Berberine is a promising natural drug that has a potential therapeutic effect on neurodegenerative diseases.

PMID: 

Pharmacology. 2019 Oct 31:1-8. Epub 2019 Oct 31. PMID: 31671426

Abstract Title: 

Berberine Induces CYP2J2 Expression in Human U251 Glioma Cells via Regulation of Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptor Alpha.

Abstract: 

BACKGROUND: Berberine is a promising natural drug that has a potential therapeutic effect on neurodegenerative diseases.OBJECTIVES: Using U251 cells in vitro, we investigated whether berberine exerts its neuroprotective effect via regulation of CYP2J2.METHOD: After pretreatment with increasing concentrations (1, 3, and 10μmol/L) of berberine for 0.5 h, U251 cells were stimulated with 1 μg/mL of lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Cell viability was measured 24 h later using a CCK8 kit. mRNA and protein levels of CYP2J2 and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha (PPARα) were measured by quantitative real-time-polymerase chain reaction and western blotting, respectively, after 24 h of exposure to 1, 3, or 10 μmol/L berberine. Fluorescence immunocytochemistry was also used to evaluate PPARα protein expression after treatment of U251 cells with 10-μmol/L berberine for 24 h. Transient transfection (cotransfection with the plasmid of PPARα- and RXRα-containing) followed by luciferase and chromatin immunoprecipitation assays was used to elucidate the molecular mechanism underlying the observed effects.RESULTS: Compared to the control, LPS-induced U251 cell death was attenuated by berberine in a dose-dependent manner. After 24 h, cell viability was found to be 52.3% (p

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