Activation of caspase‐3 in axotomized rat retinal ganglion cells in vivo

FEBS Letters

Klöcker, Nikolaj²  Bähr, Mathias²  Thomsen, Susanne²  Srinivasan, Anu¹  Kermer, Pawel²  Labes, Monika² 

[1] IDUN Pharmaceuticals, 11085 N. Torrey Pines Rd., La Jolla, CA 92037, USA;Dept. of Neurology, Medical School, University of Tübingen, Hoppe-Seyler-Str. 3, 72076 Tübingen, Germany

关键词: Retinal ganglion cell;    Axotomy;    Apoptosis;    Caspase activation;    Caspase-3;   

DOI  :  10.1016/S0014-5793(99)00747-4

学科分类：生物化学/生物物理

来源: John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

【 摘 要 】

Recently, we have shown that inhibition of caspase-3-like caspases is the most effective treatment strategy to protect adult rat retinal ganglion cells from secondary death following optic nerve transection. In the present study, we localized active caspase-3 in axotomized retinal ganglion cells in vivo and demonstrated a co-localization of the active p20 fragment and TUNEL-staining in some of these cells. In line with this, we detected an enhanced cleavage and activity of caspase-3 protein in retinal tissue after lesion, while caspase-3 mRNA expression remained unchanged. These data suggest caspase-3 as an important mediator of secondary retinal ganglion cell death following axotomy in vivo.

【 授权许可】

Unknown