Short-term memory and temporal ordering in early Parkinson's disease: effects of disease chronicity and medication

Studies of Parkinson's disease (PD) have shown impaired temporal ordering but interpretation may be confounded by task requirements and the effects of medication. We examined item recognition and recency discrimination in PD in relation to treatment and performance on other tests. Patients showed increased response latency and impaired recency discrimination only at short retention intervals. The deficits were greater in chronically medicated patients but treatment with levodopa, bromocriptine or anticholinergic drugs did not affect performance of newly diagnosed cases. The short-term memory deficits correlated with scores on tests of working memory, attention and executive function. These results do not indicate a generalised temporal ordering deficit in PD but suggest that much of the cognitive impairment in the disorder arises from attentional deficits affecting short-term and working memory.

Plasma renin activity and ischemic heart disease

BACKGROUND

An earlier prospective study reported an association between high levels of plasma renin activity (as measured by the renin-sodium profile) and the incidence of myocardial infarction in patients with hypertension. We have investigated the relation between plasma renin activity and ischemic heart disease in the Northwick Park Heart Study.

METHODS

The study included 803 white men 40 to 64 years of age selected from industrial workers in London. Plasma renin activity and established risk factors for ischemic heart disease were measured at entry, which was between 1972 and 1978. Ascertainment of the primary clinical end points of fatal or nonfatal myocardial infarction and sudden death from coronary causes was carried out until the end of 1991.

RESULTS

In an analysis of the 86 first coronary events, we found an independent relation between higher systolic blood pressure and coronary end points (relative risk per 1 SD increase in blood pressure, 1.47; 95 percent confidence interval, 1.16 to 1.85; P < 0.001), but no relation between plasma renin activity and coronary end points (relative risk per 1 SD increase in the level of plasma renin activity, 1.04; 95 percent confidence interval, 0.84 to 1.30). In the 242 men who had hypertension of a degree similar to that of the subjects in the earlier prospective study of the renin profile, and in whom 44 of the 86 coronary events occurred, the relative risk of those in the highest as compared with the lowest third for plasma renin activity was 1.26 (95 percent confidence interval, 0.63 to 2.56).

CONCLUSIONS

Our results suggest that there is no association between plasma renin activity and myocardial infarction or sudden death from coronary causes, at least in normotensive men.

Deletion of the SH3 domain of Src interferes with regulation by the phosphorylated carboxyl-terminal tyrosine

A current model for the regulation of the Src protein-tyrosine kinase proposes that the COOH-terminal phosphotyrosine, Tyr-527, binds to the Src homology 2 (SH2) region in an intramolecular interaction that represses the kinase domain. This model is consistent with the activation of Src by mutations in the SH2 domain or COOH terminus. Mutations in the SH3 domain also activate Src, although this region is not thought to bind phosphotyrosine. Seidel-Dugan et al. (Seidel-Dugan, C., Meyer, B. E., Thomas, S. M., and Brugge, J. S. (1992) Mol. Cell. Biol. 12, 1835-1845) have shown that Src mutants with deletions in the SH2 or SH3 domain transform chicken embryo fibroblasts and have increased kinase activity. These mutant proteins are underphosphorylated at Tyr-527, a change that could in itself activate the mutants. Therefore, it is not possible to distinguish whether the SH2 and SH3 domains are needed for phosphorylation of Tyr-527 or for Src to adopt or maintain the repressed state. We have artificially increased the level of Tyr-527 phosphorylation of SH2 and SH3 deletion mutants by coexpressing them with the Tyr-527 kinase, Csk, in yeast cells. We find that both the SH2 and SH3 domains are needed for inhibition of Src by Csk. The SH2 domain is needed for efficient phosphorylation by Csk, both in yeast cells and in vitro. The SH3 domain is needed for Src to be inhibited when Tyr-527 is phosphorylated by Csk. This suggests that the SH3 domain cooperates with the SH2 domain and phosphorylated Tyr-527 to inhibit the kinase domain. Dephosphorylation of SH3 domain mutants at Tyr-527 in fibroblasts could be a consequence of a failure of the proposed SH2/phosphotyrosine interaction.

