Abstract
Neurturin (NTN) is a recently identified homologue of glial-cell-line- derived neurotrophic factor. Both factors promote the survival of dopaminergic (DA) neurons. We investigated the biological activity of mammalian-cell-produced NTN versus purified Escherichia coli-produced NTN. Baby hamster kidney cells were engineered to stably secrete mature human NTN. Mammalian-cell-derived NTN enhanced the activity of embryonic DA neurons in vitro, with greater potency (maximum effect achieved in the picogram range) than purified E. coli-produced NTN. Cell-based delivery of NTN (less than 10 ng/day) was also shown to be biologically active in vivo. These results suggest that mammalian-cell-derived NTN, synthesized de novo and delivered in small quantities to the parenchyma at the target site, may be as active as much larger quantities of purified, E. coli-produced NTN, delivered by other means. (C) 2000 Academic Press.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 189-193 |
Number of pages | 5 |
Journal | Experimental Neurology |
Volume | 162 |
Issue number | 1 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Mar 2000 |
Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- Bioactivity
- Delivery
- Neurturin
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Neurology
- Developmental Neuroscience