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Biomedical subjects

David A Greenberg

Publications and source records attributed to David A Greenberg.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Heparin-binding epidermal growth factor-like growth factor stimulates cell proliferation in cerebral cortical cultures through phosphatidylinositol 3'-kinase and mitogen-activated protein kinase.

Heparin-binding epidermal growth factor (EGF)-like growth factor (HB-EGF) stimulates cell proliferation in the adult mammalian brain, but the mechanism involved is unknown. To address this issue we treated mouse brain cerebral cortical cultures enriched in neuronal precursors with full-length HB-EGF, its HB or EGF-like domain alone, or both domains in combination. Labeling of cultures with bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU), a marker of cell proliferation, was increased approximately 10% by the HB domain and approximately 20% by the EGF-like domain, and the effects of the two domains were additive. Full-length HB-EGF was most effective (approximately 50% increase) in stimulating BrdU incorporation. Preincubation with heparinase III or with Na-chlorate abolished cell proliferation induced by HB-EGF, consistent with dependence on cell-surface heparan sulfate proteoglycans. The effect of HB-EGF was also blocked by the EGF receptor (EGFR/ErbB1) inhibitors PD153035 and PD158780, implicating EGFR in HB-EGF-induced cell proliferation. The phosphatidylinositol 3'-kinase (PI3K) inhibitors LY294002 and wortmannin, and the MAPK/extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) kinase (MEK) inhibitors U0126 and PD98059, reduced HB-EGF-induced BrdU incorporation into cultures, and HB-EGF enhanced phosphorylation of Akt and ERK, implying a role for PI3K/Akt and MEK/ERK signaling in HB-EGF-stimulated cell proliferation. These findings help to clarify the molecular mechanisms through which HB-EGF operates.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Genetic analysis of families with autoimmune diabetes and thyroiditis: evidence for common and unique genes.

CONTEXT: Epidemiological data suggest a common genetic susceptibility to type 1 diabetes (T1D) and autoimmune thyroid disease (AITD). OBJECTIVE: Our objective was to identify the joint susceptibility genes for T1D and AITD. DESIGN: We conducted a family-based linkage and association study. SETTING: The study took place at an academic medical center. PARTICIPANTS: Participants included 55 multiplex families (290 individuals) in which T1D and AITD clustered (T1D-AITD families). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: We conducted tests for linkage and family-based associations (transmission disequilibrium test) with four candidate genes: human leukocyte antigen (HLA), cytotoxic T lymphocyte-associated antigen 4 (CTLA-4), insulin variable number of tandem repeats (VNTR), and thyroglobulin. RESULTS: Linkage evidence to HLA appeared when subjects with either T1D or AITD were considered affected [maximum LOD score (MLS), 2.2]. The major HLA haplotype contributing to the shared susceptibility was DR3-DQB1*0201, with DR3 conferring most of the shared risk. The CTLA-4 gene showed evidence for linkage only when individuals with both T1D and AITD were considered affected (MLS, 1.7), and the insulin VNTR showed evidence for linkage when individuals with either T1D or AITD were considered affected (MLS, 1.9); i.e. it may contribute to the familial aggregation of T1D and AITD. CONCLUSIONS: The HLA class II locus contributes to the shared risk for T1D and AITD, and the major HLA haplotype contributing to this association is DR3-DQB1*0201. Additional non-HLA loci contribute to the joint susceptibility to T1D and AITD, and two potential candidates include the CTLA-4 and insulin VNTR loci.

Adult↗

Presence of neuroglobin in cultured astrocytes.

Neuroglobin (Ngb), a recently discovered intracellular respiratory globin in neurons, may play a crucial role in oxygen homeostasis in the brain. We report preliminary findings indicating the presence of functional neuroglobin in primary cultures of cerebral cortical astrocytes. Reverse transcription real-time polymerase chain reaction (RRT-PCR) and immunostaining confirmed such presence in cultured astrocytes isolated from newborn mouse brain. Ngb antisense treatment increased apoptosis in ischemic astrocytes. The discovery of Ngb in astrocytes may provide some insight into how oxygen homeostasis is regulated in the brain.

Animals↗

Comparison of ischemia-directed migration of neural precursor cells after intrastriatal, intraventricular, or intravenous transplantation in the rat.

Cell replacement therapy may have the potential to promote brain repair and recovery after stroke. To compare how focal cerebral ischemia affects the entry, migration, and phenotypic features of neural precursor cells transplanted by different routes, we administered neuronal precursors from embryonic cerebral cortex of green fluorescent protein (GFP)-expressing transgenic mice to rats that had undergone middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) by the intrastriatal, intraventricular, and intravenous routes. MCAO increased the entry of GFP-immunoreactive cells, most of which expressed neuroepithelial (nestin) or neuronal (doublecortin) markers, from the ventricles and bloodstream into the brain, and enhanced their migration when delivered by any of these routes. Transplanted neural precursors migrated into the ischemic striatum and cerebral cortex. Thus, transplantation of neural precursors by a variety of routes can deliver cells with the potential to replace injured neurons to ischemic brain regions.

