title: Sex hormone-dependent attenuation of EAE in a transgenic mouse with astrocytic expression of the RNA regulator HuR.
abstract: In experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) and other neurodegenerative diseases, astrocytes play an important role in promoting or attenuating the inflammatory response through induction of different cytokines and growth factors. HuR plays a major role in regulating many of these factors by modulating RNA stability and translational efficiency. Here, we engineered transgenic mice to express HuR in astrocytes using the human glial fibrillary acidic protein promoter and found that female transgenic mice had significantly less clinical disability and histopathological changes in the spinal cord. Ovariectomy prior to EAE induction abrogated the protective effect. Our findings support a role for the astrocyte and posttranscriptional regulation in hormonally-mediated attenuation of EAE.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurobiology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294, USA.
authors.forename: Crystal
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Wheeler
authors.forename: L Burt
authors.initials: LB
authors.lastname: Nabors
authors.forename: Scott
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Barnum
authors.forename: Xiuhua
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Xianzhen
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Hu
authors.forename: Trenton R
authors.initials: TR
authors.lastname: Schoeb
authors.forename: Dongquan
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Agnieszka A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Ardelt
authors.forename: Peter H
authors.initials: PH
authors.lastname: King
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001253:Astrocytes / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D051959:ELAV Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology; D004681:Encephalomyelitis, Autoimmune, Experimental / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D045166:Estradiol Congeners / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D051379:Mice; D008822:Mice, Transgenic; D013116:Spinal Cord / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology
chemical_list: D051959:ELAV Proteins; D045166:Estradiol Congeners