Knockdown of BACE1-AS Nonprotein-Coding Transcript Modulates Beta-Amyloid-Related Hippocampal Neurogenesis

Background. Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a devastating neurological disorder and the main cause of dementia in the elderly population worldwide. Adult neurogenesis appears to be upregulated very early in AD pathogenesis in response to some specific aggregates of beta-amyloid (Aβ) peptides, exhausting the neuronal stem cell pools in the brain. Previously, we characterized a conserved nonprotein-coding antisense transcript for β-secretase-1 (BACE1), a critical enzyme in AD pathophysiology. We showed that the BACE1-antisense transcript (BACE1-AS) is markedly upregulated in brain samples from AD patients and promotes the stability of the (sense) BACE1 transcript. In the current paper, we examine the relationship between BACE1, BACE1-AS, adult neurogenesis markers, and amyloid plaque formation in amyloid precursor protein (APP) transgenic mice (Tg-19959) of various ages. Results. Consistent with previous publications in other APP overexpressing mouse models, we found adult neurogenesis markers to be noticeably upregulated in Tg-19959 mice very early in the development of the disease. Knockdown of either one of BACE1 or BACE1-AS transcripts by continuous infusion of locked nucleic acid- (LNA-) modified siRNAs into the third ventricle over the period of two weeks caused concordant downregulation of both transcripts in Tg-19959 mice. Downregulation of BACE1 mRNA was followed by reduction of BACE1 protein and insoluble Aβ. Modulation of BACE1 and BACE1-AS transcripts also altered oligomeric Aβ aggregation pattern, which was in turn associated with an increase in neurogenesis markers at the RNA and protein level. Conclusion. We found alterations in the RNA and protein concentrations of several adult neurogenesis markers, as well as non-protein-coding BACE1-AS transcripts, in parallel with the course of β-amyloid synthesis and aggregation in the brain of Tg15999 mice. In addition, by knocking down BACE1 or BACE1-AS (thereby reducing Aβ production and plaque deposition), we were able to modulate expression of these neurogenesis markers. Our findings suggest a distortion of adult neurogenesis that is associated with Aβ production very early in amyloid pathogenesis. We believe that these alterations, at the molecular level, could prove useful as novel therapeutic targets and/or as early biomarkers of AD

Clostridium difficile Infection and Proton Pump Inhibitor Use in Hospitalized Pediatric Cystic Fibrosis Patients

Children with cystic fibrosis (CF) often take proton pump inhibitors (PPIs), which helps improve efficacy of fat absorption with pancreatic enzyme replacement therapy. However, PPI use is known to be associated with Clostridium difficile-(C. diff-) associated diarrhea (CDAD). We retrospectively evaluated the incidence of C. diff infection from all pediatric hospital admissions over a 5-year period at a single tertiary children's hospital. We found significantly more C. diff-positive stool tests in hospitalized patients with CF compared to patients with no diagnosis of CF. However, use of a PPI was not associated with an increased risk of CDAD in hospitalized CF patients. In summary, C. diff infection is more common in hospitalized pediatric CF patients although PPI use may not be a risk factor for CDAD development in this patient population

Reducing outcome measures in mental health: a systematic review of the methods

Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) Grant number ES/J500057/1 and South London and Maudsley NHS Trust

An elastic second skin

We report the synthesis and application of an elastic, wearable crosslinked polymer layer (XPL) that mimics the properties of normal, youthful skin. XPL is made of a tunable polysiloxane-based material that can be engineered with specific elasticity, contractility, adhesion, tensile strength and occlusivity. XPL can be topically applied, rapidly curing at the skin interface without the need for heat- or light-mediated activation. In a pilot human study, we examined the performance of a prototype XPL that has a tensile modulus matching normal skin responses at low strain (<40%), and that withstands elongations exceeding 250%, elastically recoiling with minimal strain-energy loss on repeated deformation. The application of XPL to the herniated lower eyelid fat pads of 12 subjects resulted in an average 2-grade decrease in herniation appearance in a 5-point severity scale. The XPL platform may offer advanced solutions to compromised skin barrier function, pharmaceutical delivery and wound dressings

Strontium potently inhibits mineralisation in bone-forming primary rat osteoblast cultures and reduces numbers of osteoclasts in mouse marrow cultures

The basic mechanisms by which strontium ranelate acts on bone are still unclear. We show that an important action of strontium salts is to block calcification in cultures of osteoblasts, the bone-forming cells. These results suggest that strontium treatment could have previously overlooked effects on bone

Intermediate Vancomycin Susceptibility in a Community-associated MRSA Clone

We describe a case of treatment failure caused by a strain of USA300 community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) with intermediate susceptibility to vancomycin and reduced susceptibility to daptomycin. The strain was isolated from the bone of a 56-year-old man with lumbar osteomyelitis after a 6-week treatment course of vancomycin for catheter-associated septic thrombophlebitis

UBVRI Light Curves of 44 Type Ia Supernovae

We present UBVRI photometry of 44 type-Ia supernovae (SN Ia) observed from 1997 to 2001 as part of a continuing monitoring campaign at the Fred Lawrence Whipple Observatory of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. The data set comprises 2190 observations and is the largest homogeneously observed and reduced sample of SN Ia to date, nearly doubling the number of well-observed, nearby SN Ia with published multicolor CCD light curves. The large sample of U-band photometry is a unique addition, with important connections to SN Ia observed at high redshift. The decline rate of SN Ia U-band light curves correlates well with the decline rate in other bands, as does the U-B color at maximum light. However, the U-band peak magnitudes show an increased dispersion relative to other bands even after accounting for extinction and decline rate, amounting to an additional ~40% intrinsic scatter compared to B-band.Comment: 84 authors, 71 pages, 51 tables, 10 figures. Accepted for publication in the Astronomical Journal. Version with high-res figures and electronic data at http://astron.berkeley.edu/~saurabh/cfa2snIa