Animals↗

Effect of aging on neuroglobin expression in rodent brain.

Neuroglobin (Ngb), a recently discovered O2-binding heme protein related to hemoglobin and myoglobin, protects neurons from hypoxic-ischemic injury in vitro and in vivo. In immunostained mouse brain sections, we found widespread expression of Ngb protein in neurons, but not astrocytes, of several brain regions that are prominently involved in age-related neurodegenerative disorders. Western blots from young adult (3 month), middle-aged (12 month), and aged (24 month) rats showed an age-related decline in Ngb expression in cerebral neocortex, hippocampus, caudate-putamen, and cerebellum. Loss of this neuroprotective protein may have a role in increasing susceptibility to age-related neurological disorders.

Age Factors↗

Neuronal nitric oxide synthase and ischemia-induced neurogenesis.

Nitric oxide (NO) influences infarct size after focal cerebral ischemia and also regulates neurogenesis in the adult brain. These observations suggest that therapeutic approaches to stroke that target NO signaling may provide neuroprotection and also enhance brain repair through cell replacement. However, ischemic injury and neurogenesis are both affected differently depending on which isoform of NO synthase is the source of NO. In addition, ischemia itself stimulates neurogenesis, and ischemia-induced neurogenesis may be regulated differently than neurogenesis in nonischemic brain. To determine how neuronal NO synthase affects ischemia-induced neurogenesis, transient focal cerebral ischemia was produced in wild-type mice and in knockout mice lacking neuronal NO synthase, and BrdU incorporation and doublecortin immunoreactivity were measured in the principal neuroproliferative regions of the adult brain. Knockout of neuronal NO synthase reduced infarct size and increased both basal and ischemia-induced neurogenesis, suggesting that NO from this source is an inhibitory regulator of neurogenesis in the ischemic brain. 7-Nitroindazole, an NO synthase inhibitor that preferentially affects the neuronal isoform, also increased neurogenesis in rats when administered by the intracerebroventricular route. Selective inhibition of neuronal NO synthase may have the potential to both reduce infarct size and enhance neurogenesis in stroke.

Animals↗

Involvement of protein kinase A in cannabinoid receptor-mediated protection from oxidative neuronal injury.

CB1 cannabinoid receptors (CB1Rs) are involved in protecting the brain from ischemia and related disorders. However, the underlying protective mechanisms are incompletely understood. We investigated the effect of CB1R activation on oxidative injury, which has been implicated in neuronal death after cerebral ischemia and neurodegenerative disorders, in mouse cortical neuron cultures. The CB1R agonist Win 55212-2 [R-(+)-[2,3-dihydro-5-methyl-3-[(morpholinyl)methyl]pyrrolo[1,2,3-de]-1,4-benzoxazin-yl]-(1-naphthalenyl)methanone mesylate] reduced neuronal death, measured by lactate dehydrogenase release, in cultures treated with 50 microM FeCl2, and its protective effect was attenuated by the CB1R antagonist SR141716A [N-(piperidin-1-yl)-5-(4-chlorophenyl)-1-(2,4-cichlorophenyl)-4-methyl-1H-pyrazole-3-carboxamide hydrochloride]. The endocannabinoid anandamide reproduced the effect of Win 55212-2, as did the antioxidant 6-hydroxy-2,5,7,8-tetramethylchroman-2-carboxylic acid (Trolox). Neuronal injury was more severe after in vitro or in vivo administration of FeCl2 to CB1R-knockout compared with wild-type mice. Win 55212-2 reduced the formation of reactive oxidative species in cortical neuron cultures treated with FeCl2, consistent with an antioxidant action. Pertussis toxin reduced CB1R-mediated protection, which points to a protective mechanism that involves signaling through G(i/o) proteins. Since CB1R-activated G protein signaling inhibits protein kinase A but activates phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K), we tested the involvement of these pathways in CB1R-mediated neuroprotection. Dibutyryl-cyclic adenosine monophosphate (dbcAMP) blocked protection by Win 55212-2, whereas the PI3K inhibitor wortmannin did not, and the effect of dbcAMP was inhibited by the protein kinase A inhibitor H89 [N-[2-((p-bromocinnamyl)amino)ethyl]-5-isoquinolinesulfonamide] (> or =10 nM). CB1R-induced, SR141716A-, pertussis toxin-, and dbcAMP-sensitive protection was also observed for two other oxidative insults, exposure to H2O2 or buthionine sulfoximine. Therefore, receptor-stimulated inhibition of protein kinase A seems to be required for the neuroprotective effect of CB1R activation against oxidative neuronal injury.

