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Carbonic anhydrase distributions in central and peripheral nervous system of the rat.

Total and specific carbonic anhydrase activity was measured for 24 structures of the rat central and peripheral nervous system. In the CNS, white matter or regions containing largely white matter show a neuraxial distribution of enzyme activity; more cephalad structures display more activity. Gray matter regions do not show a rostrocaudal distribution and usually have lower activity than adjacent myelin-containing structures. PNS tissue shows neither the white-gray differences nor the rostrocaudal profile of CNS tissue. Subcellular fractionation of 18 regions of the CNS suggest that the predominance of membrane-bound carbonic anhydrase (60% of the total activity and independent of its magnitude) is a unique characteristic of all regions of the central nervous system.

Animals↗

Experimental allergic neuritis. Ultrastructure of serum-induced myelin aberrations in peripheral nervous system cultures.

Mature myelinated cultures of mouse dorsal root ganglia (sometimes grown in combination with spinal cord tissue) have been exposed to unheated and heated (complement-inactivated) serum from rabbits with experimental allergic neuritis (EAN). Experimental cultures were examined for periods ranging from several hours to approximately 2 weeks of exposure. Some cultures were exposed to EAN serum for approximately 1 week then returned to normal medium for examination of the reversibility of the lesions. Unheated EAN serum induced demyelination of peripheral nervous system fibers within 96 hours of exposure. Following removal of the EAN serum, affected fibers remyelinated. Heated EAN serum produced a type of myelin swelling identical with that described previously in spinal cord explants exposed to serum from rabbits with experimental allergic encephalomyelitis. The lamellar spacing of the peripheral nervous system meylin was increased to approximately 23 nm. and the normal bifilar intraperiod line was increased to four leaflets. Some hypermyelination was seen. The swelling was incompletely reversible following removal of the heated serum. These findings are discussed in terms of their relevance to immunemediated demyelination and peripheral neuropathy associated with the hypergammaglobulinemic states.

Animals↗

[Peripheral nervous system neurotoxicity secondary to chemotherapy treatment] .

Peripheral neurotoxicity is a crucial side effect of chemotherapeutic agents. It is the only situation where there is no preventive treatment. Neuromuscular toxicity has become the major dose limiting side effect for many chemotherapeutic agents. The iatrogenic toxic neuropathy is a growing neurologic problem, as cancer patients are beign treated with increasing doses of chemotherapy drugs. Major advances in cancer treatment have resulted from the use of drug combinations; for some combinations this raises the possibility of sinergistic neurotoxicity. The following report reviews the SNP toxicities encountered with cisplatin, vincristine, taxanes and others, and methods to minimize the deleterious effect of chemotherapeutic agents.

Anti-HIV Agents↗

Histaminergic neurons in the central and peripheral nervous system of gastropods (Helix, Lymnaea): an immunocytochemical, biochemical, and electrophysiological approach.

Distribution, chemical-neuroanatomy, concentration, and uptake-release properties of histamine (HA)-containing neurons and the possible physiological effects of HA in the central and peripheral nervous system of the pulmonate snails, Helix pomatia and Lymnaea stagnalis, are described. In the CNS of both species, the distribution pattern of HA-immunoreactive (HA-IR) neurons was similar. In both species the majority were located in the buccal, cerebral, and pedal ganglia. In Helix, approximately 400 HA-IR neurons were seen, whereas in Lymnaea approximately 130 labeled cells were visualized. The neuropils, connectives, commissures, several peripheral nerves, and a part of the peripheral tissues (lip and foot of both species and the upper tentacles of Helix) were innervated by HA-IR elements. Numerous sensory cells were found in the tentacles, lip, and statocysts. The HA concentration values assayed by HPLC ranged from 4.8 to 47.4 pmol/mg in the different central ganglia of Helix, and from 4.3 to 18.6 pmol/mg in Lymnaea CNS, whereas the peripheral tissues contained 0.33-1 pmol/mg HA in Helix and 0.26-0.46 pmol/mg in Lymnaea. In the Lymnaea CNS, a high-affinity (37.6 microM), single component 3H-HA uptake system was demonstrated. 3H-HA release evoked by either electrical stimulation or 100 mM K+ could be prevented in Ca2+-free physiological solution. Voltage-clamp experiments indicated specific changes caused by HA in the membrane conductance of identified central neurons of Helix and Lymnaea. Exogenously applied 10(-5) M HA resulted in the acceleration of locomotion (gliding by foot cilia) of Lymnaea. The findings suggest an important signaling role of HA, described here for the first time, in the nervous system of higher-order, pulmonate, gastropods, involving efferent, integrative, and sensory functions. The data can also be applied as a background for further specification of HA in the regulation of different behaviors in these species.

