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Query: EC:3.1.1.7 (
acetylcholinesterase
)
28,390
document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)
In this study we examined the question whether
cholinesterase
inhibitors (ChEI) could alter the release of
amyloid precursor protein
(
APP
) from superfused brain cortical slices of the rat following electrical as well as pharmacological stimulation with bethanechol (BETHA). Three ChEI, both reversible and irreversible were tested for their ability to enhance the release of non-amyloidogenic soluble derivatives (APPs). These included physostigmine (PHY), heptyl-physostigmine (HEP) and 2,2-dichlorovinyldimethyl phosphate (DDVP), at the concentrations producing
cholinesterase
(ChE) inhibition ranging from 5% to 95%. All three ChEI elevated APPs release significantly above control levels. Electrical field stimulation significantly increased the release of APPs within 50 min. Similar increase was observed after muscarinic receptor stimulation with BETHA. Tetrodotoxin (TTX) completely blocked the effect of electrical stimulation. These findings suggest that long-term administration of ChEI to Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients may have a neuroprotective effect by activating normal
APP
processing and decreasing the formation of amyloidogenic
APP
products.
...
PMID:The effect of cholinesterase inhibitors on the secretion of APPS from rat brain cortex. 862 19
Physostigmine, a reversible and nonselective
cholinesterase
inhibitor, administered by steady-state, continuous intravenous infusion to carefully selected subjects with mild-moderate
Alzheimer disease
, produced significant but modest improvement in memory in five of nine subjects. Drug dosing was limited by the occurrence of adverse effects. Apparent tolerance to adverse effects was observed in two subjects when the dose of physostigmine was escalated slowly over at least 2 weeks. Steady-state
cholinesterase
inhibition by physostigmine appears to produce sustained cognitive improvement in some subjects with
Alzheimer disease
without substantially altering its therapeutic index.
...
PMID:Treatment of Alzheimer disease by continuous intravenous infusion of physostigmine. 874 12
The characteristic features of a brain with Alzheimer disease (AD) include the presence of neuritic plaques composed of
amyloid beta-protein
(Abeta) and reductions in the levels of cholinergic markers. Neurotoxic responses to Abeta have been reported in vivo and in vitro, suggesting that the cholinergic deficit in AD brain may be secondary to the degeneration of cholinergic neurons caused by Abeta. However, it remains to be determined if Abeta contributes to the cholinergic deficit in AD brain by nontoxic effects. We examined the effects of synthetic Abeta peptides on the cholinergic properties of a mouse cell line, SN56, derived from basal forebrain cholinergic neurons. Abeta 1-42 and Abeta 1-28 reduced the acetylcholine (AcCho) content of the cells in a concentration-dependent fashion, whereas Abeta 1-16 was inactive. Maximal reductions of 43% and 33% were observed after a 48-h treatment with 100 nM of Abeta 1-42 and 50 pM of Abeta 1-28, respectively. Neither Abeta 1-28 nor Abeta 1-42 at a concentration of 100 nM and a treatment period of 2 weeks was toxic to the cells. Treatment of the cells with Abeta 25-28 (48 h; 100 nM) significantly decreased AcCho levels, suggesting that the sequence GSNK (aa 25-28) is responsible for the AcCho-reducing effect of Abeta. The reductions in AcCho levels caused by Abeta 1-42 and Abeta 1-28 were accompanied by proportional decreases in choline acetyltransferase activity. In contrast,
acetylcholinesterase
activity was unaltered, indicating that Abeta specifically reduces the synthesis of AcCho in SN56 cells. The reductions in AcCho content caused by Abeta 1-42 could be prevented by a cotreatment with all-trans-retinoic acid (10 nM), a compound previously shown to increase choline acetyltransferase mRNA expression in SN56 cells. These results demonstrate a nontoxic, suppressive effect of Abeta on AcCho synthesis, an action that may contribute to the cholinergic deficit in AD brain.
...
PMID:Amyloid beta-protein reduces acetylcholine synthesis in a cell line derived from cholinergic neurons of the basal forebrain. 875 4
Recent studies implicate that excessive amyloidogenic pathway of
amyloid precursor protein
(
APP
) processing may be the final common pathway involved in the pathogensis of AD. In attempts to identify the proteases or factors leading to excessive amyloid deposition, we evaluated the potential role of acethylcholinesterase (AChE) and its associated protease for amyloidogenic processing of
APP
in vitro. Prolonged incubation of a recombinant APP770 with AChE produced several amyloidogenic fragments accumulating a relatively stable a 18 kDa A beta (
amyloid beta-protein
) bearing carboxy terminal peptide, which was further degraded by an increased concentration of AChE. Protease inhibitory profiles confirmed the trypsin-like serine protease activity present in AChE preparation. This observed
APP
processing was significantly enhanced by Ca2+, Mg2+, or Mn2+ at 1 mM concentration and modulated in concentration dependent manners by metal ions such as Ca2+, Zn2+, Fe2+/Fe3+, Al3+, or a tacrine, a centrally active
cholinesterase
inhibitor. Our data imply that AChE and its associated protease may be involved in the generation a 18 kDa amyloidogenic peptide under certain physiological condition in vivo and that the gradual changes in their proteolytic activities or locations and the locally disturbed metal homeostasis could be factors associated with abnormal accumulation of
APP
, eventually leading to amyloid deposition in AD brain. In addition, zinc or tacrine treatment of AD patients with high dosage or in the long term may have effects on the process of amyloidogensis.
