Neuroprotectant androst-3β, 5α, 6β-triol suppresses TNF-α-induced endothelial adhesion molecules expression and neutrophil adhesion to endothelial cells by attenuation of CYLD-NF-κB pathway

Neuroinflammation is one of key pathologic element in neurological diseases including stroke, traumatic brain injury, Alzheimer' s Disease, Parkinson's Disease, and multiple sclerosis as well. Up-regulation of endothelial adhesion molecules, which facilitate leukocyte adhesion to the endothelium, is the vital process of endothelial cells mediated neuroinflammation. Androst-3β, 5α, 6β-triol (Triol) is a synthetic steroid which has been reported to have neuroprotective effects in hypoxia/re-oxygenation-induced neuronal injury model. In the present study, we firstly investigated whether Triol inhibited the TNF-α-induced inflammatory response in rat brain microvascular endothelial cells (RBMECs). Our data showed that Triol decreased TNF-α-induced expression of vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1) and intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) and the adhesion of neutrophil to RBMECs. We also found that Triol inhibited TNF-α-induced degradation of IκBα and phosphorylation of NF-κBp65 that are required for NF-κB activation. Furthermore, Triol significantly reversed TNF-α-induced down-expression of CYLD, which is a deubiquitinase that negatively regulates activation of NF-κB. These results suggest that Triol displays an anti-inflammatory effect on TNF-α-induced RBMECs via downregulating of CYLD-NF-κB signaling pathways and might have a potential benefit in therapeutic neuroinflammation related diseases.