Effects of Nerve Growth Factor and Dexamethasone on Na⁺,K⁺-ATPase of Cultured PC12h Cells

Summary

When PC12h cells were cultured for 4 days in the presence of 50ng/ml of nerve growth factor (NGF), they showed elongated dendrites and specifically increased Na⁺,K⁺-ATPase activity. Either singly or in combination with NGF, dexamethasone also increased the specific activity of this enzyme. Western blot analysis using anti-α1 and anti-α2 antisera showed that PC12h cells, either before or after hormone treatment, contained the α1 isoform but not the α one. We conclude, therefore, that NGF induces Na⁺,K⁺-ATPase concomitantly with neuronal differentiation in PC12h cells but that the growth factor does not induce formation of the myelin sheath, which normally expresses the α2 isoform of Na⁺,K⁺-ATPase.

Key words

Na⁺,K⁺-ATPase - NGF - PC12h Cells