Ischemic stroke has a multiplicity of pathophysiological mechanisms. Granulocyte-colony stimulating factor (G-CSF) is an endogenous growth factor that exerts a diverse range of neuroprotection against ischemic stroke. Several lines of evidence demonstrated the contribution of endoplasmic reticulum (ER) in apoptotic cell death involving ischemia. Cell culture of undifferentiated PC12 cells were subjected to 10mM glutamate and selected doses of G-CSF (25ng/ml, 50ng/ml, 100ng/ml and 250ng/ml) for 24 hours. Cell viability, expression of the G-CSF receptor and expression level of CHOP were assessed in vitro. Sprague-Dawley rats were subjected to middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO). Rats were subcutaneously injected with G-CSF (n= 15; 50ug/kg body weight) 24 hours post-MCAO for 4 days. Vehicle treated rats were administered 5% dextrose for 1 day (n=4) or 4 days (n=16). Sham-operated rats (n=9) were not subjected to MCAO. Neurological deficit and infarct volume were measured while expression levels of pAKT, Bcl2, Bax, Bak, cleaved caspase-3, GRP78, ATF4, ATF6, p-p38MAPK, pJNK, CHOP and HSP27 were analyzed by western blotting. In vitro G-CSF receptor was expressed on undifferentiated PC12 cell, and an optimal dose of 50 ng/ml G-CSF significantly protected these cells against glutamate-induced cytotoxicity (P < 0.05). G-CSF significantly down-regulated (P < 0.01) the ER stressinduced pro-apoptotic marker CHOP in vitro. In vivo, G-CSF reduced infarct volume to 50% while significantly improved neurological deficit compared to vehicle rats. G-CSF significantly (P < 0.05) up-regulated pro-survival proteins pAKT and Bcl2 while downregulating pro-apoptotic proteins Bax, Bak and cleaved caspase 3 in the ischemic brain. It also significantly (P < 0.05) downregulated the ER intraluminal stress sensor GRP78, proteins of ER stress induced intracellular pathway; ATF4, ATF6, p-p38MAPK, pJNK and the ER stress induced apoptotic marker CHOP, which suggests that ER stress is being ameliorated by G-CSF treatment. G-CSF also reduced the level of HSP27, providing additional evidence of cellular stress reduction. G-CSF treatment increased cell survival by attenuating both general pro-apoptotic proteins and specific effector proteins in the ER stress induced apoptotic pathways. Our data has provided new insight into the anti-apoptotic mechanism of G-CSF, especially as it relates to ER stress induced apoptosis in ischemia. / Includes bibliography. / Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2016. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection