Expression of Bcl-2 in adult human brain regions with special reference to neurodegenerative disorders

The expression of the protooncogene bcl-2, an inhibitor of apoptosis in various cells, was examined in the adult human brain. Several experimental criteria were used to verify its presence; mRNA was analyzed by northern blot with parallel experiments in mouse tissues, by RNase protection, and by in situ hybridization histochemistry. Bcl-2 protein was detected by western blot analysis and immunohistochemistry. Two bcl-2 mRNA species were identified in the human brain. The pattern of distribution of bcl-2 mRNA at the cellular level showed labeling in neurons but not glia. The in situ hybridization signal was stronger in the pyramidal neurons of the cerebral cortex and in the cholinergic neurons of the nucleus basalis of Meynert than in the Purkinje neurons of the cerebellum. Both melanized and nonmelanized neurons were labeled in the substantia nigra. In the striatum, bcl-2 mRNA was detected in some but not all neurons. In the regions examined for Bcl-2 protein, the expression pattern correlated with the mRNA results. In patients with Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases, quantification of bcl-2 mRNA in the nucleus basalis of Meynert and substantia nigra, respectively, showed that the expression was unaltered compared with controls, raising the possibility that the expression of other components of apoptosis is modulated.

I2-imidazoline binding sites and monoamine oxidase activity in human postmortem brain from patients with Parkinson's disease

I2-imidazoline binding site (I2BS) has been identified with a regulatory site located on a sub-population of monoamine oxidase (MAO)-A and -B. Previous studies showed a modification of MAO and I2BS in the elderly and in neurodegenerative processes such as Alzheimer's disease. In the present study, we studied the potential modification of I2 binding sites and monoamine oxidases in Parkinson's disease. Putamen and cerebral cortex were collected from 17 normal subjects (79 +/- 12 yr) and 16 patients (76 +/- 9 yr) affected by Parkinson's disease. In mitochondrial preparations, radioligand binding studies with [3H]idazoxan showed that putamen and frontal cortex express equivalent amount of I2BS. The density and affinity of I2BS were similar in normal subjects (putamen: Bmax = 207 +/- 58 fmol/mg of protein, Kd = 10.1 +/- 3.4 nM; cerebral cortex: Bmax = 193 +/- 54 fmol/mg of protein, Kd = 12.8 +/- 6.8 nM) and Parkinson's disease patients (putamen: Bmax = 193 +/- 60 fmol/mg of protein, Kd = 9.8 +/- 4.6 nM; cerebral cortex: Bmax = 199 +/- 49 fmol/mg of protein, Kd = 15.9 +/- 8.1 nM). The activity of total monoamine oxidase and monoamine oxidase B, measured by [14C]tyramine and [14C]phenylethylamine oxidation, respectively, were higher in putamen than in cerebral cortex. No differences have been detected in the enzyme activity between normal and pathological subjects. These data suggest that, although MAO and I2BS may play a role in the development of Parkinson's disease, they are not altered in the chronic phase of this disease.

Apoptosis and autophagy in nigral neurons of patients with Parkinson's disease

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by progressive cell loss confined mostly to dopaminergic neurons of the substantia nigra. Several factors, including oxidative stress, and decreased activity of complex I mitochondrial respiratory chain, are involved in the degenerative process. Yet, the underlying mechanisms leading to dopaminergic cell loss remain elusive. Morphological assessment for different modes of cell death: apoptosis, necrosis or autophagic degeneration, can contribute significantly to the understanding of this neuronal loss. Ultrastructural examination revealed characteristics of apoptosis and autophagic degeneration in melanized neurons of the substantia nigra in PD patients. The results suggest that even at the final stage of the disease, the dopaminergic neurons are undergoing active process of cell death.

DA uptake sites, D1 and D2 receptors, D2 and preproenkephalin mRNAs and Fos immunoreactivity in rat striatal subregions after partial dopaminergic degeneration

Stereotaxic injection of a limited amount of 6-hydroxydopamine in the lateral part of the rat substantia nigra induces a partial degeneration of the nigrostriatal dopaminergic system. This animal model in which the destruction of the dopaminergic nigral cell population reaches approximately 50% could be considered as a preclinical Parkinson's model. Autoradiography of dopaminergic uptake sites performed with a specific marker ([3H]GBR 12935) allowed the precise determination of dopaminergic denervated and non-denervated areas in the striatum 1 month after partial lesion of the substantia nigra pars compacta. In both striatal areas, dopaminergic D1 and D2 receptor densities and dopaminergic D2 and preproenkephalin mRNAs levels were measured by autoradiography and in situ hybridization coupled to an image analysis system. Our results show that in the denervated striatal subregion, none of the dopaminergic targets were modified, contrary to the observations made after complete lesion of the nigrostriatal DA system at the same post-lesion delay. However, striatal Fos activation induced by amphetamine (5 mg/kg i.p., 2 h before killing) revealed that the number of Fos-positive cells detected in the denervated striatal subregion was lower than that observed in the non-denervated one. These data argue in favour of the existence of compensatory mechanisms different from the up-regulation of DA receptor densities, thereby allowing the maintenance of striatal dopaminergic transmission. Such mechanisms could contribute to the delay of the appearance of neurological symptoms (which are reported to be clinically apparent only when depletion of striatal dopamine levels reaches near 80%) in Parkinsonian patients.

Clinical and pathological features in hydrocarbon-induced parkinsonism

A neuropathological examination was performed on a patient with parkinsonism induced by prolonged exposure to a mixture of aliphatic hydrocarbons, mainly n-hexane and halogenated compounds. The patient developed a rapid-course disease that progressed even after withdrawal from the toxic exposure. Pathological examination and immunohistochemical analysis of the brain revealed severe and widespread dopaminergic neuronal loss, associated with severe gliosis, in the substantia nigra, and almost complete loss of tyrosine hydroxylase immunostaining in the striatum. No Lewy bodies were detected. Neuronal loss was also observed in the periaqueductal gray matter, locus ceruleus, and pedunculopontine nucleus. These changes, combined with the moderate anemia due to marrow suppression, and the mild axonal neuropathy observed in vivo, are suggestive of a hydrocarbon toxic insult.

Subthalamotomy in parkinsonian monkeys. Behavioural and biochemical analysis

Nineteen Macaca fascicularis monkeys were divided into four different groups: Group A (n = 3), control; Group B (n = 3), monkeys treated with 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP); Group C (n = 8), animals treated with MPTP in which the subthalamic nucleus (STN) was unilaterally lesioned by kainic acid injection; in Group D (n = 5), the STN was lesioned prior to MPTP administration. Subthalamotomy resulted in a bilateral improvement of tremor, spontaneous activity, bradykinesia (evaluated by a manual motor test) and freezing in Group C. All these monkeys developed hemichorea contralateral to the lesion. The improvement was maintained and the hemichorea continued until death. The monkeys in group D showed severe hemiballism which persisted throughout MPTP administration and developed parkinsonian signs mainly on the side ipsilateral to the lesion. Analysis of the in situ hybridization of the mRNA coding for glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD) of MPTP monkeys showed a significant increase in the mean density of silver grains over every labelled neuron in the globus pallidum lateralis (56.8% over control) as well as the globus pallidus medialis (GPM) (45.7% over control) and the substantia nigra reticulata (SNR) (35.8% over control). No significant change was observed in the thalamic nucleus reticularis. Subthalamotomy (Groups C and D) produced a significant reduction in mRNA GAD expression on the side of the lesion in the GPM and the SNR (34% and 42.3%, respectively) with respect to the ipsilateral (non-lesioned) side and also when compared with parkinsonian monkeys. These results confirm and expand, at the cellular level, the paramount role of STN hyperactivity in the pathophysiology of parkinsonism. The therapeutic consequences of these findings for surgical treatment of Parkinson's disease are discussed.