...
PMID:Amyloidogenic processing of Alzheimer's amyloid precursor protein in vitro and its modulation by metal ions and tacrine. 876 43
Substantial evidences suggest that the increased cerebral deposition, and neurotoxic action of the
beta-amyloid peptide
, the major constituent of senile plaques, may represent the underlying cause of the cognitive deficits observed in Alzheimer's disease. Herein, we attempted to verify this hypothesis by inducing a potential Alzheimer's-type amnesia after direct intracerebroventricular administration of aggregated beta 25-35-
amyloid peptide
in mice. In this aim, mnesic capacities were evaluated after 6-13 days, using spontaneous alternation in the Y-maze, step-down type passive avoidance and place learning in a water-maze. Pretraining administration of aggregated beta 25-35 peptide induced dose-dependent decreases in both alternation behaviour and passive avoidance, at doses of 3 and 9 nmol/mouse. A reduced but still significant impairment was observed when the peptide was not aggregated, or 'aged', by preincubation for 4 days at 37 degrees C. The beta 1-28 peptide, at 3 nmol/mouse, also induced a marked decrease in step-down latency. Posttraining, but not preretention, administration of beta 25-35 peptide also significantly impaired learning. The beneficial effects of cholinergic agents on beta 25-35-induced amnesia was examined using the
cholinesterase
inhibitor tacrine (THA, 1.3 and 4.3 mumol/kg i.p.) and the nicotinic receptor agonist (-)-nicotine (NIC, 0.06 and 0.2 mumol/kg i.p.). Both drugs induced a dose-dependent abrogation of the beta 25-35-induced decreases in alternation behaviour and passive avoidance. Furthermore, THA, at 1.3 mumol/kg, and NIC, at 0.2 mumol/kg, also reversed the beta 25-35-induced impairment of place learning and retention in the water-maze. Histological examination of Cresyl violet-stained brain sections indicated a moderate but significant cell loss within the frontoparietal cortex and the hippocampal formation of mice treated with aged beta 25-35 peptide (9 nmol). Examination of Congo red-stained sections in the same animals demonstrated the presence of numerous amyloid deposits throughout these brain areas. These results confirm that the deposition of
beta-amyloid peptide
in the brain is in some way related to impairment of learning and cholinergic degeneration and suggest that the [25-35] fragment of the
beta-amyloid protein
, sufficient to induce neuronal death in cultures, also induces an Alzheimer's-type amnesia in mice.
...
PMID:Amnesia induced in mice by centrally administered beta-amyloid peptides involves cholinergic dysfunction. 882 55
The senile plaque in Alzheimer's disease (AD) consists mainly of the amyloid beta-peptide (A beta) derived from a family of large integral membrane glycoproteins, beta-amyloid precursor proteins (
beta APP
). Soluble derivatives of
beta APP
generated by the proteolytic processing of full-length
beta APP
are normally secreted into the conditioned medium of cultured cells. Here we have investigated the possibility that the processing of
beta APP
can be regulated by the
cholinesterase
inhibitors physostigmine and tacrine. Both drugs mildly improve cognitive functions in some patients with AD. We analyzed the level of
beta APP
in glial, neuroblastoma, and pheochromocytoma cells by immunoblotting cell lysates and conditioned media using a monoclonal antibody, MAb22C11. The levels of soluble
beta APP
derivatives normally present in conditioned media were severely inhibited by treating cells with tacrine but not with physostigmine. Whereas the treatment of cells with tacrine resulted in a small decrease in the intracellular levels of
beta APP
, treating cells with physostigmine resulted in a slight increase in the intracellular levels of
beta APP
compared to untreated cells. The effect of tacrine on the secretion of
beta APP
was not affected by cotreating cells with muscarinic agents, staurosporine, or the calcium ionophore. Our results suggest that a decrease in the secretion of
beta APP
by tacrine did not depend on its anticholinesterase activity and that tacrine operates via a noncholinergic mechanism.
...
