Background
Parkinson’s disease (PD) is the second most prevalent neurodegenerative disorder, affecting millions of people worldwide [
1]. A major hallmark of PD is the loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra par compacta (SNpc) of the midbrain [
2]. The loss of dopaminergic neurons in PD leads to motor dysfunction accompanied by progressive non-motor symptoms, which include cognitive impairments, mood disturbances, sleep dysfunction, gastrointestinal problems, and dysautonomia [
3-
5]. Although the exact mechanisms underlying PD pathogenesis are yet to be defined, oxidative stress, mitochondrial dysfunction, and inflammation may contribute to this process [
6-
8].
Accumulating evidence suggests that neuroinflammation plays an important role in the progression of PD [
9,
10]. Post-mortem studies have shown that there is a large number of reactive microglia in the substantia nigra (SN) in PD, particularly in areas of maximal neurodegeneration, namely the ventral and lateral regions of the SN [
11]. A robust activation of microglia has also been found in both 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1, 2, 3, 6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP)- and 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA)-induced PD animal models [
12,
13]. Uncontrolled overactivation of microglia is a major component of neuroinflammation. Excessive activation of microglia and the consequent release of several pro-inflammatory cytokines and/or pro-inflammatory enzymes, such as TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6, inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), are believed to contribute to neurodegenerative processes [
14,
15]. Therefore, inhibition of microglial overactivation may be a potential therapeutic strategy to prevent further progression of PD.
In mesencephalic neuron-glia cultures, the stimulation of microglia with inflammagen lipopolysaccharide (LPS) induces the production of factors, including TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6, iNOS, and COX-2 [
16,
17]. Studies have attributed the accumulation of these factors to the degeneration of dopaminergic neurons [
18-
20]. The intranigral infusion of LPS in rats results in the significant degeneration of nigral dopaminergic neurons and depletion of striatal dopamine (DA) [
21,
22]. Therefore, these
in vitro and
in vivo models of inflammation-mediated dopaminergic neurodegeneration are powerful tools in mechanistic studies and the identification of potential therapeutic agents.
β-Hydroxybutyric acid (BHBA) is an important intermediate of amino and fatty acid catabolism that has been demonstrated to be neuroprotective [
23,
24]. Previous studies have shown that BHBA has strong protective effects in an MPTP-induced PD mouse model [
25] and provides substantial protection against apoptosis of dopaminergic neurons intoxicated by 1-methyl-4-phenylpyri-dinium (MPP
+) [
24], demonstrating that it is a potent neuroprotectant in both
in vivo and
in vitro PD models. Previous mechanistic studies have revealed that the anti-inflammatory effects of BHBA contributed to its neuroprotective effects [
15,
26], but the precise underlying mechanism is still unclear. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the neuroprotective and anti-inflammatory properties of BHBA in LPS-induced
in vivo and
in vitro PD models and to identify the specific anti-inflammatory mechanism of BHBA.
Methods
Animals and surgery
Male Wistar rats (250 to 290 g) were obtained from the Center of Experimental Animals of the Baiqiuen Medical College of Jilin University (Jilin, China). The rats were maintained in plastic cages under conventional conditions. Water and pelleted diets were supplied
ad libitum. Studies were performed in accordance with the guidelines established by the Jilin University Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee. The animals were allowed to acclimate to their new surroundings for 7 days before experimental manipulations. They were anesthetized with sodium pentobarbital (45 mg/kg, i.p.) and positioned in a stereotaxic apparatus (David Kopf Instruments, Tujunga, CA, U.S.A) to conform to the brain atlas of Paxinos and Watson [
27]. LPS (obtained from
Escherichia coli, serotype O26:B6; Sigma-Aldrich, St. Louis, MO, USA) were dissolved (5 mg/ml) in phosphate-buffed saline (PBS), and 2.0 μl was injected into the right SNpc at a rate of 0.2 μl/min. The injection needle was lowered through a drill hole at 5.3 mm posterior, 2 mm lateral, and 7.8 mm ventral to the bregma. The injections were delivered over a period of approximately 10 min. Then, the needle was left
in situ for 5 min to avoid reflux along the injection track. Thereafter, the skull surface was covered with fibrosponge, and the skin was sutured. Sham-operated animals were subjected to the same surgical procedures, except that 2 μl of PBS was injected into the SNpc.