Positive association between self-reported fatty food consumption and factor VII coagulant activity, a risk factor for coronary heart disease, in 4246 middle-aged men

Raised levels of factor VII coagulant activity (VIIc) have been reported to increase the incidence of CHD. Preliminary evidence from observational and experimental studies suggests that dietary fat intake is positively associated with VIIc. We explored this further in 4,246 men aged 45-69, who were found to be free of major CHD when screened for a primary prevention trial of antithrombotic medication. All men were asked about their consumption of fatty foods and changes in consumption in the last month. In the 9% of men who reported avoidance of fatty foods in the month before interview, age adjusted VIIc was 7.8% of standard (95% CI 5.1-10.6%) lower than in the remainder. Serum cholesterol and body mass index (BMI) were also significantly lower. The extent to which fat consumed in the past month had deviated from usual intake was significantly and positively related with VIIc, serum cholesterol and BMI. Thus, the VIIc difference between those eating much less fatty food than usual and those eating much more than usual was 11% of standard, with those eating their usual amount having an intermediate level. This study adds to the evidence that dietary fat intake influences VIIc and coagulability. The effect is rapid, so that much of the benefit of dietary fat reduction on thrombogenic risk in CHD is likely to occur within a short time. Thus, the results reinforce the value of a low fat diet, even in individuals with advanced atheroma, in whom dietary intervention has sometimes been considered unlikely to be effective.

Detection of patient motion during tomographic myocardial perfusion imaging

We compared the effectiveness of four methods for detecting patient motion during tomographic myocardial perfusion imaging: visual inspection of a cine of the raw data, cross-correlation, diverging squares and a new method called two-dimensional fit. The methods were evaluated for their ability to detect the presence of motion, localize the camera angle at which motion occurred and measure the distance of motion. Patient motion was simulated by shifting motion-free images and then masking their periphery so that the field of view did not move on the image matrix. None of the methods detected 3.25 mm of motion with clinically useful accuracies. Visual inspection, cross-correlation and two-dimensional fit most accurately detected axial patient motion (p < 0.05), whereas cross-correlation most accurately detected lateral motion (p < 0.05). For axial motion, cross-correlation and two-dimensional fit most accurately localized the camera angle at which patient motion occurred (p < 0.05). For lateral motion, cross-correlation most accurately localized patient motion (p < 0.05). Two-dimensional fit measured the distance of axial patient motion to +/- 1.1 mm and measured the distance of lateral motion to +/- 8.7 mm. All other methods frequently overestimated or underestimated the distance of motion by > 13 mm. We conclude that cross-correlation adequately screens tomographic myocardial perfusion studies for both axial and lateral patient motion, although visual inspection is adequate for detection of axial motion. Cross-correlation best localizes the camera angle at which the motion occurred. Two-dimensional fit is the only method studied that accurately measures the distance of motion.

Mammalian Ras interacts directly with the serine/threonine kinase Raf

We have identified proteins that interact with H-Ras using a two hybrid system screen of a mouse cDNA library. Approximately 50% of the clones identified encoded portions of the c-Raf and A-Raf serine/threonine kinases. Overlaps among these clones define a conserved 81 residue region of the N-terminus of Raf as the Ras interaction region. We show that Raf interacts with wild-type and activated Ras, but not with an effector domain mutant of Ras or with a dominant-interfering Ras mutant. Using purified bacterially expressed fusion proteins, we show, furthermore, that Ras and the N-terminal region of Raf associate directly in vitro and that this interaction is dependent on GTP bound to Ras.

p42 mitogen-activated protein kinase in brain: prominent localization in neuronal cell bodies and dendrites

