Rfusion injury [31], following exposure to light injury [32], and in age-related macular degeneration (ARMD) [33]. Altered regulation of acrystallins in ocular pathologies suggests that they may impact on the outcome of the related diseases. Disruption of order 68181-17-9 aA-crystallin accentuates photoreceptor apoptosis and retinal degeneration in chemically-induced hypoxia [34] and in experimental uveitis [35,36]. The current observations argue in favor of a-crystallins as part of a cellular protective response to the stress of the diseased retina. We previously reported that the altered regulation of acrystallins was correlated with triggering of the Bcl-2-apoptotic pathway during progression of the disease in the Rpe652/2 mouse model of Leber’s congenital amaurosis (LCA), an autosomal recessive form of retinitis pigmentosa (RP) [37]. This decrease was correlated with mitochondrial translocation of pro-apoptotic Bax and photoreceptor apoptosis [38]. We further demonstrated the direct role of pro-apoptotic Bax in the apoptosis of rod photoreceptors in early [39] and late [40] stages of the disease. In the present study, we proposed to analyze the anti-apoptotic function of a-crystallins against Bax-mediated apoptosis. We further assessed which domain of aA-crystallin was involved in protecting against Bax-triggered apoptosis.aA_1-89: 59-GATCAGATCTGCCACCATGGACGTCACC ATTCAG-39 (BglII-aA-for), 59-GATCCTCGAGTACCTTCAC GGTGAGGTC-39 (XhoI-aA_1-89-rev); aA_90-143: 59-GATCAGATCTGCCACCATGCTGGAGGA TTTTGTGGAG-39 (BglII-aA_90-143-for), 59-GATCCTCGAG GCCAGAGAAGGTCAGCATG-39 (XhoI-aA_90-143-rev); aA_144-173: 59-GATCAGATCTGCCACCATGCCCAAGG TCCAGTCC-39 (BglII-aA_144-173-for), 59-GATCCTCGAGGGACGAGGGTGCAGAGC-39 (XhoI-aA-rev); aA_64-143: 59-GATCAGATCTGCCACCATGGTCCGATC TGAC-39 (BglII-aA_64-143-for), 59-GATCCTCGAGGCCAGAGAAGGTCAGCATG-39 (XhoI-aA_64-143-rev). The bicistronic lentiviral vector pWPI (www.addgene.org, Addgene plasmid 12254), generously ML240 provided by Dr. D. Trono (Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, ??Switzerland), was used to subclone PCR-amplified aA-myc and aB-myc inserts at the PacI site (pWPI-aA and pWPI-aB) using the following primers: 59-GATCTTAATTAAGCCACCATGGACG TCACCATTCAG-39 (PacI-aA-for), 59-GATCTTAATTAATCA CAGATCTTCTTCAGAAATAAGTTTTTGTTCGGACGAG GGTGCAGAGCTGG-39 (PacI-aA-myc-rev), 59-GATCTTAATTAAGCCACCATGGACATCGCCATCCAC-39 (PacI-aB-for), 59-GATCTTAATTAATCACAGATCTTCTTCAGAAATAAG TTTTTGTTCCTTCTTAGGGGCTGCGGCG-39 (PacI-aBmyc-rev). pcDNA3-Bax plasmid was generously provided by Dr. S. Matsuyama (Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, USA).Cell culture and transient transfectionEmbryonic kidney (HEK) 293T cells were grown in Dulbecco’s modified Eagle’s medium (DMEM) (PAA Laboratories E15-883, Pasching, Austria) supplemented with 25 mM Hepes, 10 FBS (BiowhittakerH DE14-802F, Lonza Verviers SPRL, Verviers, Belgium), 100 U/ml penicillin and 100 24786787 mg/ml streptomycin (Life 1317923 Technologies Europe/GIBCO, Zoug, Switzerland). Mouse photoreceptor-derived 661W cell line was grown in DMEM (PAA Laboratories E15-883) supplemented with 25 mM Hepes, 1 mM sodium pyruvate, 10 FBS (BiowhittakerH DE14-802F), 0.6 mM ?mercaptoethanol (Applichem, Darmstadt, Germany), 100 U/ml penicillin and 100 mg/ml streptomycin (Life Technologies). 661W cells were generously provided by Dr. M. Al-Ubaidi (University of Oklahoma, Olkahoma City, USA) [41]. 