Consequence of nigrostriatal denervation and L-dopa therapy on the expression of glutamic acid decarboxylase messenger RNA in the pallidum

To examine the consequences of nigrostriatal denervation and L-dopa treatment on the basal ganglia output system, we analyzed, by quantitative in situ hybridization, the messenger RNA coding for glutamic acid decarboxylase (Mr 67,000) (GAD67 mRNA) in pallidal cells from patients with Parkinson's disease (PD), monkeys rendered parkinsonian by 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) receiving or not receiving L-dopa, and their respective control subjects. In MPTP-treated monkeys, the expression of GAD67 mRNA was increased in cells from the internal pallidum, and this effect was abolished by L-dopa treatment. There were no differences in the levels of GAD67 mRNA between patients with PD, who were all treated with L-dopa, and control subjects. These results indicate that the level of GAD67 mRNA is increased in the cells of the internal pallidum after nigrostriatal dopaminergic denervation and that this increase can be reversed by L-dopa therapy.

Consequences of nigrostriatal denervation on the gamma-aminobutyric acidic neurons of substantia nigra pars reticulata and superior colliculus in parkinsonian syndromes

To examine the effects of nigrostriatal denervation on the substantia nigra pars reticulata (SNpr), one of the main outputs of the basal ganglia, we used quantitative in situ hybridization to analyze the messenger RNA coding for Mr 67,000 glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD67 mRNA) in the SNpr neurons from patients with Parkinson's disease (PD), monkeys rendered parkinsonian by 1-methyl-4- phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP), and their respective controls. In MPTP-intoxicated monkeys, the expression of GAD67 mRNA was increased in the SNpr neurons, and the increase was reversed by L-dopa treatment. There were no differences in the level of GAD67 mRNA between PD patients who had been treated with L-dopa and control subjects. Combined with the previously reported increased expression of GAD67 mRNA in the internal segment of the pallidum of MPTP-intoxicated monkeys, these data suggest that the gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABAergic) activity of the output system of the basal ganglia is globally increased by nigrostriatal denervation. We also analyzed the level of GAD67 mRNA expression in the superior colliculus, a structure that receives the inhibitory influence of the GABAergic neurons of the SNpr and that is involved in eye movement control. GAD67 mRNA expression was reduced in both MPTP-intoxicated monkeys, whether or not they received L-dopa therapy, and PD patients, compared to their respective controls. This decrease may result from the hyperactivity of the inhibitory nigrotectal pathway, but also from other influences since it was not corrected by L-dopa therapy. These changes may account for the slight ocular motor and visuospatial cognitive impairment occurring in PD, even after L-dopa therapy.

Mitochondrial defect in Huntington's disease caudate nucleus

Although the Huntington's disease (HD) gene defect has been identified, the structure and function of the abnormal gene product and the pathogenetic mechanisms involved in producing death of selective neuronal populations are not understood. Indirect evidence from several sources indicates that a defect of energy metabolism and consequent excitotoxicity are involved in HD. Toxin models of HD may be induced by 3-nitropropionic acid or malonate, both inhibitors of succinate dehydrogenase, complex II of the mitochondrial respiratory chain. We analyzed mitochondrial respiratory chain function in the caudate nucleus (n = 10) and platelets (n = 11) from patients with HD. In the caudate nucleus, severe defects of complexes II and III (53-59%, p < 0.0005) and a 32-38% (p < 0.01) deficiency of complex IV activity were demonstrated. No deficiencies were found in platelet mitochondrial function. The mitochondrial defect identified in HD caudate parallels that induced by HD neurotoxin models and further supports the role of abnormal energy metabolism in HD. The relationship of the mitochondrial defect to the role of huntingtin is not known.

Dopamine D3 receptor gene: organization, transcript variants, and polymorphism associated with schizophrenia

DNA fragments from a genomic library were used to establish the partial structure of the human dopamine D3 receptor gene (DRD3). Its coding sequence contains 6 exons and stretches over 40,000 base pairs. The complete DRD3 transcript and three shorter variants, in which the second and/or third exon are deleted, were detected in similar proportions in brains from four controls and three psychiatric patients. The Msp I polymorphism was localized in the fifth intron of the gene, 40,000 base pairs downstream the Bal I polymorphism and a PCR-based method was developed for genotyping this polymorphism. The distribution of the Msp I and Bal I genotypes were not independent in 297 individuals (chi 2 = 10.5, df = 4, P = 0.03), but only a weak association was found between allele 1 of the Bal I polymorphism and allele 2 of the Msp I polymorphism (chi 2 = 3.99, df = 1, P = 0.04). The previously reported association between homozygosity at both alleles of the Bal I polymorphism and schizophrenia was presently maintained in an extended sample, comprising 119 DSM-III-R chronic schizophrenics and 85 controls (chi 2 = 5.3, df = 1, P = 0.02) and found more important in mal than in females. The presence of the Bal I allele 2 is associated with an early age at onset, particularly in males (df = 35, t value = 2.6, P = 0.014). In the same sample, allelic frequencies, genotype counts, and proportion of homozygotes for the Msp I polymorphism did not differ between schizophrenics and controls (chi 2 = 0.06, df = 1, P = 0.80, chi 2 = 0.22, df = 1, P = 0.90 and chi 2 = 0.16, df = 1, P = 0.69, respectively). The large distance of the Msp I polymorphism from the Bal I polymorphism and its localization in the 3' part of the gene may explain the discrepant results obtained with the two polymorphisms.

Effects of L-DOPA on preproenkephalin and preprotachykinin gene expression in the MPTP-treated monkey striatum

The cellular expression of the genes encoding the neuropeptides enkephalin and substance P were examined in the caudate nucleus and putamen of parkinsonian 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP)-treated cynomolgus monkeys by in situ hybridization using radioactive antisense oligonucleotides coupled with computer-assisted image analysis. Behavioural evaluation of the animals revealed two levels of motor impairment; one group moderately impaired and the other severely disabled. A marked increase in the cellular content of preproenkephalin A messenger RNA was observed in medium-sized (106 +/- 9 microns2) cells in the caudate-putamen of all MPTP animals when compared with controls, the increase being greatest in the most severely impaired animals. By contrast, a marked reduction in the cellular abundance of preprotachykinin gene expression was detected in striatal cells (101 +/- 16 microns2) of these same MPTP animals. These changes in neuropeptide gene expression were not associated with a change in the density (approximately 10 cells per mm2) of messenger RNA-expressing cells. L-DOPA treatment of two of the severely-impaired MPTP monkeys resulted in a dissociation of expression of these two genes: the cellular abundance of preproenkephalin A remained elevated whilst preprotachykinin levels were normalized and comparable with controls. No change in the cellular abundance of preprotachykinin messenger RNA was observed in cells of the insular cortex or a small discrete population of large cells (208 +/- 27 microns2) in the ventral putamen. These results demonstrate that MPTP treatment of primates results in a marked potentiation in preproenkephalin messenger RNA coupled with a attenuation in preprotachykinin messenger RNA in the dopamine-denervated caudate-putamen. L-DOPA therapy given on an intermittent schedule reverses the decrease in preprotachykinin messenger RNA, but fails to reverse the increase in preproenkephalin messenger RNA in the same animal. These observations suggest that a dissociation of the activity of these two neuropeptide systems may underlie the improvement in motor skill that accompanies dopamine replacement therapy and that this dissociation may be instrumental in the long-term complications associated with L-DOPA therapy.