Application of β-hydroxybutyric acid
Rats were divided into the following five groups: the sham-operated group, the LPS-injected group followed by vehicle treatment, and the LPS-injected group followed by treatment with 0.4, 0.8, or 1.6 mmol/kg/d BHBA (Sigma-Aldrich, St. Louis, MO, USA). BHBA was resolved in PBS and administered subcutaneously (1 μl/h) using Alzet mini-osmotic pumps (DURECT Corp., Cupertino, California, CA, USA). The rats received BHBA from 3 days before LPS injection up to 21 days post-LPS injection (24 days in total).
Rotational behavior assay
A rotational behavior assay was performed according to a previously described protocol [
21,
22]. Briefly, rats were placed into cylinders attached to a rotameter (Columbus Instruments, Columbus, OH, USA) and allowed to adapt for 10 min to the testing environment. Then, they were intraperitoneally injected with 5 mg/kg D-amphetamine sulfate (Sigma-Aldrich, St. Louis, MO, USA) dissolved in physiological saline. Measurements of rotational activity began at 5 min after injection and lasted for 30 min under minimal external stimuli. The number of turns made during the entire 30-min testing period was counted.
Rat mesencephalic neuron-glia cultures
Embryonic mesencephalic neuron-glia cultures were obtained from timed-pregnant Wistar rats on embryonic day 14. Briefly, ventral mesencephalic tissues were removed and dissociated to single cells by a mechano-enzymatic method involving a protease treatment with 2.5 mg/ml trypsin and 0.1 mg/ml DNAse type I (Sigma-Aldrich, St. Louis, MO, USA) and additional mechanical shearing. Cells were seeded at 2 × 105 per well in 24-well culture plates precoated with poly-D-lysine (1 mg/ml) (Sigma-Aldrich, St. Louis, MO, USA) and maintained at 37°C in a humidified atmosphere of 5% CO2 and 95% air in a maintenance medium consisting of minimum essential medium supplemented with 10% heat-inactivated fetal bovine serum and 10% heat-inactivated horse serum (Gibco Life Technologies, Inc., Grand Island, NY), 2 mM L-glutamine, 1 mM sodium pyruvate, 100 μM nonessential amino acids, 50 U/ml penicillin, and 50 μg/ml streptomycin (Gibco Life Technologies, Inc., Grand Island, NY). Seven-day-old cultures were used for the treatment.
Primary microglia-enriched cultures
Rat microglia-enriched cultures were prepared according to a previously described protocol [
28,
29]. Briefly, whole brains of 1-day-old neonatal Wistar rats, with the blood vessels and meninges removed, were triturated in Hank’s balanced salt solution. Cells (2.5 × 10
7) were seeded in 150-cm
2 culture flasks in 15 ml of a Dulbecco’s modified Eagle’s medium/nutrient mixture F12 mixture (1:1) (Gibco Life Technologies, Inc., Grand Island, NY) containing 10% heat-inactivated FBS, 2 mM L-glutamine, 1 mM sodium pyruvate, 100 μM nonessential amino acids, 50 U/ml penicillin, and 50 μg/ml streptomycin. The cultures were maintained at 37°C in a humidified atmosphere of 5% CO
2 and 95% air. The medium (15 ml/flask) was replenished at 1 and 4 days after the initial seeding and changed every third day thereafter. Upon reaching confluence (day 14), the microglia were shaken off (200 rpm for 4 h on an orbital shaker), pelleted at 800 g for 10 min, resuspended in fresh medium, and plated (10
5 cells/well) in 24-well culture plates. Twenty-four hours later, the cells were ready for treatment. The purity of the microglial culture was >98% as previously determined by immunofluorescence and cytochemical analysis [
30].
[3H]DA uptake assay
Cultures were incubated for 20 min at 37°C with 1 μM [3H]dopamine (DA) in Krebs-Ringer buffer (Sigma-Aldrich, St. Louis, MO, USA). After washing three times with ice-cold Krebs-Ringer buffer, the cells were lysed in 1 N NaOH. A liquid scintillation counter (Tri-Carb, model 3314, Packard) was used for measuring radioactivity. Nonspecific DA uptake observed in the presence of mazindol (10 μM) was subtracted.
