Abstract-Hypertension caused by angiotensin II (Ang II) infusion is associated with oxidative stress in the peripheral vasculature and kidney. The role of redox mechanisms in the central nervous system (CNS), a tissue known to be pivotal in Ang II-dependent hypertension, has not been investigated. ) over a 2-week period in mice caused a gradually developing hypertension that was correlated with marked elevations in O 2 ⅐Ϫ production specifically in the subfornical organ (SFO), a brain region lying outside the blood-brain barrier and known to be a primary sensor for blood-borne Ang II. Adenoviral-mediated delivery of cytoplasmically targeted superoxide dismutase (SOD) selectively to this site prevented the hypertension and the increased O 2 ⅐Ϫ production, whereas gene transfer of SOD targeted to the extracellular matrix had no effect. These data suggest that increased intracellular O 2 ⅐Ϫ production in the SFO is critical in the development of Ang II-induced hypertension. Key Words: reactive oxygen species Ⅲ brain Ⅲ subfornical organ Ⅲ neurons Ⅲ blood pressure V arious forms of hypertension are characterized by an elevation in angiotensin II (Ang II) levels. 1,2 Abundant evidence now suggests that a key mechanism by which Ang II influences blood pressure is via its ability to produce reactive oxygen species (ROS). A decade ago, Griendling et al first discovered that Ang II activates the vascular smooth muscle NAD(P)H oxidase, an important cellular source of ROS. 3 Subsequently, it was shown that hypertension caused by Ang II infusion, but not norepinephrine infusion, increased vascular superoxide (O 2 ⅐Ϫ ) production in vivo 4 and that treatment with liposome-encapsulated superoxide dismutase (SOD) was effective in preventing this form of hypertension. 5 More recent studies demonstrating that genetic disabling of the NADPH oxidase complex attenuates Ang II-induced increases in vascular O 2 ⅐Ϫ production and hypertension further implicates ROS, particularly O 2 ⅐Ϫ

Abstract-Angiotensin II (Ang II) has profound effects in the central nervous system (CNS), including promotion of thirst, regulation of vasopressin secretion, and modulation of sympathetic outflow. Despite its importance in cardiovascular and volume homeostasis, angiotensinergic mechanisms are incompletely understood in the CNS. Recently, a novel signaling mechanism for Ang II involving reactive oxygen species (ROS) has been identified in a variety of peripheral tissues, but the involvement of ROS as second messengers in Ang II-mediated signaling in the CNS has not been reported. The hypothesis that superoxide is a key mediator of the actions of Ang II in the CNS was tested in mice using adenoviral vector-mediated expression of superoxide dismutase (AdSOD). Changes in blood pressure, heart rate, and drinking elicited by injection of Ang II in the CNS were abolished by prior treatment with AdSOD in the brain, whereas the cardiovascular responses to carbachol, another central vasopressor agent, were unaffected. In addition, Ang II stimulated superoxide generation in primary CNS cell cultures, and this was prevented by the Ang II receptor (

We investigate the hypothesis that oxidative damage of the cerebral vascular barrier interface (the blood brain barrier, BBB) causes the development of mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) during primary blast wave spectrum. The underlying biochemical and cellular mechanisms of this vascular layer-structure injury are examined in a novel animal model of shock tube. We first established that low frequency (123 kPa) single or repeated shock wave causes BBB/brain injury through biochemical activation by acute mechanical force that occurs at 6–24 hrs after the exposure. This biochemical damage of the cerebral vasculature is initiated by the induction of free radical generating enzymes NADPH oxidase (NOX1) and inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS). Induction of these enzymes by shock wave exposure correlated well with the signatures of oxidative and nitrosative damage (4HNE/3NT) and reduction of the BBB tight junction (TJ) proteins occludin, claudin-5 and zonula occluden 1 (ZO-1) in the brain microvessel. In parallel with TJ protein disruption, the perivascular unit was significantly diminished by single or repeated shock wave exposure coinciding with the kinetic profile. Loosening of the vasculature and perivascular unit was mediated by oxidative stress-induced activation of matrix metalloproteinases and fluid channel aquaporin-4, promoting vascular fluid cavitation/edema, enhanced leakiness of the BBB and progression of neuroinflammation. The BBB leakiness and neuroinflammation were functionally demonstrated in an in vivo model by enhanced permeability of Na-Fl/EB low molecular weight tracers and the infiltration of immune cells across the BBB. The detection of brain cell matters NSE/S100β in the blood samples validated the neuro-astroglial injury in shock wave TBI. Our hypothesis that cerebral vascular injury occurring prior to the development of neurological disorders in mild TBI was further confirmed by the activation of caspase-3 and cell apoptosis mostly around the perivascular region. Thus, induction of oxidative stress and MMPs activation by shock wave underlies the mechanisms of cerebral vascular BBB leakage and neuroinflammation.