Animals↗

Malic enzyme 2 may underlie susceptibility to adolescent-onset idiopathic generalized epilepsy.

Idiopathic generalized epilepsy (IGE) is a class of genetically determined, phenotypically related epilepsy syndromes. Linkage analysis identified a chromosome 18 locus predisposing to a number of adolescent-onset IGEs. We report a single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) association analysis of the region around the marker locus with the high LOD score. This analysis, which used both case-control and family-based association methods, yielded strong evidence that malic enzyme 2 (ME2) is the gene predisposing to IGE. We also observed association among subgroups of IGE syndromes. An ME2-centered nine-SNP haplotype, when present homozygously, increases the risk for IGE (odds ratio 6.1; 95% confidence interval 2.9-12.7) compared with any other genotype. Both the linkage analysis and the association analysis support recessive inheritance for the locus, which is compatible with the fact that ME2 is an enzyme. ME2 is a genome-coded mitochondrial enzyme that converts malate to pyruvate and is involved in neuronal synthesis of the neurotransmitter gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA). The results suggest that GABA synthesis disruption predisposes to common IGE and that clinical seizures are triggered when mutations at other genes, or perhaps other insults, are present.

Adolescent↗

Enhanced neurogenesis in Alzheimer's disease transgenic (PDGF-APPSw,Ind) mice.

Neurogenesis continues in the adult brain and is increased in certain pathological states. We reported recently that neurogenesis is enhanced in hippocampus of patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD). We now report that the effect of AD on neurogenesis can be reproduced in a transgenic mouse model. PDGF-APP(Sw,Ind) mice, which express the Swedish and Indiana amyloid precursor protein mutations, show increased incorporation of BrdUrd and expression of immature neuronal markers in two neuroproliferative regions: the dentate gyrus and subventricular zone. These changes, consisting of approximately 2-fold increases in the number of BrdUrd-labeled cells, were observed at age 3 months, when neuronal loss and amyloid deposition are not detected. Because enhanced neurogenesis occurs in both AD and an animal model of AD, it seems to be caused by the disease itself and not by confounding clinical factors. As neurogenesis is increased in PDGF-APP(Sw,Ind) mice in the absence of neuronal loss, it must be triggered by more subtle disease manifestations, such as impaired neurotransmission. Enhanced neurogenesis in AD and animal models of AD suggests that neurogenesis may be a compensatory response and that measures to enhance neurogenesis further could have therapeutic potential.

Alzheimer Disease↗

Analysis of HLA genes in families with autoimmune diabetes and thyroiditis.

Type 1 diabetes (T1D) and autoimmune thyroid disease (AITD) are the most common autoimmune endocrine disorders. The similar pathogenesis of T1D and AITD and their tendency to occur together suggest that their etiology may involve common genetic factors. We hypothesized that the human leukocyte antigen (HLA) locus may contribute in part to the joint susceptibility to T1D and AITD. We therefore analyzed a data set of 40 multiplex families in which T1D and AITD clustered ("T1D-AITD families") for linkage and association with the HLA class II locus. We found evidence for linkage of the HLA region to T1D (maximum logarithm of odds score [MLS] = 7.3), to Hashimoto thyroiditis (HT) (MLS = 1.5), and to both (MLS = 3.8). Transmission disequilibrium test analysis revealed significant association of both T1D and AITD with HLA-DR3; however, only T1D was associated with HLA-DR4. We concluded that the finding of evidence for linkage of HLA with HT is in contrast to the strong evidence against linkage found in previous studies of AITD-only families; therefore, it is possible that the AITD phenotype seen in T1D families has a different genetic etiology than the AITD phenotype in AITD-only families; that HLA-DR3 was the major HLA allele contributing to the joint genetic susceptibility to T1D and AITD, whereas other alleles (e.g., DR4) are phenotype specific; and that because the logarithm of odds score for T1D + HT was lower than for T1D alone, additional non-HLA loci must contribute to the shared genetic susceptibility to T1D and AITD.

Alleles↗

Proteomic and immunochemical characterization of a role for stathmin in adult neurogenesis.

Stathmin is a developmentally regulated cytosolic protein expressed at high levels in the brain. Two-dimensional differential in-gel electrophoresis and mass spectroscopy of proteins expressed in immature and mature cultures from embryonic rat cerebral cortex identified stathmin among several differentially expressed proteins, consistent with a possible role in neurogenesis. Stathmin immunohistochemistry in adult rodent brain revealed prominent expression in neuroproliferative zones and neuronal migration pathways, a pattern that resembles the expression of doublecortin, which is implicated in neuronal migration. Stathmin immunoreactivity was also associated with neurons undergoing ectopic chain migration into the ischemic striatum and cerebral cortex following focal cerebral ischemia. Reducing the expression of stathmin or doublecortin with an antisense oligonucleotide inhibited the migration of new neurons from the subventricular zone to the olfactory bulb via the rostral migratory stream. These results suggest a role for stathmin in the migration of newborn neurons in the adult brain.