Neurotransmitters and growth factors can trigger activation of a newly described family of mitogen-activated protein kinases. To help define the role of this kinase family in signal transduction in the nervous system, we have conducted immunohistochemical studies to localize p42 mitogen-activated protein kinase in rat brain sections. Light-microscopic studies revealed staining in neuronal cell bodies and dendrites that is particularly prominent in superficial layers of the neocortex, the hippocampal CA3 region and dentate gyrus, as well as cerebellar Purkinje cells. Discrete staining of oligodendrocytes was also apparent in fiber tracts, indicating expression of p42 mitogen-activated protein kinase in both neuronal and glial cell types. Electron-microscopic studies demonstrated that staining in dendrites is closely associated with microtubules. In the cell bodies, prominent staining was associated with the Golgi apparatus. In contrast, immunolabeling of synaptic terminals was not detected. Previous studies have demonstrated that p42 mitogen-activated protein kinase responds to neuronal stimulation. Immunohistochemical studies presented in this paper demonstrate prominent staining for this kinase in neuronal cell bodies and dendrites. Therefore, this kinase is likely to play a key role in postsynaptic signal transduction. As both p42 mitogen-activated protein kinase and microtubule-associated protein 2, an in vitro substrate of p42 mitogen-activated kinase, are associated with dendritic microtubules, this kinase may mediate effects of growth factors or neurotransmitters on the dendritic cytoskeleton.

Identification and characterization of a cDNA encoding mouse CAP: a homolog of the yeast adenylyl cyclase associated protein

CAP, an adenylyl cyclase associated protein, is present in Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Schizosaccharomyces pombe. In both organisms, CAP is bifunctional: the N-terminal domain binds to adenylyl cyclase, thereby enabling adenylyl cyclase to respond appropriately to upstream regulatory signals, such as RAS in S. cerevisiae; the C-terminal domain is required for cellular morphogenesis. Here, we describe the isolation of a cDNA encoding a CAP homolog from a higher eukaryote. The mouse CAP cDNA contains an open reading frame capable of encoding a 474 amino acid protein. The protein encoded by the mouse CAP cDNA shows extensive homology to the yeast CAP proteins, particularly in the central poly-proline rich region and in the C-terminal domain. By northern analysis, the CAP message appears to be ubiquitous, but not uniform. By indirect immunofluorescence, ectopically expressed mouse CAP protein is found in the cytoplasm of fibroblasts and, in migrating cells, at the leading edge. Expression of the mouse CAP cDNA in S. cerevisiae complements defects associated with loss of the yeast CAP carboxy-terminal domain. Hence, the function of the CAP carboxy-terminal domain has been conserved from yeast to mouse.

Encoding deficits in untreated Parkinson's disease

Short-term memory deficits are prominent in untreated Parkinson's Disease (PD) and speed of central processing is known to be abnormal. To investigate the relationship between these findings, a modification of the Brown-Peterson paradigm was given to newly diagnosed, untreated patients and healthy control subjects (HCS). The PD patients were impaired under conditions of long stimulus exposure but not when study time was short. Although patients displayed deficits in immediate recall, they were more impaired at longer test delays. They achieved fewer encoding operations per unit time, resulting in a divergence of group performance with increasing duration of stimulus exposure. Performance in the PD group did not associate with motor disability, disease duration or rating of depression. These results are discussed in terms of a unifying reduced central processing deficit that is evident in PD but is independent of physical symptoms.

Unexpected combinations of null mutations in genes encoding the actin cytoskeleton are lethal in yeast

To understand the role of the actin cytoskeleton in cell physiology, and how actin-binding proteins regulate the actin cytoskeleton in vivo, we and others previously identified actin-binding proteins in Saccharomyces cerevisiae and studied the effect of null mutations in the genes for these proteins. A null mutation of the actin gene (ACT1) is lethal, but null mutations in the tropomyosin (TPM1), fimbrin (SAC6), Abp1p (ABP1), and capping protein (CAP1 and CAP2) genes have relatively mild or no effects. We have now constructed double and triple mutants lacking 2 or 3 of these actin-binding proteins, and studied the effect of the combined mutations on cell growth, morphology, and organization of the actin cytoskeleton. Double mutants lacking fimbrin and either Abp1p or capping protein show negative synthetic effects on growth, in the most extreme case resulting in lethality. All other combinations of double mutations and the triple mutant lacking tropomyosin, Abp1p, and capping protein, are viable and their phenotypes are similar to or only slightly more severe than those of the single mutants. Therefore, the synthetic phenotypes are highly specific. We confirmed this specificity by overexpression of capping protein and Abp1p in strains lacking fimbrin. Thus, while overexpression of these proteins has deleterious effects on actin organization in wild-type strains, no synthetic phenotype was observed in the absence of fimbrin. We draw two important conclusions from these results. First, since mutations in pairs of actin-binding protein genes cause inviability, the actin cytoskeleton of yeast does not contain a high degree of redundancy. Second, the lack of structural and functional homology among these genetically redundant proteins (fimbrin and capping protein or Abp1p) indicates that they regulate the actin cytoskeleton by different mechanisms. Determination of the molecular basis for this surprising conclusion will provide unique insights into the essential mechanisms that regulate the actin cytoskeleton.

