Effects of cigarette smoke-substances on lipid peroxidation and neurotransmitter release from synaptosomes

• Published in: Japanese Journal of Pharmacology Vol. 73; no. suppl.1; p. 180
• Main Authors: Kamisaki, Yoshinori, Wada, Kouichirou, Nakamoto, Kentaro, Kishimoto, Yosuke, Ashida, Kumiyo, Itoh, Tadao
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: The Japanese Pharmacological Society 1997
• ISSN: 0021-5198; 1347-3506
• DOI: 10.1016/S0021-5198(19)45223-2

Since cigarette smoke contains various free radicals, it is widely accepted that deleterious effects of cigarette smoke involve oxidative damage of biological substances. Oxidation of membrane lipids in neuronal cells are reported to increase the release of excitatory amino acids which may cause neuronal injury. Therefore, effects of water soluble substance in cigarette smoke on neurotransmitter release were investigated using nerve terminals (synaptosomes) prepared from rat cerebral cortex. 2, 2-Azobis (2-amidinopropane) dihydrochloride (ABAP), a peroxyl radical-generator, enhanced the depolarization-evoked release of glutamate and aspartate from synaptosomes with concomitant increase in thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances in membrane lipids of synaptosomes, but failed to affect their basal release. The trapped smoke-substance attenuated the lipid peroxidation (ABAP)-enhanced release of excitatory amino acids during the depolarization from nerve terminals. Both ABAP and smoke-substances failed to affect GABA release. Although nicotine has been considered responsible for main effects of cigarette smoke on the central nervous system, these data suggest that cigarette smoke may contain stable substances to produce biologically active species with antioxidant properties in addition to oxidizing radicals.