Estrogen receptor (ER) ? expression in oligodendrocytes is required for attenuation of clinical disease by an ER? ligand.
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ABSTRACT: Treatment of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) mice with the estrogen receptor (ER) ? ligand diarylpropionitrile (DPN) has been shown to have neuroprotective effects via stimulation of endogenous myelination. The direct cellular mechanisms underlying the effects of this ER? ligand on the central nervous system are uncertain because different cell types in both the peripheral immune system and central nervous system express ERs. ER? is the target molecule of DPN because DPN treatment fails to decrease EAE clinical symptoms in global ER?-null mice. Here we investigated the potential role of ER? expression in cells of oligodendrocyte (OL) lineage in ER? ligand-mediated neuroprotection. To this end, we selectively deleted ER? in OLs using the well-characterized Cre-loxP system for conditional gene knockout (CKO) in mice. The effects of this ER? CKO on ER? ligand-mediated neuroprotective effects in chronic EAE mice were investigated. ER? CKO in OLs prevented DPN-induced decrease in EAE clinical disease. DPN treatment during EAE did not attenuate demyelination, only partially improved axon conduction, and did not activate the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/serine-threonine-specific protein kinase/mammalian target of rapamycin signaling pathway in ER? CKO mice. However, DPN treatment significantly increased brain-derived neurotrophic factor levels in ER? CKO mice. These findings demonstrate that signaling through ER? in OLs is essential for the beneficial myelination effects of the ER? ligand DPN in chronic EAE mice. Further, these findings have important implications for neuroprotective therapies that directly target OL survival and myelination.
SUBMITTER: Khalaj AJ
PROVIDER: S-EPMC3839759 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Nov
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
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