High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) analysis was performed according to a previously described protocol for DA and its metabolite 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (DOPAC) [
21,
22]. Briefly, SNs were weighed and suspended in 200 mM ice-cold perchloric acid. Each sample was sonicated and then placed in an ice bath for 60 min. Subsequently, the sample was centrifuged at 20,000 g for 20 min at 4°C. The supernatant was transferred to a clean tube, and the volume was measured. One-half volume of a potassium dihydrogen phosphate solution was added to the supernatant and centrifuged at 20,000 g for 20 min at 4°C. An aliquot of the supernatant was injected into an HPLC system for analysis.
RNA interference
G-protein-coupled receptor 109A (GPR109A) siRNAs were purchased from OriGene (OriGene Technologies, Beijing, China) and complexed with Lipofectamine 2000 (Invitrogen, Carlsbad, CA, USA) in 24-well plates, according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
Total RNA was extracted from the cells using Trizol (Invitrogen, Carlsbad, CA, USA), according to the supplier’s protocol. Total RNA was then treated with RNase-free Dnase I, quantified by measuring the absorbance at 260 and 280 nm and stored at −80°C until analysis. The extracted RNA was subjected to RT-PCR using a PrimeScript RT Reagent Kit With gDNA Eraser (Takara Shuzo Co., Ltd., Kyoto, Japan). The mRNA levels of various genes were evaluated by quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) using a SYBR Green QuantiTect RT-PCR Kit (Roche, South San Francisco, CA, USA), and each sample was assessed in triplicate. The relative expression levels of iNOS, COX-2, TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6, and GPR109A were calculated relative to β-actin (the normalizer) using the comparative cycle threshold method. The primer sequences for the tested genes are shown in Table
1.
Table 1
The primer sequences of β-actin, GPR109A, iNOS, COX-2, TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6
β-actin | (F) 5′- GTCAGGTCATCACTATCGGCAAT -3′ | 147 |
(R) 5′- AGAGGTCTTTACGGATGTCAACGT -3′ |
GPR109A | (F) 5′- GCTGCCCTGTCGGTTCAT -3′ | 134 |
(R) 5′- CGTGGCTGACTTTCTCCTGAT -3′ |
iNOS | (F) 5′- CACCCAGAAGAGTTACAGC -3′ | 186 |
(R) 5′- GGAGGGAAGGGAGAATAG -3′ |
COX-2 | (F) 5′- AGAGTCAGTTAGTGGGTAGT -3′ | 170 |
(R) 5′- CTTGTAGTAGGCTTAAACATAG -3′ |
TNF-α | (F) 5′- CCACGCTCTTCTGTCTACTG -3′ | 145 |
(R) 5′- GCTACGGGCTTGTCACTC -3′ |
IL-1β | (F) 5′- TGTGATGTTCCCATTAGAC -3′ | 131 |
(R) 5′- AATACCACTTGTTGGCTTA -3′ |
IL-6 | (F) 5′- AGCCACTGCCTTCCCTAC -3′ | 156 |
(R) 5′- TTGCCATTGCACAACTCTT -3′ |
ELISA
The amounts of TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6 in the culture medium were measured with commercial ELISA kits obtained from BioLegend.
Tyrosine hydroxylase and IBA-1 immunohistological analysis
The brains were fixed and processed for immunostaining as described previously [
31]. The primary antibodies used in this study were as follows: rabbit polyclonal anti-tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) (1:1000; Abcam, Cambridge, CA, USA) and ionized calcium-binding adaptor molecule-1 (IBA-1) (1:200, Proteintech, Chicago, IL, USA). To determine cell numbers, total nigral TH-positive cells were counted by three researchers blind to the experimental design, and the average of these scores were reported.
