Objective: To investigate the effect of propofol on the expression of thrombospondin-1 (THBS-1) mRNA and protein in purified newborn rat cortical astrocytes in vitro.
Methods: Astrocytes were isolated from newborn rat cortex and grown in culture before exposure to propofol at 3, 10, 30, 100 or 300 µmol/L for 6 h, 12, or 24 h. The mRNA level of THBS-1 was detected by RT-PCR, and the protein level of THBS-1 was detected by immunofluorescence cytochemistry and Western blotting.
Results: Propofol exposure caused significantly upregulated THBS-1 level in cultured astrocytes (P<0.05) to a level about 1.3 times higher than that in control cells. The mRNA and protein levels of THBS-1 in cultured rat cortical astrocytes were upregulated by exposures to 10, 30 and 100 µmol/L propofol (P<0.01). High expression of THBS-1 mRNA and protein was detected in the cells with exposures for different durations (P<0.05), especially in the 12 h group (P<0.01).
Conclusion: Propofol at clinically relevant concentrations can modulate the level of THBS-1 secreted by astrocytes of rat cerebral cortex in vitro.