Delayed neurite regeneration and its improvement by nerve growth factor (NGF) in dorsal root ganglia from MRL-lpr/lpr mice in vitro.
We studied neurite regeneration in MRL-lpr/lpr mice, a murine model of systemic lupus erythematosus, using a culture system to investigate the influences of immunological abnormalities on neurons. The regeneration of cultured dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons from MRL-lpr/lpr mice was delayed compared with control MRL-+/+ mice. This modification of regeneration was age-dependent. MRL-lpr/lpr mice older than 16 weeks of age exhibited less neurite regeneration than controls but those younger than 6 weeks of age showed equal regeneration. Regeneration was improved by adding nerve growth factor (NGF) to culture medium. Following immunocytochemical staining, we counted the low affinity NGF receptor p75-positive DRG neurons in MRL mice. The percentage of p75-positive neurons in MRL-lpr/lpr mice older than 16 weeks of age was higher than that in MRL-+/+ mice. These neuronal abnormalities were thought not to be directly dependent on the genetic defect of Fas antigen, which is related to apoptosis in MRL-lpr/lpr mice, but to be the result of immunological abnormalities. The present study is the first to demonstrate a modification of neurite regeneration by immunological dysfunction in autoimmune mice.
Hikawa
N
N
Dept. of Physiology, School of Medicine, Yokohama City University, Kanazawa-ku, Japan.
Kiuchi
Y
Y
Maruyama
T
T
Takenaka
T
T
D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology; D000818:Animals; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005727:Ganglia, Spinal / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D007074:Immunoglobulin G / Q000097:blood; D008180:Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D051379:Mice; D008818:Mice, Neurologic Mutants; D009414:Nerve Growth Factors / Q000494:pharmacology*; D009416:Nerve Regeneration / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D016501:Neurites / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D009474:Neurons / Q000187:drug effects / Q000473:pathology* / Q000502:physiology*
D007074:Immunoglobulin G; D009414:Nerve Growth Factors