Animals↗

Use of genetically engineered transgenic mice to investigate the role of galanin in the peripheral nervous system after injury.

The neuropeptide galanin is present at high levels within the dorsal root ganglia (DRG) and spinal cord during development and after peripheral nerve damage in the adult. This pattern of expression suggests that it may play a role in the adaptive response of the peripheral nervous system (PNS) to injury. Several experimental paradigms have demonstrated that galanin modulates pain transmission, particularly after nerve injury. In our laboratory we have used a transgenic approach to further elucidate the functions of galanin within the somatosensory system. We have generated mice which over-express galanin (either inducibly after nerve injury, or constitutively), and knock-out (KO) mice, in which galanin is absent in all cells, throughout development and in the adult. Analysis of the nociceptive behaviour of the galanin over-expressing animals, before and after nerve injury, supports the view that galanin is an inhibitory neuromodulator of spinal cord transmission. In apparent contradiction to these findings, galanin KO animals fail to develop allodynia and hyperalgesia after nerve injury. However, further studies have shown that galanin is critical for the developmental survival of a subset of small diameter, unmyelinated sensory neurons that are likely to be nociceptors. This finding may well explain the lack of neuropathic pain-like behaviour after injury in the KO animals. Furthermore, the developmental survival role played by galanin is recapitulated in the adult where the peptide is required for optimal neuronal regeneration after injury, and in the hippocampus where it plays a neuroprotective role after excitotoxic injury.

Animals↗

Neurotrophins are key mediators of the myelination program in the peripheral nervous system.

Although knowledge of the functions of neurotrophins has advanced rapidly in recent years, studies concerning the involvement of neurotrophins in glial-neuronal interactions rarely extend further than their roles in supporting the survival and differentiation of neuronal cells. In this study endogenous brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and neurotrophin-3 (NT3) were identified in Schwann cell/dorsal root ganglia neuronal cocultures and shown to modulate the myelination program of the peripheral nervous system. The differential expression of BDNF and NT3 were examined and compared with the expression profiles of myelin proteins in the cocultures throughout the myelination process. BDNF levels correlated with active myelin formation, whereas NT3 expression was initially high and then down regulated throughout the proliferation and premyelination periods. Addition of exogenous BDNF enhanced myelination, whereas the removal of the endogenous BDNF by using the BDNF receptor TrkB-Fc fusion protein inhibited the formation of mature myelin internodes. Interestingly, exogenous NT3 significantly inhibited myelination, whereas the removal of the endogenous NT3 by using the NT3 receptor TrkC-Fc fusion protein resulted in an enhancement similar to that obtained with the addition of BDNF. In addition, in vivo studies were performed during the development of the mouse sciatic nerve. Subcutaneous injections of BDNF resulted in an enhancement of myelin formation in the sciatic nerve, whereas the removal of the endogenous BDNF dramatically inhibited myelination. Injections of NT3 inhibited myelin formation, and the removal of the endogenous NT3 enhanced myelination. These results demonstrate that BDNF and NT3 possess different modulatory roles in the myelination program of the peripheral nervous system and that their mechanisms of action are specific and highly regulated.

Animals↗

Na,K-ATPase beta subunit isoform expression in the peripheral nervous system of the rat.

Using the RNase protection assay (RPA) to study the distribution of isoforms of the non-catalytic (beta) subunit of Na,K-ATPase in the peripheral nervous system, we found both beta 1 and beta 2 isoform mRNAs in dorsal root ganglion (DRG), but only beta 2 mRNA in sciatic nerve. Using Western blot to measure accumulation of the polypeptides at a ligature on the nerve we found that beta 1 but not beta 2 polypeptide is carried by rapid axonal transport in the sciatic nerve. These results imply that beta 1 is the prominent isoform of Na,K-ATPase in neurons and beta 2 the prominent isoform in Schwann cells.

Animals↗

A novel marker of Schwann cells and myelin of the peripheral nervous system.

Cellular markers are useful in the immunohistochemical studies of normal and pathological tissues. Herein, the development of a monoclonal antibody, Schwann/2E, which reacts with Schwann cells and myelin of the peripheral nervous system (PNS) is described. The Schwann/2E antibody was secreted by a hybridoma of mouse myeloma cells and mouse spleen cells that were immunized in vivo with a cytoskeletal fraction of the human spinal nerve. This antibody immunostained formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded human, rat, and mouse tissue by the indirect immunoperoxidase method. Schwann cells and myelin of the PNS were intensely labeled by the Schwann/2E antibody. Both the nuclei and cytoplasm of the Schwann cells were labeled. As shown by a comparative light and an electron microscopic study, the Schwann/2E antibody immunoreacted with the Schwann cells that had myelinated axons, but not with those that had unmyelinated axons. The endoneurial fibroblast was not immunolabeled. This antibody slightly stained the endothelial cells of the lung and kidney. Myelin and oligodendroglia of the central nervous system did not react with the Schwann/2E antibody. The Schwann/2E antigen was stable in several histological fixatives. These results indicate that, under normal and pathological conditions, the Schwann/2E antibody could be a useful immunohistochemical marker of Schwann cells and myelin of the PNS.

