The morphine-binding site on human activated T-cells is not related to the mu opioid receptor.

Mitogen activation of human T-lymphocytes induces a morphine-binding site. Morphine binding is displaceable by beta-endorphin (1--31) and (--)-naloxone but not DAMGO. This site is not stereoselective for (--)-morphine. T-lymphocytes, expressing this binding site, were assayed by reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) for expression of hMOR-1 mRNA. Several primer sets were used and each assay compared with cells known to express human or mouse MOR-1 mRNA. Neither hMOR-1 nor any homologous receptor was detected in human T-lymphocytes. Therefore, the morphine-binding site on mitogen-activated T-lymphocytes is unlikely to be closely related to hMOR-1.

Opiate binding sites in the cellular immune system: expression and regulation.

The direct actions of opiates on the mammalian immune system depend on the existence of ligand binding sites either on the surface of the affected cell or in the interior of the cell. With the cloning of various opiate receptors from neuronal tissue, numerous researchers have screened leukocyte cDNA libraries for the expression of these receptors with some positive results. However, the pattern of expression of neuronal opiate receptors in the cellular immune system does not completely explain the biological action of opiates there. Several possibilities could account for this non-congruence including differential expression of the receptors as determined by such factors as cell population or prior history of the cells; the existence of sequence modified versions of the neuronal receptors such that the amplification methods miss their presence; or the opiates act by a different, non-receptor mechanism in the cellular immune system.

Identification and localization of huntingtin in brain and human lymphoblastoid cell lines with anti-fusion protein antibodies.

The Huntington disease (HD) phenotype is associated with expansion of a trinucleotide repeat in the IT15 gene, which is predicted to encode a 348-kDa protein named huntington. We used polyclonal and monoclonal anti-fusion protein antibodies to identify native huntingtin in rat, monkey, and human. Western blots revealed a protein with the expected molecular weight which is present in the soluble fraction of rat and monkey brain tissues and lymphoblastoid cells from control cases. In lymphoblastoid cell lines from juvenile-onset heterozygote HD cases, both normal and mutant huntingtin are expressed, and increasing repeat expansion leads to lower levels of the mutant protein. Immunocytochemistry indicates that huntingtin is located in neurons throughout the brain, with the highest levels evident in larger neurons. In the human striatum, huntingtin is enriched in a patch-like distribution, potentially corresponding to the first areas affected in HD. Subcellular localization of huntingtin is consistent with a cytosolic protein primarily found in somatodendritic regions. Huntingtin appears to particularly associate with microtubules, although some is also associated with synaptic vesicles. On the basis of the localization of huntingtin in association with microtubules, we speculate that the mutation impairs the cytoskeletal anchoring or transport of mitochondria, vesicles, or other organelles or molecules.

De novo expansion of a (CAG)n repeat in sporadic Huntington's disease.

Huntington's disease (HD) chromosomes contain an expanded unstable (CAG)n repeat in chromosome 4p16.3. We have examined nine families with potential de novo expression of the disease. With one exception, all of the affected individuals had 42 or more repeat units, well above the normal range. In four families, elderly unaffected relatives inherited the same chromosome as that containing the expanded repeat in the proband, but had repeat lengths of 34-38 units, spanning the gap between the normal and HD distributions. Thus, mutation to HD is usually associated with an expansion from an already large repeat.

Complex patterns of linkage disequilibrium in the Huntington disease region.

The genetic defect causing Huntington disease (HD) has been mapped to 4p16.3 by linkage analysis using DNA markers. Two apparently contradictory classes of recombination events in HD kindreds preclude precise targeting of efforts to clone the disease gene. Here, we report a new recombination event that increases support for an internal candidate region of 2.5 Mb between D4S10 and D4S168. Analysis of 23 DNA polymorphisms in 4p16.3 revealed a complex pattern of association with the disease gene that failed to narrow the size of the candidate region. The degree of linkage disequilibrium did not show a continuous increase across the physical map, nor was a region of extreme disequilibrium identified. Markers displaying no association with the disorder were interspersed with and, in many cases, close to markers displaying significant disequilibrium. Comparison of closely spaced marker pairs on normal and HD chromosomes, as well as analysis of haplotypes across the HD region, suggest that simple recombination subsequent to a single original HD mutation cannot easily explain the pool of HD chromosomes seen today. A number of different mechanisms could contribute to the diversity of haplotypes observed on HD chromosomes, but it is likely that there has been more than one and possibly several independent origins of the HD mutation.