Autoradiographic localization and density of [125I]ferrotransferrin binding sites in the basal ganglia of control subjects, patients with Parkinson's disease and MPTP-lesioned monkeys

Degeneration of the nigro-striatal dopaminergic neurons occurring in Parkinson's disease is associated with an increase in iron concentrations in the substantia nigra. As this metal catalyzes the production of free radicals, and oxidative stress may participate in the cascade of events ending in cell death, this increase in iron content may be involved in dopaminergic neuronal death. The localization and number of receptors for transferrin were investigated postmortem by quantitative autoradiography of iodinated-ferrotransferrin binding in the basal ganglia from controls, parkinsonian patients and MPTP-lesioned monkeys. In human controls, specific [125i] ferrotransferrin binding-site density was highest in the putamen and the caudate nucleus, and lowest in the globus pallidus. In parkinsonian patients, it was increased in the putamen and caudate nucleus, while in MPTP-intoxicated monkeys, there was a tendency for levels to decrease in these two regions. An inverse relationship between binding density and iron content reported in the studied regions supports the assumption of a possible capture of iron at the level of dopaminergic terminals and, in parkinsonian patients, on other cellular elements as well. These results suggest an involvement of transferrin receptors in iron uptake in the striatum of patients with Parkinson's disease, with differences between the 'acute' nigro-striatal MPTP-induced degeneration syndrome and the chronic long lasting human disease.

Effects of nigrostriatal denervation and L-dopa therapy on the GABAergic neurons in the striatum in MPTP-treated monkeys and Parkinson's disease: an in situ hybridization study of GAD67 mRNA

The effects of nigrostriatal denervation and L-dopa therapy on GABAergic neurons were analysed in patients with Parkinson's disease and in monkeys rendered parkinsonian by MPTP intoxication. The expression of the messenger RNA coding for the 67 kDa isoform of glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD67 mRNA), studied by quantitative in situ hybridization, was used as an index of the GABAergic activity of the striatal neurons. A significant increase in GAD67 mRNA expression, generalized to all GABAergic neurons, was observed in MPTP-treated monkeys compared to control monkeys in the putamen and caudate nucleus (+44 and +67% respectively), but not in the ventral striatum. L-Dopa therapy significantly reduced GAD67 mRNA expression in the putamen and caudate nucleus to levels similar to those found in control monkeys. However, the return to normal of GAD67 mRNA expression was not homogeneous across all neurons since it was followed by an increase of labelling in one subpopulation of GABAergic neurons and a decrease in another. These data suggest that in MPTP-treated monkeys the degeneration of nigrostriatal dopaminergic neurons results in a generalized increase in GABAergic activity in all the GABAergic neurons of the striatum, which is partially reversed by L-dopa therapy. As the expression of GAD67 mRNA is less intense in the ventral than in the dorsal striatum, this increase in striatal GABAergic activity may be related to the severity of nigrostriatal denervation. In parkinsonian patients who had been chronically treated with L-dopa, GAD67 mRNA expression was significantly decreased in all GABAergic neurons, in the caudate nucleus (by 44%), putamen (by 43.5%) and ventral striatum (by 26%). The opposite variation of GAD67 mRNA in patients with Parkinson's disease, compared with MPTP-treated monkeys, might be explained by the combination of chronic nigrostriatal denervation and long-term L-dopa therapy.

Long-term induction of tyrosine hydroxylase expression: compensatory response to partial degeneration of the dopaminergic nigrostriatal system in the rat brain

The present study was undertaken to examine the adaptive changes occurring 1 and 6 months after moderate or severe unilateral 6-hydroxydopamine-induced lesions confined to the lateral part of the rat substantia nigra pars compacta (SNC). The expression of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) enzyme was analyzed in the remaining dopaminergic nigral cell bodies and in the corresponding striatal nerve endings. In the cell bodies of the lesioned SNC, TH mRNA content was increased (+20 to +30%) 6 months after the lesion without changes in cellular TH protein amounts. The depletion of TH protein in the nerve terminal area was less severe than the percentage of cell loss observed in the SNC at 1- and 6-month postlesion intervals. Moreover, the decrease in TH protein in the ipsilateral striatum was less pronounced 6 months after lesion than 1 month after. That no corresponding change in TH protein content was observed in the cell bodies at a time when TH increased in nerve terminals suggests that the newly synthesized protein is probably rapidly transported to the striatal fibers. These results suggest the existence of a sequence of changes in TH expression between cell bodies and fibers, occurring spontaneously after partial denervation of the nigrostriatal pathway.

Plasticity of nerve afferents to nigrostriatal neurons in Parkinson's disease

Clinical symptoms in Parkinson's disease do not appear until almost total depletion of dopamine has occurred in the striatum, suggesting the existence of compensatory mechanisms to offset the loss of nigrostriatal dopaminergic neurons. This compensation has been attributed mainly to an increased turnover of dopamine in the remaining dopaminergic neurons. Besides this biochemical phenomenon intrinsic to dopaminergic neurons, we tested whether morphological changes in the nerve afferents to the dopaminergic neurons could participate in these compensatory mechanisms. The afferents to the dendrites of dopaminergic neurons were analyzed ultrastructurally in the substantia nigra of parkinsonian patients and matched controls, using simultaneous histochemical detection of acetylcholine-like cation and tyrosine hydroxylase. The size of acetylcholine-like cation-containing terminals in contact with dopaminergic dendrites increased significantly by 38% in the substantia nigra of parkinsonian patients; whereas their number per section of dopaminergic dendrite showed an increase of 60%, although not reaching statistical significance. The number of the terminals devoid of acetylcholine-like cation per section of dopaminergic dendrite decreased significantly by 52% in the substantia nigra of parkinsonian patients. These results suggest (1) a plasticity of excitatory cholinergic neurons targeting nigral dopaminergic neurons and (2) an involution of noncholinergic nerve terminals, mostly originating from inhibitory nigral, pallidal, and striatal GABAergic neurons. The findings provide evidence of a capacity for neuronal plasticity in the elderly human brain, even in the presence of neurodegenerative disorders.

Alterations of GABAergic neurons in the basal ganglia of patients with progressive supranuclear palsy: an in situ hybridization study of GAD67 messenger RNA

We analyzed postmortem GABAergic neurons in the basal ganglia of three patients with progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) and four matched controls by means of glutamic acid decarboxylase (M(r) 67,000 [GAD67]) mRNA in situ hybridization. In PSP, we found a 50 to 60% decrease in the number of neurons expressing GAD67 mRNA in the caudate nucleus, ventral striatum, and the external and internal pallidum. The expression of GAD67 mRNA per neuron was reduced in the caudate nucleus and putamen (-43%), the ventral striatum (-55%), and the external and internal pallidum (-59% and -68%). Our data indicate that striatal and pallidal GABAergic neurotransmission is markedly reduced in PSP and we suggest that this alteration may account for the motor and cognitive symptoms observed in PSP. Furthermore, the destruction of the basal ganglia output systems may explain the lack of responsiveness to L-dopa therapy of PSP patients.

