Session Speaker

Atrovastatin Protects Spinal Motor Neurons From Glutamate Mediated Neurotoxicity
Yasuo Iwasaki
Japan

Several studies have demonstrated that statins,in addition to their > lipid-lowering effects, have europrotective properties.These properties of statin have suggested these have beneficial effect in neurological disorders.We analyzed the atorvastatin in a postnatal organotypic spinal cord cultures exposed to glutamata.Cultures were treated for two weeks.Cultures treated with glutamate alone had siginificant reduction of motor neuron numbers.Cultures treated with glutamate and atorvastatin showed sparing the organotypic morphological appearance.Our resuts indicates atorvastatin plays an important role in the survival and maintenance of spinal motor neurons against glutamate induced eurotoxicity.Our resuts indicate a potential therapeutic use of atorvastatin in treating disease that kill the spinal motor neurons,such as motor neuropathies and motor neuron diseases.