Increased phosphorylation of caveolin-1 in the sciatic nerves of Lewis rats with experimental autoimmune neuritis.
The levels of phosphorylated caveolin-1 (p-caveolin-1) were analyzed in the sciatic nerves of Lewis rats with experimental autoimmune neuritis (EAN). Western blot analysis showed that the phosphorylation of caveolin-1 increased significantly in the sciatic nerves of EAN-affected rats at the paralytic stage of EAN on day 14 post-immunization (PI) (P<0.05) and declined slightly thereafter during the recovery stage. Immunohistochemistry showed intense p-caveolin-1 immunostaining in some inflammatory macrophages, as well as in T-cells in individual nerve fascicles at the peak stage of EAN, while p-caveolin-1 was weakly expressed in some of the vascular endothelial cells and Schwann cells of normal sciatic nerves. The inflammatory cells with intense p-caveolin-1 expression in the EAN-affected individual nerve fascicles were not positive for terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick end-labeling (TUNEL), while the TUNEL-positive apoptotic cells in the perineurium, where infiltration initially occurred, were weakly positive for p-caveolin-1. Based on these findings, we postulate that caveolin-1 is phosphorylated in inflammatory cells soon after they infiltrate the sciatic nerve, as well as in the perineurium, and that p-caveolin-1 activates intracellular signaling in inflammatory cells, leading to cell death, which ultimately eliminates the infiltrating inflammatory cells from the sciatic nerves of animals with EAN.
Kim
Heechul
H
Department of Veterinary Medicine, Cheju National University, Jeju 690-756, South Korea.
Moon
Changjong
C
Ahn
Meejung
M
Matsumoto
Yoh
Y
Koh
Chang-Sung
CS
Kim
Moon-Doo
MD
Shin
Taekyun
T
D000818:Animals; D017209:Apoptosis / Q000502:physiology; D051242:Caveolin 1 / Q000378:metabolism*; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D053331:Ectodysplasins / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation / Q000502:physiology; D005904:Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein / Q000378:metabolism; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D020287:In Situ Nick-End Labeling; D037102:Lectins / Q000378:metabolism; D009444:Neuritis, Autoimmune, Experimental / Q000473:pathology* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D010766:Phosphorylation; D051381:Rats; D011917:Rats, Inbred Lew; D012584:Sciatic Nerve / Q000378:metabolism*
D051242:Caveolin 1; D053331:Ectodysplasins; D005904:Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein; D037102:Lectins