Research Article
Gulimire Abulaiti, Setsu Sa
Abstract
Background: Cerebellar degeneration is one of the most common effects of chronic alcohol exposure, and Purkinje cells are the main targets of alcohol-induced cerebellum neuropathology, but the underlying mechanism remains unclear. Methods: Eight rats were fed for 8 weeks with a nutritionally adequate liquid diet containing either ethanol as 36% of the total caloric content or an isocaloric control diet. Rat cerebellum homogenates were subjected to agarose two-dimensional electrophoresis (2-DE), and the protein expression profiles in chronically alcohol-fed rats and the pair-fed controls were compared. The observed changes in the protein expression levels were confirmed using immunoblotting analysis. Results: Three protein spots changed significantly in intensity according to 2-DE. Based on immunoblotting analysis, low expression levels of microtubule-associated protein-2 (MAP2) and the overexpression of voltagedependent anion channel protein 1 (VDAC1) were observed in the cerebellum of alcohol-fed rats. The expression levels of both proteins did not change in other parts of the brain. Conclusions: Low expression levels of MAP2 and overexpression of VDAC1 were detected using proteome analysis of the cerebellum tissue from chronically alcohol-fed rats. Changes in the expression of these proteins may be related to cerebellar degeneration following chronic alcohol consumption.