Expression profile of Bag 1 in the postmortem brain

• Published in: Journal of chemical neuroanatomy Vol. 32; no. 2; pp. 191 - 195
• Main Authors: Curcio, Christine, Asheld, John J., Chabla, Janet M., Ayubcha, Diana, Hallas, Brian H., Horowitz, Judith M., Torres, German
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Netherlands Elsevier B.V 01.12.2006
• Subjects: Animals; Apoptosis; Apoptosis Regulatory Proteins - metabolism; Autopsy; Autopsy - standards; Body Temperature - physiology; Brain - metabolism; Brain - physiopathology; Brain Death - metabolism; Brain Death - physiopathology; Cell Death - physiology; Cell Survival - physiology; Cerebellum; DNA-Binding Proteins - metabolism; Hippocampus; Hypoxia-Ischemia, Brain - metabolism; Hypoxia-Ischemia, Brain - physiopathology; Immunohistochemistry; Male; Mood disorders; Nerve Degeneration - metabolism; Nerve Degeneration - physiopathology; Postmortem Changes; Rat; Rats; Rats, Long-Evans; Storage temperature; Time Factors; Transcription Factors - metabolism; Up-Regulation - physiology; Cerebellum; Rat; Autopsy; Mood disorders; Storage temperature; Hippocampus; Apoptosis
• ISSN: 0891-0618; 1873-6300
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jchemneu.2006.09.003

Bag 1 is a protein intimately involved in signaling pathways that regulate cell survival. Here we examined the expression profile of Bag 1 in the brain to consider issues associated with the sampling of anti-apoptotic proteins in a rat model of the human postmortem process. Following a 4 h postmortem interval, we analyzed the hippocampus of rats maintained at 24 or 4 °C storage temperatures using immunocytochemical and Western blotting techniques. Remarkably, postmortem tissue (up to 4 h) showed a significant and prominent up-regulation of Bag 1 in CA1 and CA3 subfields of the hippocampal formation. Over-expression of Bag 1, however, could only be traced down to a storage temperature of 24 °C. These data suggest that storage temperatures, but not postmortem intervals, significantly affect the expression profile and cellular stability of Bag 1 proteins.