicotine was administered to pregnant rats through subcutaneous osmotic minipumps. HI brain injury was determined ...[more]

PMID: 22738920

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Project description:BackgroundAngiogenesis is an endogenous repair mechanism following hypoxic-ischemic brain damage (HIBD). Interestingly, recent studies have shown that angiogenesis can be regulated by telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT), a critical component of telomerase. As telomerase reverse transcriptase can promote angiogenesis after stroke, we hypothesized that it could also promote angiogenesis after HIBD. To test this hypothesis, we developed in vivo and in vitro HIBD models in neonatal rats.MethodsTERT was overexpressed by lentivirus and adenovirus infection, and levels were measured using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. We used a cell counting kit to quantify the proliferation rate of brain microvascular endothelial cells (BMECs), and immunofluorescence staining to measure CD34 expression levels. A microvessel formation assay was used to evaluate angiogenesis. Blood-brain barrier (BBB) integrity was assessed using immunohistochemical staining for ZO-1 and Evans Blue staining. Lastly, the expression level of Notch-1 was measured by western blotting.ResultsOverexpression of TERT promoted the proliferation of BMECs after hypoxic-ischemic damage in vitro. TERT overexpression increased the formation of microvessels in the neonatal brain after HIBD both in vivo and in vitro. Overexpression of TERT improved BBB integrity in the brains of neonatal rats after HIBD. In addition, the expression level of Notch-1 was increased in BMECs following oxygen glucose deprivation, and overexpression of TERT further increased Notch-1 expression levels in BMECs following oxygen glucose deprivation.DiscussionOur results reveal that telomerase reverse transcriptase promotes angiogenesis and maintains the integrity of the blood-brain barrier after neonatal hypoxic-ischemic brain damage. Furthermore, the Notch-1 signaling pathway appears to contribute to the angiogenic function of telomerase reverse transcriptase. This protective effect of telomerase reverse transcriptase opens new horizons for future investigations aimed at uncovering the full potential of telomerase reverse transcriptase as a promising new target for the treatment of hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy.

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Perinatal nicotine exposure increases vulnerability of hypoxic-ischemic brain injury in neonatal rats: role of angiotensin II receptors.

Publications

Perinatal nicotine exposure increases vulnerability of hypoxic-ischemic brain injury in neonatal rats: role of angiotensin II receptors.

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