Loss of striatal high affinity NGF binding sites in progressive supranuclear palsy but not in Parkinson's disease

125I-Nerve growth factor (NGF) binding sites were analyzed by autoradiography in the striatum of 3 control subjects, 3 patients with Parkinson's disease and 3 patients with progressive supranuclear palsy. A high level of 125I-NGF binding was observed (0.3-0.4 fmol/mg of tissue equivalent) in the striatum and the nucleus basalis of Meynert of control patients. Pockets of lower 125I-NGF binding corresponding to acetylcholinesterase-poor striosomes were detected in the striatum of control subjects and patients with Parkinson's disease or progressive supranuclear palsy. When compared to controls, the density of 125I-NGF binding sites was reduced by 30% in the striatum of patients with progressive supranuclear palsy but not reduced in that of patients with Parkinson's disease. 125I-NGF binding was not significantly decreased in the nucleus basalis of Meynert in either diseases. Since NGF receptors are thought to be localized on cholinergic neurons in the striatum, the decrease in NGF binding is compatible with the loss of cholinergic neurons reported in the striatum from PSP patients.

Identification of new human myelin basic protein transcripts in the immune and central nervous systems

Five new myelin basic protein (MBP) transcripts were identified which each have preferential sites of expression in adult human brain and immune system. They contain a novel 5' coding region which presents extensive sequence similarity to the mouse 0' region. One of these ribonucleic acid (RNA) species, HMBPR1, is found essentially, if not only, in haemopoietic and immune cells. Two alternatively spliced transcripts called MBP2a and c are only expressed in the central nervous system (CNS). In addition, the two other transcripts are expressed in both immune and nervous systems. Thus, the MBP locus can generate multiple forms of RNA, whose start sites and splicing depend on the tissue in which they are expressed. The presence of an MBP transcript specifically expressed in the adult human immune system suggests previously unsuspected functions related to the pathogenesis of multiple sclerosis.

Monoamine vesicular uptake sites in patients with Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's disease, as measured by tritiated dihydrotetrabenazine autoradiography

The monoaminergic innervation of the caudate nucleus, putamen and ventral striatum was investigated post mortem, in patients with Parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease as compared to control subjects, by autoradiographic detection of tritiated dihydrotetrabenazine (3H-TBZOH), a specific high affinity ligand of the vesicular monoamine transporter. The binding of 3H-TBZOH was specific and saturable (Kd 5.3 nM). In control striatum, the pattern of distribution of 3H-TBZOH binding was heterogeneous, with higher binding levels in the 'matrix' than in the 'striosome' compartment. Changes in ligand binding levels were observed in the pathological brains compared to controls. In Parkinson's disease (PD), characterized by a severe damage of mesostriatal dopaminergic neurons, the density of 3H-TBZOH binding was reduced. A severe decrease in 3H-TBZOH binding was observed in all parts of the striatum (caudate nucleus: -80%, putamen: -86%, ventral striatum: -94%) in PD brains. The data corroborate the deficiency in striatal dopaminergic transmission and suggest that in PD brains dopaminergic terminals have disappeared and/or no longer contain synaptic vesicles. In Alzheimer's disease (AD), 3H-TBZOH binding was significantly reduced by 57% in the ventral striatum and not in the caudate nucleus and putamen. The specific decrease of monoaminergic transporter levels in the ventral striatum confirm that this nucleus is a target area in AD.

Galanin receptors in human hypothalamus: biochemical and structural analysis

Galanin receptors have been characterized in normal human hypothalamus using 125I-galanin binding assays. Competition experiments of porcine 125I-galanin binding to human hypothalamic membranes with native human, porcine and rat galanin (10(-11) M to 10(-8) M) gave comparable results with IC50 close to 0.1 nM. Scatchard analysis indicated one type of high affinity binding sites (Kd = 0.11 nM) with a capacity of 460 fmol/mg protein. Galanin-(1-15) and galanin-(2-29) inhibited tracer binding (IC50 = 1.5 nM), galanin-(3-29) and galanin-(10-29) being inactive. The galanin receptor antagonist, galantide, 10(-14) M to 10(-8) M, also strongly displaced binding of 125I-galanin to the human receptor (IC50 close to 0.15 nM). Guanine nucleotides (from 10(-8) M to 10(-4) M) decreased tracer binding to human membranes by increasing the dissociation of the galanin-receptor complexes. Structural analysis by covalent labelling indicated that the human galanin receptor behaves as a monomeric protein with a molecular mass of 54,000 daltons.

Immunohistochemical study of catechol-O-methyltransferase in the human mesostriatal system

The cellular localization of catechol-O-methyltransferase was analysed in the mesostriatal system of human brain post mortem by means of immunohistochemistry. In the human nigral complex, catechol-O-methyltransferase immunostaining was not detected in melanized dopaminergic neurons, except in the ventral tegmental area and substantia nigra pars lateralis, where few neurons displayed intense immunolabelling. In the striatum, catechol-O-methyltransferase immunostaining was found in numerous cell bodies and in the neuropile. Observations at the electron microscope level revealed that catechol-O-methyltransferase immunoreactivity was present in the cell bodies of neurons and their processes, including the dendritic spines. No catechol-O-methyltransferase immunolabelling was observed in striatal nerve terminals in contact with dendritic spines, indicating that dopaminergic nerve terminals do not exhibit catechol-O-methyltransferase immunoreactivity. Catechol-O-methyltransferase-immunoreactive cell bodies and processes of glial cells were also detected in the striatum. The data suggest that catechol-O-methyltransferase is either not expressed or only slightly expressed by the dopaminergic nigrostriatal neurons, whereas it is clearly present in striatal neurons and glial cells. Thus, the catabolic degradation of striatal released dopamine by its O-methylation may involve postsynaptic neurons rather than dopaminergic presynaptic neurons. The presence of catechol-O-methyltransferase in some dopaminergic neurons of the ventral tegmental area and substantia nigra pars lateralis suggests that methylation of dopamine may occur in these neurons, which may consequently be better protected against dopamine auto-oxidation than those of the substantia nigra pars compacta.

Alterations in glutathione levels in Parkinson's disease and other neurodegenerative disorders affecting basal ganglia

Reduced glutathione (GSH) and oxidized glutathione (GSSG) levels were measured in various brain areas (substantia nigra, putamen, caudate nucleus, globus pallidus, and cerebral cortex) from patients dying with Parkinson's disease, progressive supranuclear palsy, multiple-system atrophy, and Huntington's disease and from control subjects with no neuropathological changes in substantia nigra. GSH levels were reduced in substantia nigra in Parkinson's disease patients (40% compared to control subjects) and GSSG levels were marginally (29%) but insignificantly elevated; there were no changes in other brain areas. The only significant change in multiple-system atrophy was an increase of GSH (196%) coupled with a reduction of GSSG (60%) in the globus pallidus. The only change in progressive supranuclear palsy was a reduced level of GSH in the caudate nucleus (51%). The only change in Huntington's disease was a reduction of GSSG in the caudate nucleus (50%). Despite profound nigral cell loss in the substantia nigra in Parkinson's disease, multiple-system atrophy, and progressive supranuclear palsy, the level of GSH in the substantia nigra was significantly reduced only in Parkinson's disease. This suggests that the change in GSH in Parkinson's disease is not solely due to nigral cell death, or entirely explained by drug therapy, for multiple-system atrophy patients were also treated with levodopa. The altered GSH/GSSG ratio in the substantia nigra in Parkinson's disease is consistent with the concept of oxidative stress as a major component in the pathogenesis of nigral cell death in Parkinson's disease.

