Lipid signaling during oxidative injury in the nervous system

SALVADOR, GABRIELA ALEJANDRA; URANGA, ROMINA MARÍA; MATEOS, MELINA VALERIA; GIUSTO, NORMA MARÍA

Lipids: Categories, Biological Functions and Metabolism, Nutrition and Health

Nova Science Publishers, Inc.

Lugar: Hauppauge, New York, Estados Unidos; Año: 2009;

Phospholipids comprise the most abundant class of membrane lipids. They are important components of all mammalian cells and they participate in key biological functions: (i) they form lipid bilayers providing the structural integrity necessary for membrane functions, and (ii) they act as precursors for various second messengers. Phospholipid-derived signal transduction involves the participation of phospholipases and phospholipid kinases that generate bioactive messengers such as: diacylglycerol, phosphatidic acid, arachidonic acid, lysophosphatidic acid, and phosphatidylinositol phosphates among others.The crucial role of phospholipid signaling in cell physiology has been demonstrated by the numerous reports that show a dysregulated lipid metabolism present in many neurological disorders and neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer´s, Parkinson´s, Niemann-Pick and Huntington diseases. Additionally, the importance of oxidative damage to the pathogenesis of many neurodegenerative processes has become increasingly apparent over the last few years. Cumulative evidence points toward a potentially important link between abnormal or dysregulated lipid signaling and oxidative stress in the development of neurodegenerative diseases. In this chapter, we will review current evidence about the involvement of lipid signaling pathways in the response to oxidative injury in the nervous system. Particularly, we will present evidence about the participation of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/Akt, phosphatidylcholine–specific phospholipase C and phospholipase D pathways and we will discuss their potential role in synaptic neurotoxicity.