title: Ciliary neurotrophic factor-treated astrocyte conditioned medium regulates the L-type calcium channel activity in rat cortical neurons.
abstract: Astrocytes are activated by ciliary neurotrophic factor (CNTF) in vivo and in vitro, however, the consequences on the L-type calcium channel (LCC) of neurons are still poorly understood. Therefore, in the present study, whole-cell patch clamp, western-blot and RT-PCR assay were performed to evaluate the effects of CNTF-treated astrocyte conditioned medium (CNTF-ACM) on LCC current (I(Ca)-L) and the expression of Cav1.2 and Cav1.3 in Sprague-Dawley rat cortical neurons. The results revealed that CNTF-ACM enhanced the amplitude of Ica-L and the expression of Cav1.3 significantly, but had no effects on Cav1.2 expression. We also found an increase in the concentration of fibroblast growth factor-2 (FGF-2) in CNTF-ACM by ELISA assay. Taken together, these findings indicate that CNTF induces the release of factors, including FGF-2, from astrocytes, thereby potentiating the activity of LCC in cortical neurons.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anatomy, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, 13 Hangkong Rd, Wuhan, Hubei 430030, PR China.
authors.forename: Xiaojing
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Honghua
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zheng
authors.forename: Changjin
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Changgeng
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Zhengli
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Li
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001253:Astrocytes / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism; D001483:Base Sequence; D020746:Calcium Channels, L-Type / Q000502:physiology*; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism; D020934:Ciliary Neurotrophic Factor / Q000494:pharmacology*; D017077:Culture Media, Conditioned; D017931:DNA Primers; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction
chemical_list: D020746:Calcium Channels, L-Type; D020934:Ciliary Neurotrophic Factor; D017077:Culture Media, Conditioned; D017931:DNA Primers