Thiazolidinediones promote axonal growth through the activation of the JNK pathway.

The axon is a neuronal process involved in protein transport, synaptic plasticity, and neural regeneration. It has been suggested that their structure and function are profoundly impaired in neurodegenerative diseases. Previous evidence suggest that Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptors-γ (PPA...

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Main Authors: Rodrigo A Quintanilla, Juan A Godoy, Ivan Alfaro, Deny Cabezas, Rommy von Bernhardi, Miguel Bronfman, Nibaldo C Inestrosa
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Public Library of Science (PLoS) 2013-01-01
Series:PLoS ONE
Online Access:http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC3669289?pdf=render
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author Rodrigo A Quintanilla
Juan A Godoy
Ivan Alfaro
Deny Cabezas
Rommy von Bernhardi
Miguel Bronfman
Nibaldo C Inestrosa
author_facet Rodrigo A Quintanilla
Juan A Godoy
Ivan Alfaro
Deny Cabezas
Rommy von Bernhardi
Miguel Bronfman
Nibaldo C Inestrosa
author_sort Rodrigo A Quintanilla
collection DOAJ
description The axon is a neuronal process involved in protein transport, synaptic plasticity, and neural regeneration. It has been suggested that their structure and function are profoundly impaired in neurodegenerative diseases. Previous evidence suggest that Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptors-γ (PPARγ promote neuronal differentiation on various neuronal cell types. In addition, we demonstrated that activation of PPARγby thiazolidinediones (TZDs) drugs that selectively activate PPARγ prevent neurite loss and axonal damage induced by amyloid-β (Aβ). However, the potential role of TZDs in axonal elongation and neuronal polarity has not been explored. We report here that the activation of PPARγ by TZDs promoted axon elongation in primary hippocampal neurons. Treatments with different TZDs significantly increased axonal growth and branching area, but no significant effects were observed in neurite elongation compared to untreated neurons. Treatment with PPARγ antagonist (GW 9662) prevented TZDs-induced axonal growth. Recently, it has been suggested that the c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) plays an important role regulating axonal growth and neuronal polarity. Interestingly, in our studies, treatment with TZDs induced activation of the JNK pathway, and the pharmacological blockage of this pathway prevented axon elongation induced by TZDs. Altogether, these results indicate that activation of JNK induced by PPARγactivators stimulates axonal growth and accelerates neuronal polarity. These novel findings may contribute to the understanding of the effects of PPARγ on neuronal differentiation and validate the use of PPARγ activators as therapeutic agents in neurodegenerative diseases.
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spelling doaj.art-e0587b3139124558ba4efe49b6ded6792022-12-21T18:23:34ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032013-01-0185e6514010.1371/journal.pone.0065140Thiazolidinediones promote axonal growth through the activation of the JNK pathway.Rodrigo A QuintanillaJuan A GodoyIvan AlfaroDeny CabezasRommy von BernhardiMiguel BronfmanNibaldo C InestrosaThe axon is a neuronal process involved in protein transport, synaptic plasticity, and neural regeneration. It has been suggested that their structure and function are profoundly impaired in neurodegenerative diseases. Previous evidence suggest that Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptors-γ (PPARγ promote neuronal differentiation on various neuronal cell types. In addition, we demonstrated that activation of PPARγby thiazolidinediones (TZDs) drugs that selectively activate PPARγ prevent neurite loss and axonal damage induced by amyloid-β (Aβ). However, the potential role of TZDs in axonal elongation and neuronal polarity has not been explored. We report here that the activation of PPARγ by TZDs promoted axon elongation in primary hippocampal neurons. Treatments with different TZDs significantly increased axonal growth and branching area, but no significant effects were observed in neurite elongation compared to untreated neurons. Treatment with PPARγ antagonist (GW 9662) prevented TZDs-induced axonal growth. Recently, it has been suggested that the c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) plays an important role regulating axonal growth and neuronal polarity. Interestingly, in our studies, treatment with TZDs induced activation of the JNK pathway, and the pharmacological blockage of this pathway prevented axon elongation induced by TZDs. Altogether, these results indicate that activation of JNK induced by PPARγactivators stimulates axonal growth and accelerates neuronal polarity. These novel findings may contribute to the understanding of the effects of PPARγ on neuronal differentiation and validate the use of PPARγ activators as therapeutic agents in neurodegenerative diseases.http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC3669289?pdf=render
spellingShingle Rodrigo A Quintanilla
Juan A Godoy
Ivan Alfaro
Deny Cabezas
Rommy von Bernhardi
Miguel Bronfman
Nibaldo C Inestrosa
Thiazolidinediones promote axonal growth through the activation of the JNK pathway.
PLoS ONE
title Thiazolidinediones promote axonal growth through the activation of the JNK pathway.
title_full Thiazolidinediones promote axonal growth through the activation of the JNK pathway.
title_fullStr Thiazolidinediones promote axonal growth through the activation of the JNK pathway.
title_full_unstemmed Thiazolidinediones promote axonal growth through the activation of the JNK pathway.
title_short Thiazolidinediones promote axonal growth through the activation of the JNK pathway.
title_sort thiazolidinediones promote axonal growth through the activation of the jnk pathway
url http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC3669289?pdf=render
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