High level over-expression of different NCX isoforms in HEK293 cell lines and primary neuronal cultures is protective following oxygen glucose deprivation

In this study we have assessed sodium–calcium exchanger (NCX) protein over-expression on cell viability in primary rat cortical neuronal and HEK293 cell cultures when subjected to oxygen–glucose deprivation (OGD). In cortical neuronal cultures, NCX2 and NCX3 over-expression was achieved using adenoviral vectors, and following OGD increased neuronal survival from ≈20% for control vector treated cultures to ≈80% for both NCX isoforms. In addition, we demonstrated that NCX2 and NCX3 over-expression in cortical neuronal cultures enables neurons to maintain intracellular calcium at significantly lower levels than control vector treated cultures when exposed to high (9 mM) extracellular calcium challenge. Further assessment of NCX activity during OGD was performed using HEK293 cell lines generated to over-express NCX1, NCX2 or NCX3 isoforms. While it was shown that NCX isoform expression differed considerably in the different HEK293 cell lines, high levels of NCX over-expression was associated with increased resistance to OGD. Taken together, our findings show that high levels of NCX over-expression increases neuronal and HEK293 cell survival following OGD, improves calcium management in neuronal cultures and provides additional support for NCX as a therapeutic target to reduce ischemic brain injury.

► Overexpression of NCX in neuronal cultures is protective against OGD.
► Overexpression of NCX in neuronal cultures enables them to handle high calcium better.
► HEK-NCX cell lines which displayed high levels of protein expression were protective against OGD.