Western blot analysis
After the last behavioral test, the SNs of the rats were rapidly dissected out, frozen, and stored in a deep freezer at −80°C until the assays. The rat brain SNs and the microglial cells were lysed in lysis buffer (Beyotime Inst. Biotech, Beijing, China) according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Protein concentrations were measured using a bicinchoninic acid protein assay kit (Beyotime Inst. Biotech, Beijing, China). A total of 30 μg of protein was resolved by 10% SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) and transferred onto immunoblot polyvinylidene difluoride membranes (Millipore, Billerica, MA, USA). The blots were blocked with 5% nonfat milk in Tris-buffered saline with 0.1% Tween (TBS-T) for 1 h, washed three times with TBS-T, and incubated overnight at 4°C with primary antibodies against iNOS (1:2000), COX-2 (1:1000), OX-42 (1:1000), TH (1:1000) (Abcam, Cambridge, CA, USA), p-NF-κB p65 (1:1000) (Cell Signaling Technology, Danvers, MA, USA), GPR109A (1:300) and β-actin (1:2000) (Santa Cruz, CA, USA). The blots were then washed four times for 15 min each in TBS-T and incubated with a horseradish peroxidase-labeled secondary goat anti-rabbit (1:2000; Santa Cruz, CA, USA) or rabbit anti-goat antibody (1:2000; Santa Cruz, CA, USA) for 1 h at room temperature. Next, the blots were washed again four times for 15 min each in TBS-T. Membranes were visualized with enhanced chemiluminescence (ECL kit; Applygen Inst. Biotech, Beijing, China).
Statistical analyses
The data are presented as the mean ± SD and were analyzed using SPSS 12.0 statistical software package (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, USA). The groups were compared by one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) followed by the least significant difference test. A P value of less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant.
Discussion
Our findings demonstrated that BHBA exerted neuroprotective effects on dopaminergic neurons by inhibiting microglial activation in an in vitro model of LPS-induced dopaminergic neurodegeneration and an in vivo rat model induced by intranigral injection of LPS. The mechanistic study showed that the inhibitory effect of BHBA on microglia was mediated by GPR109A and involved the NF-κB signaling pathway, inhibiting pro-inflammatory enzyme (iNOS and COX-2) and pro-inflammatory cytokine (TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6) production. These data revealed that GPR109A-mediated signaling pathways might represent potential targets for therapeutic interventions to prevent or slow the progression of PD.
In recent years, the involvement of neuroinflammatory processes in the nigral degeneration of dopaminergic neurons in PD has gained increasing attention. In the CNS, microglia, which are the resident innate immune cells, play a major role in the inflammatory process. In addition, these cells have been found to be highly concentrated in the SNpc [
18,
33]. They are the resident macrophages of the brain and share similar properties [
34,
35] constituting 10% of brain cells [
33]. Once activated, these microglia transform from striated bodies into large round, amoeboid, bodies with short, thick processes. In PD, activated microglia in the SNpc have been found to express pro-inflammatory enzyme (iNOS and COX-2) and pro-inflammatory cytokine (TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6) [
17,
36]. Most evidence has indicated that pro-inflammatory enzymes and pro-inflammatory cytokines may mediate neuronal degeneration [
37-
39].
LPS, which is an endotoxin from Gram-negative bacteria, is a potent stimulator of microglia, and
in vivo and
in vitro PD models induced by LPS are widely used to study the inflammatory process in the pathogenesis of PD. These PD models have also been widely used in drug discovery, and a variety of agents have been evaluated for their potential neuroprotective effects in LPS-induced PD models, such as FLZ, triptolide, and urocortin [
21,
22,
40]. In a mesencephalic mixed neuron-glial culture, LPS have been shown to induce microglial activation, and activated microglia have been demonstrated to release the proinflammatory and cytotoxic factors NO, TNF-α, and IL- 1β, leading to the consequent degeneration of dopaminergic neurons [
20]. LPS injected into the SN of rats induce microglial activation and dopaminergic neuron loss [
41]. Moreover, there is no detectable damage to either GABAergic or serotoninergic neurons in the striatum and nigra after LPS injection, indicating that LPS selectively induce dopaminergic neuron death in the nigrostriatal system [
42]. More recent studies have confirmed these results, also finding increased levels of proinflammatory mediators, including IL-1β, TNF-α, IL-6, and NO, in the SN after LPS injection, which may be causal factor of LPS-induced neuronal damage [
21,
43,
44]. In addition, the effects of intranigral LPS injection on behavior and DA content and turnover have been investigated, and it has been shown that LPS treatment enhances locomotor activity two- to threefold and increases DA turnover ratios in comparison with control subjects. These findings suggest that LPS insult may induce a compensatory response of the dopaminergic system [
22]. Therefore,
in vitro and
in vivo LPS PD models represent powerful tools for mechanistic studies and the identification of potential therapeutic agents.
