The p47phox- and NADPH oxidase organiser 1 (NOXO1)-dependent activation of NADPH oxidase 1 (NOX1) mediates endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) uncoupling and endothelial dysfunction in a streptozotocin-induced murine model of diabetes.

AIMS/HYPOTHESIS: We have previously shown that NADPH oxidase (NOX) lies upstream of uncoupled endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS), which is known to occur in diabetic endothelium. However, it remains unclear which specific NOX isoform(s) is responsible for eNOS uncoupling and endothelial dysfunction in diabetic mouse models. The aim of the present study was to test the hypothesis that one or more NOX isoform(s) mediate(s) diabetic uncoupling of eNOS, which has been shown to occur in patients with diabetes to contribute to endothelial dysfunction. METHODS: Diabetes was induced by streptozotocin administration. The N (ω)-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME)-sensitive superoxide production of aortic segments, reflective of eNOS uncoupling activity, was determined by electron spin resonance. RESULTS: The L-NAME-sensitive superoxide production was more than doubled in wild-type diabetic mice, implicating uncoupling of eNOS. This was abolished in diabetic p47 ( phox-/-) (also known as Ncf1 (-/-)) mice, but preserved in Nox2 (-/y) (also known as Cybb (-/-)) mice made diabetic. The eNOS uncoupling activity was markedly attenuated in diabetic mice transfected with Nox1 or Nox1 organiser 1 (Noxo1) short interfering RNA (siRNA), and abolished in Nox1 (-/y) diabetic mice. Diabetes-induced impairment in endothelium-dependent vasorelaxation was also significantly attenuated in the Nox1 (-/y) mice made diabetic. By contrast, Nox4 siRNA, or inhibition of mitochondrial complex I or III with rotenone or siRNA, respectively, had no effect on diabetic uncoupling of eNOS. Overexpression of Dhfr, or oral administration of folic acid to improve dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR) function, recoupled eNOS in diabetes to improve endothelial function. CONCLUSIONS/INTERPRETATION: Our data demonstrate for the first time that the p47(phox) and NOXO1-dependent activation of NOX1, but not that of NOX2, NOX4 or mitochondrion, mediates diabetic uncoupling of eNOS. NOX1-null mice are protected from diabetic endothelial dysfunction. Novel approaches to inhibit NOX1 and/or improve DHFR function, may prove to have therapeutic potential for diabetic endothelial dysfunction.

The domain-specific, stage-limited impact of the apolipoprotein E epsilon-4 allele on cognitive functions in Alzheimer's disease.

To examine the impact of the APOE epsilon4 allele on the cognitive functions of Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients, we administered the eight neuropsychological tests from the Consortium to Establish a Registry for Alzheimer's Disease Neuropsychological Assessment Battery to 118 Korean AD patients. The impact of the APOE epsilon4 allele was significant in the Word List Recall Test (WLRT) and the Word List Recognition Test (WLRcT) only, and its impact was confined to the very mild AD (VMAD) patients (F = 7.65, d.f. = 2, p < 0.01 for WLRT; F = 3.27, d.f. = 2, p = 0.04 for WLRcT). In the VMAD group, the performance on the two tests of the APOE-epsilon4-positive patients was poorer than that of the APOE-epsilon4-negative patients. Our findings suggest that the impact of the APOE epsilon4 allele on cognitive functions in AD may be domain specific and confined to the early stage of AD.

Neither the butyrylcholinesterase K variant nor transferrin C2 variant confers a risk for Alzheimer's disease in Koreans.

To investigate the possible involvement of the butyrylcholinesterase (BCHE) K variant and transferrin (TF) C2 variant in the manifestation of Alzheimer's disease (AD), we analyzed the BCHE, TF and apolipoprotein E (APOE) genotypes of 164 sporadic AD patients and 239 normal elderly controls. The frequencies of the BCHE K and TF C2 did not differ between the AD patients and controls (P > 0.1). The occurrence of the APOE epsilon4 did not influence the distribution of the BCHE K and TF C2 variants (P > 0.1). No linkage disequilibrium between the BCHE K and TF C2 was observed either in both the AD patients and controls (P > 0.1). In conclusion, neither the BCHE K nor the TF C2 confers a risk for AD.

Transferrin C2 variant does not confer a risk for Alzheimer's disease in Koreans.

