Discovery of a benzofuran derivative (MBPTA) as a novel ROCK inhibitor that protects against MPP+-induced oxidative stress and cell death in SH-SY5Y cells

• MBPTA decreases MPP+-induced reactive oxygen species generation.
• MBPTA modulates Δψm and the apoptosis and caspase 3-dependent pathways.
• MBPTA attenuates NF-κB activation, iNOS expression, and NO generation.
• MBPTA activates the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway.

Parkinson disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disease with multifactorial etiopathogenesis. The discovery of drug candidates that act on new targets of PD is required to address the varied pathological aspects and modify the disease process. In this study, a small compound, 2-(5-methyl-1-benzofuran-3-yl)-N-(5-propylsulfanyl-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl) acetamide (MBPTA) was identified as a novel Rho-associated protein kinase inhibitor with significant protective effects against 1-methyl-4-phenylpyridinium ion (MPP+)-induced damage in SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma cells. Further investigation showed that pretreatment of SH-SY5Y cells with MBPTA significantly suppressed MPP+-induced cell death by restoring abnormal changes in nuclear morphology, mitochondrial membrane potential, and numerous apoptotic regulators. MBPTA was able to inhibit MPP+-induced reactive oxygen species (ROS)/NO generation, overexpression of inducible NO synthase, and activation of NF-κB, indicating the critical role of MBPTA in regulating ROS/NO-mediated cell death. Furthermore, MBPTA was shown to activate PI3K/Akt survival signaling, and its cytoprotective effect was abolished by PI3K and Akt inhibitors. The structural comparison of a series of MBPTA analogs revealed that the benzofuran moiety probably plays a crucial role in the anti-oxidative stress action. Taken together, these results suggest that MBPTA protects against MPP+-induced apoptosis in a neuronal cell line through inhibition of ROS/NO generation and activation of PI3K/Akt signaling.

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