Mouse Nov gene is expressed in hypaxial musculature and cranial structures derived from neural crest cells and placodes

NOV is a member of an emerging family of proteins, the CCN family, implicated in the control of cell growth and differentiation. During mouse development Nov is expressed predominantly in the skeletal and visceral muscles and in the nervous system. Transcripts are first detected in muscle precursor cells from 10.0 dpc and later in the hypaxial muscles of the trunk and shoulder/hip, as well as in the muscles of the head and in the smooth muscle of major vessels. In the nervous system, Nov is observed in the somatic motor neurons of the spinal cord from 12.5 dpc and in cranial structures derived either from neural crest cells or placodes, including V, VII, VIII, and IX ganglia and olfactory neuroepithelia.

Co-expression of the HGF/SF and c-met genes during early mouse embryogenesis precedes reciprocal expression in adjacent tissues during organogenesis

Early experiments with cells in culture and recent targeting experiments have confirmed that the mesenchyme-derived growth factor hepatocyte growth factor/scatter factor (HGF/SF) is a paracrine agent that regulates the development of several epithelial and myogenic precursor cells during organogenesis. Here, we report the expression pattern of HGF/SF and its receptor, the product of the proto-oncogene c-met, during gastrulation and early organogenesis in mouse embryo. During gastrulation, the expression of HGF/SF and c-met overlaps. Initially the two genes are expressed in the endoderm and in the mesoderm along the rostro-intermediate part of the primitive streak and, later, in the node and in the notochord. Neither HGF/SF nor c-met is expressed in the ectodermal layer throughout gastrulation. During early organogenesis, overlapping expression of HGF/SF and c-met is found in heart, condensing somites and neural crest cells. However, a second and distinct pattern of expression, characterized by the presence of the ligand in mesenchymal tissues and the receptor in the surrounding ectoderm, is seen in the bronchial arches and in the limb buds. At 13 days postcoitum (d.p.c.), only this second pattern of expression is observed in differentiated somites and several major organs (i.e., lungs, liver, and gut). The expression of the HGF/SF and c-met genes throughout embryogenesis suggests a shift from an autocrine to a paracrine signaling system. The shift takes place in early organogenesis and implies different roles of HGF/SF in development. During gastrulation, HGF/SF may affect the fate of migrating mesodermal cells and may play a role in axis determination, whereas during organogenesis, the expression patterns of HGF/SF and its receptor reflect the recently established roles in the growth of certain epithelia and the migration of specific myogenic precursor cells.

Transient global amnesia: memory and metamemory

Twenty patients (mean age 64 years) with a previous episode of transient global amnesia (TGA) were examined to assess the functioning of objective memory (by using the Randt Memory Test), the metamemory capacities (Sehulster Memory Scale), the residual level of retrograde amnesia (Questionnaire of Remote Events), and the level of depression (Geriatric Depression Scale). Patients with residual retrograde amnesia scored significantly lower than non-amnesic ones on indices of both short-term and long-term memory, and for one of three main metamemory components, namely self-rating of memory functioning through comparison with memory functioning of peers (Set3). Age, time interval from TGA attack and TGA duration did not prove to influence memory and metamemory scores. Retrograde amnesia and depression were rather substantially associated (1/5), and this association was found to negatively influence nearly all memory and metamemory scores. Depression level showed a positive correlation with short-term memory functioning in non-amnesics. The different pattern and strength of the relationships between metamemory components and objective memory dimensions observed in amnesics and non-amnesics indicate that metamemory evaluations are more closely related to memory functioning in amnesics than in non-amnesics.

Influence of a double blind pharmacological trial on two domains of well-being in subjects with age associated memory impairment

This random double-blind trial compares psychological well-being and perceived quality of life in 60 subjects (18 M, 42 F), mean age 61 years, with age-associated memory impairment (AAMI), who were administered a standardised ginseng-containing vitamin complex or placebo for 9 months. We evaluated psychological well-being, in terms of affective status and memory functioning using the Symptom Rating Test [SRT] (depression, anxiety, somatisation, inadequacy) and Randt Memory Test [RMT] (memory index [MI]), respectively, and the quality of life, using the Life Satisfaction in the Elderly Scale [LSES]. At final evaluation, SRT did not differ in the drug and placebo groups, whereas MI and LSES were significantly higher in the drug-treated group. Moreover, the negative correlation between the affective (SRT) and cognitive (MI) component of psychological well-being waned in the drug-treated but not placebo group. In the drug-treated group, a positive correlation emerged between the cognitive index and social contacts, mood and self-concept factors of the LSES. In both groups, the initial negative correlations between quality of life (LSES) and affection (SRT) persisted at the end of the study. Drug-treated AAMI subjects differ from controls in part by improved scores on objective cognitive tests but even more so by modifications of the correlations among indexes of psychological well-being and quality of life.

