Pharmacologic Heat Shock Protein 70 Induction Confers Cytoprotection against Inflammation in Gliovascular Cells

The inhibition of the 90-kDa heat shock protein (HSP90) leads to upregulation of the 70-kDa-inducible HSP70. HSP70 has been previously shown to be neuroprotective and anti-inflammatory. Geldanamycin (GA) and other HSP90 inhibitors have emerged as promising therapeutic agents in cancer, presumably owing to their ability to upregulate HSP70. However, the effects of HSP90 inhibition in brain inflammation are still unclear. We investigate the effect of a panel of HSP90 inhibitors on endotoxin-activated microglia and eventual protection from brain-derived endothelial cells. Prior studies have shown that GA protects brain cells from oxidative stress. We show here that when astrocytes or microglial BV2 cells were pretreated with GA or other HSP90 inhibitors, endotoxin-induced cell death was reduced in cocultures of BV2 microglia and brain-derived endothelial cells (bEND.3). Endotoxin-stimulated BV2 cells led to increased nitric oxide (NO) and inducible nitric oxide synthase which was prevented by treatment with all HSP90 inhibitors. HSP90 inhibitors also prevented lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced BV2 cell death. We also found that HSP90 inhibition blocked nuclear translocation of nuclear factor kappa B and attenuated IB degradation, and inhibited LPS-activated JAK-STAT phosphorylation. We show that pharmacologic inhibition of HSP90 with subsequent HSP70 induction protects cells that comprise the cerebral vasculature against cell death owing to proinflammatory stimuli. This approach may have therapeutic potential in neurological conditions with an inflammatory component.