Triphenyltin inhibition of the proteasome activity and its influence on substrate protein levels in nerve cells

Triphenyltin (TPT) widely exists as environmental pollutant, but its toxicity towards nerve cells and the related mechanism re-main unclear. In this research, SHSY-5Y cells were exposed to TPT, and the cellular proteasome activity, Iκb proteins, Bax and κ-synuclein levels were investigated. The results show that TPT can inhibit the cellular proteasome activity, and result in the ac-cumulation of ubiquitinized proteins. TPT exposure can change the protein levels of IκB, Bax, and α-synuclein, affect NFκB path-way, activate the process of cell death, and induce α-synuclein aggregation. Our results indicate that TPT exposure can lead to neuotoxzcity.