| First Author | Le DA | Year | 2002 |
| Journal | Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A | Volume | 99 |
| Issue | 23 | Pages | 15188-93 |
| PubMed ID | 12415117 | Mgi Jnum | J:126184 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:3760687 | Doi | 10.1073/pnas.232473399 |
| Citation | Le DA, et al. (2002) Caspase activation and neuroprotection in caspase-3- deficient mice after in vivo cerebral ischemia and in vitro oxygen glucose deprivation. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 99(23):15188-93 |
| abstractText | Caspase-3 is a major cell death effector protease in the adult and neonatal nervous system. We found a greater number and higher density of cells in the cortex of caspase-3(-/-) adult mice, consistent with a defect in developmental cell death. Caspase-3(-/-) mice were also more resistant to ischemic stress both in vivo and in vitro. After 2 h of ischemia and 48 h of reperfusion, cortical infarct volume was reduced by 55%, and the density of terminal deoxynucleotidyltransferase-mediated dUTP nick end labeling-positive cells was decreased by 36% compared with wild type. When subjected to oxygen-glucose deprivation (2 h), cortical neurons cultured from mice deficient in caspase-3 expression were also more resistant to cell death by 59%. Mutant brains showed caspase-specific poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase cleavage product (85-kDa fragment) in vivo and in vitro, suggesting redundant mechanisms and persistence of caspase-mediated cell death. In the present study, we found that caspase-8 mediated poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase cleavage in caspase-3(-/-) neurons in vivo and in vitro. In addition, mutant neurons showed no evidence of compensatory activation by caspase-6 or caspase-7 after ischemia. Taken together, these data extend the pharmacological evidence supporting an important role for caspase-3 and caspase-8 as cell death mediators in mammalian cortex and indicate the potential advantages of targeting more than a single caspase family member to treat ischemic cell injury. |