Decreased tyrosine hydroxylase content in the dopaminergic neurons of MPTP-intoxicated monkeys: effect of levodopa and GM1 ganglioside therapy

Parkinson's disease is characterized by the degeneration of melanized dopaminergic neurons of the substantia nigra. The functional capacity of the surviving dopaminergic neurons is affected, as suggested by the subnormal levels of tyrosine hydroxylase messenger RNA and protein found in the remaining cells. The reduced expression of tyrosine hydroxylase may be due to either the evolving neurodegenerative process or its downregulation, possibly secondary to chronic levodopa treatment. The cellular content of tyrosine hydroxylase was determined in the mesencephalon from 16 Macaca fascicularis monkeys, using a semiquantitative immunocytochemical method. Thirteen monkeys were rendered parkinsonian by weekly intravenous injections of 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) for 2 (subacute treatment) or 20 (chronic treatment) weeks. Three of the monkeys received levodopa and 3 others received GM1 ganglioside. The loss of dopaminergic neurons in the mesencephalon of the MPTP-intoxicated monkeys was severe in the substantia nigra, intermediate in cell groups A8 and A10, and almost undetectable in the central gray substance. After both subacute and chronic treatment, the cellular content of tyrosine hydroxylase was reduced by 40% in the surviving neurons of the lesioned substantia nigra, but by less in the other mesencephalic dopaminergic regions. Neuronal survival and tyrosine hydroxylase content in monkeys that had received levodopa were not significantly different. The cellular content of tyrosine hydroxylase was increased in the substantia nigra of the monkeys that received GM1 ganglioside injections. The results show that the decreased expression of tyrosine hydroxylase found in nigral dopaminergic neurons after partial degeneration of the mesostriatal dopaminergic system is not influenced by levodopa treatment and is partially reversed by GM1 ganglioside administration.

Somatostatin messenger RNA-containing neurons in Alzheimer's disease: an in situ hybridization study in hippocampus, parahippocampal cortex and frontal cortex

The level of expression of somatostatin messenger RNA-containing neurons in human brain was visualized and quantified by in situ hybridization with a 35S-labelled oligonucleotide complementary to amino acids 96-111 of the preprosomatostatin complementary DNA sequence. The analysis was carried out in the frontal and parahippocampal cortices and hippocampus of six age- and post mortem delay-matched Alzheimer's disease and control brains. By northern blot analysis, in frontal cortex samples, 18S rRNA degradation was identical in control and Alzheimer brains and somatostatin messenger RNAs migrated as a single band of 1 kb. By in situ hybridization, specificity was demonstrated by abolition of the signal using either an excess of unlabelled antisense probe or using a labelled sense probe. Somatostatin messenger RNA-containing neurons displayed a similar regional and subregional distribution in control subjects and patients with Alzheimer's disease, being more abundant in the frontal cortex, followed by the hippocampus and the parahippocampal cortex. An overall reduction of labelled cell density was observed in patients with Alzheimer's disease (frontal cortex gray matter:--41%; white matter:--66%; hippocampus:--44%; parahippocampal cortex white matter:--40%). Due to a great variation between brains, this decrease only reached significance in the parahippocampal cortex (-59%, P < 0.05). A significantly lower level of expression of somatostatin messenger RNA per somatostatinergic cell was observed in the hippocampus of Alzheimer's disease patients (-47%, P < 0.05), but not in frontal cortex gray (-17%) and white (-36%) matter and parahippocampal cortex gray (-42%) and white (-29%) matter. These data are in accordance with the distribution of somatostatin cells as visualized by immunohistochemistry in human brain. They indicate that the ability of cortical cells to express somatostatin messenger RNA is partially preserved in Alzheimer disease brains and that the decrease in the amount of somatostatin messenger RNA per cell is restricted to the hippocampal formation.

Distribution of manganese-dependent superoxide dismutase in the human brain

The distribution of manganese-dependent superoxide dismutase, an enzyme that transforms superoxide radicals into hydrogen peroxide, was studied in the human brain post mortem using a sheep polyclonal antiserum raised against the enzyme from liver mitochondria. One band, corresponding to a protein of 22,000 mol. wt was detected in the human brain by western blot analysis. At the light-microscopy level, a punctate immunostaining was observed in the neuropil and in some but not all, glial and neuronal cell bodies. Electron-microscopy revealed that the staining was exclusively confined to the inner mitochondrial membrane. A heterogeneous distribution of manganese-dependent superoxide dismutase was observed in the human brain. In the forebrain, numerous immunostained neurons were detected in the striatum, thalamus, pallidal complex and the nucleus basalis of Meynert. In the cerebellum, only granular and Purkinje cells were immunostained. Various nuclei from the brainstem displayed superoxide dismutase immunoreactivity, including the cranial nerve nuclei, the nucleus supratrochlearis, the red nucleus, the substantia nigra, the nucleus cuneiformis and subcuneiformis, the nucleus parabigeminal, the nucleus centralis superior, the nucleus supraspinalis, the nucleus of the medullae oblongata and the gigantocellularis nucleus. Large pyramidal neurons containing superoxide dismutase were detected in the CA subsectors, the hilus of the hippocampus and the cerebral cortex. Smaller immunostained neurons were also observed in layers I, IV and VI of all cortical regions studied. The distribution of immunostained glial cells was more limited, and restricted to the internal and external capsules, the hypothalamus, the red nucleus, the pyramidal white matter and surrounding areas, the cerebral cortex and the sub-ependymal layer, the alveus and the stratum oriens of the hippocampus. This heterogeneous but not ubiquitous distribution of cells expressing manganese-dependent superoxide dismutase suggests that not all cells in the human brain are protected to the same extent against the deleterious effects of superoxide.

Immunocytochemical analysis of tumor necrosis factor and its receptors in Parkinson's disease

Activated glial cells observed in the substantia nigra in Parkinson's disease may participate in the mechanism of nerve cell death by providing toxic substances such as cytokines. Among these compounds, tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF) is of interest because it can provoke cell death. We detected TNF-immunoreactive glial cells in the substantia nigra of parkinsonian patients but not in those of control subjects. Immunoreactivity for TNF receptors was found in cell bodies and processes of most dopaminergic neurons of control and parkinsonian subjects, suggesting that nigral dopaminergic neurons might be sensitive to TNF produced in Parkinson's disease. These results suggest that TNF may participate in the degenerative processes occurring in Parkinson's disease, at least after a primary insult inducing a reactive gliosis.

Sulfonylurea binding sites in normal human brain and in Parkinson's disease, progressive supranuclear palsy and Huntington's disease

In human brain, [3H]glibenclamide binds with high affinity (KD about 3.5 nM) to sulfonylurea binding sites which are associated with ATP-sensitive potassium (KATP) channels. Regarding to the important neuromodulatory action of KATP channels in some neuronal populations, sulfonylurea binding sites were measured in several cortical areas (frontal and temporal cortex, hippocampus) and striatum (caudate nucleus and putamen) in controls and patients with Parkinson's disease or progressive supranuclear palsy. There was no modification of [3H]glibenclamide specific binding in the cerebral regions studied in both pathologies. These results indicate that KATP channels do not seem to be involved in the pathophysiology of these degenerative processes. Brain samples from five patients with Huntington's disease were studied. A small decrease in sulfonylurea binding sites was measured in the frontal cortex, caudate nucleus and putamen which could be due to the loss of either neurons or nerve endings. This low decrease contrasts with the dramatic diminution of many other markers associated with the profound striatal degeneration occurring in Huntington's disease.

