Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: EC:3.2.1.23 (beta-galactosidase)
14,648 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Depletion of dopamine in Drosophila melanogaster adult males, accomplished through systemic introduction of the tyrosine hydroxylase inhibitor 3-iodo-tyrosine, severely impaired the ability of these flies to modify their courtship responses to immature males. Mature males, when first exposed to immature males, will perform courtship rituals; the intensity and duration of this behavior rapidly diminishes with time. Dopamine is also required for normal female sexual receptivity; dopamine-depleted females show increased latency to copulation. One kilobase of 5' upstream information from the Drosophila tyrosine hydroxylase (DTH) gene, when fused to the Escherichia coli beta-galactosidase reporter and transduced into the genome of Drosophila melanogaster, is capable of directing expression of the reporter gene in the mushroom bodies, which are believed to mediate learning acquisition and memory retention in flies. Ablation of mushroom bodies by treatment of newly hatched larva with hydroxyurea resulted in the inability of treated mature adult males to cease courtship when placed with untreated immature males. However, functional mushroom bodies were not required for the dopaminergic modulation of an innate behavior, female sexual receptivity. These data suggest that dopamine acts as a signaling molecule within the mushroom bodies to mediate a simple form of learning.
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PMID:Dopamine and mushroom bodies in Drosophila: experience-dependent and -independent aspects of sexual behavior. 1045 80

Previously, we observed that injection of an adenoviral (Ad) vector expressing glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) into the striatum, but not the substantia nigra (SN), prior to a partial 6-OHDA lesion protects dopaminergic (DA) neuronal function and prevents the development of behavioral impairment in the aged rat. This suggests that striatal injection of AdGDNF maintains nigrostriatal function either by protecting DA terminals or by stimulating axonal sprouting to the denervated striatum. To distinguish between these possible mechanisms, the present study examines the effect of GDNF gene delivery on molecular markers of DA terminals and neuronal sprouting in the aged (20 month) rat brain. AdGDNF or a control vector coding for beta-galactosidase (AdLacZ) was injected unilaterally into either the striatum or the SN. One week later, rats received a unilateral intrastriatal injection of 6-OHDA on the side of vector injection. Two weeks postlesion, rats injected with AdGDNF into either the striatum or the SN exhibited a reduction in the area of striatal denervation and increased binding of the DA transporter ligand [(125)I]IPCIT in the lesioned striatum compared to control animals. Furthermore, injections of AdGDNF into the striatum, but not the SN, increased levels of tyrosine hydroxylase mRNA in lesioned DA neurons in the SN and prevented the development of amphetamine-induced rotational asymmetry. In contrast, the level of T1 alpha-tubulin mRNA, a marker of neuronal sprouting, was not increased in lesioned DA neurons in the SN following injection of AdGDNF either into the striatum or into the SN. These results suggest that GDNF gene delivery prior to a partial lesion ameliorates damage caused by 6-OHDA in aged rats by inhibiting the degeneration of DA terminals rather than by inducing sprouting of nigrostriatal axons.
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PMID:Glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) gene delivery protects dopaminergic terminals from degeneration. 1131 61

Dopamine is an important signaling molecule in the nervous system; it also plays a vital role in the development of diverse non-neuronal tissues in the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster. The current study demonstrates that males depleted of dopamine as third instar larvae (via inhibition of the biosynthetic enzyme tyrosine hydroxylase) demonstrated abnormalities in courtship behavior as adults. These defects were suggestive of abnormalities in sensory perception and/or processing. Electroretinograms (ERGs) of eyes from adults depleted of dopamine for 1 day as third instar larvae revealed diminished or absent on- and off-transients. These sensory defects were rescued by the addition of L-DOPA in conjunction with tyrosine hydroxylase inhibition during the larval stage. Depletion of dopamine in the first or second larval instar was lethal, but this was not due to a general inhibition of proliferative cells. To establish that dopamine was synthesized in tissues destined to become part of the adult sensory apparatus, transgenic lines were generated containing 1 or 4 kb of 5' upstream sequences from the Drosophila tyrosine hydroxylase gene (DTH) fused to the E. coli beta-galactosidase reporter. The DTH promoters directed expression of the reporter gene in discrete and consistent patterns within the imaginal discs, in addition to the expected expression in gonadal, brain, and cuticular tissues. The beta-galactosidase expression colocalized with tyrosine hydroxylase protein. These results are consistent with a developmental requirement for dopamine in the normal physiology of adult sensory tissues.
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PMID:Dopamine and sensory tissue development in Drosophila melanogaster. 1135 39

