Tetrandrine, is an herb-derived bisbenzylioquinoline alkaloid, may be a potent inhibitor of NF-κB activation and can inhibit the expression of iNOS and COX-2 which are involved in pro-inflammation.
Treatment with p38 inhibitor, SB239063, prevents downstream phosphorylation of IκBα and p65 translocation to the nucleus in the ventral midbrain.
AGEs induce tau hyperphosphorylation, memory deterioration, decline of synaptic proteins, and impairment of long-term potentiation in rats [10].
Results have shown a sig- nificant increase in phosphorylation of IκB at serine 32–36 and NF-κB at serine 536 with Aβ 42 exposure, this phosphorylation enhances p65 transactivation potential [16].
Aβ 42 mediated increase in BACE1 expression is accompanied by a decrease in Uch-L1 expression and activity in dif- ferent cellular models and in sporadic AD brains, which interferes with the lysosomal degradation of BACE1 [52,56].
Upon exposure to various cell stressors including Aβ 42 , expression of BACE1-AS becomes elevated, increasing BACE1 mRNA stability and generating additional Aβ 42 through a post-transcriptional feed-forward mechanism [74].
In cell models triggering supraphysiological concentrations of Aβ pep- tides, NF-κB is activated, as well as in both neuronal cells and microglial cells, showing that NF-κB pathway has been linked to Aβ neurotoxicity [14].
Further investigations confirm that the activation of p50 and RelA subunit contributes to the apoptotic program in cells exposed to the Aβ [17].
In contrast, SP600125 treatment, a JNK inhibitor, increases the p38 MAPK depen- dent phosphorylation of p65 NF-κB subunit in the nucleus [47].
Previous find- ings have identified ROS as a common denominator of NF-κB activating signals, as Chetsawang B found that NF-κB was increased in H 2 O 2 -treat- ed SH-SY5Y cells [22,23].
Omega-6 phospholipids, e.g. dilinoleoylphosphatidylcholine (DLPC), have been shown to block TNF-α and H 2 O 2 activation of MAPK as well as blocks IκBα phosphorylation in the SH-SY5Y cells and prevents the phosphorylation and activation of NF-κB.
What's more, DLPC complete- ly abolishes TNF-α and H 2 O 2 induced neuronal tau phosphorylation, re- duces cellular APP levels and Aβ expression and secretion in SH-SY5Y cells [91,92] (Table 1).
Under different envi- ronmental conditions such as Aβ/ROS/cytokines accumulation, the IκB kinase (IKK) complex becomes activated and mediates the phosphoryla- tion of IκBs, then IκBs are degradated and the remaining NF-κB dimer is activated and thus translocates to the nucleus where it binds to the DNA consensus sequence of various target genes [9–11].
Higher levels of ROS biomarkers are characteristic of AD patients in clinical and preclinical studies, resulting in the alteration of membrane proper- ties, such as fluidity, ion transport, enzyme activities, protein cross- linking, tau protein hyperphosphorylation, autophagic dysfunction and eventually neuron cell death [20].
ROS has been found not only the regulators of NF-κB, interestingly, iNOS is also regulated by NF-κB.
ROS generation leads to phosphorylation of NF-κB cytoplasmic inhibitor IκBα. NF-κB is thus liberated and transports to the nucleus.
Hydroxytyrosol is an orally bioavailable polyphenol, obtained from ol- ives, which inhibits NF-κB activity and has elicited promising efficacy signals in several inflammatory diseases [88].
Further- more, naproxen and ibuprofen and perhaps other NSAIDs, can block the inflammation-induced BACE1 transcription and Aβ production [52,87].
The antioxidants LY231617, and melatonin pro- tect the neurons against the insult and prevented the Tyr42 phosphorylation of IκBα, which acts to protect the neurons against physiological injury by repressing the insult-induced oxidative stress activation of transcription factor NF-κB [86].
Nicorandil, ATP-sensitive potassium channel opener, reduced apo- ptosis and decreased oxidative stress, downregulated APP695 mRNA and APP695 protein expression, also reduced Aβ 42 levels in the medium [90].
Two AGEs, such as pentosidine and glyceraldehyde derived pyridinium (GLAP), both found increased in AD brains, were able to upregulate BACE1 through their binding with RAGE and consequent activation of NF-κB, providing a pathologic link between diabetes and AD [49].
In addition, COX-2, mainly regulated by NF-κB, is notably upregulated in the brains of AD patients, which may be associated with the formation of Aβ plaque [65].