Animals↗

Immunohistochemical differential distribution of S-100 alpha and S-100 beta in the peripheral nervous system of the rat.

The localization of the alpha subunit of the S-100 protein (S-100 alpha) and beta subunit (S-100 beta) was studied in the peripheral nervous system of the rat. In peripheral nerves, S-100 alpha and S-100 beta were found in the cytoplasm of Schwann cells. Axons were positively stained in part by S-100 alpha and almost totally by S-100 beta. In the dorsal root ganglia, S-100 alpha was found in satellite cells and their processes and in some neurons. S-100 beta was found in more of the large neurons, but almost all of the small neurons were negative for S-100 beta. In the anterior horn cells, S-100 beta staining was stronger than that of S-100 alpha. In Schwann cells, both S-100 alpha and S-100 beta were present on the rough endoplasmic reticulum, free ribosomes, and nucleus, as seen by electron microscopy. The S-100 alpha and S-100 beta in axons were associated with microtubules and neurofilaments.

Animals↗

Somite polarity and segmental patterning of the peripheral nervous system.

The analysis of the outgrowth pattern of spinal axons in the chick embryo has shown that somites are polarized into anterior and posterior halves. This polarity dictates the segmental development of the peripheral nervous system: migrating neural crest cells and outgrowing spinal axons traverse exclusively the anterior halves of the somite-derived sclerotomes, ensuring a proper register between spinal axons, their ganglia and the segmented vertebral column. Much progress has been made recently in understanding the molecular basis for somite polarization, and its linkage with Notch/Delta, Wnt and Fgf signalling. Contact-repulsive molecules expressed by posterior half-sclerotome cells provide critical guidance cues for axons and neural crest cells along the anterior-posterior axis. Diffusible repellents from surrounding tissues, particularly the dermomyotome and notochord, orient outgrowing spinal axons in the dorso-ventral axis ('surround repulsion'). Repulsive forces therefore guide axons in three dimensions. Although several molecular systems have been identified that may guide neural crest cells and axons in the sclerotome, it remains unclear whether these operate together with considerable overall redundancy, or whether any one system predominates in vivo.

Animals↗

Synapsin I (protein I), a nerve terminal-specific phosphoprotein. I. Its general distribution in synapses of the central and peripheral nervous system demonstrated by immunofluorescence in frozen and plastic sections.

Synapsin I (formerly referred to as protein I) is the collective name for two almost identical phosphoproteins, synapsin Ia and synapsin Ib (protein Ia and protein Ib), present in the nervous system. Synapsin I has previously been shown by immunoperoxidase studies (De Camilli, P., T. Ueda, F. E. Bloom, E. Battenberg, and P. Greengard, 1979, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 76:5977-5981; Bloom, F. E., T. Ueda, E. Battenberg, and P. Greengard, 1979, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 76:5982-5986) to be a neuron-specific protein, present in both the central and peripheral nervous systems and concentrated in the synaptic region of nerve cells. In those preliminary studies, the occurrence of synapsin I could be demonstrated in only a portion of synapses. We have now carried out a detailed examination of the distribution of synapsin I immunoreactivity in the central and peripheral nervous systems. In this study we have attempted to maximize the level of resolution of immunohistochemical light microscopy images in order to estimate the proportion of immunoreactive synapses and to establish their precise distribution. Optimal results were obtained by the use of immunofluorescence in semithin sections (approximately 1 micron) prepared from Epon-embedded nonosmicated tissues after the Epon had been removed. Our results confirm the previous observations on the specific localization of synapsin I in nerve cells and synapses. In addition, the results strongly suggest that, with a few possible exceptions involving highly specialized neurons, all synapses contain synapsin I. Finally, immunocytochemical experiments indicate that synapsin I appearance in the various regions of the developing nervous system correlates topographically and temporally with the appearance of synapses. In two accompanying papers (De Camilli, P., S. M. Harris, Jr., W. B. Huttner, and P. Greengard, and Huttner, W. B., W. Schiebler, P. Greengard, and P. De Camilli, 1983, J. Cell Biol. 96:1355-1373 and 1374-1388, respectively), evidence is presented that synapsin I is specifically associated with synaptic vesicles in nerve endings.

Animals↗

High inflammation and mild demyelination in the peripheral nervous system induced by an intraneural injection of RR interleukin-4.

