Southern Illinois University School of Medicine

About: Southern Illinois University School of Medicine is a education organization based out in Springfield, Illinois, United States. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Cancer. The organization has 3747 authors who have published 5977 publications receiving 209115 citations. The organization is also known as: SIU School of Medicine.

Amyloid-β as a modulator of synaptic plasticity.

Abstract: Alzheimer’s disease is associated with synapse loss, memory dysfunction and pathological accumulation of amyloid beta in plaques. However, an exclusively pathological role for amyloid beta is being challenged by new evidence for an essential function of amyloid beta at the synapse. Amyloid beta protein exists in different assembly states in the central nervous system and plays distinct roles ranging from synapse and memory formation to memory loss and neuronal cell death. Amyloid beta is present in the brain of symptom-free people where it likely performs important physiological roles. New evidence indicates that synaptic activity directly evokes the release of amyloid beta at the synapse. At physiological levels, amyloid beta is a normal, soluble product of neuronal metabolism that regulates synaptic function beginning early in life. Monomeric amyloid beta 40 and 42 are the predominant forms required for synaptic plasticity and neuronal survival. With age, some assemblies of amyloid beta are associated with synaptic failure and Alzheimer’s disease pathology, possibly targeting the N-methyl-D-aspartic acid (NMDA) receptor through the α7-nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (α7-nAChR), mitochondrial amyloid-β alcohol dehydrogenase (ABAD) and cyclophilin D. But emerging data suggests a distinction between age effects on the target response in contrast to the assembly state or the accumulation of the peptide. Both aging and beta amyloid independently decrease neuronal plasticity. Our laboratory has reported that amyloid beta, glutamate and lactic acid are each increasingly toxic with neuron age. The basis of the age-related toxicity partly resides in age-related mitochondrial dysfunction and an oxidative shift in mitochondrial and cytoplasmic redox potential. In turn, signaling through phosphorylated extracellular signal-regulated protein kinases (pERK) is affected along with an age-independent increase in phosphorylated cAMP response element-binding protein (pCREB) This review examines the long-awaited functional impact of amyloid beta on synaptic plasticity.

Wallerian degeneration after cerebral infarction: evaluation with sequential MR imaging.

Abstract: The dynamic signal intensity changes at magnetic resonance (MR) imaging in active and chronic wallerian degeneration in the corticospinal tract were evaluated. Forty-three patients with wallerian degeneration seen on MR images after cerebral infarction were studied. When possible, patients with acute stroke were examined with MR imaging prospectively at the onset of symptoms and then at weekly intervals for several months. Focal infarction without distal axonal degeneration is demonstrated for the 1st month following onset of clinical symptoms. At 4 weeks, a well-defined band of hypointense signal appears on T2-weighted images in the topographic distribution of the corticospinal tract. After 10-14 weeks, the signal becomes permanently hyperintense. Over several years, accompanying ipsilateral brain stem shrinkage occurs. The dark signal intensity observed on T2-weighted images between 4 and 14 weeks is believed to result primarily from transitory increased lipid-protein ratio.

Sensitization and translocation of TRPV1 by insulin and IGF-I

Abstract: Insulin and insulin-like growth factors (IGFs) maintain vital neuronal functions. Absolute or functional deficiencies of insulin or IGF-I may contribute to neuronal and vascular complications associated with diabetes. Vanilloid receptor 1 (also called TRPV1) is an ion channel that mediates inflammatory thermal nociception and is present on sensory neurons. Here we demonstrate that both insulin and IGF-I enhance TRPV1-mediated membrane currents in heterologous expression systems and cultured dorsal root ganglion neurons. Enhancement of membrane current results from both increased sensitivity of the receptor and translocation of TRPV1 from cytosol to plasma membrane. Receptor tyrosine kinases trigger a signaling cascade leading to activation of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI(3)K) and protein kinase C (PKC)-mediated phosphorylation of TRPV1, which is found to be essential for the potentiation. These findings establish a link between the insulin family of trophic factors and vanilloid receptors.