PMID:Differential effect of tacrine and physostigmine on the secretion of the beta-amyloid precursor protein in cell lines. 883 81
A 53-year-old Japanese woman with a point mutation in mitochondrial DNA (tRNALeu(UUR), nt3243) consistent with mitochondrial myopathy, encephalopathy, lactic acidosis and stroke-like episodes (MELAS) and Alzheimer-type brain pathology is reported. This woman had suffered myopathy and psychosis without any clinical evidence of, stroke-like episodes during the last 10 years of her life, and had died after an accident. At autopsy 30 h post mortem, a part of the brain was snap frozen for biochemical and histochemical studies, and the remaining part was processed for a routine examination and electron microscopy. In the brain there were no ischemic lesions. Instead, primitive/diffuse senile plaques were found throughout the brain, predominantly in the frontal and temporal lobes, while Alzheimer neurofibrillary tangles were found only in the parahippocampal gyrus. These plaques were positive for beta-protein and mostly negative for tau protein, ubiquitin, neurofilaments, alpha-choline acetyltransferase, and
acetylcholinesterase
. Mutations in codon 331 of the ND2 gene as well as codons 693, 713 and 717 of the beta-
amyloid precursor protein
gene, known to be responsible for some cases of familial Alzheimer disease, were not found. Furthermore, coincidental Down syndrome was ruled out by chromosome analysis. The results suggest a possible correlation between this mitochondrial DNA abnormality and Alzheimer-type pathology.
...
PMID:Alzheimer-type pathology in a patient with mitochondrial myopathy, encephalopathy, lactic acidosis and stroke-like episodes (MELAS). 887 Aug 35
This study addresses the developmental regulation of
amyloid precursor protein
(
APP
) fragments comprising the amyloid-beta peptide (AP) and the amyloid-promoting factor
acetylcholinesterase
(
AChE
) in a mouse neuronal cell line (Neuro-2a). Results indicate that a 35-kDa amyloidogenic fragment of
APP
and the major molecular forms of
AChE
(G1 and G4) in Neuro-2a cells significantly increase with increasing levels of cell confluence. The foregoing molecules undergo further increases when neuroblastoma cells differentiate in the presence of dibutyryl cAMP. In contrast, a 17-kDa fragment of
APP
and butyrylcholinesterase were not affected by cell confluence or differentiation. These findings are the first to indicate that a selective Abeta-containing fragment of
APP
is subject to developmental regulation. Moreover, our data show that the 35-kDa fragment and
AChE
forms respond in parallel to the same developmental stimuli, i.e., cell confluence and differentiation. This points to the existence of a functional relationship between both molecules, a notion that is consistent with the potential role that has been ascribed to
AChE
in both
APP
processing and the formation of amyloid deposits in Alzheimer's brains.
...
PMID:Amyloid precursor protein fragment and acetylcholinesterase increase with cell confluence and differentiation in a neuronal cell line. 894 Feb 53
The function of the phosphoinositide signal transduction system was compared in membranes from Alzheimer's disease (AD) and control postmortem brain. [3H]Phosphatidylinositol hydrolysis was concentration-dependently stimulated by GTP[S] and this was 40% lower than controls in AD prefrontal cortical membranes. Carbachol induced a response greater than that of GTP[S] alone, and this response was impaired in AD by 45%. Differential analysis of the receptor-coupled and G-protein contributions to the responses indicated that the G-protein deficit in AD had a predominant influence on the lowered responses to cholinergic agonists. Similar deficits were observed in AD in the responses to five additional cholinergic agonists, including acetylcholine with three different
acetylcholinesterase
inhibitors. Deficits in stimulated phosphoinositide hydrolysis were regionally selective and these deficits did not correlate directly with reductions in choline acetyltransferase activity in AD tissues. These data demonstrate that in AD there is a brain region-selective, large impairment of cholinergic agonist-induced signal transduction mediated by the phosphoinositide system, which we speculate may impact on
amyloid precursor protein
processing.
...
PMID:Cholinergic activation of phosphoinositide signaling is impaired in Alzheimer's disease brain. 898 39
Modulation of the cholinergic neurotransmitter system results in changes in memory performance, including working memory (WM), in animals and in patients with
Alzheimer disease
. To identify associated changes in the functional brain response, we studied performance measures and regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) using positron emission tomography (PET) in healthy subjects during performance of a WM task. Eight control subjects received an infusion of saline throughout the study and 13 experimental subjects received a saline infusion for the first 2 scans followed by a continuous infusion of physostigmine, an
acetylcholinesterase
inhibitor, for the subsequent 8 scans. rCBF was measured using H215O and PET in a sequence of 10 PET scans that alternated between rest and task scans. During task scans, subjects performed the WM task for faces. Physostigmine both improved WM efficiency, as indicated by faster reaction times, and reduced WM task-related activity in anterior and posterior regions of right midfrontal gyrus, a region shown previously to be associated with WM. Furthermore, the magnitudes of physostigmine-induced change in reaction time and right midfrontal rCBF correlated. These results suggest that enhancement of cholinergic function can improve processing efficiency and thus reduce the effort required to perform a WM task, and that activation of right prefrontal cortex is associated with task effort.
...
PMID:Cholinergic stimulation alters performance and task-specific regional cerebral blood flow during working memory. 917 49
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