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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Pharmacol.
Sec. Neuropharmacology
Volume 15 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fphar.2024.1473019
This article is part of the Research Topic Plant and Fungal Extracts and Metabolites in Neurotherapy: Exploring Their Pharmacology and Potential Clinical Uses View all 3 articles

Isoliquiritigenin ameliorates abnormal oligodendrocyte development and behavior disorders induced by white matter injury

Provisionally accepted
Dong Wu Dong Wu 1Wenjuan Zhou Wenjuan Zhou 1Jingyi Du Jingyi Du 1Tiantian Zhao Tiantian Zhao 1Li Naigang Li Naigang 1Fan Peng Fan Peng 1Anna Li Anna Li 2Xinyue Zhang Xinyue Zhang 1Meihua Zhang Meihua Zhang 2Aijun Hao Aijun Hao 1*
  • 1 Shandong University, Jinan, China
  • 2 Qingdao University, Qingdao, Shandong Province, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Background: White matter injury is a predominant form of brain injury in preterm infants. However, effective drugs for its treatment are currently lacking. Previous studies have shown the neuroprotective effects of Isoliquiritigenin (ISL), but its impact on white matter injury in preterm infants remains poorly understood.Aims: This study aimed to investigate the protective effects of ISL against white matter injury caused by infection in preterm infants using a mouse model of lipopolysaccharide-induced white matter injury, integrating network pharmacology as well as in vivo and in vitro experiments.This study explores the potential mechanisms of ISL on white matter injury by integrating network pharmacology. Core pathways and biological processes affected by ISL were verified through experiments, and motor coordination, anxiety-like, and depression-like behaviors of mice were evaluated using behavioral experiments. White matter injury was observed using hematoxylineosin staining, Luxol Fast Blue staining, and electron microscopy. The development of oligodendrocytes and the activation of microglia in mice were assessed by immunofluorescence.The expression of related proteins was detected by Western blot.We constructed a drug-target network, including 336 targets associated with ISL treatment of white matter injury. The biological process of ISL treatment of white matter injury mainly involves microglial inflammation regulation and myelination. Our findings revealed that ISL reduced early nerve reflex barriers and white matter manifestations in mice, leading to decreased activation of microglia and release of proinflammatory cytokines. Additionally, ISL demonstrated the ability to mitigate impairment in oligodendrocyte development and myelination, ultimately improving behavior disorders in adult mice. Mechanistically, we observed that ISL downregulated HDAC3 expression, promoted histone acetylation, enhanced the expression of H3K27ac, and regulated oligodendrocyte pro-differentiation factors.Conclusions: These findings suggest that ISL can have beneficial effects on white matter injury in preterm infants by alleviating inflammation and promoting oligodendrocyte differentiation.

    Keywords: Isoliquiritigenin, Anxiety, Depression, white matter injury, oligodendrocytes, Microglia, HDAC3

    Received: 30 Jul 2024; Accepted: 26 Aug 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Wu, Zhou, Du, Zhao, Naigang, Peng, Li, Zhang, Zhang and Hao. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Aijun Hao, Shandong University, Jinan, China

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.