CAMP INCLUDED DURING CELL-SUSPENSION PREPARATION IMPROVES SURVIVAL OFDOPAMINERGIC-NEURONS IN-VITRO

THE physical process of cell suspension preparation from embryonic ven tral mesencephala (VM) may be responsible for the low numbers of dopam inergic (DA) neurons that survive following neural transplantation or in vitro culture. In particular, the disruption of cell to extracellul ar matrix attachment may result in cell death through deactivation of a cAMP-dependent protein kinase involved in cell survival signalling. In an attempt to reduce this death, dibutyryl cAMP was included in all solutions from explant collection to final dissociation. Pretreatment with 700 mu M dibutyryl cAMP resulted in 90% survival of the DA neuro ns originally plated, compared with only 40% in the untreated cultures , after 5 days in vitro. Treatment of VM explants in this manner may r esult in major improvements in neural transplantation as a technique f or the treatment of Parkinson's disease. (C) 1998 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.