Dopamine transporter messenger RNA in Parkinson's disease and control substantia nigra neurons

Dopamine transporter messenger RNA (mRNA) expression was assessed by in situ hybridization over individual pigmented neurons from the substantia nigra pars compacta in midbrain sections from 7 parkinsonian and 7 age-matched, neurologically normal patients. In the normal control brains, high levels of expression of dopamine transporter mRNA were noted over pigmented neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta; neurons in the adjacent nucleus paranigralis of the ventral tegmental area displayed less hybridization. Nigra compacta neurons surviving in brains of patients with Parkinson's disease displayed only 57% of the dopamine transporter mRNA hybridization intensity displayed by nigral neurons in normal control brains. The disease-related decrease in the apparent level of dopamine transporter mRNA expression in remaining neurons could reflect neuronal dysfunction. Conceivably, it might also reflect differential vulnerability of those neurons that initially expressed higher levels of this transporter to the insult of parkinsonism.

Differential expression of tyrosine hydroxylase and membrane dopamine transporter genes in subpopulations of dopaminergic neurons of the rat mesencephalon

Dopaminergic (DA) cells of the substantia nigra pars compacta (SNC) and the ventral tegmental area (VTA) display differences in their topography, biochemistry and susceptibility to pathological processes. Neuronal dopamine concentration is regulated in large part by tyrosine hydroxylase (TH), the rate-limiting enzyme of dopamine synthesis, and by the dopamine reuptake system. In the present study, TH protein, TH mRNA and dopamine membrane transporter (DAT) mRNA were quantified at cellular level in 4 arbitrary subregions of the rat ventral mesencephalon (lateral, middle, medial SNC and VTA), using in situ hybridization and immunoautoradiography. The distribution of labelling for TH protein and TH mRNA was almost superimposable and close to that of DAT mRNA in mesencephalic neurons. Lower values of cellular expression in TH protein, TH mRNA and DAT mRNA were observed in the lateral part of the SNC compared to the other subregions. TH and DAT expression were correlated in SNC but not in VTA. Indeed DA cells in this region expressed low levels of DAT mRNA in comparison to the middle and medial SNC. These results suggest a heterogeneity of DA metabolism among populations of mesencephalic cells. The relative lower expression of the DAT gene in VTA neurons suggests a less efficient dopamine reuptake capacity, which may partly account for the relative sparing of the mesolimbic system reported in Parkinson's disease and MPTP-treated animals.

Cholinergic and peptidergic systems in PSP

PSP is associated with a widespread cholinergic deficit likely corresponding to a loss in cholinergic neurons. The cholinergic damage dramatically affects the basal ganglia and specific cell groups of the mesencephalon and pons. This provides an anatomically defined basis for motor and supranuclear oculomotor syndromes characteristic of PSP. Unlike Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease with dementia, the disease is not associated with a marked cholinergic deficiency in the cerebral cortex. Various peptides are present at normal concentrations in extrapyramidal and limbic subcortical areas in brains of patients with PSP. Of particular interest, is somatostatin, the levels of which are subnormal in cerebral cortex of patients with dementia of Alzheimer' or Parkinson's disease type.

Low affinity nerve growth factor receptor, adrenal transplant and Parkinson's disease

Immunohistochemistry of low-affinity nerve growth factor receptor (LNGFR) was performed postmortem in the striatum and the adrenal gland of a parkinsonian patient with an adrenal to brain transplantation. Few LNGFR-positive fibers were observed in the necrotic graft. By contrast numerous immunostained fibers were detected in a restricted zone of the host striatum adjacent to the graft, corresponding to a selective zone of sprouting of tyrosine hydroxylase-positive fibers. This suggests that nerve growth factor or related growth factors may promote sprouting of catecholaminergic fibers in the host striatum.

Autoradiographic study of [125I]epidermal growth factor-binding sites in the mesencephalon of control and parkinsonian brains post-mortem

Epidermal growth factor (EGF) is assumed to act as a neurotrophic factor on dopaminergic nigrostriatal neurons in cell cultures and animal brain. This led us to consider its possible role in the pathophysiology of Parkinson's disease. An autoradiographic study of the distribution of EGF-binding sites was performed in the mesencephalon of controls and patients with Parkinson's disease, a neurodegenerative disease associated with dramatic damage to the mesostriatal dopaminergic neurons. Scatchard analysis revealed a single type of binding sites with a high affinity constant, in the various mesencephalic dopaminergic areas examined. The characteristics and density of [125I]EGF-binding sites were similar in controls and parkinsonian patients. This suggests that EGF receptors in the mesencephalon are unaffected in Parkinson's disease and may therefore contribute to the increased activity and survival of the remaining dopaminergic neurons.

Differential vulnerability to 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine of dopaminergic and cholinergic neurons in the monkey mesopontine tegmentum

Parkinson's disease is characterized by a loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra and, in the most severe cases, by degeneration of mesopontine cholinergic neurons. In a monkey model of Parkinson's disease induced by 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine we report that, despite a severe loss of dopaminergic neurons, in the mesopontine tegmentum cholinergic neurons are preserved in the same region. This suggests that the loss of mesopontine cholinergic neurons in parkinsonian patients may represent an end-stage degenerative process, the cause of which may be independent of the mechanism of dopaminergic cell death.

Gangliosides and parkinsonism

The protective effect of GM1 ganglioside against nerve cell death induced by 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) was analyzed in monkey mesencephalon. Administration of GM1 before and during MPTP treatment improved motor performances compared with MPTP-treated animals that received saline rather than GM1. Postmortem analysis revealed that GM1 did not protect dopaminergic cell bodies from MPTP intoxication but resulted in an increased immunoreactivity of tyrosine hydroxylase in the perikarya and processes of the surviving neurons. These data suggest that GM1 may be potentially used as a palliative rather than a curative therapy in Parkinson's disease.

[3H]-GR113808 labels 5-HT4 receptors in the human and guinea-pig brain

A tritiated specific and highly potent 5-HT4 antagonist: [3H]-GR113808 was used to label specific binding sites in human brain and for comparison in guinea-pig brain. [3H]-GR113808 association and dissociation were rapid, the binding was saturable and displaced by various serotoninergic agents with an affinity corresponding to their previously reported 5-HT4 receptor mediated effects. In vitro ligand binding autoradiography was used to investigate the distribution of [3H]-GR113808 recognition sites on human brain sections. The highest density was observed in the striato-nigral system. Low densities of binding sites were also found in hippocampus, neocortex and colliculus. This distribution of [3H]-GR113808 binding sites is similar to that found in the guinea-pig brain.

Does neuromelanin contribute to the vulnerability of catecholaminergic neurons in monkeys intoxicated with MPTP?

