Agmatine inhibits hypoxia-induced TNF-alpha release from cultured retinal ganglion cells.

The effect of hypoxia on the release of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) in transformed rat retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) and the effect of agmatine on the hypoxia-induced production of TNF-alpha in RGCs were evaluated. RGCs were cultured under hypoxic conditions with 5% oxygen, with or without 100 microM agmatine. The expression levels of TNF-alpha and its receptor-1 (TNF-R1) were investigated by Western blot analysis. After 6 hours of hypoxia, we noted an increase in TNF-alpha production in RGCs. Agmatine significantly reduced TNF-alpha level after 12 hours of hypoxic treatment. The expression of TNF-R1 was not affected by the hypoxia or agmatine treatment. Our results show that agmatine inhibits the TNF-alpha production of RGCs in hypoxic condition. These results demonstrate a possible neuroprotective mechanism for agmatine against hypoxic damage in RGCs.