Roles of hepatocyte growth factor/scatter factor and the met receptor in the early development of the metanephros

Several lines of evidence suggest that hepatocyte growth factor/scatter factor (HGF/SF), a soluble protein secreted by embryo fibroblasts and several fibroblast lines, may elicit morphogenesis in adjacent epithelial cells. We investigated the role of HGF/SF and its membrane receptor, the product of the c-met protooncogene, in the early development of the metanephric kidney. At the inception of the mouse metanephros at embryonic day 11, HGF/SF was expressed in the mesenchyme, while met was expressed in both the ureteric bud and the mesenchyme, as assessed by reverse transcription PCR, in situ hybridization, and immunohistochemistry. To further investigate the expression of met in renal mesenchyme, we isolated 13 conditionally immortal clonal cell lines from transgenic mice expressing a temperature-sensitive mutant of the SV-40 large T antigen. Five had the HGF/SF+/met+ phenotype and eight had the HGF/SF-/met+ phenotype. None had the HGF/SF+/met- nor the HGF/SF-/met- phenotypes. Thus the renal mesenchyme contains cells that express HGF/SF and met or met alone. When metanephric rudiments were grown in serum-free organ culture, anti-HGF/SF antibodies (a) inhibited the differentiation of metanephric mesenchymal cells into the epithelial precursors of the nephron; (b) increased cell death within the renal mesenchyme; and (c) perturbed branching morphogenesis of the ureteric bud. These data provide the first demonstration for coexpression of the HGF/SF and met genes in mesenchymal cells during embryonic development and also imply an autocrine and/or paracrine role for HGF/SF and met in the survival of the renal mesenchyme and in the mesenchymal-epithelial transition that occurs during nephrogenesis. They also confirm the postulated paracrine role of HGF/SF in the branching of the ureteric bud.

Validation of the full and short forms of the CAMDEX interview for diagnosing dementia. Cambridge Examination for Mental Disorders of the Elderly

The present study compares the sensitivity and specificity of the short and full forms of the Cambridge Examination for Mental Disorders of the Elderly (CAMDEX) interview in diagnosing dementia. We tested 73 subjects meeting DSM-IIIR criteria for dementia and 61 matched controls. The short version was applied 3 months after the full one to guarantee a relative stability of the tested functions. Referred to an independent clinical rating made at the beginning of the study, the levels of sensitivity and specificity were not significantly different in the two forms and fully comparable with those of the original full English version. Moreover, the scores on analogous sections of the two versions were highly correlated in the demented and control groups. These findings support the hypothesis that the short form of the CAMDEX maintains the psychometric properties of the full one, and consequently can be used in diagnostic routines for a variety of clinical and research purposes.

Self-rating and objective memory testing of normal and depressed elderly

This study aimed to assess the relationships between the scores of subjective assessment (metamemory) and those of performance testing for memory, on the one hand, and the level of depression, on the other. A hundred and eighty elderly subjects (102 women and 78 men; mean age 65.7 years) were selected for the study. They showed neither intellectual impairment (as assessed through Mini Mental State test: MMS) nor neuropsychiatric symptoms. Each subject was administered the Randt Memory Test (RMT) for performance testing, the Sehulster Memory Scale (SMS) for the subjective assessment, and the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS). A MULTCOVA analysis showed that both age and the depression level are negatively correlated with both the measures (Acquisition-Recall: AR; Delayed Memory: DM) of the RMT. The scores of the second (memory complaints) of the three sets of SMS were positively correlated with those of AR and DM indices. A Multivariate Regression Analysis showed that in males age and the depression level were significant regressors for both AR and MD scores while in females only the depression level was a significant regressor for AR and only age was a significant regressor for DM. Our results suggest that a) the relationships between the depression level and memory functioning are close, although not fully homogeneous in men and women; and b) that the scores in some areas of metamemory parallel, independently of the level of depression, the performance outcomes of memory functioning.