New DNA markers in the Huntington's disease gene candidate region.

The search for the Huntington's disease (HD) gene has prompted construction of a complete long-range restriction map of a 2.5-Mb candidate region, distal to the DNA marker D4S10. To facilitate the procurement of cloned DNA from this candidate region, we have augmented the existing regional mapping panel of somatic cell hybrids with hybrid HHW1071 containing a t(4p16;12) chromosome from a patient with Wolf-Hirschhorn syndrome. This translocation maps between D4S180 and D4S127, subdividing the HD candidate region and setting a proximal limit to the Wolf-Hirschhorn syndrome region. Using the expanded mapping panel, we have regionally assigned 14 independently cloned cosmids, five proximal to the t(4;12) breakpoint in the same region as D4S10 and nine distal to the breakpoint. By a combination of overlap with previously mapped cosmids and pulsed-field gel analysis, each of these cosmids has been positioned on the long-range restriction map of 4p16.3, increasing the clone coverage of the candidate region to approximately 40%. Single-copy probes from mapped cosmids were used to identify eight new DNA polymorphisms spanning the HD candidate region. These new DNA markers should prove valuable for analysis of recombination and linkage disequilibrium in HD, as well as for preclinical diagnosis of the disorder.

Defined physical limits of the Huntington disease gene candidate region.

The Huntington disease (HD) gene has been mapped 4 cM distal to D4S10 within the telomeric chromosome band, 4p16.3. The published physical map of this region extends from D4S10 to the telomere but contains two gaps of unknown size. Recombination events have been used to position the HD mutation with respect to genetic markers within this region, and one such event places the gene proximal to D4S168, excluding the distal gap as a possible location for the defect. One previously published recombination event appeared to have excluded the proximal gap. We have reassessed this event and have moved the proximal boundary for the HD candidate region centromeric to the gap within a "hot spot" for recombination between D4S10 and D4S125. We have closed the proximal gap and report here the complete physical map spanning the HD candidate region from D4S10 to D4S168, the maximum size of which can now be placed accurately at 2.5 Mb.

Huntington disease-linked locus D4S111 exposed as the alpha-L-iduronidase gene.

alpha-L-Iduronidase (IDUA) has been intensively studied due to its causative role in mucopolysaccharidosis type I (Hurler, Scheie and Hurler/Scheie syndromes). The recent cloning of a human IDUA cDNA has resulted in a reevaluation of the chromosomal location of this gene. Previously assigned to chromosome 22, IDUA now has been localized to 4p16.3, the region of chromosome 4 associated with Huntington's disease (HD). The existence of a battery of cloned DNA, physical map information, and genetic polymorphism data for this region has allowed the rapid fine mapping of IDUA within the terminal cytogenetic band of 4p. IDUA was found to be coincident with D4S111, an anonymous locus displaying a highly informative multiallele DNA polymorphism. This map location, 1.1 X 10(6) bp from the telomere, makes IDUA the most distal cloned gene assigned to 4p. However, it falls within a segment of 4p16.3 that has been eliminated from the HD candidate region, excluding a role for IDUA in this disorder.

Mapping of cosmid clones in Huntington's disease region of chromosome 4.

Huntington's disease (HD) is tightly linked to genetic markers in 4p16.3. We have used a regional somatic cell hybrid mapping panel to isolate and map 25 cosmids to the proximal portion of 4p16.3 and 17 cosmids to the distal portion. The latter were positioned by long-range restriction mapping relative to previously mapped markers. One cosmid, L6 (D4S166), spans the critical breakpoint in the mapping panel that distinguishes proximal and distal 4p16.3. Four of the cosmids mapped distal to D4S90, the previous terminal marker on 4p, and stretched to within 75 kb of the telomere. Several of the cosmids that mapped between L6 and D4S90 were clustered near a number of previously isolated clones in a region with many NotI sites. Cosmid E4 (D4S168) was localized immediately proximal to the one remaining gap in the long-range restriction map of distal 4p16.3. Although pulsed field gel mapping with E4 failed to link the two segments of the map, the intervening gap was excluded as a potential site for the HD gene by genetic analysis.

