L-Satropane Prevents Retinal Neuron Damage by Attenuating Cell Apoptosis and Aβ Production via Activation of M1 Muscarinic Acetylcholine Receptor

Muscarinic acetylcholine receptor (mAChR) agonists have been used to treat glaucoma due to their intraocular pressure-lowering effects. Recently, it has been reported that retinal mAChRs activation can also stimulate neuroprotective pathways.Purpose: In our study, we evaluated the potential neuroprotective effect of L-satropane, a novel mAChR agonist, on retinal neuronal injury induced by cobalt chloride (CoCl2) and ischemia/reperfusion (I/R).Methods: CoCl2-induced hypoxia injury in cultured cell models and I/R-induced retinal neuronal damage in rats in vivo were used to evaluate the abilities of L-satropane. In detail, we measured the occurrence of retinal pathological changes including molecular markers of neuronal apoptosis and Aβ expression.Results: Pretreatment with L-satropane protects against CoCl2-induced neurotoxicity in PC12 and primary retinal neuron (PRN) cells in a dose-dependent manner by increasing retinal neuron survival. CoCl2 or I/R-induced cell apoptosis by upregulating Bax expr...