title: Chronic vitamin D3 treatment protects against neurotoxicity by glutamate in association with upregulation of vitamin D receptor mRNA expression in cultured rat cortical neurons.
abstract: The vitamin D receptor (VDR) is believed to mediate different biologic actions of vitamin D3, an active metabolite of vitamin D, through regulation of gene expression after binding to specific DNA-response element (VDRE) on target genes. To further understand roles of both vitamin D3 and VDR in the central nervous system, we examined VDRE binding in nuclear extracts prepared from discrete rat brain regions and cultured rat cortical neurons by electrophoretic mobility shift assay. The highest activity of VDRE binding was found in the cerebellum among other brain regions examined, but sequence specific by taking into consideration the efficient competition with excess unlabeled VDRE but not with mutated VDRE. On in situ hybridization analysis, cells stained for VDR mRNA were abundant in neuron-enriched areas of cerebral cortex, hippocampus and cerebellar cortex in the mouse brain. Chronic treatment of vitamin D3 increased the expression of microtubule-associated protein-2, growth-associated protein-43 and synapsin-1 in cultured rat cortical neurons, suggesting a trophic role of vitamin D3 in differentiation and maturation of neurons. Neuronal cell death by brief glutamate exposure was significantly protected in cultured cortical neurons chronically treated with vitamin D3. Parallel studies showed that VDR mRNA was significantly upregulated 12-24 hr after brief glutamate exposure in cultured neurons chronically treated with vitamin D3, but not in those with vehicle alone. Our results suggest that vitamin D3 may play a role in mechanisms relevant to protective properties against the neurotoxicity of glutamate through upregulation of VDR expression in cultured rat cortical neurons.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Molecular Pharmacology, Division of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Kanazawa University Graduate School of Natural Science and Technology, Kanazawa, Ishikawa, Japan.
authors.forename: Hideo
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Taniura
authors.forename: Minoru
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ito
authors.forename: Noriko
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Sanada
authors.forename: Nobuyuki
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Kuramoto
authors.forename: Yu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ohno
authors.forename: Noritaka
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Nakamichi
authors.forename: Yukio
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yoneda
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn; D001921:Brain / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism*; D002762:Cholecalciferol / Q000378:metabolism / Q000494:pharmacology*; D019610:Cytoprotection / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D004334:Drug Administration Schedule; D019922:GAP-43 Protein / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D018698:Glutamic Acid / Q000633:toxicity*; D008869:Microtubule-Associated Proteins / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D018696:Neuroprotective Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D009498:Neurotoxins / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors*; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D018167:Receptors, Calcitriol / Q000235:genetics*; D020218:Response Elements / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics; D016704:Synapsins / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D015854:Up-Regulation / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D019922:GAP-43 Protein; D008869:Microtubule-Associated Proteins; D018696:Neuroprotective Agents; D009498:Neurotoxins; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D018167:Receptors, Calcitriol; D016704:Synapsins; D002762:Cholecalciferol; D018698:Glutamic Acid