Figure 2.

p75^NTR protects human neurons against extracellular Aβ_1-42 toxicity. Western blot analysis of p75^NTR in two independent experiments of pHSVPrPUCp75 sense (p75S)-infected primary neurons (A) or pHSVPrPUCp75 antisense (p75AS)-infected primary neurons in the presence and absence of 100 nm Aβ_1-42 (B). BE, Proteins from a brain extract. Ctl, Control. C, Interference of p75S-mediated expression of p75^NTR by cotransduction of neuron cultures with p75AS shown by Western blotting of the transduced cultures with anti-p75^NTR and β-actin. D, TUNEL-positive cell death in neurons microinjected with DTR, pHSVPrPUC empty construct (vector), p75S, p75AS, or PrPAS, and either untreated (Ctl) or treated with 100 nm Aβ_1-42 or Aβ_42-1 in the presence of serum. Data represent the mean and SEM of three independent experiments. The difference between microinjection of p75S, p75AS, and PrPAS versus vector microinjections was assessed by one-way ANOVA followed by Scheffé's test; ^*p < 0.0001. There was no other statistically significant difference between the different groups.