Mos stimulates MAP kinase in Xenopus oocytes and activates a MAP kinase kinase in vitro

Several protein kinases, including Mos, maturation-promoting factor (MPF), mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase, and MAP kinase kinase (MAPKK), are activated when Xenopus oocytes enter meiosis. De novo synthesis of the Mos protein is required for progesterone-induced meiotic maturation. Recently, bacterially synthesized maltose-binding protein (MBP)-Mos fusion protein was shown to be sufficient to initiate meiosis I and MPF activation in fully grown oocytes in the absence of protein synthesis. Here we show that MAP kinase is rapidly phosphorylated and activated following injection of wild-type, but not kinase-inactive mutant, MBP-Mos into fully grown oocytes. MAP kinase activation by MBP-Mos occurs within 20 min, much more rapidly than in progesterone-treated oocytes. The MBP-Mos fusion protein also activates MPF, but MPF activation does not occur until approximately 2 h after injection. Extracts from oocytes injected with wild-type but not kinase-inactive MBP-Mos contain an activity that can phosphorylate MAP kinase, suggesting that Mos directly or indirectly activates a MAPKK. Furthermore, activated MBP-Mos fusion protein is able to phosphorylate and activate a purified, phosphatase-treated, rabbit muscle MAPKK in vitro. Thus, in oocytes, Mos is an upstream activator of MAP kinase which may function through direct phosphorylation of MAPKK.

The relationship between factor VII coagulant activity and factor XII activation induced in plasma by endogenous or exogenously added contact surface

The contribution of various enzymes in the activation of factor VII, determined from the increase in factor VII coagulant activity (VIIc), was investigated following the exposure of citrated plasma to low temperature. The contact system of coagulation was initiated either by the contact surface present in certain plasmas (i.e. plasma from women in late pregnancy) or by micellar stearate added to plasma diluted with an equal volume of buffer (plasma from normal healthy subjects or from women in late pregnancy). With either of the contact surfaces, increase of VIIc and the concentration of enzymes derived from factor XII (XIIa) depended on the potency of the contact surface. The stearate-induced VIIc in diluted plasmas from women in late pregnancy or from normal subjects was inhibited by 60-70% in the presence of anti-factor IX monoclonal antibody. VIIc was not increased in XII-deficient plasma following the addition of stearate. The addition of purified human factor XII to this plasma restored the increase in VIIc and the activation of factor XII. In factor IX-deficient plasma, the stearate-induced increase in VIIc was only 38% of that seen in normal plasma and was restored by the addition of purified factor IX. Similarly in factor XI-deficient plasma, the stearate-induced increase in VIIc and the factor XII activation were 48% and 69% of that found in normal plasma. The addition of EDTA (2 mM) did not alter the extent of factor XII activation induced by contact surface, but it did inhibit the rise in VIIc. It is concluded that in the presence of contact surface the activation of factor XII and the sequential activation of factor XI and of factor IX results in the activation of factor VII. Activated factor IX is responsible for the major part of the factor VII activation whereas the rest may be through the direct activation by XIIa.