Aging↗

Post-ischemic administration of heparin-binding epidermal growth factor-like growth factor (HB-EGF) reduces infarct size and modifies neurogenesis after focal cerebral ischemia in the rat.

Heparin-binding epidermal growth factor-like growth factor (HB-EGF) is a hypoxia-inducible, neuroprotective protein that also stimulates proliferation of neuronal precursor cells. Accordingly, HB-EGF may contribute to recovery from cerebral injury through direct neuroprotective effects, by enhancing neurogenesis, or both. When administered by the intracerebroventricular route 1-3 days after focal cerebral ischemia in adult rats, HB-EGF decreased the volume of the resulting infarcts and reduced post-ischemic neurological deficits. HB-EGF also increased the incorporation of bromodeoxyuridine into cells expressing the immature neuronal marker protein TUC-4 in the dentate subgranular and rostral subventricular zones, consistent with increased proliferation of neuronal precursors. However, HB-EGF decreased the number of newborn neurons that migrated into the ischemic striatum, perhaps partly because reduction of infarct size by HB-EGF also reduced the stimulus to migration. To determine if HB-EGF might also directly inhibit migration of neuronal precursors, we co-cultured subventricular zone (SVZ) explants treated with HB-EGF or vehicle together with hypoxic cerebral cortical explants, and measured cell migration from the former toward the latter. HB-EGF reduced directed migration of SVZ cells toward the cortical explants, possibly due to a local chemoattractant effect on neuronal precursor cells, which may be mediated through the HB-EGF-specific receptor, N-arginine dibasic convertase. The delayed neuroprotective effect of HB-EGF may have implications for efforts to prolong the therapeutic window for intervention in stroke.

Animals↗

Increased severity of cerebral ischemic injury in vascular endothelial growth factor-B-deficient mice.

Vascular endothelial growth factor-B (VegfB) is an angiogenic protein related to VegfA, although it acts on a different set of tyrosine kinase receptors. Like VegfA, VegfB is expressed in the brain and is induced at sites of brain injury. VegfA has neuroprotective and angiogenic effects, but VegfA-knockout mice die in utero, so the effect of endogenous VegfA signaling in neuropathologic states, such as cerebral ischemia, cannot be tested directly. In contrast, VegfB-knockout mice survive to adulthood with little abnormality in the absence of pathologic stresses. To determine if VegfB regulates the severity of cerebral ischemia, the middle cerebral artery was occluded in VegfB-knockout, heterozygous, and wild-type mice, and the volume of the resulting cerebral infarcts and associated impairment of neurologic function were measured. Infarct volume was increased by approximately 40% and neurologic impairment was more severe in VegfB-knockout mice, implying that endogenous VegfB acts to protect the brain from ischemic injury. VegfB also protected cultured cerebral cortical neurons from hypoxic injury, suggesting that its protective action is mediated at least in part through a direct effect on neurons.

Animals↗

Ischemia-induced neurogenesis is preserved but reduced in the aged rodent brain.

The adult mammalian brain retains the capacity for neurogenesis, by which new neurons may be generated to replace those lost through physiological or pathological processes. However, neurogenesis diminishes with aging, and this casts doubt on its feasibility as a therapeutic target for cell replacement therapy in stroke and neurodegenerative disorders, which disproportionately affect the aged brain. In previous studies, neurogenesis was stimulated by cerebral ischemia in young rodents, and the neurogenesis response of the aged rodent brain to physiological stimuli, such as hormonal manipulation and growth factors, was preserved. To investigate the effect of aging on ischemia-induced neurogenesis, transient (60 min) middle cerebral artery occlusion was induced in young adult (3-month) and aged (24-month) rats, who were also given bromodeoxyuridine to label newborn cells. As found in prior studies, basal neurogenesis in control, nonischemic rats was reduced with aging. Ischemia failed to stimulate neurogenesis in the dentate gyrus (DG) subgranular zone (SGZ), in contrast to results obtained previously after more prolonged (90-120 min) middle cerebral artery occlusion, but increased the number of BrdU-labeled cells in the forebrain subventricular zone (SVZ). This effect was less prominent in aged than in young adult rats, with fold-stimulation of BrdU incorporation reduced by approximately 20% and the total number of cells generated diminished by approximately 50%. BrdU-labeled cells in SVZ coexpressed neuronal lineage markers, consistent with newborn neurons. We conclude that ischemia-induced neurogenesis occurs in the aged brain, and that measures designed to augment this phenomenon might have therapeutic applications.

Aging↗