Neuroglobin, A Novel Member of the Globin Family, Is Expressed in Focal Regions of the Brain
Authors:
Open Access
- 1 December 2002
- journal article
- research article
- Published by SAGE Publications in Journal of Histochemistry & Cytochemistry
- Vol. 50 (12) , 1591-1598
Abstract
Hemoproteins are widely distributed among unicellular eukaryotes, plants, and animals. In addition to myoglobin and hemoglobin, a third hemoprotein, neuroglobin, has recently been isolated from vertebrate brain. Although the functional role of this novel member of the globin family remains unclear, neuroglobin contains a heme-binding domain and may participate in diverse processes such as oxygen transport, oxygen storage, nitric oxide detoxification, or modulation of terminal oxidase activity. In this study we utilized in situ hybridization (ISH) and RT-PCR analyses to examine the expression of neuroglobin in the normoxic and hypoxic murine brain. In the normoxic adult mouse, neuroglobin expression was observed in focal regions of the brain, including the lateral tegmental nuclei, the preoptic nucleus, amygdala, locus coeruleus, and nucleus of the solitary tract. Using ISH and RT-PCR techniques, no significant changes in neuroglobin expression in the adult murine brain was observed in response to chronic 10% oxygen. These results support the hypothesis that neuroglobin is a hemoprotein that is expressed in the brain and may have diverse functional roles.Keywords
This publication has 25 references indexed in Scilit:
- Full-Length cDNA Cloning of Human Neuroglobin and Tissue Expression of Rat NeuroglobinBiochemical and Biophysical Research Communications, 2002
- Neuroglobin is up-regulated by and protects neurons from hypoxic-ischemic injuryProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2001
- Biochemical Characterization and Ligand Binding Properties of Neuroglobin, a Novel Member of the Globin FamilyJournal of Biological Chemistry, 2001
- Neuroglobins from the Zebrafish Danio rerio and the Pufferfish Tetraodon nigroviridisBiochemical and Biophysical Research Communications, 2001
- The Heme Environment of Mouse NeuroglobinJournal of Biological Chemistry, 2001
- Human Neuroglobin, a Hexacoordinate Hemoglobin That Reversibly Binds OxygenJournal of Biological Chemistry, 2001
- Sympathetic-related neurons in the preoptic region of the rat identified by viral transneuronal labelingJournal of Comparative Neurology, 1999
- S-nitrosohaemoglobin: a dynamic activity of blood involved in vascular controlNature, 1996
- Histochemical mapping of nitric oxide synthase in the rat brainNeuroscience, 1992
- Organization of medullary adrenergic and noradrenergic projections to the periaqueductal gray matter in the ratJournal of Comparative Neurology, 1992