title: Microglial activation induces cell death, inhibits neurite outgrowth and causes neurite retraction of differentiated neuroblastoma cells.
abstract: Activation of glial cells has been proposed to contribute to neuronal dysfunction and neuronal cell death in Alzheimer's disease. In this study, we attempt to determine some of the effects of secreted factors from activated murine N-11 microglia on viability and morphology of neurons using the differentiated neuroblastoma cell line Neuro2a. Microglia were activated either by lipopolysaccharide (LPS), bacterial cell wall proteoglycans, or advanced glycation endproducts (AGEs), protein-bound sugar oxidation products. At high LPS or AGE concentrations, conditioned medium from microglia caused neuronal cell death in a dose-dependent manner. At sublethal LPS or AGE concentrations, conditioned media inhibited retinoic acid-induced neurite outgrowth and stimulated retraction of already extended neurites. Among the many possible secreted factors, the contribution of NO or NO metabolites in the cytotoxicity of conditioned medium was investigated. Cell death and changes in neurite morphology were partly reduced when NO production was inhibited by nitric oxide synthase inhibitors. The results suggest that even in the absence of significant cell death, inflammatory processes, which are partly transmitted via NO metabolites, may affect intrinsic functions of neurons such as neurite extension that are essential components of neuronal morphology and thus may contribute to degenerative changes in Alzheimer's disease.
authors.affiliation: Neuroimmunological Cell Biology Unit, Leipzig, Germany. mueg@medizin.uni-leipzig.de
authors.forename: Gerald
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Münch
authors.forename: Jovana
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gasic-Milenkovic
authors.forename: Sladjana
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Dukic-Stefanovic
authors.forename: Björn
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Kuhla
authors.forename: Katrin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Heinrich
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Riederer
authors.forename: Henri J
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Huttunen
authors.forename: Hank
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Founds
authors.forename: Gangadharan
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Sajithlal
mesh_terms: D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D000818:Animals; D016923:Cell Death / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D002454:Cell Differentiation / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D002470:Cell Survival / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D017077:Culture Media, Conditioned / Q000494:pharmacology; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D005911:Gliosis / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D017127:Glycation End Products, Advanced; D007249:Inflammation / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides; D051379:Mice; D017628:Microglia / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism*; D016501:Neurites / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D009447:Neuroblastoma; D009569:Nitric Oxide / Q000378:metabolism; D011509:Proteoglycans; D014212:Tretinoin / Q000494:pharmacology; D014407:Tumor Cells, Cultured
chemical_list: D017077:Culture Media, Conditioned; D017127:Glycation End Products, Advanced; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides; D011509:Proteoglycans; D009569:Nitric Oxide; D014212:Tretinoin