title: alpha-MSH modulates local and circulating tumor necrosis factor-alpha in experimental brain inflammation.
abstract: Tumor necrosis factor (TNF-alpha) underlies pathological processes and functional disturbances in acute and chronic neurological disease and injury. The neuroimmunomodulatory peptide alpha-MSH modulates actions and production of proinflammatory cytokines including TNF-alpha, but there is no prior evidence that it alters TNF-alpha induced within the brain. To test for this potential influence of the peptide, TNF-alpha was induced centrally by local injection of bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS). alpha-MSH given once i.c.v. with LPS challenge, twice daily intraperitoneally (i.p.) for 5 d between central LPS injections, or both i.p. and centrally, inhibited production of TNF-alpha within brain tissue. Inhibition of TNF-alpha protein formation by alpha-MSH was confirmed by inhibition of TNF-alpha mRNA. Plasma TNF-alpha concentration was elevated markedly after central LPS, indicative of an augmented peripheral host response induced by the CNS signal. The increase was inhibited by alpha-MSH treatments, in relation to inhibition of central TNF-alpha. Presence within normal mouse brain of mRNA for the alpha-MSH receptor MC-1 suggests that the inhibitory effects of alpha-MSH on brain and plasma TNF-alpha might be mediated by this receptor subtype. The inhibitory effect of alpha-MSH on brain TNF-alpha did not depend on circulating factors because the effect also occurred in brain tissue in vitro. This indicates that alpha-MSH can act directly on brain cells to inhibit their production of TNF-alpha. If central TNF-alpha contributes to pathology in CNS disease and injury, and promotes inflammation in the periphery, agents that act on brain alpha-MSH receptors should decrease the pathological TNF-alpha reaction and promote tissue survival.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas, Dallas, Texas 75235-9040, USA.
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Rajora
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Boccoli
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Burns
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sharma
authors.forename: A P
authors.initials: AP
authors.lastname: Catania
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Lipton
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001921:Brain / Q000187:drug effects*; D001927:Brain Diseases / Q000378:metabolism*; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D007249:Inflammation / Q000378:metabolism; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000378:metabolism*; D000521:alpha-MSH / Q000494:pharmacology*
chemical_list: D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha; D000521:alpha-MSH