Abstract-We have shown that intracellular superoxide (O 2⅐Ϫ ) production in CNS neurons plays a key role in the pressor, bradycardic, and dipsogenic actions of Ang II in the brain. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that a Rac1-dependent NADPH oxidase is a key source of O 2 ⅐Ϫ in Ang II-sensitive neurons and is involved in these central Ang II-dependent effects. We performed both in vitro and in vivo studies using adenoviral (Ad)-mediated expression of dominant-negative Rac1 (AdN17Rac1) to inhibit Ang II-stimulated Rac1 activation, an obligatory step in NADPH oxidase activation. Ang II induced a time-dependent increase in Rac1 activation and O 2 ⅐Ϫ production in Neuro-2A cells, and this was abolished by pretreatment with AdN17Rac1 or the NADPH oxidase inhibitors apocynin or diphenylene iodonium. AdN17Rac1 also inhibited Ang II-induced increases in NADPH oxidase activity in primary neurons cultured from central cardiovascular control regions. In contrast, overexpression of wild-type Rac1 (AdwtRac1) caused more robust NADPH oxidase-dependent O 2 ⅐Ϫ production to Ang II. To extend the in vitro studies, the pressor, bradycardic, and drinking responses to intracerebroventricularly (ICV) injected Ang II were measured in mice that had undergone gene transfer of AdN17Rac1 or AdwtRac1 to the brain. AdN17Rac1 abolished the increase in blood pressure, decrease in heart rate, and drinking response induced by ICV injection of Ang II, whereas AdwtRac1 enhanced these physiological effects. The exaggerated physiological responses in AdwtRac1-treated mice were abolished by O 2 ⅐Ϫ scavenging. These results, for the first time, identify a Rac1-dependent NADPH oxidase as the source of central Ang II-induced O 2 ⅐Ϫ production, and implicate this oxidase in cardiovascular diseases associated with dysregulation of brain Ang II signaling, including hypertension. Key Words: reactive oxygen species Ⅲ dominant-negative Rac1 Ⅲ blood pressure Ⅲ dipsogenic response Ⅲ neurons A ngiotensin II (Ang II), the primary effector peptide of the renin-angiotensin system, acts in the central nervous system (CNS) to modulate neurohumoral pathways involved in water and salt appetite, vasopressin release, and sympathoexcitation. 1 Because dysregulation of central angiotensinergic systems is strongly implicated in cardiovascular diseases such as hypertension and heart failure, 1 elucidating the precise signaling mechanisms of Ang II in the CNS is critical in understanding the pathogenesis of these disorders.We exchange factor-mediated replacement of bound GDP for GTP. 5 Formation and activation of NADPH oxidase allows electrons to be passed from cofactor NADPH to molecular oxygen to produce O 2 ⅐Ϫ . Ang II-induced ROS production via activation of NADPH oxidase is known to be involved in peripheral cell growth, contraction, and inflammation, 6 and dysregulation of redox-mechanisms in the periphery are implicated in the pathogenesis of hypertension caused by systemic Ang II-infusion. 7,8 Recent studies have identified NADPH oxidase components in CN...

Similar to developmental programs in eukaryotes, the death of a subpopulation of cells is thought to benefit bacterial biofilm development. However mechanisms that mediate a tight control over cell death are not clearly understood at the population level. Here we reveal that CidR dependent pyruvate oxidase (CidC) and α-acetolactate synthase/decarboxylase (AlsSD) overflow metabolic pathways, which are active during staphylococcal biofilm development, modulate cell death to achieve optimal biofilm biomass. Whereas acetate derived from CidC activity potentiates cell death in cells by a mechanism dependent on intracellular acidification and respiratory inhibition, AlsSD activity effectively counters CidC action by diverting carbon flux towards neutral rather than acidic byproducts and consuming intracellular protons in the process. Furthermore, the physiological features that accompany metabolic activation of cell death bears remarkable similarities to hallmarks of eukaryotic programmed cell death, including the generation of reactive oxygen species and DNA damage. Finally, we demonstrate that the metabolic modulation of cell death not only affects biofilm development but also biofilm-dependent disease outcomes. Given the ubiquity of such carbon overflow pathways in diverse bacterial species, we propose that the metabolic control of cell death may be a fundamental feature of prokaryotic development.