Increased recombination adjacent to the Huntington disease-linked D4S10 marker.

Huntington disease (HD) is caused by a genetic defect distal to the anonymous DNA marker D4S10 in the terminal cytogenetic subband of the short arm of chromosome 4 (4p16.3). The effort to identify new markers linked to HD has concentrated on the use of somatic cell hybrid panels that split 4p16.3 into proximal and distal portions. Here we report two new polymorphic markers in the proximal portion of 4p16.3, distal to D4S10. Both loci, D4S126 and D4S127, are defined by cosmids isolated from a library enriched for sequences in the 4pter-4p15.1 region. Physical mapping by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis places D4S126 200 kb telomeric to D4S10, while D4S127 is located near the more distal marker D4S95. Typing of a reference pedigree for D4S126 and D4S127 and for the recently described VNTR marker D4S125 has firmly placed these loci on the existing linkage map of 4p16.3. This genetic analysis has revealed that the region immediately distal to D4S10 shows a dramatically higher rate of recombination than would be expected based on its physical size. D4S10-D4S126-D4S125 span 3.5 cM, but only 300-400 kb of DNA. Consequently, this small region accounts for most of the reported genetic distance between D4S10 and HD. By contrast, it was not possible to connect D4S127 to D4S125 by physical mapping, although they are only 0.3 cM apart. A more detailed analysis of recombination sites within the immediate vicinity of D4S10 could potentially reveal the molecular basis for this phenomenon; however, it is clear that the rate of recombination is not continuously increased with progress toward the telomere of 4p.

Gramicidins A, B, and C form structurally equivalent ion channels.

The membrane structure of the naturally occurring gramicidins A, B, and C was investigated using circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopy and single-channel recording techniques. All three gramicidins form channels with fairly similar properties (Bamberg, E., K. Noda, E. Gross, and P. Läuger. 1976. Biochim. Biophys. Acta. 419:223-228.). When incorporated into lysophosphatidylcholine micelles, however, the CD spectrum of gramicidin B is different from that of gramicidin A or C (cf. Prasad, K. U., T. L. Trapane, D. Busath, G. Szabo, and D. W. Urry. 1983. Int. J. Pept. Protein Res. 22:341-347.). The structural identity of the channels formed by gramicidin B has, therefore, been uncertain. We find that when gramicidins A and B are incorporated into dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine vesicles, their CD spectra are fairly similar, suggesting that the two channel structures could be similar. In planar bilayers, gramicidins A, B, and C all form hybrid channels with each other. The properties of the hybrid channels are intermediate to those of the symmetric channels, and the appearance rates of the hybrid channels (relative to the symmetric channels) corresponds to what would be predicted if all three gramicidin molecules were to form structurally equivalent channels. These results allow us to interpret the different behavior of channels formed by the three gramicidins solely on the basis of the amino acid substitution at position 11.

A yeast artificial chromosome telomere clone spanning a possible location of the Huntington disease gene.

The Huntington disease (HD) gene has been mapped to the most distal subband of chromosome 4p. Analysis of recombination events has not provided an unequivocal location of the HD gene, but it indicates a position very close to the telomere as one possibility. We have constructed a yeast artificial chromosome (YAC) vector (containing a rare-cutter polylinker) for the cloning of mammalian telomeres, used it to prepare a BssHII-telomere library with DNA from an individual homozygous for HD, and have identified a 115-kb clone containing the telomere of 4p. One probable recombinant would confine the telomeric candidate location for the gene to the region covered by the YAC, which makes it possible that the clone described here contains the HD locus in its mutant form.

Physical maps of 4p16.3, the area expected to contain the Huntington disease mutation.

The gene for Huntington disease, a neurodegenerative disorder with autosomal dominant inheritance, has been localized to the terminal portion of the short arm of human chromosome 4 (4p16.3) by linkage analysis. Since eventual isolation of the gene requires the application of high-resolution genetic analysis coupled with long-range DNA mapping and cloning techniques, we have constructed a physical map of the chromosomal region 4p16.3 using more than 20 independently derived probes. We have grouped these markers into three clusters which have been ordered and oriented by genetic and somatic cell genetic mapping information. The mapped region extends from D4S10 (G8) toward the telomere and covers minimally 5 Mb.

Clustering of multiallele DNA markers near the Huntington's disease gene.

