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Published on: March 16, 2018
Prosaposin-derived peptide alleviates ischaemia-induced hearing loss
Takehiro Terashita1, Shouichiro Saito, Hiroaki Nabeka
1Department of Anatomy and Embryology, Ehime University Graduate School of Medicine, Toon, Ehime, Japan.
Conclusion:
An 18-mer peptide derived from the neurotrophic region of prosaposin (PS-pep) prevents hearing loss and cochlear damage due to transient cochlear ischaemia by activating an anti-apoptotic pathway. PS-pep is a potent candidate molecule for alleviating ischaemia-induced hearing loss.
Objective:
PS-pep was investigated for its protective effects against ischaemia-induced hearing loss and cochlear damage.
Methods:
Ischaemia was induced in both cochleae in Mongolian gerbils by pulling the ligatures around both vertebral arteries in an anterior direction using 5 g weights for 15 min. PS-pep was synthesized artificially and administered subcutaneously four times after the induction of transient cochlear ischaemia.
Results:
An increase in the auditory brainstem response threshold was alleviated in animals treated with 2.0 mg/kg PS-pep. Histological examinations conducted on day 7 showed that the loss of inner hair cells (IHCs) was more prominent than that of outer hair cells. Higher doses of PS-pep significantly alleviated IHC loss. An increase in the anti-apoptotic factor bcl-2 was also noted in the IHCs treated with PS-pep.