We analyzed the transferrin (TF) and apolipoprotein E (APOE) genotypes of 164 probable Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients and 239 cognitively normal elderly controls in Koreans. We failed to detect a significant difference in genotypic frequencies and allelic frequencies of the TF polymorphism between the AD group and control group (P>0.1 by Chi square test). The frequency of the TF C2 variant did not differ by the diagnosis when the APOE epsilon4-positive subjects and APOE epsilon4-negative subjects were analyzed separately (P>0.1 by Chi square test). The TF C2 variant did not influence the age-at-onset of AD independently or synergistically with the occurrence of the APOE epsilon4 allele (P>0.1 by ANOVA). The TF C2 variant did not confer a risk for AD in Koreans.

Salsolinol, a naturally occurring tetrahydroisoquinoline alkaloid, induces DNA damage and chromosomal aberrations in cultured Chinese hamster lung fibroblast cells.

Salsolinol (SAL) is a tetrahydroisoquinoline neurotoxin that has been speculated to contribute to pathophysiology of Parkinson's disease and chronic alcoholism. The compound is also found in certain beverages and food stuffs, including soy sauce, beer and bananas. Despite potential human exposure to SAL and its endogenous formation, little is known about the genotoxic or carcinogenic potential of this substance. In the present investigation, SAL induced DNA damage in cultured Chinese hamster lung (CHL) fibroblasts as assessed by single cell gel electrophoresis (Comet). CHL cells treated with SAL also exhibited higher frequencies of chromosomal aberrations than did vehicle-treated controls. Our recent study has revealed that SAL in combination with Cu(II) causes the strand scission in phiX174 supercoiled DNA [Neurosci. Lett. 238 (1997) 95]. In line with this notion, addition of cupric ion potentiated the DNA damaging and clastogenic activity of SAL. Antioxidant vitamins, such as Vitamin C and Vitamin E, and reduced glutathione inhibited clastogenicity of SAL, suggesting the involvement of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in SAL-induced DNA damage and genotoxicity in CHL cells.

Association of alpha-2-macroglobulin deletion polymorphism with sporadic Alzheimer's disease in Koreans.

Alpha-2-macroglobulin (A2M) deletion polymorphism was recently reported to be associated with Alzheimer's disease (AD) in a way comparable to apolipoprotein E (APOE) polymorphism in a family-based study. However, the association of A2M deletion polymorphism with AD has not been consistently replicated in successive case-controlled studies. In order to evaluate whether this A2M polymorphism is associated with AD in Koreans, we examined the frequencies of the A2M deletion (D) allele and D-bearing genotypes in a group of Koreans composed of 100 sporadic AD patients and 203 control subjects. The frequency of the deletion (D) allele (P=0.046) was significantly different between the total group of AD patients and the controls, although the frequency of the D-bearing genotypes did not attain significance (P=0.078). When the subjects were stratified according to age at onset, there was significant difference in the frequencies of the D allele (P=0.044) and D-bearing genotypes (P=0.041) between late-onset AD patients (> or =65 years) and the controls. However, no significant difference was observed between early-onset AD patients (<65 years) and the control group. Additionally, when we divided the late-onset AD and control subjects by APOE epsilon4 status, the difference of the A2M D allelic frequency was significant only in the APOE epsilon4 negative subjects (P=0.015). In conclusion, our data suggests that the A2M D allele is a modest risk factor for late-onset sporadic AD in Koreans, and the AD risk conferred by the A2M D allele increases in APOE epsilon4 negative subjects.

No association between presenilin 1 (PS1) intronic polymorphism and sporadic Alzheimer's disease in Koreans.

To investigate the possible involvement of an intronic polymorphism in the presenilin 1 (PS1) gene and its interactions with the aplolipoprotein E (APOE) or alpha-1 antichymotrypsin (ACT) polymorphisms in the manifestation of AD, we analyzed the PS1, APOE and ACT genotypes of 100 sporadic AD patients and 199 normal elderly controls in Koreans. The genotypic (chi2= 0.92, df = 2, P > 0.1) and allelic (chi2 = 0.01, df = 1, P > 0.1) frequencies of the PS1 polymorphism in the late- and early-onset sporadic AD patients did not differ from those in the controls. And the occurrence of the APOE epsilon4 allele and ACT A allele did not influence the distribution of the PS1 intronic polymorphism. The PS1 intronic polymorphism didn't influence the age-at-onset of AD (F = 0.02, df = 2, P > 0.1). In conclusion, the PS1 intronic polymorphism did not modify the risk for sporadic AD, neither independently nor synergistically with the APOE epsilon4 allele or ACT A allele, in Koreans.

No association between alpha-1-antichymotrypsin polymorphism and Alzheimer's disease in Koreans.