The question has been raised as to whether neuromelanin, a by-product of catecholamine metabolism which accumulates during aging in primate midbrain neurons, contributes to the selective vulnerability of subgroups of dopaminergic neurons in Parkinson's disease. 1-Methyl-4-phenylpyridinium (MPP+) a metabolite of 1-methyl, 4-phenyl, 1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) is toxic to dopaminergic neurons, particularly in primates, producing a motor syndrome similar to that observed in Parkinson's disease. To test whether this neurotoxin preferentially affects melanized neurons, the survival of melanized and non-melanized catecholaminergic neurons was analysed after MPTP intoxication in the midbrain of the cynomolgus monkey (Macaca fascicularis). Experiments were performed on six animals chronically treated with MPTP (two were severely disabled, four moderately affected) and two age-matched control monkeys. Two populations of neurons were examined on regularly spaced sections throughout the midbrain: catecholaminergic neurons, identified by tyrosine hydroxylase immunohistochemistry and neuromelanin-containing neurons, visualized by Masson's method. The total number of neurons of each type was estimated in the different midbrain catecholaminergic cell groups using computer assisted image analysis. In the midbrains of control animals not all catecholaminergic neurons contained neuromelanin. The percentage of melanized neurons compared to the total population of tyrosine hydroxylase-positive neurons was high in the substantia nigra pars compacta (81.5%) and in the locus coeruleus (98%), intermediate in the substantia nigra pars lateralis (70%), in the catecholaminergic cell group A8 (50%), and in the ventral tegmental area (41.5%) and almost nil in the central gray substance. In MPTP-treated monkeys, the severity of the loss of catecholaminergic neurons was variable within the different midbrain cell groups, though of similar intensity in severely and mildly disabled monkeys. A relationship was found between the loss of dopaminergic neurons in the different mesencephalic cell groups of MPTP-intoxicated animals and the percentage of melanized neurons they normally contain (r = 0.98; P = 0.04). The percentage loss of catecholaminergic neurons in the locus coeruleus, the only noradrenergic cell group studied, was lower than expected from the correlation curve obtained for dopaminergic cell groups. Altogether, these findings indicate: (i) that dopaminergic neurons are more vulnerable to MPTP-toxicity than noradrenergic neurons; and (ii) that among dopaminergic neurons, those containing neuromelanin are more susceptible, indicating a possible role of neuromelanin in MPTP-toxicity.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Immunocytochemical quantification of tyrosine hydroxylase at a cellular level in the mesencephalon of control subjects and patients with Parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease

Parkinson's disease is characterized by massive degeneration of the melanized dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra. The functional capacity of the surviving nigral neurons is affected, as indicated by the subnormal levels of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) mRNA in these neurons and the presence in the parkinsonian mesencephalon of melanized neurons lacking TH immunoreactivity. This is apparently in contraction with the known overactivity of dopamine synthesis and release that occurs in the remaining dopaminergic terminals. To test the ability of the surviving neurons to express TH protein, a semiquantitative immunocytochemical method was developed. The relative amounts of TH were estimated with a computer-assisted image analysis system in the dopaminergic neurons of representative mesencephalic sections of control and parkinsonian brains and for comparison in brains from patients with Alzheimer's disease. In control brains, the mean TH content per neuron differed from one subject to another and between the different dopaminergic cell groups of the mesencephalon in the same subject. Within a given dopaminergic region, the level of TH was variable among neurons. In patients with Parkinson's disease, the ratio of TH protein content per neuron in the substantia nigra by reference to that of the central gray substance was reduced. In patients with Alzheimer's disease, the amount of TH was selectively reduced in the remaining dopaminergic neurons of the ventral tegmental area, a region characterized by a loss in dopaminergic neurons. The decrease in cellular TH content might therefore be related to the presence of the neurodegenerative process in the area considered. In patients with Parkinson's disease, the incapacity of the surviving neurons to express normal TH levels may reduce the efficiency of the hyperactivity mechanisms that develop in the remaining striatal dopaminergic terminals.

Cellular quantification of tyrosine hydroxylase in the rat brain by immunoautoradiography

We developed a rapid and sensitive radioimmunohistochemical method for the quantification of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) at both the anatomical and cellular level. Coronal tissue sections from fresh-frozen rat brains were incubated in the presence of a TH monoclonal antibody. The reaction was revealed with a 35S-labeled secondary antibody. TH content was quantified in catecholaminergic brain areas by measuring optical density on autoradiographic films or silver grain density on autoradiographic emulsion-coated sections. Regional TH concentrations determined in the locus ceruleus (LC), substantia nigra pars compacta (SNC), and ventral tegmental area (VTA) were significantly increased by 45% after reserpine treatment in the LC but unchanged in the SNC and VTA. Microscopic examination of TH radioimmunolabeling showed a heavy accumulation of silver grains over catecholaminergic cell bodies. In the LC, grain density per cell was heterogeneous and higher in the ventral than in the dorsal part of the structure. After reserpine treatment, TH levels were significantly increased (57%) in the neurons of the LC but not in those of the SNC or VTA. The data support the validity of this radioimmunohistochemical method as a tool for quantifying TH protein at the cellular level and they confirm that TH protein content is differentially regulated in noradrenergic and dopaminergic neurons in response to reserpine.

In situ hybridization of GAD mRNA in monkey and human brain: quantification at both regional and cellular levels

GAD mRNA was detected in human and monkey brain postmortem by in situ hybridization with an [35S]-labelled copy RNA corresponding to a 2.7-kb fragment of the coding region of human GAD mRNA. A characteristic and reproducible pattern of hybridization was obtained with the anti-sense, but not the sense probe in both monkey and human brain. Microscopic examination of tissue sections showed that only neuronal perikarya, not glial cells, were labelled. The data confirm the heterogeneity of GAD mRNA distribution reported in rodent brain and non-human primate brain.

Ultrastructural relations between nigrostriatal dopaminergic neurons and cholinergic nerve endings in the human brain

The connections between cholinergic nerve endings and nigrostriatal dopaminergic neurons were studied in the substantia nigra pars compacta of the human brain. Immunocytochemistry of tyrosine hydroxylase followed by ionic fixation of acetylcholine-like cation in synaptic vesicles allowed dopaminergic neurons and cholinergic nerve endings to be visualized on the same ultrathin section. Numerous contacts, some of them with synaptic structures, were observed between nerve endings, with or without precipitates of acetylcholine-like cation and dendrites or cell bodies of tyrosine hydroxylase-immunoreactive neurons. These results, which agree with previous studies performed in the rat, suggest that cholinergic nerve endings control the activity of the nigrostriatal neurons at the level of the dendrites and cell bodies in the substantia nigra.

Preferential expression of superoxide dismutase messenger RNA in melanized neurons in human mesencephalon

The copper-zinc-dependent superoxide dismutase messenger RNA expression was studied at cellular level by in situ hybridization, using a 35S-labelled complementary DNA probe homologous to human copper-zinc-dependent superoxide dismutase messenger RNA, in the dopaminergic neuron-containing areas of the human mesencephalon (the substantia nigra pars compacta, ventral tegmental area, central gray substance and peri- and retrorubral region corresponding to catecholaminergic cell group A8). The autoradiographic labelling signal was localized in neurons. No detectable hybridization signal could be found in the glial cells. Copper-zinc-dependent superoxide dismutase messenger RNA was detected in melanin-containing neurons as well as in non-melanized neurons. Quantification at cellular level, taking the autoradiographic silver grain density as an index of the abundance of copper-zinc-dependent superoxide dismutase messenger RNA, indicated that hybridization level was higher in the melanized than in the non-melanized neurons within a region. Among melanized neurons, cellular copper-zinc-dependent superoxide dismutase messenger RNA content was lowest in the neurons of the substantia nigra. No significant difference in levels of transcripts was evidenced between the groups of non-melanized neurons. The data suggest that the abundance of copper-zinc-dependent superoxide dismutase messenger RNA is higher in the mesencephalic neurons containing neuromelanin compared to other neurons. Thus, the melanized neurons have a particular defence system against oxygen toxicity, which may represent a basis for their preferential vulnerability to Parkinson's disease.

