Nervous system-specific proteins of vertebrates : A search for functions and physiologicla roles

Effect of chronic pre- and post-natal low-dose ethanol exposure on brain enolase isoenzyme activities

Sprague-Dawley dams were treated with 3 v/v % ethanol in liquid diet from the 8th day gestation through 3 weeks nursing period. Offsprings, ages 1, 2 and 3 weeks, and their dams were studied. Brain weights and their total proteins were not affected by this ethanol treatment. Total enolase activity/mg protein and its isoenzymes, i.e. non-neuron-specific, hybrid and neuron-specific, (mumol/min/mg protein) in 100,000 g supernate, were significantly lower in the treated. Additionally, enolase isoenzyme transformation was delayed.

Antineuron specific enolase staining reactions in sarcomas and carcinomas: its lack of neuroendocrine specificity

A commercially available polyclonal antiserum (Dakopatts) raised against bovine neuron specific enolase (NSE) was reacted with 197 sarcomas, 32 carcinomas, 11 carcinoid tumours and 20 malignant melanomas to assess its specificity for neuroendocrine tumours. All the tumours had been fixed in formalin and embedded in paraffin. Positive tumour cells were found in two of 11 squamous cell carcinomas, one of 11 adenocarcinomas, 10 of 10 oat cell carcinomas, 11 of 11 carcinoid tumours, 16 of 20 malignant melanomas, four of seven clear cell sarcomas, nine of 25 leiomyosarcomas, four of 22 rhabdomyosarcomas, one of seven angiosarcomas and one of 20 synovial sarcomas.

Cross-reaction of anti-rat B-50: characterization and isolation of a "B-50 phosphoprotein" from bovine brain

Antibodies to the phosphoprotein B-50 of rat brain were used to trace cross-reacting brain proteins of vertebrates. With the SDS-gel-immunoperoxidase method, a cross-reacting protein (CP) of apparent Mr 53,000 was demonstrated in the homogenate and the synaptic plasma membrane fraction of bovine brain. Sequence 1-24 of adrenocorticotropin (ACTH1-24) (10(-5) M and 10(-4) M) inhibited endogenous phosphorylation of CP in synaptic plasma membranes. The protein was partially characterized and purified to homogeneity from bovine brain by procedures previously described for rat B-50. CP was enriched in ammonium sulfate precipitated protein (ASP) fractions and phosphorylated by an endogenous protein kinase. Two-dimensional gel analysis of bovine and rat ASP showed that the cross-reacting protein had an isoelectric point less acidic than B-50. Limited proteolysis by Staphylococcus aureus protease yielded a "peptide map" analogous to B-50. Two major fragments of Mr 30,000 and 17,000 were produced. In addition, CP exhibited other similarities to rat B-50: phosphorylation by rat brain protein kinase C, microheterogeneity observed after isoelectric focusing, and possibly degradation by endogenous proteolysis. Cross-reaction of proteins in brain homogenates of other mammalian species and of chicken was demonstrated: the Mr of the proteins ranged from 47,000 to 53,000. We conclude that (1) the cross-reacting bovine protein is a "B-50 protein," and (2) the Mr of the "B-50 protein" varies from species to species.

Analysis of brain and pituitary RNA metabolism: a review of recent methodologies

Recent characterization of brain and pituitary RNA metabolism is reviewed. Relative to other tissues, the brain transcribes more of the unique, single-copy DNA. This transcriptional diversity reflects the inherent heterogeneity in organization and development of the brain. The end product of transcriptional regulation in the brain is a population of functional cytoplasmic mRNAs with multiple components, differing in complexity and abundance. Analysis of nuclear and cytoplasmic RNA provides evidence that both brain-specific synthesis and processing may determine the final mRNA population. Both polyadenylated and non-polyadenylated RNA classes contribute significantly to the total brain polysomal mRNA fraction. Characterizations of individual species of mRNA from both brain and pituitary are described. One possible transcriptional modulator in both the pituitary and brain is the presence of steroid hormone at responsive sites. Functional consequences of steroid accumulation within the brain may be (1) interactions with neurotransmitter, especially catecholamine, metabolism and function, (2) developmental interactions with neuronal systems, and (3) differentiation of glial cell function. The pleiotropic nature of steroid hormone effects (both transcriptional and non-transcriptional) within one brain region is considered by examining the biochemical effects of glucocorticoids in the hippocampus.

S-100 protein synthesis in cultured glioma cell is G1-phase of cell cycle dependent

The kinetics of S-100 protein synthesis was studied in synchronized cultured glioma (C6) cells. The peak of the synthesis was detected at G1-phase of the cell cycle and apparently was not population density-dependent, since sparsely cultured G1-phase cells synthesized the same proportion of the protein per cell as that of confluent cultures, whereas the total cellular protein synthesis was found steadily increasing throughout the intermitotic phases.

Monoclonal antibodies as neural cell surface markers

A comparison is made of the immunohistochemistry at the ultrastructural level of three monoclonal antibodies directed against surface components of DNS cells. Hybridomas secreting these antibodies were obtained from two cell fusions of a rat myeloma cell line and immune splenocytes derived from rats immunized either with primary mouse brain cultured cells or membrane components. In cultures one antibody, anti-BSP2 (Brain Surface Protein-2), was preferentially directed against neurons while another, anti-BSP-3 (Brain Surface Protein-3), preferentially labeled astrocytes. In mouse cerebellar sections, both labeled the surface of Purkinje cells, granule cells and astrocytes. In addition a cytoplasm localization was apparent in granule cells and astrocytes. Another antibody anti-MESA-1 (Mouse Endothelial Surface Antigen-1) reacted exclusively with the surface of endothelial cells lining blood vessels. These data are discussed with reference to the biochemical nature of the corresponding antigens and to known glycoproteins of neural cell membranes.