To examine the possible involvement of the alpha-1-antichymotrypsin gene (ACT) polymorphism in the manifestation of Alzheimer's disease (AD), we analyzed genotypes of the ACT and apolipoprotein E gene (APOE) among 110 Korean patients with probable AD and 209 nondemented controls. No significant difference was obtained in genotypic (chi(2)=1.98, df=2, P>0.1) and allelic frequencies (chi(2)=1.61, df=1, P>0.1) of ACT between the AD and control groups. No overexpression of the ACT A/A genotype and ACT A allele was found when we analyzed the late-onset AD patients and the early-onset AD patients, separately. Then we stratified the ACT genotypes based on the presence or absence of the APOE epsilon4 allele to evaluate the possible interaction between them. In the APOE epsilon4-negative subjects, although the ACT A allele tended to be overexpressed in the AD group, the differences in the frequencies of the ACT A allele (chi(2)=2.79, df=1, P>0.1) and ACT A/A genotype (chi(2)=0.16, df=1, P>0.1) were not statistically significant. No significant overrepresentations of the ACT A allele (chi(2)=0.02, df=1, P>0.1) and ACT A/A genotype (chi(2)=0.17, df=1, P>0.1) were found in the APOE epsilon4-positive subjects, either. In addition, the status of the ACT genotype did not influence the age-at-onset of AD (F=0.03, df=2, P>0.1). Therefore, the ACT polymorphism does not contribute to the development of AD independently or interactively with the APOE epsilon4 allele in Koreans.

Association between apolipoprotein E polymorphism and Alzheimer's disease in Koreans.

We analyzed the aplolipoprotein E (APOE) genotypes of 110 probable AD patients and 226 cognitively normal controls in Koreans. The APOE epsilon4 allele was more prevalent in both early- and late-onset AD patients (P < 0.01) than in controls. The odds for the APOE epsilon4-heterozygous subjects were 2.7 (95% CI = 1.6-4.5), and those for the APOE epsilon4-homozygous subjects were 17.4 (95% CI = 2.0-147.3). But the odds were not uniform across age groups, and were higher in women than in men. Although the APOE epsilon2 allele frequency did not differ by diagnosis, the patients carrying an APOE epsilon2 allele showed delayed age-at-onset (P = 0.02). In conclusion, the APOE e4 allele increased the risk for AD in dose-dependent manner, and the APOE epsilon4-conferred AD risk was age- and sex-dependent in Koreans.

Genotoxicity study of bojungchisup-tang, an oriental herbal decoction-in vitro chromosome aberration assay in Chinese hamster lung cells and in vivo supravital-staining micronucleus assay with mouse peripheral reticulocytes.

The toxicity evaluation of oriental herbal drugs is of great concern at present. Bojungchisuptang (BCST, in Korean), a decocted medicine of oriental herbal mixture, is now well used in clinic at oriental hospitals for the treatment of edema of several diseases in practice. However, the toxicity of the oriental herbal decocted medicines such as genetic toxicity is not well defined until now. In this respect, to clarify the genetic toxicity of BCST, in vitro chromosome aberration assay with Chinese hamster lung (CHL) fibroblasts and in vivo supravital micronucleus assay with mouse peripheral reticulocytes were performed in this study. In the chromosome aberration assay, we used 5,000 micrograms/ml BCST as maximum concentration because no remarkable cytotoxicity in CHL cells was observed both in the presence and absence of S-9 metabolic activation system. No statistical significant differences of chromosome aberrations were observed in CHL cells treated with 5,000, 2,500 and 1,250 micrograms/ml BCST for 6 hour both in the presence and absence of S-9 metabolic activation. However, very weak positive result (6.5-8.0% aberration) of BCST was obtained in the absence of S-9 metabolic activation system at 5,000 micrograms/ml BCST when treated for 24 hour, i.e. 1.5 normal cell cycle time. And also, in vivo clastogenicity of BCST was studied by acridine orange-supravital staining micronucleus assay using mouse peripheral reticulocytes. We used 2,000 mg/kg as the highest oral dose in this micronucleus assay because no acute oral toxicity of BCST was observed in mice. The optimum induction time of micronucleated reticulocytes (MNRETs) was determined as 36 hours after oral administration of 2,000 mg/kg BCST. No significant differences of MNRETs between control and BCST treatment groups were observed in vivo micronucleus assay. From these results, BCST revealed very weak positive result in chromosome aberration assay in vitro with CHL cells and no clastogenicity in micronucleus assay in vivo.