In vivo binding properties of SH2 domains from GTPase-activating protein and phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase

We have used a transient expression system and mutant platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) receptors to study the binding specificities of the Src homology 2 (SH2) regions of the Ras GTPase-activator protein (GAP) and the p85 alpha subunit of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3 kinase). A number of fusion proteins, each tagged with an epitope allowing recognition by a monoclonal antibody, were expressed at levels comparable to those of endogenous GAP. Fusion proteins containing the central SH2-SH3-SH2 region of GAP or the C-terminal region of p85 alpha, which includes two SH2 domains, bound to PDGF receptors in response to PDGF stimulation. Both fusion proteins showed the same requirements for tyrosine phosphorylation sites in the PDGF receptor as the full-length proteins from which they were derived, i.e., binding of the GAP fusion protein was reduced by mutation of Tyr-771, and binding of the p85 fusion protein was reduced by mutation of Tyr-740, Tyr-751, or both residues. Fusion proteins containing single SH2 domains from either GAP or p85 alpha did not bind detectably to PDGF receptors in this system, suggesting that two SH2 domains in a single polypeptide cooperate to raise the affinity of binding. The sequence specificities of individual SH2 domains were deduced from the binding properties of fusion proteins containing one SH2 domain from GAP and another from p85. The results suggest that the C-terminal GAP SH2 domain specifies binding to Tyr-771, the C-terminal p85 alpha SH2 domain binds to either Tyr-740 or Tyr-751, and each protein's N-terminal SH2 domain binds to unidentified phosphorylation sites.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Phosphorylation sites at the C-terminus of the platelet-derived growth factor receptor bind phospholipase C gamma 1

We have identified two tyrosine phosphorylation sites, Tyr 1009 and Tyr 1021, in the C-terminal noncatalytic region of the human platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) receptor beta subunit. Mutant receptors with phenylalanine substitutions at either or both of these tyrosines were expressed in dog epithelial cells. Mutation of Tyr 1021 markedly reduced the PDGF-stimulated binding of phospholipase C (PLC) gamma 1 but had no effect on binding of the GTPase activator protein of Ras or of phosphatidylinositol 3 kinase. Mutation of Tyr 1009 reduced binding of PLC gamma 1 less severely. Mutation of Tyr 1021, or both Tyr 1009 and Tyr 1021, also reduced the PDGF-dependent binding of a transiently expressed fusion protein containing the two Src-homology 2 domains from PLC gamma 1. Mutation of Tyr 1021, or both Tyr 1009 and Tyr 1021, greatly reduced PDGF-stimulated tyrosine phosphorylation of PLC gamma 1 but did not prevent the tyrosine phosphorylation of other cell proteins, including mitogen-activated protein kinase. We conclude that Tyr 1021, and possibly Tyr 1009, is a binding site for PLC gamma 1.

Localization of CapZ during myofibrillogenesis in cultured chicken muscle

Actin filaments undergo dramatic changes in their organization during myofibrillogenesis. In mature skeletal muscle, both CapZ and the barbed end of the actin filaments are located at Z-discs. In vitro, CapZ binds the barbed end of actin filaments and prevents actin subunit addition and loss; CapZ also nucleates actin polymerization in vitro. Taken together, these properties suggest that CapZ may function to organize actin filaments during myofibrillogenesis. We report here that the amount of CapZ in myofibrils from adult chicken pectoral muscle is sufficient to "cap" each actin filament of the sacromere. Double immunofluorescence microscopy of skeletal muscle cells in culture was used to determine the spatial and temporal distributions of CapZ relative to actin, alpha-actinin, titin, and myosin during myofibrillogenesis. Of particular interest was the assembly of CapZ at nascent Z-discs in relation to the organization of actin filaments in nascent myofibrils. In myoblasts and young myotubes, CapZ was diffusely distributed in the cytoplasm. As myotubes matured, CapZ was initially observed in a uniform distribution along non-striated actin filaments called stress fiber-like structures (SFLS). CapZ was observed in a periodic pattern characteristic of mature Z-discs along the SFLS prior to the appearance of a striated staining pattern for actin. In older myotubes, when actin was observed in a pattern characteristic of I-bands, CapZ was distributed in a periodic pattern characteristic of mature Z-discs. The finding that CapZ was assembled at nascent Z-discs before actin was observed in a striated pattern is consistent with the hypothesis that CapZ directs the location and polarity of actin filaments during I-band formation in skeletal muscle cells. The assembly of CapZ at nascent Z-disc structures also was observed relative to the assembly of sarcomeric alpha-actinin, titin, and thick filaments. Titin and myosin were observed in structures having the organization of mature sarcomeres prior to the appearance of CapZ at nascent Z-discs. The distribution of CapZ and sarcomeric alpha-actinin in young myotubes was not coincident; in older myotubes, both CapZ and alpha-actinin were co-localized at Z-discs. In cardiac myocytes, CapZ was detected at Z-discs and was distributed in a punctate pattern throughout the cytoplasm. CapZ also was co-localized with A-CAM and vinculin at cell-cell junctions formed by the myocytes.