NSAIDs inhibit BACE1 tran- scriptional activation induced by strong NF-κB activator TNF-α.
Moreover, miRNA-155 is strongly and rapidly up-regulated by inflammatory cytokines and also is an inducible miRNA under transcriptional control by NF-κB.
LPS treatment induced the nuclear translocation of NF-κB and increased the expression and secretion of TNF-α and IL-1β [63].
The activity of NF-κB in the cell models was strongly inhibited by morphine, which was achieved by a marked up-regulation of the inhibitor of IκB.
L-Theanine, an amino acid in green tea, reduced Aβ 42 levels in the cortex and hippocampus of the brain, which is mediated by suppres- sion of ERK/p38 and NF-κB as well as the reduction of macromolecular oxidative damage [81].
Evidence has shown that NF-κB can be activated by ERK pathway [44].
Reports have indicated that MAPK signaling pathways are excessively activated in AD.
Then the stimulation of RAGE is able to activate the mitogen-activated protein kinase signaling cascades which converge in IκB kinase complex to phosphorylate IκB, thereby release and activate NF-κB, thus trigger NF-κB dependent gene transcription including IL-1β and TNF-α, which in turn induce the translocation of NF-κB to the nucleus [50].
In the nervous system, NF-κB has been proposed to serve important function by acting as a transcription regulator: it has roles in inflammation, neuronal survival, differentiation, apoptosis, neurite outgrowth, and synaptic plasticity [5], which are impaired in the progression of various neurodegenerative diseases especially in AD.
Elevated miRNA-146a in AD brain has been shown to also specifically target the interleukin-1 associated ki- nase-1 (IRAK-1) mRNAs, it is believed to contribute to altered innate immune responses and neuroinflammation in degenerating human brain cells and tissues in inflammatory neurodegenerative diseases including AD and in primary human brain cells stressed with ROS- generating metal sulfates [69].
NF-κB is a ubiquitous transcriptional factor, which can be activated by AKT pathway.
NF-κB activation has also been detected in the brains of AD pa- tients.
The decrease in Uch-L1 depends on NF-κB pathway since NF-κB p65 can interact with the −300 bp and −109 bp NF-κB binding sequences of the Uch-L1 gene promoter [55].
Inflammation is a key pathological hall mark of AD [61,62], NF-κB is considered as a primary regulator of inflammatory processes [10].
Inhibition of NF-κB leads to decreased induction of cytokines and chemokines by IL-1β and TNF-α.
Inducible miRNAs and lncRNA perform critical regulatory roles in CNS development, several brain-enriched miRNAs are consistently up- regulated by NF-κB, including miRNA-125b [66], miRNA-146a [67] and miRNA-155 [68].
Disruption of NF-κB p65 expression in RelA-KO cells abolished GSK3β's effect on the transcriptional activation of the human BACE1 gene promoter.
Stimulation of GSK3β but not GSK3α promoted BACE1 gene expression and BACE1-mediated APP processing in vitro by regulating BACE1 gene promoter activity, which was dependent on NF-κB p65-binding elements in the BACE1 pro- moter [51].
Activation of AKT augments the transactivating activity and produces higher nuclear levels of p65-NF- κB, which is important for neuroprotection.
Pathogenic effects appear to be mediated via specific interaction of miRNA-125b with the 3′-UTR region of mRNA of 15-lipoxygenase (15-LOX) and the vitamin D3 receptor (VDR; VD3R), the downregula- tion of 15-LOX and VDR may therefore be explained by the actions of a single inducible, pro-inflammatory miRNA-125b in hippocampal CA1 of AD brain [71].
Specific up-regulation of miRNA-155 is observed in related immunopatho- logic conditions including MS and AD [70].
Pharmacologic inhibition of ERK and p38 MAPK and dominant- negative mutation of both enzymes suppressed Aβ-induced NF-κB transactivation thus neurotoxicity by Aβ [45,46].
TNF-α [27], IL-1β [28], IL-18 [29], CXCL10 [30] and TGF-β1 [31] are known to be elevated in the AD brain.
Cortical neurons stimulated with IL-18 also generated NF-κB activation [33].
Nuclear local- ization of NF-κB in differentiated neuron progenitor cells (NPCs) is in- creasing following exposure to IL-1β and TNF-α, strong inducers of the NF-κB pathway with increase in the phosphorylation of IKK and p65 while decrease in the level of IκB [32].
BACE1-AS regulates BACE1 mRNA and subsequently BACE1 protein expression in vitro and in vivo.
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