Differentially expressed genes in Hirudo medicinalis ganglia after acetyl-L-carnitine treatment
Research article published in PloS one (2013)
Abstract
Acetyl-L-carnitine (ALC) is a naturally occurring substance that, when administered at supra-physiological concentration, is neuroprotective. It is involved in membrane stabilization and in enhancement of mitochondrial functions. It is a molecule of considerable interest for its clinical application in various neural disorders, including Alzheimer's disease and painful neuropathies. ALC is known to improve the cognitive capability of aged animals chronically treated with the drug and, recently, it has been reported that it impairs forms of non-associative learning in the leech. In the present study the effects of ALC on gene expression have been analyzed in the leech Hirudo medicinalis. The suppression subtractive hybridisation methodology was used for the generation of subtracted cDNA libraries and the subsequent identification of differentially expressed transcripts in the leech nervous system after ALC treatment. The method detects differentially but also little expressed transcripts of genes whose sequence or identity is still unknown. We report that a single administration of ALC is able to modulate positively the expression of genes coding for functions that reveal a lasting effect of ALC on the invertebrate, and confirm the neuroprotective and neuromodulative role of the substance. In addition an important finding is the modulation of genes of vegetal origin. This might be considered an instance of ectosymbiotic mutualism.
Abstract sourced from PubMed (NCBI) for the cited record. See the original publication for the authoritative version.
Resumen
Acetyl-L-carnitine (ALC) is a naturally occurring substance that, when administered at supra-physiological concentration, is neuroprotective. It is involved in membrane stabilization and in enhancement of mitochondrial functions.
Por qué esto importa para la hirudoterapia
Este estudio utilizó hibridación sustractiva por supresión para perfilar genes expresados diferencialmente en el sistema nervioso de Hirudo medicinalis tras una única administración de acetil-L-carnitina (ALC), un compuesto neuroprotector, identificando transcriptos modulados, incluidos algunos de origen vegetal inesperado, indicativos de mutualismo ectosimbótico. Para el ámbito de ASH, el trabajo es destacado porque examina directamente la regulación génica en la sanguijuela medicinal y caracteriza respuestas moleculares dentro de sus ganglios, contribuyendo al conocimiento básico de la neurobiología de H. medicinalis que podría informar indirectamente estudios sobre la fisiología de la sanguijuela. Sin embargo, la investigación se centra en la ALC como agente neuroprotector candidato utilizando la sanguijuela como organismo modelo, no en la hirudoterapia, los componentes salivales de la sanguijuela ni las aplicaciones terapéuticas de la terapia con sanguijuelas. Por lo tanto, su relevancia para la investigación en hirudoterapia clínica u orientada al secretoma salival es limitada e indirecta, ofreciendo conocimientos moleculares sobre la biología del sistema nervioso de la sanguijuela en lugar de hallazgos relevantes para la práctica.
Citación
Differentially expressed genes in Hirudo medicinalis ganglia after acetyl-L-carnitine treatment.
Federighi G et al. · PloS one, 2013
Contexto clínico relacionado
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Añadido a la biblioteca ASH: March 18, 2026 · Última actualización del sitio: June 18, 2026