To examine the direct effects of IL-4 on peripheral nervous system (PNS) we injected recombinant rat IL-4 (rrIL-4) into the sciatic nerve of normal adult Lewis rats. Histopathological and immunohistochemical observations revealed that 1 day after injection, a large number of macrophages and MHC class II-positive cells appeared within both the perineurium and endoneurium. Only few CD4(+)and CD8(+)T cells existed in the endoneurium. From day 4 to day 7, we observed a gradual decline of inflammation, but the number of infiltrates in rrIL-4 injected nerves was significantly higher compared with sterile PBS-injected control group. On the contrary, demyelination affected significantly fewer nerve fibres in the rrIL-4-injected nerves compared with control group on day 7. Intraneural injection of rrIL-4 results in high grade inflammation and mild demyelination in the PNS.

Animals↗

A quantitative developmental study of neutral lipids during myelinogenesis in the peripheral nervous system of normal and trembler mice.

The quantitative accumulation of neutral lipids during the period of myelination in the peripheral nervous system was studied in normal and trembler mouse sciatic nerves, between the ages of 5 and 27 days. Neutral lipids were resolved by high-performance thin-layer chromatography, using the solvent mixture hexane/diethyl ether/acetic acid (90:15:2, v/v/v). The lipids were quantitated, after copper acetate/phosphoric acid charring, by densitometric scanning, using an external standard technique. Cholesterol and triacylglycerols accumulated in normal nerves throughout the period studied, while cholesteryl esters were not observed at any age. In trembler nerves, the accumulation of cholesterol took place at a much lower rate than in normal nerves and this lipid was deficient from the earliest stages of development. Triacylglycerols were not significantly deficient in trembler nerves during the first 2-3 weeks, but, after the age of 18 days, their quantity diminished significantly. Cholesteryl esters were first detected in the mutant nerves at the age of 18 days. These results, in agreement with those of a previous developmental study of the polar lipids, are strongly in favour of the view that the trembler mutation directly induces a process of dysmyelination and that demyelination is a secondary event.

Aging↗

Genomic organization and regulatory elements of the rat latexin gene, which is expressed in a cell type-specific manner in both central and peripheral nervous systems.

Latexin, a carboxypeptidase A inhibitor, is expressed in a cell type-specific manner in both central and peripheral nervous systems in the rat. In the neocortex, a specific subpopulation of neurons in layers V and VI expresses latexin. In the primary sensory ganglia, the expression is restricted to smaller diameter neurons. As a first step to clarify regulatory mechanisms underlying cell type-specific expression of latexin, we have determined the organization of the rat latexin gene and analyzed its regulatory elements. The latexin gene spans approximately 5.8 kb, and consists of six exons and five introns. Three transcription initiation sites were mapped. The upstream region lacks typical TATA or CAAT boxes but has several GC-rich sites. To assess promoter activity, the luciferase reporter gene fused to the 5'-flanking region (6.4 kb) of the latexin gene was transiently transfected into several cell lines. Luciferase activity was 2-8 times higher in latexin-expressing cells (PC12) than non-expressing cells (NS20 and L6). Deletion analysis with PC12 cells revealed that a core promoter is located between nucleotide positions -261 and -201 relative to the A of the initiation codon. Nerve growth factor (NGF)-responsive element(s) is located between positions -518 and -262, in which AP-1, AP-2 and NF-kappaB binding sites are found. Furthermore, we demonstrate that a 1.3 kb genomic fragment containing the first intron has transcriptional enhancing activity in PC12 cells. These results suggest that up and downstream regulatory elements are involved in the control of cell type-specific expression of latexin.

5' Untranslated Regions↗

Distribution and anatomy of GABA-like immunoreactive neurons in the central and peripheral nervous system of the snail Helix pomatia.

Gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA)-like immunoreactive neurons were studied in the central and peripheral nervous system of Helix pomatia by applying immunocytochemistry on whole-mount preparations and serial paraffin sections. GABA-immunoreactive cell bodies were found in the buccal, cerebral and pedal ganglia, but only GABA-immunoreactive fibers were found in the viscero-parietal-pleural ganglion complex. The majority of GABA-immunoreactive cell bodies were located in the pedal ganglia but a few could be found in the buccal ganglia. Varicose GABA-ir fibers could be seen in the neuropil areas and in distinct areas of the cell body layer of the ganglia. The majority of GABA-ir axonal processes run into the connectives and commissures of the ganglia, indicating an important central integrative role of GABA-immunoreactive neurons. GABA may also have a peripheral role, since GABA-immunoreactive fibers could be demonstrated in peripheral nerves and the lips. Glutamate injection did not change the number or distribution of GABA-immunoreactive neurons, but induced GABA immunoreactivity in elements of the connective tissue ensheathing the muscle cells and fibers of the buccal musculature. This shows that GABA may be present in different non-neural tissues as a product of general metabolic pathways.

Animals↗