Executive Function Changes before Memory in Preclinical Alzheimer’s Pathology: A Prospective,Cross-Sectional,Case Control Study

Background

Early treatment of Alzheimer’s disease may reduce its devastating effects. By focusing research on asymptomatic individuals with Alzheimer’s disease pathology (the preclinical stage), earlier indicators of disease may be discovered. Decreasing cerebrospinal fluid beta-amyloid₄₂ is the first indicator of preclinical disorder, but it is not known which pathology causes the first clinical effects. Our hypothesis is that neuropsychological changes within the normal range will help to predict preclinical disease and locate early pathology.

Methods and Findings

We recruited adults with probable Alzheimer’s disease or asymptomatic cognitively healthy adults, classified after medical and neuropsychological examination. By logistic regression, we derived a cutoff for the cerebrospinal fluid beta amyloid₄₂/tau ratios that correctly classified 85% of those with Alzheimer’s disease. We separated the asymptomatic group into those with (n = 34; preclinical Alzheimer’s disease) and without (n = 36; controls) abnormal beta amyloid₄₂/tau ratios; these subgroups had similar distributions of age, gender, education, medications, apolipoprotein-ε genotype, vascular risk factors, and magnetic resonance imaging features of small vessel disease. Multivariable analysis of neuropsychological data revealed that only Stroop Interference (response inhibition) independently predicted preclinical pathology (OR = 0.13, 95% CI = 0.04–0.42). Lack of longitudinal and post-mortem data, older age, and small population size are limitations of this study.

Conclusions

Our data suggest that clinical effects from early amyloid pathophysiology precede those from hippocampal intraneuronal neurofibrillary pathology. Altered cerebrospinal fluid beta amyloid₄₂ with decreased executive performance before memory impairment matches the deposits of extracellular amyloid that appear in the basal isocortex first, and only later involve the hippocampus. We propose that Stroop Interference may be an additional important screen for early pathology and useful to monitor treatment of preclinical Alzheimer’s disease; measures of executive and memory functions in a longitudinal design will be necessary to more fully evaluate this approach.     

Substrate and inhibitor specificity of the lactate carrier of human neutrophils

Summary The substrate and inhibitor specificity of the lactic acid (Lac) transport system of human neutrophils was investigated. The ability of a variety of compounds to inhibit the influx of [¹⁴C]lactate, presumably reflecting competition by substrate analogues for binding at the external translocation site, was taken as an index of affinity for the Lac carrier. pH-stat techniques were utilized to assess transportability. Results indicate a relatively low order of selectivity, the neutrophil H⁺ + lactate^– cotransport system demonstrating a broad acceptance of short-chain unsubstituted and substituted alkyl monocarboxylates as well as aromatic monocarboxylates. There was a slight preference for oxo, Cl, and OH substituents over other groups at the two-position of short chain alkyl fatty acids: all were readily transported across the plasma membrane at rates approaching that ofl-lactate itself. Aromatic acids were not transported inward by the carrier although these compounds did permeate via simple nonionic diffusion. The neutrophil Lac carrier can be blocked by a number of cyanocinnamate derivatives, the classical inhibitors of monocarboxylate transport in mitochondria, and by dithiol compounds and sulfhydryl-reactive agents. This constellation of biochemical properties is similar to the features that characterize other well described H⁺ + lactate^– cotransport systems in red blood cells, Ehrlich ascites tumor cells, hepatocytes, and cardiac sarcolemmal vesicles, although significant differences exist when comparisons are made to the Na⁺-dependent lactate transporter of the kidney proximal tubule.     

ATP- and Cytosol-dependent Release of Adaptor Proteins from Clathrin-coated Vesicles: A Dual Role for Hsc70

Clathrin-coated vesicles (CCV) mediate protein sorting and vesicular trafficking from the plasma membrane and the trans-Golgi network. Before delivery of the vesicle contents to the target organelles, the coat components, clathrin and adaptor protein complexes (APs), must be released. Previous work has established that hsc70/the uncoating ATPase mediates clathrin release in vitro without the release of APs. AP release has not been reconstituted in vitro, and nothing is known about the requirements for this reaction. We report a novel quantitative assay for the ATP- and cytosol- dependent release of APs from CCV. As expected, hsc70 is not sufficient for AP release; however, immunodepletion and reconstitution experiments establish that it is necessary. Interestingly, complete clathrin release is not a prerequisite for AP release, suggesting that hsc70 plays a dual role in recycling the constituents of the clathrin coat. This assay provides a functional basis for identification of the additional cytosolic factor(s) required for AP release.     

Selective and potent furin inhibitors protect cells from anthrax without significant toxicity

Furin and related proprotein convertases cleave the multibasic motifs R-X-R/K/X-R in the precursor proteins and, as a result, transform the latent proproteins into biologically active proteins and peptides. Furin is present both in the intracellular secretory pathway and at the cell surface. Intracellular furin processes its multiple normal cellular targets in the Golgi and secretory vesicle compartments while cell-surface furin appears to be essential only for the processing of certain pathogenic proteins and, importantly, anthrax. To design potent, safe and selective inhibitors of furin, we evaluated the potency and selectivity of the derivatized peptidic inhibitors modeled from the extended furin cleavage sequence of avian influenza A H5N1. We determined that the N- and C-terminal modifications of the original RARRRKKRT inhibitory scaffold produced selective and potent, nanomolar range, inhibitors of furin. These inhibitors did not interfere with the normal cellular function of furin because of the likely functional redundancy existing between furin and other proprotein convertases. These furin inhibitors, however, were highly potent in blocking the furin-dependent cell-surface processing of anthrax protective antigen-83 both in vitro and cell-based assays and in vivo. We conclude that the inhibitors we have designed have a promising potential as selective anthrax inhibitors, without affecting major cell functions.     

Validation of an HPLC method for analysis of DB-67 and its water soluble prodrug in mouse plasma

A method for the quantitation of DB-67 ((20S)-10-hydroxy-7-tert-butyldimethylsilylcamptothecin) lactone and carboxylate in mouse plasma has been developed, validated, and applied in pharmacokinetic studies. The analytes were separated by reversed-phase chromatography with fluorescence detection. Validation demonstrated the selectivity and specificity for the carboxylate and lactone, with linearity between 1-300ng/mL and 2.5-300ng/mL for the carboxylate and lactone, respectively (accuracy 90-110% of theory and coefficient of variation < or =5.7%). Carboxylate to lactone conversion was <4% using this method. The assay was found to be suitable for the analysis of DB-67 lactone and carboxylate in pharmacokinetic studies following intravenous administration of DB-67 or its delta-aminobutyric acid ester derivative.