Effect of pranoprofen on endoplasmic reticulum stress in the primary cultured glial cells

Endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress has been implicated in the pathogenesis of CNS diseases such as Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, and cerebral ischemia. In the present study, we investigated the effect of pranoprofen, a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID), on endoplasmic reticulum stress responses in the primary cultured glial cells. Pranoprofen inhibited ER stress-induced glucose regulated protein 78 (GRP78) expression, an ER-localized molecular chaperon. Moreover, pranoprofen inhibited ER stress-induced CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein homologous protein (CHOP) expression, an apoptotic transcription factor. ER stress-induced phosphorylation of α-subunit of eukaryotic initiation factor-2 (eIF2α) has been reported to be involved in CHOP induction. Interestingly, pranoprofen alone induced eIF2α phosphorylation, which was further increased by ER stress. On the other hand, ER stress-induced X-box-binding protein 1 (XBP-1) splicing was inhibited in pranoprofen-treated cells. Thus, the inhibitory effect of pranoprofen on ER stress-related genes (GRP78 and CHOP) would be mediated through the inhibition of XBP-1 splicing. In the present study, pranoprofen has been suggested to affect ER stress. The present results may have important implications for understanding ER stress-related diseases.