Az akut L-kinurenin szulfát kezelés magatartási, szövettani és keringési hatásainak komplex vizsgálata C57Bl/6j egér törzsben

L-Kynurenine (L-KYN) is a central metabolite of tryptophan degradation: known as kynurenine pathway, it is a cascade of enzymatic steps generating biologically active compounds, through which more than 95% of the tryptophan is catabolized. The early phase of the catabolic steps takes place mainly in the liver and the kidneys. However, the metabolization of L-KYN can effectively proceeds in the brain. The blood brain barrier strongly limits the penetrability of the kynurenine metabolites from the periphery to the central nervous system, since most of them can only be transferred by passive diffusion with a very low efficacy. One clear exception is the L-KYN, which can enter the brain with the aid of a large neutral amino acid transporter. Thus, the cerebral kynurenine metabolism is very responsive to the peripheral level of the L-KYN. Preclinical studies have shown that growth in the level of systemic L-KYN is particularly associated with a dose-dependent increase of its direct downstream metabolite kynurenic acid (KYNA) in the central nervous system. Evidence suggests that in the physiologically intact brain the most prominent and rapid change after peripheral L-KYN administration is the peak elevation of KYNA. KYNA is a complex neuromodulator, antioxidant and neuroprotective endogenous molecule. Elevation of brain KYNA content is correlated with attenuation in the concentration of extracellular glutamate, dopamine and acetylcholine in distinct cortical and subcortical brain regions. KYNA influences neurotransmission through multiple actions at the pre- and postsynaptic site. KYNA directly attenuates neurotransmitter release, partly by inhibiting α7 nicotinic acetylcholine (α7nACh) receptor located on presynaptic terminals, and partly by stimulating G-protein-coupled receptor 35 (GPR35) localized on neurons and astrocytes. Thus, even the modest fluctuations in endogenous KYNA can bi-directionally control the extracellular levels of glutamate. KYNA hinders postsynaptic N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor currents by competitive antagonism at allosteric glycine binding site of NMDA receptor. Moreover, in the periphery and in the brain during neuroinflammation, KYNA promotes anti-inflammatory responses due to activation of aryl hydrocarbon receptor and GPR35 receptor expressed by immune-cells, as well as it presumably also modulates neuronal survival through extrasynaptic NMDA receptor blockade. Besides its receptor-mediated actions, KYNA itself is a potent antioxidant. Therefore, elevation of brain KYNA level, either by administration of L-KYN or pharmacological manipulation of the availability of the kynurenine pathway enzymes, has become an attractive strategy to attenuate neuroinflammatory responses and to protect against glutamate induced excitotoxicity associated with ischemic brain injury. Accordingly, we and our collaborators achieved neuroprotection by the administration of L-KYN sulfate (L-KYNs) in experimental models of neurodegenerative diseases and ischemic stroke. Decades after the discovery of the neurotoxic and convulsant properties of glutamate, it has become clear that glutamate hypofunction is also pathogenic and therefore undesirable. Accordingly, in preclinical studies acute or chronic elevation of brain KYNA content, achieved partly by the peripheral administration of L-KYN, has been suggested to trigger alteration in the behavior of rodents: animals expressed hypoactivity or spatial working memory deficit. Moreover, pre- and postnatal chronic L-KYN exposure provoked long-lasting neurochemical and behavioral abnormalities manifested in adulthood. However, the results assessing the behavioral effects of the kynurenerg manipulations emerged from studies that focused mainly on rats, after various-dose of L-KYNs treatment. Implementing similar experiments in mice is of particular importance, because such data is almost absent from the literature. Additionally, the available information concerning the effects of kynurenerg manipulation beyond neuroprotection is quite incomplete, since study on dose-dependent responses to various L-KYNs treatment is not available. On a top of these, L-KYN and KYNA were attributed a direct role in the regulation of the systemic circulation. Namely, L-KYN was identified as an endothelium-derived vasodilator, contributing to peripheral arterial relaxation and regulation of blood pressure during systemic inflammation in rats. Furthermore, intravenous administration of low-dose L-KYN (1 mg/kg) has been shown to increase cerebral blood flow (CBF) in conscious rabbits. Therefore, we hypothesized that acute elevation of systemic L-KYN concentration may exert potential effects on mean arterial blood pressure (MABP) and on resting CBF in the adult mouse brain..