Primary astrocytes were genetically modified ex vivo to express recombinant glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) and subsequently were tested for their ability to provide neuroprotection to dopaminergic neurons in a 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) mouse model of Parkinson's disease. A replication-defective retrovirus was constructed, which contained the rat GDNF sequence and a sequence encoding a beta-galactosidase (beta-gal)/neomycin phosphotransferase fusion protein, linked via an internal ribosomal entry site. Murine astrocytes transduced with this vector secreted GDNF into the culture media at the rate of 115 +/- 34 pg/24 h/10(5) cells and expressed cytoplasmic beta-gal, whereas control nontransduced astrocytes were negative for GDNF production and cytoplasmic beta-gal expression. Mice that received implants of GDNF-producing astrocytes into the striatum or nigra displayed elevated levels of GDNF compared to mice that received control nontransduced astrocytes. In addition, tissue content of GDNF was increased bilaterally and in brain regions both proximal and distal to the graft, even though astrocyte migration away from the graft site did not occur. Importantly, GDNF-producing astrocytes provided marked neuroprotection of nigral dopaminergic perikarya, and partial protection of striatal dopaminergic fibers, when implanted into the midbrain 6 days prior to a retrograde 6-OHDA lesion, as assessed by tyrosine hydroxylase immunohistochemistry. Similarly, GDNF-producing astrocytes prevented the acquisition of amphetamine-induced rotational behavior in 6-OHDA-treated mice and completely prevented dopamine depletion within the substantia nigra, as assessed by high-performance liquid chromatography. These results indicate that continuous exposure to low levels of GDNF provided by transgenic astrocytes provides marked neuroprotection of nigral dopaminergic neurons. (c)2002 Elsevier Science (USA).
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PMID:Astrocyte delivery of glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor in a mouse model of Parkinson's disease. 1192 64

Glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) is a strong candidate agent in the neuroprotective treatment of Parkinson's disease (PD). We investigated whether adeno-associated viral (AAV) vector-mediated delivery of a GDNF gene in a delayed manner could prevent progressive degeneration of dopaminergic (DA) neurons, while preserving a functional nigrostriatal pathway. Four weeks after a unilateral intrastriatal injection of 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA), rats received injection of AAV vectors expressing GDNF tagged with FLAG peptide (AAV-GDNFflag) or beta-galactosidase (AAV-LacZ) into the lesioned striatum. Immunostaining for FLAG demonstrated retrograde transport of GDNFflag to the substantia nigra (SN). The density of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH)-positive DA fibers in the striatum and the number of TH-positive or cholera toxin subunit B (CTB, neuronal tracer)-labeled neurons in the SN were significantly greater in the AAV-GDNFflag group than in the AAV-LacZ group. Dopamine levels and those of its metabolites in the striatum were remarkably higher in the AAV-GDNFflag group compared with the control group. Consistent with anatomical and biochemical changes, significant behavioral recovery was observed from 4-20 weeks following AAV-GDNFflag injection. These data indicate that a delayed delivery of GDNF gene using AAV vector is efficacious even 4 weeks after the onset of progressive degeneration in a rat model of PD.
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PMID:Delayed delivery of AAV-GDNF prevents nigral neurodegeneration and promotes functional recovery in a rat model of Parkinson's disease. 1196 Mar 14

