Article ID Journal Published Year Pages File Type
2787052 International Journal of Developmental Neuroscience 2008 8 Pages PDF
Abstract

Intrauterine asphyxia is one of the major contributors for perinatal death, mental and physical disorders of surviving children. Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) provides a promising solution to hypoxic injury due to its survival-promoting effects. In an attempt to identify possible molecular mechanisms underlying the neuroprotective role of BDNF, we studied extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK), phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI-3-K) and p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathways. We demonstrated that BDNF protected cortical neurons against hypoxic injury in vitro via activation of both the ERK and PI-3-K pathways but not the p38 MAPK pathway. We also showed that both hypoxic stimuli and exogenous BDNF treatment phosphorylated the cyclic AMP response element-binding protein (CREB) and that CREB phosphorylation induced by BDNF was mediated via the ERK pathway in cultured cortical neurons.

Related Topics
Life Sciences Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology Developmental Biology
Authors
, , , , , , , ,