Figure 4.

Activation of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) expression via ERK/CREB/TrkB pathway following treatment with ethyl acetate extract of Enteromorpha prolifera (EAEP). (A) Immunoblotting and relative density of BDNF, p-CREB, p-TrkB, (B) p-ERK, p-JNK, and p-p38. HT-22 cells were seeded on a 60-mm dish, and then incubated for 24 h. The cells were challenged with glutamate after pre-incubation with or without EAEP (0–100 µg/mg) for 30 min. After 12 h, the expression of BDNF, p-CREB, p-TrkB, p-ERK, p-JNK, p-38 or β-actin was examined as described in the Materials and Methods. The data were pooled from three independent experiments. ** p < 0.01 versus glutamate-treated group. − denotes absence of EAEP.