Phosphorylation of Src mutants at Tyr 527 in fibroblasts does not correlate with in vitro phosphorylation by CSK

In normal fibroblasts, the product of the cellular src gene, p60c-src or Src, is repressed by phosphorylation at its C-terminal tyrosine residue, Tyr 527. Mutations in Src that prevent phosphorylation cause enzymatic activation and malignant transformation. The tyrosine kinases that phosphorylate Src at Tyr 527 in vivo have not been identified, but a tyrosine kinase known as CSK is an excellent candidate. CSK has the unusual ability to phosphorylate Src in vitro only at Tyr 527. To examine whether CSK has the appropriate sequence specificy to explain the phosphorylation of Src at Tyr 527 in fibroblasts, we have made use of a set of C-terminal substitution mutants of Src. These mutants were previously characterized for their levels of Tyr 527 phosphorylation when expressed in Rat2 fibroblasts. The ability of CSK to phosphorylate selected mutants has now been tested, using both in vitro phosphorylation assays and co-expression of CSK with the Src mutants in a heterologous organism, Saccharomyces cerevisiae. We also tested whether the mutant Src molecules could autophosphorylate at Try 527, by examining the phosphorylation state of catalytically active forms expressed in the absence of CSK in yeast cells. The results show that CSK has strict sequence specificity for the normal Src sequence, although it can also phosphorylate the Lck sequence. The other mutant Src molecules tested were not phophorylated by CSK, even though some of these mutants are highly phosphorylated at Tyr 527 in Rat 2 cells. All the mutants that are phosphorylated at Tyr 527 in Rat2 cells are also able to autophosphorylate at Tyr 527. The results suggest that CSK, autophosphorylation, and phosphorylation by kinases other than CSK, may all contribution to repressing Src catalytic activity in fibroblasts.

Overexpressed Drosophila src 64B is phosphorylated at its carboxy-terminal tyrosine, but is not catalytically repressed, in cultured Drosophila cells

Little is known about the regulation of non-receptor tyrosine kinases in invertebrates. We have studied the relationship between the phosphorylation state of the Drosophila src 64B (Dsrc) gene product, p62D, and its tyrosine kinase activity in Drosophila Schneider 2 cells, using wild-type and mutated Dsrc constructs that were overexpressed by transient transfection. Phosphopeptide mapping showed that the putative regulatory C-terminal tyrosine (Tyr-547) of p62D was phosphorylated in vivo. In contrast to vertebrate src family kinases overexpressed in fibroblasts, wild-type p62D overexpressed in Schneider 2 cells was phosphorylated at additional tyrosines outside of the C-terminus. These tyrosines corresponded to the major in vitro autophosphorylation sites. Overexpression of wild-type p62D or several catalytically active p62D mutants significantly increased the phosphorylation of numerous Schneider cell proteins on tyrosine, while expression of catalytically inactive mutants of p62D had no such effect. Thus, in contrast to the repression of src family kinase activity in fibroblasts, p62D is catalytically active when overexpressed in Drosophila cells, perhaps because of substoichiometric C-terminal tyrosine phosphorylation. These results raise the possibility that fly development will be sensitive to ectopic expression of p62D.