Chronic opiate exposure is associated with upregulation of the cAMP signaling pathway and the transcription factor cAMP response element-binding protein in the locus ceruleus (LC) and certain other brain areas. To determine whether these adaptations ultimately affect transcription mediated by the cAMP response element (CRE), we induced morphine dependence in CRE-LacZ transgenic mice and performed a regional and cellular mapping of beta-galactosidase (beta-gal) expression during naltrexone-precipitated withdrawal. Consistent with our model of opiate dependence, beta-gal expression increased in the LC, but decreased in the lateral ventral tegmental area (VTA) and dorsal raphe nucleus (DRN). In addition, withdrawal increased beta-gal expression in the continuum of the extended amygdala and nucleus accumbens, macrostructures associated with the coupling of emotional stimuli to motor and autonomic responses. At the cellular level, in the central nucleus of the amygdala, beta-gal was found in cells both with and without mu opioid receptors as well as in corticotropin-releasing factor-expressing cells. In nucleus accumbens, beta-gal was expressed in several major subpopulations of neurons. In LC, beta-gal expression was induced predominantly in tyrosine hydroxylase-expressing cells, whereas in the VTA and DRN the majority of cells expressing beta-gal were nonmonoaminergic. These results show that molecular adaptations to chronic morphine alter CRE-mediated transcription during opiate withdrawal in physiologically salient regions involved in arousal, reward, mood, and affective responses. We propose that CRE-mediated transcription serves as a functional marker for neuronal plasticity during withdrawal. CRE-mediated transcription may itself contribute to re-establishing homeostasis in the organism through target gene regulation in these regions.
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PMID:Regional and cellular mapping of cAMP response element-mediated transcription during naltrexone-precipitated morphine withdrawal. 1197 42

The primate striatum contains tyrosine hydroxylase (TH)-immunoreactive (ir) neurons, the numbers of which are augmented after dopamine depletion. Glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) strongly modulates the viability and phenotypic expression of dopamine ventral mesencephalic neurons. The effect of GDNF on TH-ir neurons intrinsic to the striatum has yet to be investigated. In the present study, stereological counts of TH-ir striatal neurons in aged and parkinsonian nonhuman primates revealed that GDNF delivered via a lentiviral vector (lenti-) further increased the number of these cells. Aged monkeys treated with lenti-GDNF displayed an eightfold increase in TH-ir neurons relative to lenti-beta-galactosidase-treated monkeys. Unilateral 1-methyl-4-phenyl- 1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine treatment alone in young monkeys resulted in a bilateral eightfold increase in TH-ir striatal cells. This effect was further magnified sevenfold on the side of lenti-GDNF treatment. These cells colocalized with the neuronal marker neuronal-specific nuclear protein. Some of these cells colocalized with GDNF-ir, indicating that an alteration in phenotype may occur by the direct actions of this trophic factor. Thus, GDNF may mediate plasticity in the dopamine-depleted primate brain, which may serve to compensate for cell loss by converting striatal neurons to a dopaminergic phenotype.
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PMID:Lentivirally delivered glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor increases the number of striatal dopaminergic neurons in primate models of nigrostriatal degeneration. 1207 91

There are three subtypes of alpha2 adrenoceptor, i.e., alpha2A, alpha2B, and alpha2C, mediating the specific effect of epinephrine and norepinephrine in various tissues by means of G protein-coupled signal transduction pathways. In an attempt to delineate the regulatory mechanism of the alpha2B receptor subtype (encoded by subtype gene Adra2b) expression in the central nervous system (CNS), we have established transgenic (Tg) mice lines in which the transgene (NN-lacZ) was composed of the promoter region of Adra2b (NcoI fragment, 4.7 kb immediately upstream from receptor coding region) and a reporter gene lacZ (encoding beta-galactosidase). The selective expression of alpha2B in brain as indexed by beta-galactosidase, under the direction of this promoter region, may be traced in situ by using X-gal staining. The expression pattern of Adra2b-NN-lacZ in CNS of Tg mice during development was examined. The temporal course of examination was from gestation day 9.5 (E9.5) to postnatal day 28 (P28). Significant X-gal staining was detected in the dorsal root ganglion and cranial nerves V and VII at E12.5. By E18.5, expression was noted in the cerebral cortex, anterior olfactory nucleus, hypothalamus, brainstem, and cerebellar Purkinje cells, among others, and persisted through postnatal development. Adra2b-NN-directed reporter expression was detected in the hippocampal dentate gyrus first at P4. The temporal course of expression up to P28 in this area is in accordance with the developmental profiles of granule neurons of dentate gyrus. From P7 on, transgene expression was detected in additional brain areas, including the septum and thalamus. The expression correlates well with the noradrenergic innervations as evidenced by colocalization by using tyrosine hydroxylase or dopamine-beta-hydroxylase immunocytochemistry.
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PMID:Regulated expression of alpha2B adrenoceptor during development. 1224 14

