HEAT-STRESS REDUCES GLUTAMATE TOXICITY IN CULTURED NEURONS WITHOUT HSP70 EXPRESSION

Consistent with known cytoprotective effects, mild heat stress reduced the vulnerability of cultured cortical neurons to glutamate-induced c ell death. However, this neuroprotective effect occurred without expre ssion of the inducible heat stress protein, hsp70, as detected by immu nocytochemistry, immunoblotting, or metabolic labeling. Present data s uggest that the anti-excitotoxic effect of mild heat stress is mediate d outside of the traditional hsp70 mechanism.