Effects of in vitro amiodarone exposure on alveolar macrophage inflammatory mediator production

Administration of amiodarone, although often lifesaving, is associated with pulmonary side effects. Patients with amiodarone pulmonary toxicity can present with either a chronic disorder that suggests pulmonary fibrosis or a more acute process. Mechanisms of acute pulmonary injury resulting from amiodarone are unclear. Previous studies have demonstrated that the drug is preferentially concentrated in alveolar macrophages. In the present study, the authors examined whether in vitro exposure to amiodarone resulted in alteration of rat alveolar macrophage superoxide, leukotriene B4, or fibronectin release. In addition, the authors assessed whether macrophages were ultrastructurally altered by in vitro amiodarone exposure. Twenty four hour exposure to therapeutic tissue concentrations of amiodarone resulted in enhancement of phorbol myristate acetate-stimulated macrophage superoxide release. In addition, 48 hours exposure to amiodarone caused a dose-dependent inhibition of spontaneous fibronectin release by macrophages. Macrophages exposed to 48 hours of 10 micrograms/ml amiodarone were ultrastructurally abnormal, containing lamellar inclusions and demonstrating a large degree of vacuolization. The authors concluded that alveolar macrophages are very sensitive to therapeutic tissue concentrations of amiodarone. Alteration of macrophage mediator release by amiodarone may be one mechanism for lung damage induced by the drug.

Different effects of dopaminergic and anticholinergic therapies on cognitive and motor function in Parkinson's disease. A follow-up study of untreated patients

The cognitive performance of a group of 82 newly diagnosed patients with Parkinson's disease who had never been treated was reassessed approximately 4 mths after randomization to one of three monotherapies (levodopa, bromocriptine or anticholinergic drugs). Dopaminergic and anticholinergic treatments both led to improvement in motor control but their effects upon cognitive performance dissociated. Anticholinergic drugs produced impairment in processes underlying the immediate registration of information whilst dopaminergic therapy produced improvement on a task dependent on working memory and cognitive sequencing. Other cognitive measures showed no change on treatment. The deficits that were affected by cholinergic and dopaminergic modulation are those that were most compromised in the early, untreated state in Parkinson's disease. The data support the notion that cognitive impairment in Parkinson's disease is multifactorial in origin: short-term memory processes are served by both dopaminergic and cholinergic subcortico-frontal systems but much of the cognitive impairment of Parkinson's disease is independent of this subcortical neurochemical pathology and may be due to early neuronal dysfunction within the cerebral cortex.

Effects of null mutations and overexpression of capping protein on morphogenesis, actin distribution and polarized secretion in yeast

CAP1, the gene encoding the alpha subunit of Saccharomyces cerevisiae capping protein, was cloned using a probe prepared by PCR with primers based on the amino acid sequence of purified alpha subunit peptides. The sequence is similar to that of capping protein alpha subunits of other species but not to that of the S. cerevisiae capping protein beta subunit or any other protein. Null mutants of capping protein, prepared by deletion of the coding region of CAP1 and CAP2 separately or together, are viable and have a similar phenotype. Deletion of the gene for one subunit leads to a loss of protein for the other subunit. The null mutant has a severe deficit of actin cables and an increased number of actin spots in the mother. Cells are round and relatively large. These features are heterogeneous within a population of cells and vary with genetic background. Overexpression of CAP1 and CAP2 also causes loss of actin cables and cell enlargement, as well as the additional traits of aberrant morphogenesis and cell wall thickening. Capping protein null strains and overexpression strains exhibited normal polarized secretion during bud growth as demonstrated by labeling with fluoresceinated Con A. Projection formation and chitin deposition in response to mating pheromone, mating efficiency, and bud site selection were also normal in capping protein null strains. In addition, bulk secretion of invertase was unimpaired. These data indicate that actin cables are not required for polarized secretion in S. cerevisiae.

Developmentally regulated expression of a mitogen-activated protein kinase in Xenopus laevis

Mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinases are activated in somatic cells in response to many extracellular stimuli and in oocytes during meiotic maturation. We have examined the tissue specificity of expression of a MAP kinase (Xp42) in adult and larval Xenopus laevis. MAP kinase RNA and protein were abundant in the nervous system and lymphoid tissues and were readily detected in most other organs. A remarkably high level of RNA was detected in ovary. Fractionation of oocytes showed that MAP kinase RNA is expressed at the highest level in small oocytes, suggesting that it is a maternal RNA that is stored for early embryogenesis. The levels of MAP kinase RNA and protein did not change from the time of fertilization through to late blastula. The results are consistent with functions for MAP kinases in signal transduction in embryonic as well as adult cells.