Reduced nerve growth factor levels in stress-related brain regions of folate-deficient mice.

Folate deficiency has been linked to neurodegenerative and stress-related diseases such as stroke, dementia and depression. The role of the neurotrophins nerve growth factor (NGF) and neurotrophin-3 (NT-3) in stress-related disorders and neurodegeneration has garnered increasing attention in recent years. Uracil misincorporation is involved in the neuropsychiatric dysfunction induced by experimental folate deprivation. However, the effects of folate deficiency on the expression of NGF and NT-3 in brain tissue have not yet been investigated. In a 2×2 design, aged mice lacking uracil-DNA N-glycosylase (Ung(-/-)) versus wild-type (Ung(+/+)) controls were subjected to a folate-deficient diet versus a regular diet for three months. Independent of genotype, folate deficiency led to decreased NGF protein levels in the frontal cortex and amygdala. In the hippocampus, NGF levels were increased in UNG(-/-) mice on the normal diet, but not under folate deficiency, while in UNG(+/+) mice, folate deprivation did not affect hippocampal NGF content. NT-3 protein concentrations were neither affected by genotype nor by folate deficiency. Altogether, the results of our study show that folate deficiency affects NGF levels in the frontal cortex, amygdala and hippocampus. The decrease in NGF content in the hippocampus in response to folate deficiency in Ung(-/-) mice may contribute to their phenotype of enhanced anxiety and despair-like behavior as well as to selective hippocampal neurodegeneration.

Differential 24 h responsiveness of Prox1-expressing precursor cells in adult hippocampal neurogenesis to physical activity, environmental enrichment, and kainic acid-induced seizures.

Regulation of adult hippocampal neurogenesis in mice responds to behavioral stimuli, including physical activity (RUN) and the exposure to enriched environments (ENR). If studied after days or weeks, these stimuli and the pathological stimulus of kainic acid-induced seizures (KA) show differential effects on different developmental stages of adult neurogenesis. The question thus arose, whether such differential effects would also be apparent under very acute conditions. To further refine our method for identifying key restriction points in adult neurogenesis we here used the first expression of granule cell-specific transcription factor prospero-related homeobox 1 (Prox1) to identify lineage-determined progenitor cells in a nestin-green fluorescent protein (GFP) reporter gene mouse and labeled proliferating precursor cells with bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU). Twenty-four hours after the stimulus adult neurogenesis showed a very similar response to the three paradigms, in that cell proliferation increased. Detailed analysis, however, revealed the following new results: (1) KA, but not RUN and ENR stimulated the division of radial glia-like type-1 cells, (2) KA led to the disappearance of proliferative undetermined progenitor cells (type-2a), (3) only RUN increased proliferation of type-2a cells, (4) ENR and KA, in contrast, acted on lineage-determined progenitor cells (type-2b and type-3) even under acute conditions, and (5) only in the case of KA the short-term stimulus resulted in measurably increased survival of newborn neurons 4 weeks later. These results confirm and specify the idea that in the course of neuronal development in the adult hippocampus, precursor cells acutely sense and distinguish various forms of "activity" differentially and translate these stimuli into defined responses based on their stage of development.

[Bone marrow insufficiency and hemangioendothelioma of the liver after thorotrast application: Late effects of thorotrast (thorium dioxide) in man (author's transl)]. / Panmyelopathie und metastasierendes Hämangioendotheliom der Leber nach Thorotrastapplikation. Ein kasuistischer Beitrag zu den Spätfolgen nach Thorotrastanwendung.

The report details with the late effects following administration of thorotrast in two patients: multicentre metastating hemangioendothelioma of the liver respective bone marrow insufficiency developed after application of thorotrast 34 respective 36 years ago. The clinical and autoptical findings are described and attention is drawn to the relevance of this disease at present time.