The function and regulation of Na ؉ /H ؉ exchanger isoform 1 (NHE1) following cerebral ischemia are not well understood. In this study, we demonstrate that extracellular signal-related kinases (ERK1/2) play a role in stimulation of neuronal NHE1 following in vitro ischemia. NHE1 activity was significantly increased during 10 -60 min reoxygenation (REOX) after 2-h oxygen and glucose deprivation (OGD). OGD/REOX not only increased the V max for NHE1 but also shifted the K m toward decreased [H ؉ ] i . These changes in NHE1 kinetics were absent when MAPK/ERK kinase (MEK) was inhibited by the MEK inhibitor U0126. There were no changes in the levels of phosphorylated ERK1/2 (p-ERK1/2) after 2 h OGD. The p-ERK1/2 level was significantly increased during 10 -60 min REOX, which was accompanied by nuclear translocation. U0126 abolished REOX-induced elevation and translocation of p-ERK1/2. We further examined the ERK/90-kDa ribosomal S6 kinase (p90 RSK ) signaling pathways. At 10 min REOX, phosphorylated NHE1 was increased with a concurrent elevation of phosphorylation of p90 RSK , a known NHE1 kinase. Inhibition of MEK activity with U0126 abolished phosphorylation of both NHE1 and p90 RSK . Moreover, neuroprotection was observed with U0126 or genetic ablation or pharmacological inhibition of NHE1 following OGD/REOX. Taken together, these results suggest that activation of ERK1/2-p90 RSK pathways following in vitro ischemia phosphorylates NHE1 and increases its activity, which subsequently contributes to neuronal damage.
The Naϩ /H ϩ exchanger (NHE) 2 family is a group of membrane transport proteins that catalyzes the secondary active electroneurtral exchange of one Na ϩ for one H ϩ . To date, nine NHE isoforms (NHE1-9) have been cloned in mammalian tissues (1). Na ϩ /H ϩ exchanger isoform 1 (NHE1) is the most abundant NHE isoform in the rat central nervous system (2) and crucial in regulation of neuronal pH i (3, 4). We have recently reported that NHE1 activity plays an important role in neuronal damage in both in vitro and in vivo ischemic models (4). Inhibition of NHE1 activity during OGD/REOX prevents intracellular Na ϩ and Ca 2ϩ overload and thus reduces the Ca 2ϩ -mediated cascade of deleterious events (4). In acutely isolated CA1 neurons, an anoxia-triggered intracellular alkalization depends on activation of NHE1 (5). We also found that NHE1 activity is stimulated in cortical astrocytes following in vitro ischemia (6). However, whether NHE1 activity is overstimulated in cortical neurons following in vitro ischemia remains unknown.NHE1 has two large functional domains. The N-terminal transmembrane domain (ϳ500 amino acids) is responsible for cation translocation, and the cytoplasmic C-terminal domain (ϳ315 amino acids) is the main regulatory site for the NHE1 activity (7). The distal C-terminal tail of NHE1 contains a number of serine and threonine residues that are phosphorylated by several protein kinases, including extracellular signal-related kinases (ERK1/2) and 90-kDa ribosomal S6 kinase (p90 RSK ) (8). Activa...