293T cells were transiently transfected with the calcium phosphate method (ProFectionH, Promega) or with the cationic polymer.Rfusion injury [31], following exposure to light injury [32], and in age-related macular degeneration (ARMD) [33]. Altered regulation of acrystallins in ocular pathologies suggests that they may impact on the outcome of the related diseases. Disruption of aA-crystallin accentuates photoreceptor apoptosis and retinal degeneration in chemically-induced hypoxia [34] and in experimental uveitis [35,36]. The current observations argue in favor of a-crystallins as part of a cellular protective response to the stress of the diseased retina. We previously reported that the altered regulation of acrystallins was correlated with triggering of the Bcl-2-apoptotic pathway during progression of the disease in the Rpe652/2 mouse model of Leber’s congenital amaurosis (LCA), an autosomal recessive form of retinitis pigmentosa (RP) [37]. This decrease was correlated with mitochondrial translocation of pro-apoptotic Bax and photoreceptor apoptosis [38]. We further demonstrated the direct role of pro-apoptotic Bax in the apoptosis of rod photoreceptors in early [39] and late [40] stages of the disease. In the present study, we proposed to analyze the anti-apoptotic function of a-crystallins against Bax-mediated apoptosis. We further assessed which domain of aA-crystallin was involved in protecting against Bax-triggered apoptosis.aA_1-89: 59-GATCAGATCTGCCACCATGGACGTCACC ATTCAG-39 (BglII-aA-for), 59-GATCCTCGAGTACCTTCAC GGTGAGGTC-39 (XhoI-aA_1-89-rev); aA_90-143: 59-GATCAGATCTGCCACCATGCTGGAGGA TTTTGTGGAG-39 (BglII-aA_90-143-for), 59-GATCCTCGAG GCCAGAGAAGGTCAGCATG-39 (XhoI-aA_90-143-rev); aA_144-173: 59-GATCAGATCTGCCACCATGCCCAAGG TCCAGTCC-39 (BglII-aA_144-173-for), 59-GATCCTCGAGGGACGAGGGTGCAGAGC-39 (XhoI-aA-rev); aA_64-143: 59-GATCAGATCTGCCACCATGGTCCGATC TGAC-39 (BglII-aA_64-143-for), 59-GATCCTCGAGGCCAGAGAAGGTCAGCATG-39 (XhoI-aA_64-143-rev). The bicistronic lentiviral vector pWPI (www.addgene.org, Addgene plasmid 12254), generously provided by Dr. D. Trono (Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, ??Switzerland), was used to subclone PCR-amplified aA-myc and aB-myc inserts at the PacI site (pWPI-aA and pWPI-aB) using the following primers: 59-GATCTTAATTAAGCCACCATGGACG TCACCATTCAG-39 (PacI-aA-for), 59-GATCTTAATTAATCA CAGATCTTCTTCAGAAATAAGTTTTTGTTCGGACGAG GGTGCAGAGCTGG-39 (PacI-aA-myc-rev), 59-GATCTTAATTAAGCCACCATGGACATCGCCATCCAC-39 (PacI-aB-for), 59-GATCTTAATTAATCACAGATCTTCTTCAGAAATAAG TTTTTGTTCCTTCTTAGGGGCTGCGGCG-39 (PacI-aBmyc-rev). pcDNA3-Bax plasmid was generously provided by Dr. S. Matsuyama (Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, USA).Cell culture and transient transfectionEmbryonic kidney (HEK) 293T cells were grown in Dulbecco’s modified Eagle’s medium (DMEM) (PAA Laboratories E15-883, Pasching, Austria) supplemented with 25 mM Hepes, 10 FBS (BiowhittakerH DE14-802F, Lonza Verviers SPRL, Verviers, Belgium), 100 U/ml penicillin and 100 24786787 mg/ml streptomycin (Life 1317923 Technologies Europe/GIBCO, Zoug, Switzerland). Mouse photoreceptor-derived 661W cell line was grown in DMEM (PAA Laboratories E15-883) supplemented with 25 mM Hepes, 1 mM sodium pyruvate, 10 FBS (BiowhittakerH DE14-802F), 0.6 mM ?mercaptoethanol (Applichem, Darmstadt, Germany), 100 U/ml penicillin and 100 mg/ml streptomycin (Life Technologies). 661W cells were generously provided by Dr. M. Al-Ubaidi (University of Oklahoma, Olkahoma City, USA) [41]. 293T cells were transiently transfected with the calcium phosphate method (ProFectionH, Promega) or with the cationic polymer.