Five highly informative multiallele restriction fragment length polymorphisms (RFLPs) of value for preclinical diagnosis of Huntington's disease (HD) have been genetically characterized. One RFLP was uncovered by expansion of the D4S43 locus while three others are at D4S111 and D4S115, loci defined by NotI-linking clones. The final marker, D4S125, represents a recently discovered VNTR locus. All four loci map closer to the HD gene and to the telomere than D4S10, the original linked marker for HD. In combination with two multiallele RFLPs previously identified for D4S43 and another linked locus, D4S95, these five new multiallele markers will dramatically improve the speed and accuracy of predictive testing in HD, and increase its applicability by maximizing the chances of an informative test for anyone with appropriate family structure.

Recombination events suggest potential sites for the Huntington's disease gene.

The Huntington's disease gene (HD) maps distal to the D4S10 marker in the terminal 4p16.3 subband of chromosome 4. Directed cloning has provided several DNA segments that have been grouped into three clusters on a physical map of approximately 5 X 10(6) bp in 4p16.3. We have typed RFLPs in both reference and HD pedigrees to produce a fine-structure genetic map that establishes the relative order of the clusters and further narrows the target area containing the HD gene. Despite the large number of meiotic events examined, the HD gene cannot be positioned relative to the most distal cluster. One recombination event with HD suggests that the terminal-most markers flank the disease gene; two others favor a telomeric location for the defect. Efforts to isolate the HD gene must be divided between these two distinct intervals until additional genetic data resolve the apparent contradiction in localization.

Mapping of D4S98/S114/S113 confines the Huntington's defect to a reduced physical region at the telomere of chromosome 4.

The dominant gene defect in Huntington's disease (HD) is linked to the DNA marker D4S10, near the telomere of the chromosome 4 short arm. Two other markers, D4S43 and D4S95, are closer, but still proximal to the HD gene in 4p16.3. We have characterized a new locus, D4S114, identified by cloning the end of a NotI fragment resolved by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis. D4S114 was localized distal to D4S43 and D4S95 by both physical and genetic mapping techniques. The "end"-clone overlaps a previously isolated NotI "linking" clone, and is within 150 kb of a second "linking" clone defining D4S113. Restriction fragment length polymorphisms for D4S113 and D4S114, one of which is identical to a SacI polymorphism detected by the anonymous probe pBS731B-C (D4S98), were typed for key crossovers in HD and reference pedigrees. The data support the locus order D4S10-(D4S43, D4S95)-D4S98/S114/S113-HD-telomere. The D4S98/S114/S113 cluster therefore represents the nearest cloned sequences to HD, and provides a valuable new point for launching directional cloning strategies to isolate and characterize this disease gene.

TI-205 nuclear magnetic resonance determination of the thermodynamic parameters for the binding of monovalent cations to gramicidins A and C.

Thermodynamic parameters for the binding of the monovalent cations, Li+, Na+, K+, Rb+, Cs+, NH4+, TI+, and Ag+, to gramicidin A and for the binding of TI+ to gramicidin C, incorporated into lysophosphatidylcholine, have been determined using a combination of TI-205 nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and competition binding. The thermodynamic parameters, enthalpy and entropy, are discussed in terms of a process involving the transfer of cations from an aqueous to amide environment.

A DNA segment encoding two genes very tightly linked to Huntington's disease.

The discovery of D4S10, an anonymous DNA marker genetically linked to Huntington's disease (HD), introduced the capacity for limited presymptomatic diagnosis in this late-onset neurodegenerative disorder and raised the hope of cloning and characterizing the defect based on its chromosomal location. Progress on both fronts has been limited by the absence of additional DNA markers closer to the HD gene. An anonymous DNA locus, D4S43, has now been found that shows extremely tight linkage to HD. Like the disease gene, D4S43 is located in the most distal region of the chromosome 4 short arm, flanked by D4S10 and the telomere. In three extended HD kindreds, D4S43 displays no recombination with HD, placing it within 0 to 1.5 centimorgans of the genetic defect. Expansion of the D4S43 region to include 108 kilobases of cloned DNA has allowed identification of eight restriction fragment length polymorphisms and at least two independent coding segments. In the absence of crossovers, these genes must be considered candidates for the site of the HD defect, although the D4S43 restriction fragment length polymorphisms do not display linkage disequilibrium with the disease gene.