Apobec-1 increases cyclooxygenase-2 and aggravates injury in oxygen-deprived neurogenic cells and middle cerebral artery occlusion rats.

Given that cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) plays a crucial role during cerebral ischemia and Apobec-1 is a critical regulator of COX-2 mRNA stabilization in gastrointestinal settings, the correlation of COX-2 and Apobec-1 was investigated in neurogenic cells and rat model of cerebral ischemia. After neurogenic SH-SY5Y, NG108-15 and PC12 cells were exposed to oxygen-glucose deprivation, cell viability, LDH leakage and Apobec-1 expression were determined. The effect of Apobec-1 overexpression on injury severity of oxygen-glucose deprivation, COX-2 expression, C-to-U editing of COX-2 mRNA were measured in vitro. Then the correlation of Apobec-1 level and injury severity was analyzed in cells with oxygen-glucose deprivation and in rats with middle cerebral artery occlusion. Apobec-1 expression was elevated along with upregulation of COX-2 and injury severity of oxygen-glucose deprivation in the three cell lines. Apobec-1 overexpression aggravated injury of oxygen-glucose deprivation in vitro and could be correlated to injury severity in vivo. Meanwhile, Apobec-1 increased COX-2 expression and COX-2 mRNA stabilization in neurogenic cells, and failed to catalyze C-to-U editing of COX-2 mRNA. Apobec-1 could upregulate COX-2 expression in neurogenic cells by stabilizing COX-2 mRNA, and might aggravate injury of oxygen-glucose deprivation in neurogenic cells as well as in rats with cerebral ischemia.