AUTHOR=Cataldi Samuela , Arcuri Cataldo , Hunot Stéphane , Mecca Carmen , Codini Michela , Laurenti Maria E. , Ferri Ivana , Loreti Elisabetta , Garcia-Gil Mercedes , Traina Giovanna , Conte Carmela , Ambesi-Impiombato Francesco S. , Beccari Tommaso , Curcio Francesco , Albi Elisabetta TITLE=Effect of Vitamin D in HN9.10e Embryonic Hippocampal Cells and in Hippocampus from MPTP-Induced Parkinson’s Disease Mouse Model JOURNAL=Frontiers in Cellular Neuroscience VOLUME=12 YEAR=2018 URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/cellular-neuroscience/articles/10.3389/fncel.2018.00031 DOI=10.3389/fncel.2018.00031 ISSN=1662-5102 ABSTRACT=

It has long been proven that neurogenesis continues in the adult brains of mammals in the dentatus gyrus of the hippocampus due to the presence of neural stem cells. Although a large number of studies have been carried out to highlight the localization of vitamin D receptor in hippocampus, the expression of vitamin D receptor in neurogenic dentatus gyrus of hippocampus in Parkinson’s disease (PD) and the molecular mechanisms triggered by vitamin D underlying the production of differentiated neurons from embryonic cells remain unknown. Thus, we performed a preclinical in vivo study by inducing PD in mice with MPTP and showed a reduction of glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) and vitamin D receptor in the dentatus gyrus of hippocampus. Then, we performed an in vitro study by inducing embryonic hippocampal cell differentiation with vitamin D. Interestingly, vitamin D stimulates the expression of its receptor. Vitamin D receptor is a transcription factor that probably is responsible for the upregulation of microtubule associated protein 2 and neurofilament heavy polypeptide genes. The latter increases heavy neurofilament protein expression, essential for neurofilament growth. Notably N-cadherin, implicated in activity for dendritic outgrowth, is upregulated by vitamin D.