Susceptibility to Oxidative Stress Is Determined by Genetic Background in Neuronal Cell Cultures

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) leads to a deleterious and multifactorial secondary inflammatory response in the brain. Oxidative stress from the inflammation likely contributes to the brain damage although it is unclear to which extent. A largely unexplored approach is to consider phenotypic regulation of oxidative stress levels. Genetic polymorphism influences inflammation in the central nervous system and it is possible that the antioxidative response differs between phenotypes and affects the severity of the secondary injury. We therefore compared the antioxidative response in inbred rat strains dark agouti (DA) to piebald viral glaxo (PVG). DA has high susceptibility to inflammatory challenges and PVG is protected. Primary neuronal cell cultures were exposed to peroxynitrite (ONOO^-), nitric oxide (NO), superoxide (O₂^-), and 4-hydroxynonenal (4-HNE). Our findings demonstrated a phenotypic control of the neuronal antioxidative response, specific to manganese O₂^- dismutase (MnSOD). DA neurons had increased levels of MnSOD, equal levels of peroxiredoxin 5 (PRDX5), decreased oxidative stress markers 3-nitrotyrosine (3-NT) and 4-HNE and decreased neuronal death detected by lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) release after 24 h, and higher oxidative stress levels by CellROX than PVG after 2 h. It is possible that DA neurons had a phenotypic adaptation to a fiercer inflammatory environment. ONOO^- was confirmed as the most powerful oxidative damage mediator, while 4-HNE caused few oxidative effects. Inducible NO synthase (iNOS) was not induced, suggesting that inflammatory, while not oxidative stimulation was required. These findings indicate that phenotypic antioxidative regulation affects the secondary inflammation, which should be considered in future individualized treatments and when evaluating antioxidative pharmacological interventions.