MADP, a salidroside analog, protects hippocampal neurons from glutamate induced apoptosis.

To investigate the anti-apoptotic effect of MADP, an analog of salidroside, against glutamate induced apoptosis in the cultured rat hippocampal neurons. Cytotoxicity was determined by the MTT method and lactate dehydrogenase release to the medium. Cell apoptosis was evaluated by Hoechst 33342 staining, TUNEL assay and flow cytometric analysis. Western blotting was applied for detecting protein levels of cellular signaling molecules. Our results showed that glutamate exposure significantly induces cell apoptosis, whereas the pretreatment of salidroside or MADP remarkably improves cell viability. Most importantly, the anti-apoptotic effect of MADP against glutamate insult is superior to salidroside. To explore the involved mechanisms, we measured some pro-apoptotic and anti-apoptotic protein levels, and several cell survival signaling pathways were analyzed as well. No visible alterations in Bcl-2 and Bax protein levels were observed by MADP or salidroside. Akt and JNK phosphorylation was robustly stimulated by MADP in the glutamate-treated neurons. Salidroside treatment results in a slight activation in Akt, while no significant alteration in JNK activity was observed. MADP exhibits higher capacity to attenuate glutamate induced cell apoptosis in the cultured rat hippocampal neurons, suggesting that MADP might be a better candidate than salidroside for developing novel drugs treating neuron loss associated disorders.