Figure 3.

Aβ42-specific stimulation of NFκB reporter gene activation. (A) The 3xRel-LUC plasmid (three tandem NFκB response element repeats with a minimal promoter cloned upstream of the luciferase gene) was transfected into astrocytes, which were then left untreated or stimulated for 12 hr by either PBS, 10 μM Aβ42, or 10 μM Aβ42scr. Luciferase expression in Aβ42-stimulated cells was significantly increased above that in untreated, PBS-treated, or Aβ42scr-treated cells. Data shown (mean ± SEM) represent n = 8 transfections and are RLUs. (B) Cotransfecting the 3xRel-LUC construct with the IκB (Super-repressor, Sr) expression construct [CMV-IκB(Sr)] reduced Aβ-stimulated 3xRel-LUC luciferase activity to near background levels compared with cotransfection of 3xRel-LUC with the backbone vector pCMV4. ∗, Significantly different from PBS control (P < 0.05); ‡, significantly different from control vector (P < 0.005). Statistics here and results throughout have been calculated by Student’s t test. Significance is determined if P < 0.05.