Role of ionic fluxes in the apoptotic cell death of cultured cerebellar granule neurons

Cultured cerebellar granule neurons (CGC) increase survival in a medium containing 25 mM KCl (K25), and they die apoptotically when cultures are treated with staurosporine (St) or are transferred to a 5-mM KCl containing medium (K5). Apoptotic CGC show nuclear condensation and caspase-3 activation. Cell death induced by these conditions was partially prevented when cultures were maintained under alkaline conditions, which also induced a marked reduction of the caspase-3 activation. The acidification of the medium further increased cell death induced by both stimuli. Cultures transferred to K5 suffered an immediate intracellular alkalinization that remained constant during the time K5 was present. In contrast, St did not modify cytosolic pH at any of the evaluated times. On the other hand, DIDS, furosemide, and bumetanide prevented CGC death induced by K5 and St. Other drugs such as amiloride, EIPA, tamoxifen, NEM, or NPPB did not modify cell death induced by these conditions. Both DIDS and bumetanide markedly inhibited the processing and activation of caspase-3, and DIDS prevented the nuclear condensation induced by K5 and St. These findings suggest that pH is a condition that could contribute to the modulation of cell death induced by some stimuli and that other ions, such as potassium, could have a role in the initial phase of apoptotic death of CGC.