Astrogliosis is a hallmark of prion disease, but the metabolic alterations of astrocytes remain poorly documented. A synthetic peptide corresponding to amino acid 106―126 of the human prion protein (PrP) has been shown to be toxic to neurons. In this study, the effects of PrP 106―126 on astrocytes were investigated in vitro. The proliferation of astrocytes was significantly (P < 0.05) increased when grown in media conditioned with PrP 106―126 (80 μmol/L) from microglia. The expression of laminin (LN) and fibronectin (FN) was examined at both mRNA and protein levels. The results showed that ex- posure of astrocytes to PrP 106―126 enhanced the expression of LN and FN. The increase of FN in astrocyte cultures required cytokines previously released by activated microglia. This study reveals the expression of LN and FN affected by PrP106―126.
LI YuRongGUAN LeLuoYANG JianMinZHOU XiangMeiYIN XiaoMinZHAO DeMing
