Department of Anatomy, MTA-PTE PACAP Research Team, University of Pecs Medical School, 7624 Pecs, Hungary.
Int J Mol Sci. 2022 Apr 29;23(9):4953. doi: 10.3390/ijms23094953.
Pituitary adenylate cyclase activating polypeptide (PACAP) was first isolated as a hypothalamic peptide based on its efficacy to increase adenylate cyclase (AC) activity. It has a widespread distribution throughout the body including the nervous system and peripheral organs, where PACAP exerts protective effects both in vivo and in vitro through its anti-apoptotic, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant functions. The aim of the present paper was to review the currently available literature regarding the effects of PACAP on cell death in vitro in neural and non-neural cells. Among others, its effect on apoptosis can be detected in cerebellar granule cells against different toxic stimuli. Different neural cell types from the cerebral cortex are also prevented from cell death. PACAP also shows effects on cell death in cells belonging to the peripheral nervous system and protects both neural and non-neural cells of sensory organs. In addition, cell survival-promoting effect can be observed in different peripheral organ systems including cardiovascular, immune, respiratory, gastrointestinal, urinary, and reproductive systems. The studies summarized here indicate its noteworthy effect on cell death in different in vitro models, suggesting PACAP's potential therapeutic usage in several pathological conditions.
垂体腺苷酸环化酶激活肽（PACAP）最初是作为一种下丘脑肽被分离出来的，其依据是它能增加腺苷酸环化酶（AC）的活性。它在体内广泛分布，包括神经系统和外周器官，在体内和体外，PACAP 通过其抗细胞凋亡、抗炎和抗氧化功能发挥保护作用。本文旨在综述目前关于 PACAP 对体外神经和非神经细胞死亡的影响的文献。在其他方面，它可以检测到对不同毒性刺激的小脑颗粒细胞中的细胞凋亡。来自大脑皮层的不同神经细胞类型也能防止细胞死亡。PACAP 还对属于外周神经系统的细胞死亡有影响，并能保护感觉器官的神经和非神经细胞。此外，还可以观察到不同的外周器官系统，包括心血管、免疫、呼吸、胃肠道、泌尿和生殖系统中的细胞存活促进作用。本文总结的研究表明，它对不同体外模型中的细胞死亡有显著影响，提示 PACAP 在几种病理情况下具有潜在的治疗用途。
