Abstract
Pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating polypeptide (PACAP) has been known as a neuroprotectant agent in several retinal injury models. However, a detailed mechanism of this effect is still not well understood. In this study, we examined the retinoprotective effects and associated underlying mechanisms of action of PACAP in the mouse N-methyl-d-aspartic acid (NMDA)-induced retinal injury model, focusing on the relationship between PACAP and retinal microglia/macrophage (MG/MΦ) status. Adult male C57BL/6 mice received an intravitreal injection of NMDA to induce retinal injury. Three days after NMDA injection, the number of MG/MΦ increased significantly in the retinas. The concomitant intravitreal injection of PACAP suppressed NMDA-induced cell loss in the ganglion cell layer (GCL) and significantly increased the number of MG/MΦ. These outcomes associated with PACAP were attenuated by cotreatment with PACAP6-38, while the beneficial effects of PACAP were not seen in interleukin-10 (IL-10) knockout mice. PACAP significantly elevated the messenger RNA levels of anti-inflammatory cytokines such as transforming growth factor beta 1 and IL-10 in the injured retina, with the immunoreactivities seen to overlap with markers of MG/MΦ. These results suggest that PACAP enhances the proliferation and/or infiltration of retinal MG/MΦ and modulates their status into an acquired deactivation subtype to favor conditions for neuroprotection.
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Acknowledgments
This work was supported by Grants-in Aid for Scientific Research (KAKENHI: 23249079, 24592681, and 24592680), and by the MEXT-Support Program for the Strategic Research Foundation at Showa University (2008–2012, 2012–2016).
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Y. Wada and T. Nakamachi these authors equally contributed.
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Wada, Y., Nakamachi, T., Endo, K. et al. PACAP Attenuates NMDA-Induced Retinal Damage in Association with Modulation of the Microglia/Macrophage Status into an Acquired Deactivation Subtype. J Mol Neurosci 51, 493–502 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12031-013-0017-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12031-013-0017-5