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Original

Exp Neurobiol 2006; 15(1): 1-5

Published online November 30, -0001

© The Korean Society for Brain and Neural Sciences

Cytoprotective Role of Intracelluar Iron on Serum-starved PC12 Cells under NGF

So-Young Choi and Jun-Mo Chung*

Department of Life Sciences and Center for Cell Signaling Research (CCSR), Ewha Womans University, Seoul 120-750, Korea

Correspondence to: *To whom correspondence should be addressed.
TEL: 82-2-3277-2395, FAX: 82-2-3277-2385
e-mail: jmchung@ewha.ac.kr

Abstract

Nerve growth factor (NGF) is known to produce nitric oxide (NO) in PC12 cells, and an iron-NO complex such as dinitro-iron complex (DNIC) is found to keep the cells from apoptosis by inhibiting their caspase activation. Previously we observed that serum-starved PC12 cells maintained their viability only for a couple of days even in the presence of NGF. Therefore, we examined whether any increase of intracellular iron in serum-starved PC12 cells could block the cell death even in the presence of NGF (N-death). Iron successfully prevented the N-death and decreased the amount of NO produced by NGF. Oxy-hemoglobin, an NO scavenger, could also block the N-death. All these results suggest that iron block the N-death by reducing the NO accumulated in a cell under a continual presence of NGF.

Keywords: death, Fe, iron-NO complex, NO, NOS