Key Words: calcium channels Ⅲ oxidative stress Ⅲ imaging Ⅲ central nervous system Ⅲ renin-angiotensin system T he best-known physiological effect of angiotensin II (Ang II) acting in the central nervous system (CNS) is modulation of body fluid and cardiovascular homeostasis. Ang II, acting primarily via Ang II type-1 (AT 1 ) receptors located in central cardiovascular control regions, causes increases in blood pressure, 1 water intake, 2 vasopressin release, 3 and sympathoexcitation.

Proline metabolism has an underlying role in apoptotic signaling that impacts tumorigenesis. Proline is oxidized to glutamate in the mitochondria with the rate limiting step catalyzed by proline dehydrogenase (PRODH). PRODH expression is inducible by p53 leading to increased proline oxidation, reactive oxygen species (ROS) formation, and induction of apoptosis. Paradoxical to its role in apoptosis, proline also protects cells against oxidative stress. Here we explore the mechanism of proline protection against hydrogen peroxide stress in melanoma WM35 cells. Treatment of WM35 cells with proline significantly increased cell viability, diminished oxidative damage of cellular lipids and proteins, and retained ATP and NADPH levels after exposure to hydrogen peroxide. Inhibition or siRNA-mediated knockdown of PRODH abolished proline protection against oxidative stress whereas knockdown of Δ1-pyrroline-5-carboxylate reductase, a key enzyme in proline biosynthesis, had no impact on proline protection. Potential linkages between proline metabolism and signaling pathways were explored. The combined inhibition of the mammalian target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1) and mTORC2 eliminated proline protection. A significant increase in Akt activation was observed in proline treated cells after hydrogen peroxide stress along with a corresponding increase in the phosphorylation of the fork head transcription factor class O3a (FoxO3a). The role of PRODH in proline mediated protection was validated in the prostate carcinoma cell line, PC3. Knockdown of PRODH in PC3 cells attenuated phosphorylated levels of Akt and FoxO3a and decreased cell survival during hydrogen peroxide stress. The results provide evidence that PRODH is essential in proline protection against hydrogen peroxide mediated cell death and that proline/PRODH helps activate Akt in cancer cells.

The imbalance between the synthesis of reactive oxygen species and their elimination by antioxidant defense systems results in macromolecular damage and disruption of cellular redox signaling, affecting cardiac structure and function, thus contributing to contractile dysfunction, myocardial hypertrophy, and fibrosis in chronic heart failure [chronic heart failure (CHF)]. The Kelch-like ECH-associated protein 1-nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) pathway is an important antioxidant defense mechanism and is closely associated with oxidative stress-mediated cardiac remodeling in CHF. In the present study, we investigated the regulation of myocardial Nrf2 in the postmyocardial infarction (post-MI) state. Six weeks post-MI, Nrf2 protein was downregulated in the heart, resulting in a decrease of Nrf2-targeted antioxidant enzymes, whereas paradoxically the transcription of Nrf2 was increased, suggesting that translational inhibition of Nrf2 may contribute to the dysregulation in CHF. We therefore hypothesized that microRNAs may be involved in the translational repression of Nrf2 mRNA in the setting of CHF. Using quantitative real-time PCR analysis, we found that three microRNAs, including microRNA-27a, microRNA-28-3p, and microRNA-34a, were highly expressed in the left ventricle of infarcted hearts compared with other organs. Furthermore, in vitro analysis revealed that cultured cardiac myocytes and fibroblasts expressed these three microRNAs in response to TNF-α stimulation. These microRNAs were preferentially incorporated into exosomes and secreted into the extracellular space in which microRNA-enriched exosomes mediated intercellular communication and Nrf2 dysregulation. Taken together, these results suggest that increased local microRNAs induced by MI may contribute to oxidative stress by the inhibition of Nrf2 translation in CHF. NEW & NOTEWORTHY The results of this work provide a novel mechanism mediated by microRNA-enriched exosomes, contributing to the nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 dysregulation and subsequent oxidative stress. Importantly, these new findings will provide a promising strategy to improve the therapeutic efficacy through targeting nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2-related microRNAs in the chronic heart failure state, which show potentially clinical applications.