Biomedical subjects

James MacMurray

Publications and source records attributed to James MacMurray.

6 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2005

Risk of late-onset Alzheimer's disease associated with BDNF C270T polymorphism.

We examined the frequency of the T allele of the C270T polymorphism of the brain-derived nerve growth factor (BDNF) gene in a test and replication test design. Our objective was to determine if there is an association between the BDNF gene and Alzheimer's Disease (AD) in a US population. There were 106 autopsy-proven AD cases and 101 controls of similar ages in each test for a total of 212 AD cases and 202 controls. We found that there was a significant increase in the T allele in both the initial set (p=.04) and in the replication set (p=.018). For both groups combined p=.0008. Odds ratio=3.28, 95% CI=1.69-6.34. There were 54 cases of early-onset AD (EOAD) and 159 cases of late-onset AD (LOAD). The results were only significant for LOAD, p=.0002, odds ratio=3.81, 95% CI=1.93-7.52. The r2 or fraction of the variance attributed to the BDNF gene for the LOAD cases was .046. The results were independent of the APOE epsilon4 allele. When the younger controls were removed, providing a close age match to the AD subjects, the frequency of the T allele was even lower and the differences were still significant for both total AD and LOAD cases. In a logistic regression analysis including APOE, age, sex and BDNF, BDNF was significant at p<.0001. We concluded that BDNF gene variants are significant risk factors for late onset AD.

Age of Onset↗

PubMed2004

A functional variant of lymphoid tyrosine phosphatase is associated with type I diabetes.

We report that a single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in the gene (PTPN22) encoding the lymphoid protein tyrosine phosphatase (LYP), a suppressor of T-cell activation, is associated with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1D). The variants encoded by the two alleles, 1858C and 1858T, differ in a crucial amino acid residue involved in association of LYP with the negative regulatory kinase Csk. Unlike the variant encoded by the more common allele 1858C, the variant associated with T1D does not bind Csk.

Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1↗

PubMed2004

RANTES: a genetic risk marker for multiple sclerosis.

UNLABELLED: Regulated upon activation, normal T-cell expressed and secreted (RANTES) is a beta-chemokine and has been detected in brain lesions of multiple sclerosis (MS) patients. Considering its potential role in MS, we screened two functional polymorphisms in the proximal promoter region of the RANTES in MS patients versus controls. METHODS: We examined 140 postmortem brain samples from subjects with a primary diagnosis of MS, and peripheral blood samples from 216 control subjects. The RANTES-28C/G and -403G/A promoter polymorphisms were examined. All subjects were non-Hispanic Caucasians. RESULTS: MS cases differed from controls showing a significant association with the 403G/A polymorphism (odds ratio, 2.359, [1.465-3.799]; P=0.0001), but not the -28C/G (P=NS) polymorphism. There was a significant association of the -28G allele with both early onset (P=0.031) and longer survival (P=0.006). CONCLUSION: There is a significant but complex association of the RANTES gene with MS.

Adult↗

PubMed2002

Association between the low molecular weight cytosolic acid phosphatase gene ACP1*A and comorbid features of Tourette syndrome.

Protein tyrosine phosphatases have been implicated in the regulation of serotonergic and dopaminergic activity in the central nervous system. In a recent study we found that nonA/nonA homozygosity at the locus codifying for the low molecular weight protein tyrosine phosphatase (ACP1) was associated with increased rates of major depression in males (P<0.00003), suggesting that the ACP1*A single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) may be an important marker for psychopathology. In the present study we examined the ACP1*A SNP in 539 screened controls and 184 male Tourette syndrome (TS) cases, all Caucasians of European descent. The frequency of the nonA allele was markedly increased in TS cases relative to controls (P<0.0005), but this difference was restricted to cases with comorbid attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (P<0.0001) and conduct disorder (P<0.0002), while having little relevance to TS itself.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2002

Association of the acid phosphatase (ACP1) gene with triglyceride levels in obese women.

The acid phosphatase (ACP1) locus codes for a low molecular weight protein tyrosine phosphatase (LMPTP) that is found ubiquitously in human tissues. The *A allele of the ACP1 gene is associated with lower total enzymatic activity than the *B and *C alleles. An association between the *A allele and extreme values of body-mass-index (BMI) and dyslipidemia has previously been described in several samples of obese subjects from the Italian population. In the present study, we investigated the relationship between ACP1 *A allele genotypes (*A/*A, *A/*B, and *A/*C) and non-*A allele genotypes (*B/*B, *B/*C, and *C/*C) and metabolic variables in 277 Caucasian post-menopausal subjects consisting of 82 non-obese subjects (BMI</=29), 60 moderately obese (BMI 30-34) and 135 very obese (BMI>/=35) subjects. ACP1 genotypes were found to be significantly associated with total cholesterol (p</=0.002) and triglyceride (p</=0.001) levels in the obese and very obese women only. The significantly lower levels of triglycerides in *A carriers in this group suggest a protective effect of the *A allele against hypertriglyceridemia. It has been unclear why some individuals who gain weight develop dyslipidemia and other aspects of the metabolic syndrome while others do not. The present study suggests that those who gain weight and carry the ACP1 *A allele may be partially protected against developing the metabolic syndrome. The confirmation of ACP1 as a modifier gene of the metabolic complications could open the door to the prevention of the lethal complications of obesity.

Acid Phosphatase↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Association of CCR5 delta32 deletion with early death in multiple sclerosis.

PURPOSE: The interaction between chemokines and their receptors is extremely important in controlling T cell migration into sites of CNS inflammation. Because trafficking of inflammatory T cells into the central nervous system (CNS) is a key player in the pathogenesis of multiple sclerosis (MS), we investigated the possible association of CCR5 delta32 deletion in this disorder. METHODS: DNA isolated from postmortem brain tissue samples of 132 patients with MS and from blood tissue samples of 163 gender and ethnicity-matched healthy controls was used to screen for the CCR5 delta32 deletion allele. RESULTS: An increased frequency of 32-bp deletion allele was found to be associated with early death (P = 0.00005) and with a progressive reduction in the years of survival (onset to death). The death hazard ratio of CCR5 with deletion versus no deletion was 2.12, suggesting that MS patients with the 32-bp deletion have twice the mortality rate of patients with the normal genotype. This effect was more significant in females (hazard ratio 3.58). CONCLUSION: A strong association of the CCR5delta32 deletion with early death could serve as a prognostic marker for MS.

Alleles↗