BHBA is an important intermediate of amino and fatty acid catabolism that has been reported to be effective in the treatment of a variety of inflammatory and autoimmune diseases, such as colonic inflammation and experimental allergic encephalomyelitis (EAE) [
45,
46]. A previous study has reported that BHBA has potent neuroprotective effects on dopaminergic neurons both
in vitro and
in vivo. Yoshihiro
et al. have found that BHBA protects cultured mesencephalic neurons from MPP
+ toxicity and hippocampal neurons from Aβ
1–42 toxicity [
24].
In vivo administration of BHBA confers partial protection against dopaminergic neurodegeneration and motor deficits induced by MPTP, and these effects appear to be mediated by a complex II-dependent mechanism that leads to improved mitochondrial respiration and ATP production [
25]. Soyeon
et al. have proven that BHBA extends the life span, attenuates motor deficits, and prevents striatal histone deacetylation in transgenic R6/2 mice [
47]. To elucidate whether its neuroprotective activity involves an anti-inflammatory function, we investigated the effect of BHBA on LPS-induced damage to dopaminergic neurons in a primary mesencephalic neuron/glia mixed culture. We found that BHBA concentration-dependently attenuated the LPS-induced decrease in [
3H]DA uptake and loss of TH-ir neurons in a primary mesencephalic neuron/glia mixed culture. In the current
in vivo study, we investigated the motor dysfunction of these PD model rats using a rotational behavior assay. Because LPS was injected on one side of the SN, apomorphine-induced rotation to the lesioned side was used to evaluate the degree of damage to the dopaminergic system. Apomorphine-induced rotation significantly increased in the LPS-induced PD model rats, and BHBA showed therapeutic effects on this behavioral dysfunction. Further experiments demonstrated that BHBA inhibited LPS-induced microglial overactivation, pro-inflammatory factor release and dopaminergic neuronal damage. These data suggest that BHBA plays a neuroprotective role through inhibiting microglial overactivation.
GPR109A (PUMA-G in mice and HM74A in humans) is a seven-transmembrane G-protein-coupled receptor of the Gi family that is expressed mainly in white adipocytes and immune cells, such as monocytes and neutrophils [
47]. BHBA has been identified as an endogenous ligand of GPR109A [
48]. The anti-inflammatory effects of BHBA are mediated by the activation of GPR109A [
47]. Accumulating data have demonstrated a strong anti-inflammatory activity of BHBA in macrophages, monocytes, adipocytes, and retinal pigment epithelial cells.
In vitro experiments have demonstrated that BHBA inhibits pro-inflammatory cytokine production, LDL uptake, and chemotaxis in macrophages via activating GPR109A [
49]. Moreover, BHBA inhibits the expression of TNF-α, IL-6 and MCP-1 in human monocytes stimulated by LPS [
50].
In vivo experiments have shown that GPR109A mediates the therapeutic effects of DMF in EAE [
46]. In this study, we found that the level of GPR109A expression was correlated with the degree of microglial activation, as measured by proinflammatory cytokine production. Therefore, we hypothesized that activated microglia may be subjected to negative feedback mechanisms via GPR109A signaling.
We further assessed the mechanism underlying the anti-inflammatory effect of BHBA in primary rat microglial cells and found that it significantly inhibited LPS-induced proinflammatory mediator production. The knockdown of GPR109A with siRNA resulted in the loss of this anti-inflammatory effect in primary rat microglial cells. Because NF-κB is clearly one of the most important regulators of pro-inflammatory gene expression [
51], we examined whether GPR109A-mediated signaling pathways modulate NF-κB signaling and found that BHBA inhibits pro-inflammatory cytokines via NF-κB inactivation in primary rat microglial cells. Furthermore, we demonstrated that the inhibitory effect of BHBA is mediated by GPR109A.
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Competing interests
The authors declare that they have no competing interests.
Authors’ contributions
SPF, JFW, WJX, HML, BRL, YLZ, SNL, BXH and QKL performed the experiments; WW and JXL designed the study; and SPF wrote the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.