The Wnts are a family of glycoproteins that regulate cell proliferation, fate decisions, and differentiation. In our study, we examined the contribution of Wnts to the development of ventral midbrain (VM) dopaminergic (DA) neurons. Our results show that beta-catenin is expressed in DA precursor cells and that beta-catenin signaling takes place in these cells, as assessed in TOPGAL [Tcf optimal-promoter beta-galactosidase] reporter mice. We also found that Wnt-1, -3a, and -5a expression is differentially regulated during development and that partially purified Wnts distinctively regulate VM development. Wnt-3a promoted the proliferation of precursor cells expressing the orphan nuclear receptor-related factor 1 (Nurr1) but did not increase the number of tyrosine hydroxylase-positive neurons. Instead, Wnt-1 and -5a increased the number of rat midbrain DA neurons in rat embryonic day 14.5 precursor cultures by two distinct mechanisms. Wnt-1 predominantly increased the proliferation of Nurr1+ precursors, up-regulated cyclins D1 and D3, and down-regulated p27 and p57 mRNAs. In contrast, Wnt-5a primarily increased the proportion of Nurr1+ precursors that acquired a neuronal DA phenotype and up-regulated the expression of Ptx3 and c-ret mRNA. Moreover, the soluble cysteine-rich domain of Frizzled-8 (a Wnt inhibitor) blocked endogenous Wnts and the effects of Wnt-1 and -5a on proliferation and the acquisition of a DA phenotype in precursor cultures. These findings indicate that Wnts are key regulators of proliferation and differentiation of DA precursors during VM neurogenesis and that different Wnts have specific and unique activity profiles.
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PMID:Differential regulation of midbrain dopaminergic neuron development by Wnt-1, Wnt-3a, and Wnt-5a. 1455 50

We used a knock-in strategy to generate two lines of mice expressing Cre recombinase under the transcriptional control of the dopamine transporter promoter (DAT-cre mice) or the serotonin transporter promoter (SERT-cre mice). In DAT-cre mice, immunocytochemical staining of adult brains for the dopamine-synthetic enzyme tyrosine hydroxylase and for Cre recombinase revealed that virtually all dopaminergic neurons in the ventral midbrain expressed Cre. Crossing DAT-cre mice with ROSA26-stop-lacZ or ROSA26-stop-YFP reporter mice revealed a near perfect correlation between staining for tyrosine hydroxylase and beta-galactosidase or YFP. YFP-labeled fluorescent dopaminergic neurons could be readily identified in live slices. Crossing SERT-cre mice with the ROSA26-stop-lacZ or ROSA26-stop-YFP reporter mice similarly revealed a near perfect correlation between staining for serotonin-synthetic enzyme tryptophan hydroxylase and beta-galactosidase or YFP. Additional Cre expression in the thalamus and cortex was observed, reflecting the known pattern of transient SERT expression during early postnatal development. These findings suggest a general strategy of using neurotransmitter transporter promoters to drive selective Cre expression and thus control mutations in specific neurotransmitter systems. Crossed with fluorescent-gene reporters, this strategy tags neurons by neurotransmitter status, providing new tools for electrophysiology and imaging.
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PMID:Targeted gene expression in dopamine and serotonin neurons of the mouse brain. 1576 33


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