title: Neural transplantation of cells expressing the anti-apoptotic gene bcl-2.
abstract: Long-term survival of grafted neural cells is a major goal of neural transplantation, but typical survival rates of grafted fetal neurons are in the range of 5-10%. Whether the death of transplanted neural cells is apoptotic or necrotic is unknown. The expression of the proto-oncogene bcl-2 inhibits both apoptotic and necrotic neural cell death. In a 6-OHDA induced rat model of Parkinson's disease, Hoechst 33258 prelabelled conditionally immortalized nigral cells engineered to express bcl-2 were stereotactically transplanted into the striatum ipsilaterally to the lesioned nigrostriatal pathway. Sixteen rats received bcl-2 transfected cells, 15 received cells transfected with vector alone, and 12 received either a nondopaminergic cell line or were sham transplanted as controls. Four wk following transplantation, the rats with grafts containing bcl-2 expressing cells showed an approximately 43% decrease in apomorphine-induced rotational behavior. In contrast, 12% improvement occurred in the rats with transplanted cells transfected with vector alone (p < 0.05), and no improvement occurred in sham-operated animals (p < 0.05). Histological examination showed no tumor formation. Despite the difference in behavioral effect, no clear difference in Hoechst fluorescent staining or staining for TH, GFAP was noted; therefore, it is unknown at present whether the observed effect was due to a difference in survival or to increased efficacy per surviving transplanted neural cell, or both.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, UCLA 90024, USA.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Anton
authors.forename: J H
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Kordower
authors.forename: D J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Kane
authors.forename: C H
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Markham
authors.forename: D E
authors.initials: DE
authors.lastname: Bredesen
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D016380:Brain Tissue Transplantation; D016923:Cell Death; D003342:Corpus Striatum / Q000473:pathology; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D018014:Gene Transfer Techniques; D006085:Graft Survival / Q000235:genetics; D008297:Male; D016627:Oxidopamine; D010302:Parkinson Disease, Secondary / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000235:genetics; D019253:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley
chemical_list: D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins; D019253:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2; D016627:Oxidopamine