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NADPH Oxidase-Derived Reactive Oxygen Species Mediate the Cerebrovascular Dysfunction Induced by the Amyloid Peptide

Laibaik Park; Josef Anrather; Ping Zhou; Kelly Frys; Rose Pitstick; Steven Younkin; George A. Carlson; Costantino Iadecola
11/30/2013

Overproduction of the amyloidβ(Aβ) peptide is a key factor in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s disease (AD), but the mechanisms of its pathogenic effects have not been defined. Patients with AD have cerebrovascular alterations attributable to the deleterious effects of Aβ on cerebral blood vessels. We report here that NADPH oxidase, the major source of free radicals in blood vessels, is responsible for the cerebrovascular dysregulation induced by Aβ. Thus, the free-radical production and the associated alterations in vasoregulation induced by Aβ are abrogated by the NADPH oxidase peptide inhibitor gp91ds-tat and are not observed in mice lacking the catalytic subunit of NADPHoxidase (gp91phox). Furthermore, oxidative stress and cerebrovascular dysfunction do not occur in transgenic mice overexpressing the amyloid precursor protein but lacking gp91phox. The mechanisms by which NADPH oxidase-derived radicals mediate the cerebrovascular dysfunction involve reduced bioavailability of nitric oxide. Thus, a gp91phox-containing NADPH oxidase is the critical link between Aβ and cerebrovascular dysfunction, which may underlie the alteration in cerebral blood flow regulation observed in AD patients.