Glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide is expressed in adult hippocampus and induces progenitor cell proliferation.

The hippocampal dentate gyrus (DG) is an area of active proliferation and neurogenesis within the adult brain. The molecular events controlling adult cell genesis in the hippocampus essentially remain unknown. It has been reported previously that adult male and female rats from the strains Sprague Dawley (SD) and spontaneously hypertensive (SHR) have a marked difference in proliferation rates of cells in the hippocampal DG. To exploit this natural variability and identify potential regulators of cell genesis in the hippocampus, hippocampal gene expression from male SHR as well as male and female SD rats was analyzed using a cDNA array strategy. Hippocampal expression of the gene-encoding glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP) varied strongly in parallel with cell-proliferation rates in the adult rat DG. Moreover, robust GIP immunoreactivity could be detected in the DG. The GIP receptor is expressed by cultured adult hippocampal progenitors and throughout the granule cell layer of the DG, including progenitor cells. Thus, these cells have the ability to respond to GIP. Indeed, exogenously delivered GIP induced proliferation of adult-derived hippocampal progenitors in vivo as well as in vitro, and adult GIP receptor knock-out mice exhibit a significantly lower number of newborn cells in the hippocampal DG compared with wild-type mice. This investigation demonstrates the presence of GIP in the brain for the first time and provides evidence for a regulatory function for GIP in progenitor cell proliferation.

Translocation, deletion/amplification, and expression of HMGIC and MDM2 in a carcinoma ex pleomorphic adenoma.

Carcinoma ex pleomorphic adenoma (CexPA) is a carcinoma developing within a pre-existing benign pleomorphic adenoma (PA). Here we describe the identification and characterization of a series of genetic events leading to translocation, deletion/amplification, and overexpression of the HMGIC and MDM2 genes in a CexPA at an early stage of development. The tumor had a pseudodiploid stemline karyotype with a del(5)(q22-23q32-33) and a t(10;12)(p15;q14-15). In addition, there were several sidelines with double minute chromosomes (dmin) or homogeneously staining regions (hsr). Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) mapping revealed that the 12q14-15 breakpoint was located centromeric to HMGIC and that the entire gene was juxtaposed to the der(10) chromosome. Detailed analysis of cells with dmin and hsr revealed that HMGIC and MDM2 were deleted from the der(10) and that the dmin and hsr were strongly positive for both genes. Southern blot analysis confirmed that both HMGIC and MDM2 were amplified and that no gross rearrangements of the genes had occurred. Immunostaining revealed that the HMGIC protein was highly overexpressed particularly in the large polymorphic cells within the carcinomatous part of the tumor. These findings suggest that amplification and overexpression of HMGIC and possibly MDM2 might be important genetic events that may contribute to malignant transformation of benign PA.