N-Acetylcysteine Suppresses Microglial Inflammation and Induces Mortality Dose-Dependently via Tumor Necrosis Factor-α Signaling

Autor: Mai Sakai, Zhiqian Yu, Masayuki Taniguchi, Rosanne Picotin, Nanami Oyama, David Stellwagen, Chiaki Ono, Yoshie Kikuchi, Ko Matsui, Miharu Nakanishi, Hatsumi Yoshii, Tomoyuki Furuyashiki, Takaaki Abe, Hiroaki Tomita
Rok vydání: 2023
Předmět:
Zdroj: International Journal of Molecular Sciences
Volume 24
Issue 4
Pages: 3798
ISSN: 1422-0067
DOI: 10.3390/ijms24043798
Popis: N-acetylcysteine (NAC) is an antioxidant that prevents tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α-induced cell death, but it also acts as a pro-oxidant, promoting reactive oxygen species independent apoptosis. Although there is plausible preclinical evidence for the use of NAC in the treatment of psychiatric disorders, deleterious side effects are still of concern. Microglia, key innate immune cells in the brain, play an important role in inflammation in psychiatric disorders. This study aimed to investigate the beneficial and deleterious effects of NAC on microglia and stress-induced behavior abnormalities in mice, and its association with microglial TNF-α and nitric oxide (NO) production. The microglial cell line MG6 was stimulated by Escherichia coli lipopolysaccharide (LPS) using NAC at varying concentrations for 24 h. NAC inhibited LPS-induced TNF-α and NO synthesis, whereas high concentrations (≥30 mM) caused MG6 mortality. Intraperitoneal injections of NAC did not ameliorate stress-induced behavioral abnormalities in mice, but high-doses induced microglial mortality. Furthermore, NAC-induced mortality was alleviated in microglial TNF-α-deficient mice and human primary M2 microglia. Our findings provide ample evidence for the use of NAC as a modulating agent of inflammation in the brain. The risk of side effects from NAC on TNF-α remains unclear and merits further mechanistic investigations.
Databáze: OpenAIRE
Externí odkaz:
Nepřihlášeným uživatelům se plný text nezobrazuje