Fig. 2.
Wnt1 overexpression enhances cell survival and blocks nuclear DNA degradation during Aβ1-42 exposure. In A, representative images illustrate that overexpression of Wnt1 significantly prevents cell injury 24 hours after administration of Aβ1-42(20 μM) when compared to Aβ1-42(20 μM) exposure alone. Vector transfected cells that lack Wnt1 cDNA resulted in cell injury and trypan blue during Aβ1-42(20 μM) exposure. In B, significant increased cell survival is present in cells with stable Wnt1 overexpression during Aβ1-42(5 μM, 10 μM, and 20 μM) (*P<0.01 vs. Control; †P<0.01 vs. Wildtype at corresponding point of concentration). In C, representative images illustrate that Wnt1 overexpression significantly prevents apoptotic DNA fragmentation with TUNEL stain. Vector transfected cells that lack Wnt1 cDNA also lead to DNA fragmentation during Aβ1-42(20 μM) exposure. In D, a significant reduction in apoptotic DNA fragmentation with Wnt1 overexpression 24 hours after Aβ1-42 (20 μM) using the TUNEL assay is present (*P<0.01 vs. Control or Vector; †P<0.01 vs. Aβ1-42alone or Aβ1-42 with vector). In all cases, Control = untreated cells and Vector = transfection without Wnt1 cDNA. For B and D, each data point represents the mean and ±SEM from 6 experiments.