The effect of S100 protein on the plasma membrane function of neurons

The protein S100 markedly increases the net intake of GABA across the plasma membrane of Deiters' neurons which have GABA receptors on their surfaces. This membrane function of S100 was found by using a new microtechnique. Plasma membranes of such cells have been freshly prepared by freehand microsurgery and are tightly fixed over a 30-micrometers phi hole between two compartments of a microchamber containing 2.0 mM GABA in 7.5 microliters and 0.2 mM GABA in 75 microliters, respectively. The transport of GABA has been determined after incubation of the membrane for from 30 sec to 10 min at 29 degrees C. GABA is transported at a rate of 145 ng in 3 min over a 700-micrometers2 membrane area. S100 in its calcium form reacts with the membrane and increases GABA transport by 20% which is ATP dependent and inhibited by ouabain and ruthenium red. The kinetics of the transport furthermore prove that GABA transport across the plasma membrane is an active process.

An ultrastructural immunocytochemical study of nerve-specific protein in rat cerebellum

The ultrastructural localization of the neuron-specific enolase (14-3-2 protein) has been investigated in the cerebellum of the adult rat using the indirect antibody immunohistochemical method. The protein was found exclusively in neurons: perikaryal cytoplasm, axons and dendrites were labelled while nuclei were not. Reaction product was found to be attached to intracytoplasmic membranes, the surface membranes of mitochondria and microtubules in addition to its dispersion as a flocculent material throughout the cytoplasm. All classes of cerebellar neurons were found to be labelled though large variations in the level of labelling between different types of neuron were noted. Purkinje cells appeared to have a much lower cytoplasmic concentration of this protein than other neurons.

Antigenic properties of the loosely bound subnuclear fraction of rat brain

Antibodies against the loosely bound subnuclear fraction (0.35 M NaCl-extractable subnuclear fraction) of rat brain were raised in rabbits, and the distribution of the main antigenic determinants was followed among subcellular fractions of nervous tissue and among homologous nuclear preparations from different tissues. By immunofluorescence a localization restricted to the nucleus was observed, and by microcomplement fixation the antigens appeared to specifically enrich the fraction under examination, being poorly detectable in cytosol, nuclear sap, or deoxyribonucleoproteins of rat brain. No significant cross-reaction was observed by complement fixation with homologous preparations from muscle, liver, kidney, spleen, lung, or thymus of rat, whereas the 0.35 M NaCl-extracted subnuclear fraction from rat testis exhibited an immunoreactivity, although lower than that for brain proteins. After trypsin or ribonuclease treatment, the main antigenic determinants appeared to be protein in nature. The subnuclear fraction under examination, which is believed to be relevant to gene regulation, appears to contain protein antigens mainly concentrated in the nervous system.

Neurons switch from non-neuronal enolase to neuron-specific enolase during differentiation

The enolase (EC 4.2.1.11) isoenzymes, neuron-specific enolase (NSE, gamma gamma) and non-neuronal enolase (NNE, alpha alpha), are markers for neurons and glia, respectively, in adult mammalian brain. In developing fetal and early postnatal brain, levels of non-neuronal enolase (NNE) are high. Neuron-specific enolase (NSE) appears only after neurogenesis begins in a given region and only slowly attains adult levels. Immunocytochemistry in developing rat and rhesus monkey brain reveals that proliferative zones that give rise to neurons are NNE(+). Thus, nerve cells must undergo a switch from NNE to NSE. In addition, study of neurons in cerebellum and neocortex reveals that they are NNE(+) during migration and only become NSE(+) in their final location, presumably after making full synaptic connections. Such migrating cells may contain hybrid enolase (alpha gamma) and some (e.g. cerebellar stellate/basket cells) may not completely switch over to NSE even in the adult. Neuron-specific enolase is not only a specific molecular marker for mature nerve cells, but is closely correlated to the differentiated state.

The S-100 antigen in cerebrospinal fluid as a possible index of cell injury in the nervous system

The presence of the nervous system-specific S-100 antigen has been tested by microcomplement fixation assay with a monospecific anti-S-100 antiserum in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of subjects suffering from psychiatric disorders or various neurological diseases. The antigen was detectable in the CSF of most of the patients with neurological diseases characterized by an appreciable lesion in the nervous parenchyma, whereas it was generally absent from CSF of subjects presumably free from an extensive neurological lesion in the active phase. It is possible that the presence of S-100 IN CSF might be an index of active cell injury in the nervous parenchyma.

The nervous system-specific S-100 antigen in cerebrospinal fluid of multiple sclerosis patients

The nervous system-specific S-100 antigen has been found in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of 13 out of 18 patients with multiple sclerosis (MS), whereas it was undetectable in either of the 11 control patients with minor psychic disturbances or with neurological disorders not usually associated with apparent parenchymal lesion. The levels of the antigen appeared to be higher in CSF of patients in the acute phase of the disease. Though the small number of cases hampers final statements, the S-100 in CSF might serve as a possible index of active cell injury in the central nervous system underlying the pathogenesis of MS.