Amphetamine and vigabatrin down regulate aromatic l-amino acid decarboxylase mRNA levels

Aromatic l-amino acid decarboxylase (AADC) has previously been shown to be up-regulated at the level of its protein activity and its mRNA abundance by antipsychotic drugs. Its activity has also been shown to be down-regulated by dopamine agonists including amphetamine. In this study we have injected rats for up to 32 days with amphetamine and the anti-epileptic drug vigabatrin, both of which can cause psychosis with similarities to schizophrenia. We have shown that AADC mRNA levels are reduced in most brain regions by both drugs. Cocaine and other non-psychotogenic anti-epileptic drugs had no effect in this paradigm. Two products of this enzyme are implicated in psychotogenesis

Confirmation that the specific SSLP microsatellite allele 4qA161 segregates with fascioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy (FSHD) in a cohort of multiplex and simplex FSHD families

The molecular defect in fascioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy (FSHD) has proved difficult to explain. Although contraction within a polymorphic tandem repeat located at 4q35.2 is unequivocally associated with disease expression, the specific biological mechanism involved in the phenotype has yet to be resolved. Several studies have demonstrated that a specific 4q35.2-located haplotype (4qA161) is also closely associated with FSHD expression. Therefore, in this study we analyzed the haplotype association in a large cohort of sporadic and familial FSHD families from the UK. In all cases the affected individuals displayed the 4qA161 haplotype

Lack of effect of antipsychotic and antidepressant drugs on glutamate receptor mRNA levels in rat brains

By employing multiprobe oligonucleotide solution hybridisation (MOSH) we have measured the levels of mRNA encoding the NMDA receptor subtypes (R1, R2A, R2B and R2C) and the non-NMDA glutamate receptor subtypes (GluR1, 2, 3, and 4) within rat brain following, 1–32 days of antipsychotic or antidepressant drug administration. The results suggest that the drugs studied do not significantly alter rat glutamatergic system mRNA levels when compared to controls

Bi-directional changes in the levels of messenger RNAs encoding γ-aminobutyric acidA receptor α subunits after flurazepam treatment

Changes in γ-aminobutyric acidA (GABAA) receptor function have been observed following chronic benzodiazepine administration. The molecular mechanisms responsible are unknown, but one possibility is that benzodiazepines induce alterations in the expression of genes which encode subunits of the GABAA receptor complex, resulting in changes in the receptor structure and function. We have investigated this hypothesis by evaluating the effect of flurazepam 40 mg/kg i.p. on brain levels of the mRNAs which encode the α1, α2, α3, α5, and α6 subunits of the GABAA receptor complex. Rats were treated with flurazepam or vehicle for up to 32 days. No changes were found in the levels of α1 and α2 mRNA. A rapid decrease was found in the level of α5 mRNA; α3 mRNA was increased by 4 days of treatment and this was followed by an increase in α6 levels. These results support the hypothesis that the alteration in GABAA receptor function after benzodiazepine administration results from changes in subunit gene expression. Furthermore, the predicted consequences of the pattern of mRNA changes we have observed suggest that altered gene expression may be important in the genesis of benzodiazepine tolerance

Amyloid precursor protein mRNA levels in the mononuclear blood cells of Alzheimer's and Down's patients

Amyloid precursor protein (APP) is expressed by many non-neural tissues and it is possible that over-expression of the APP gene in non-neural tissue is responsible for the deposition of amyloid β-protein in the brain and elsewhere. One possible source of β-protein is circulating mononuclear blood cells which have previously been shown to express APP. To test this hypothesis. RNA was isolated from the mononuclear blood cells of patients suffering from Alzheimer's disease (n = 27), Down's syndrome (n = 13), senile dementia non-Alzheimer type (n = 14) and from normal individuals (n = 48). The relative abundance of mRNA coding for different splicing variants of the amyloid precursor protein (APP) mRNA was measured using multiprobe oligonucleotide solution hybridisation (MOSH). There was no significant difference in APP mRNA levels between any of the groups. This indicates that Alzheimer's disease is not characterised by an increase in production of APP in circulating mononuclear blood cells

Genotype effects of CHRNA7, CNR1 and COMT in schizophrenia:interactions with tobacco and cannabis use

BACKGROUND: Genetic variations might modify associations between schizophrenia and cannabis or tobacco use. AIMS: To examine whether variants within the cannabinoid receptor (CNR1) and alpha(7) nicotinic receptor (CHRNA7) genes are associated with schizophrenia, and whether these effects vary according to cannabis or tobacco use. We also examined a putative interaction between cannabis and Val(158)Met within the catechol-O-methyltransferase gene (COMT). METHOD: Genotype effects of CHRNA7 and CNR1were studied in a case-control sample of 750 individuals with schizophrenia and 688 controls, with interactions for these genes studied in small subsamples. A case-only design of 493 ofthe schizophrenia group was used to examine interactions between cannabis use and COMT. RESULTS: There was no evidence of association between schizophrenia and CNR1 (OR=0.97, 95% CI 0.82-1.13) or CHRNA7 (OR=1.07, 95% CI 0.77-1.49) genotypes, or of interactions between tobacco use and CHRNA7, or cannabis use and CNR1or COMT genotypes. CONCLUSIONS: Neither CNR1 nor CHRNA7 variation appears to alter the risk of schizophrenia. Furthermore, our results do not support the presence of different effects of cannabis use on schizophrenia according to variation within COMT

Germline and somatic NF1 gene mutations in plexiform neurofibromas

Neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1), a common autosomal dominant neurogenetic disorder affecting 1 in 4000 individuals worldwide, results from functional inactivation of the 17q11.2-located NF1 gene. Plexiform neurofibroma (PNF) is a congenital benign tumour present in 30-50% of NF1 patients, which in about 10-15% of cases, can develop into a malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumour (MPNST). This study aimed to characterise the NF1 germline and somatic mutations associated with such tumours by DNA analysis in 51 PNFs resected from 44 unrelated NF1 patients. Germline mutations were identified in 35 patients, of which 21 were novel. Somatic NF1 mutations were found in 29 PNF DNAs, which included 9 point mutations, 5 being novel, and 20 tumour DNA samples exhibiting, either loss of heterozygosity (LOH) of the NF1 gene region (16 tumours), or complete or partial NF1 gene deletions analyzed by multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification (MPLA) analysis. The type of NF1 germline mutations detected in patients with PNF were similar to those detected in most NF1 patients. LOH of the NF1 gene region, as identified by marker analysis and/or MLPA, was detected in only 20/29 (69%) PNFs, compared to the >90% LOH previously found in MPNST. This systematic analysis of the NF1 germline and somatic mutations associated with PNF development suggest that in most such tumours neither the NF1 somatic mutation type, nor its gene location, is influenced by the underlying NF1 germline mutation. Evidence for LOH involving the TP53 gene identified in the PNFs is also reported for the first time