IIB   20738
INSTITUTO DE INVESTIGACIONES BIOLOGICAS
Unidad Ejecutora - UE
artículos
Título:
Intraperitoneal melatonin is not neuroprotective in the G93ASOD1 transgenic mouse model of familial ALS and may exacerbate neurodegeneration
Autor/es:
EFTHIMIOS DARDIOTIS; ELENA PANAYIOTOU; MARIANA L. FELDMAN; ANDREAS HADJISAVVAS; STAVROS MALAS; ILIA VONTA; GEORGIOS HADJIGEORGIOU; KYRIAKOS KYRIAKOU; THEODOROS KYRIAKIDES
Revista:
NEUROSCIENCE LETTERS
Editorial:
ELSEVIER IRELAND LTD
Referencias:
Lugar: Amsterdam; Año: 2013 vol. 548 p. 170 - 175
ISSN:
0304-3940
Resumen:
In amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) reactive oxygen species and apoptosis are implicated in disease
pathogenesis. Melatonin with its anti-oxidant and anti-apoptotic properties is expected to ameliorate
disease phenotype. The aim of this study was to assess possible neuroprotection of melatonin in the
G93A-copper/zinc superoxide dismutase (G93ASOD1) transgenic mouse model of ALS. Four groups of
mice, 14 animals each, were injected intraperitoneally with 0 mg/kg, 0.5 mg/kg, 2.5 mg/kg and 50 mg/kg
of melatonin from age 40 days. The primary end points were; disease onset, disease duration, survival
and rotarod performance. No statistically significant difference in disease onset between the four groups
was found. Survival was significantly reduced with the 0.5 mg/kg and 50 mg/kg doses and tended to be
reduced with the 2.5 mg/kg dose. Histological analysis of spinal cords revealed increased motoneuron loss
in melatonin treated mice. Melatonin treated animals were associated with increased oxidative stress as
assessed with 4-hydroxynonenal (4-HNE), a marker of lipid peroxidation. Histochemistry and Western
blot data of spinal cord from melatonin treated mice revealed upregulation of human SOD1 compared
to untreated mice. In addition, real-time PCR revealed a dose dependent upregulation of human SOD1 in
melatonin treated animals. Thus, intraperitoneal melatonin, at the doses used, does not ameliorate and
perhaps exacerbates phenotype in the G93ASOD1 mouse ALS model. This is probably due to melatonin?s
effect on upregulating gene expression of human toxic SOD1. This action presumably overrides any of its
direct anti-oxidant and anti-apoptotic properties.