Dual Role of Superoxide Dismutase 2 Induced in Activated Microglia

TL;DRAbstract

Microglia are activated quickly in response to external pathogens or cell debris and clear these substances via the inflammatory response. However, excessive activation of microglia can be harmful to host cells due to the increased production of reactive oxygen species and proinflammatory cytokines. Superoxide dismutase 2 (SOD2) is reportedly induced under various inflammatory conditions in the central nervous system. We herein demonstrated that activated microglia strongly express SOD2 and examined the role of SOD2, focusing on regulation of the microglial activity and the susceptibility of microglia to oxidative stress. When rat primary microglia were treated with LPS, poly(I:C), peptidoglycan, or CpG oligodeoxynucleotide, respectively, the mRNA and protein levels of SOD2 largely increased. However, an increased expression of SOD2 was not detected in the primary neurons or astrocytes, indicating that SOD2 is specifically induced in microglia under inflammatory conditions. The activat

Chat with Paper

AI Agents for this Paper