Distribution of 125I-ferrotransferrin binding sites in the mesencephalon of control subjects and patients with Parkinson's disease

Iron is abnormally accumulated in the substantia nigra pars compacta of patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). Because neuronal and glial iron uptake seems to be mediated by the binding of ferrotransferrin to a specific high-affinity receptor on the cell surface, the number of transferrin receptors could be altered in this disease. The regional distribution of specific binding sites for human 125I-diferric transferrin has been studied in the mesencephalon, on cryostat-cut sections from autopsy brains of control subjects and parkinsonian patients by in vitro autoradiography. Densities of binding sites were highest in the central gray substance (approximately 10 fmol/mg of tissue equivalent), intermediate in the catecholaminergic cell group A8, superior colliculus, and ventral tegmental area, and almost nonexistent in the substantia nigra. The density of 125I-transferrin binding sites was not significantly different between parkinsonian and control brains in any region analyzed. These results show that in the mesencephalon the regional density of transferrin binding sites is lowest in the dopaminergic cell groups, which are the most vulnerable to PD, and suggest that iron does not accumulate through an increased density of transferrin receptors at the level of the substantia nigra.

Dementia in Parkinson's disease: biochemical evidence for cortical involvement using the immunodetection of abnormal Tau proteins

In order to elucidate the neurochemical basis of the dementia of Parkinson's disease, we compared samples of cerebral cortex from 24 nondemented parkinsonian patients and parkinsonian patients with various degrees of dementia, with those from patients with Alzheimer's disease and control subjects, using a quantitative Western blot analysis. An anti-paired helical filaments antibody was used for the immunodetection of the abnormally phosphorylated Tau proteins 55, 64, and 69, which are known to be specific and reliable biochemical markers of Alzheimer-type neurofibrillary degeneration. The frequency and intensity of immunodetection of the abnormal Tau triplet were higher in the demented parkinsonian subgroups than in the nondemented parkinsonian subgroup in the prefrontal area, temporal cortex, and entorhinal cortex but not in either the occipital or the cingular cortex. A quantification of abnormal Tau triplet by densitometry showed that unlike the results obtained in Alzheimer patients, the intensity of lesions in the cerebral cortex of the most demented parkinsonian patients was more severe in the prefrontal area versus the temporal area. This study (1) gives biochemical evidence for Alzheimer-type changes in the cortex of demented parkinsonian patients and (2) suggests that lesions of the prefrontal cortex may significantly contribute to the occurrence of cognitive changes at least in some patients with Parkinson's disease.

Heterogeneity and selectivity of the degeneration of cholinergic neurons in the basal forebrain of patients with Alzheimer's disease

Cholinergic neurons were studied by immunohistochemistry, with an antiserum against choline acetyltransferase (ChAT), in the basal forebrain (Ch1 to Ch4) of four patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and four control subjects. ChAT-positive cell bodies were mapped and counted in Ch1 (medial septal nucleus), Ch2 (vertical nucleus of the diagonal band), Ch3 (horizontal nucleus of the diagonal band) and Ch4 (nucleus basalis of Meynert). Compared to controls, the number of cholinergic neurons in AD patients was reduced by 50% on average. The interindividual variations in cholinergic cell loss were high, neuronal loss ranging from moderate (27%) to severe (63%). Despite the small number of brains studied, a significant correlation was found between the cholinergic cell loss and the degree of intellectual impairment. To determine the selectivity of cholinergic neuronal loss in the basal forebrain of AD patients, NPY-immunoreactive neurons were also investigated. The number of NPY-positive cell bodies was the same in controls and AD patients. The results (1) confirm cholinergic neuron degeneration in the basal forebrain in AD and the relative sparing of these neurons in some patients, (2) indicate that degeneration of cholinergic neurons in the basal forebrain contributes to intellectual decline, and (3) show that, in AD, such cholinergic cell loss is selective, since NPY-positive neurons are preserved in the basal forebrain.

Tyrosine hydroxylase protein and messenger RNA in the dopaminergic nigral neurons of patients with Parkinson's disease

To analyze the roles of transcriptional and post-transcriptional regulatory mechanisms of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) gene expression during dopaminergic denervation in Parkinson's disease (PD), the cellular content of TH messenger RNA (mRNA) and TH protein in the substantia nigra were compared in control subjects and patients with PD. The average amounts of TH mRNA as well as those of TH protein per neuron were variable among controls but correlated to each other. In PD patients, both TH mRNA and TH protein content in nigral neurons were reduced relative to controls, however, the ratio between TH protein and TH mRNA levels was unaffected. The data suggest that, in PD: (1) TH protein content is decreased in the surviving nigral dopaminergic neurons, most likely as a result of a lowered TH mRNA cellular content. Thus the surviving neurons at end stages of the disease may be in a premorbid state. (2) The TH mRNA translation rate is not modified to compensate for dopamine deficiency.

Neuromelanin accumulation with age in catecholaminergic neurons from Macaca fascicularis brainstem

Neuromelanin (NM) is an auto-oxidation by-product of catecholamine synthesis which is observed almost exclusively in primates. We have estimated the distribution and the number of NM-positive neurons of the upper brainstem and the degree of their melanization from birth to the onset of senescence in 5 monkeys (Macaca fascicularis) aged 0, 1.5, 3.5, 8 and 13 years. Series of sections taken at 640-microns intervals were examined either unstained to detect unstained NM, stained for NM with Masson silver impregnation or processed by tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) immunohistochemistry to analyze catecholaminergic neurons. The proportion of NM-containing cells among TH-positive neurons varied from one catecholaminergic region to another: low in the hypothalamus and central gray substance (cgs); moderate in the cell group A8, and high in the ventral tegmental area (VTA), locus coeruleus (LC) and substantia nigra (SN). TH-positive neurons were detected in the SN, VTA, catecholaminergic cell group A8, LC, cgs and hypothalamus. At birth, although no unstained NM-positive neurons were detected, Masson-stained cells were observed, though only in the LC. At 1.5 and 3.5 years, Masson-positive neurons were observed despite the absence of visible pigment. At 8 and 13 years, unstained NM was present in Masson-positive neurons. The number of unstained NM-positive neurons and Masson-positive neurons and the amount of NM per neuron increased with age in each subregion studied. Nevertheless, some TH-positive neurons were found to be without NM. The data indicate a differential increased NM content with age in the neurons of midbrain catecholaminergic cell groups. However, its functional significance remains to be determined.

Glutathione peroxidase, glial cells and Parkinson's disease

Hyperoxidation phenomena are suspected to be involved in dopaminergic cell death in Parkinson's disease, which affects preferentially the neuromelanin-containing dopaminergic neurons of the substantia nigra. Glutathione peroxidase is the major protective enzyme against hydrogen peroxide toxicity. The distribution of glutathione peroxidase-containing cells was investigated by immunohistochemistry in the midbrain of four control subjects and four patients with Parkinson's disease. (1) Glutathione peroxidase-like immunoreactivity was detected exclusively in glial cells. (2) In control brains, the density of glutathione peroxidase-positive cells was higher in the vicinity of the dopaminergic cell groups known to be resistant to the pathological process of Parkinson's disease. (3) In Parkinson's disease, an increased density of glutathione peroxidase-immunostained cells was observed, surrounding the surviving dopaminergic neurons. The increase in glutathione peroxidase-containing cells was correlated with the severity in dopaminergic cell loss in the respective cell groups. The data suggest that in control brains, a low density of glutathione peroxidase-positive cells surround the dopaminergic neurons the most vulnerable to Parkinson's disease, and that in parkinsonian brains, the increased number of glutathione peroxidase-positive cells may contribute to protect neurons against pathological death. Thus, the amount of glutathione peroxidase protein-containing cells may be critical for a protective effect against oxidative stress, although it cannot be excluded that the level of the enzyme activity remains the crucial factor.