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Role of neuroglobin in regulating reactive oxygen species in the brain of the anoxia‐tolerant turtle Trachemys scripta

Neuroglobin (Ngb) is an oxygen binding heme protein found in nervous tissue with a yet unclear physiological and protective role in the hypoxia‐sensitive mammalian brain. Here we utilized in vivo and in vitro studies to examine the role of Ngb in anoxic and post‐anoxic neuronal survival in the freshwater turtle. We employed semiquantitative RT‐PCR and western blotting to analyze Ngb mRNA and protein levels in turtle brain and neuronally enriched cultures. Ngb expression is strongly up‐regulated by hypoxia and post‐anoxia reoxygenation but increases only modestly in anoxia. The potential neuroprotective role of Ngb in this species was analyzed by knocking down Ngb using specific small interfering RNA. Ngb knockdown in neuronally enriched cell cultures resulted in significant increases in H2O2 release compared to controls but no change in cell death. Cell survival may be linked to activation of other protective responses such as the extracellular regulated kinase transduction pathway, as phosphorylated extracellular regulated kinase levels in anoxia were significantly higher in Ngb knockdown cultures compared to controls. The greater expression of Ngb when reactive oxygen species are likely to be high, and the increased susceptibility of neurons to H2O2 release and external oxidative stress in knockdown cultures, suggests a role for Ngb in reducing reactive oxygen species production or in detoxification, though it does not appear to be of primary importance in the anoxia tolerant turtle in the presence of compensatory survival mechanisms.