K13 appears to be a major determinant of artemisinin resistance throughout Southeast Asia. While we found some evidence of spreading resistance, there was no evidence of resistance moving westward from Cambodia into Myanmar.

Type 2 (T2) diabetes mellitus (DM) has been associated with an increased incidence of neurodegenerative disorders, including Alzheimer's disease (AD). Several pathological features are shared between diabetes and AD, including dysfunctional insulin signaling and a dysregulation of glucose metabolism. It has therefore been suggested that not only may the two conditions share specific molecular mechanisms but also that agents with proven efficacy in one may be useful against the other. Hence, the present study characterized the effects of a clinically approved long-acting analogue, exendin-4 (Ex-4), of the endogenous insulin releasing incretin, glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1), on stress-induced toxicity in neuronal cultures and on amyloid-beta protein (Abeta) and tau levels in triple transgenic AD (3xTg-AD) mice with and without streptozocin (STZ)-induced diabetes. Ex-4 ameliorated the toxicity of Abeta and oxidative challenge in primary neuronal cultures and human SH-SY5Y cells in a concentration-dependent manner. When 11 to 12.5 month old female 3xTg AD mice were challenged with STZ or saline, and thereafter treated with a continuous subcutaneous infusion of Ex-4 or vehicle, Ex-4 ameliorated the diabetic effects of STZ in 3xTg-AD mice, elevating plasma insulin and lowering both plasma glucose and hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) levels. Furthermore, brain levels of Abeta protein precursor and Abeta, which were elevated in STZ 3xTg-AD mice, were significantly reduced in Ex-4 treated mice. Brain tau levels were unaffected following STZ challenge, but showed a trend toward elevation that was absent following Ex-4 treatment. Together, these results suggest a potential value of Ex-4 in AD, particularly when associated with T2DM or glucose intolerance.

Cyclin-dependent kinase 5 (cdk5) has been implicated in Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathogenesis. Here, we demonstrate that overexpression of p25, an activator of cdk5, led to increased levels of BACE1 mRNA and protein in vitro and in vivo. A p25/cdk5 responsive region containing multiple sites for signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT1/3) was identified in the BACE1 promoter. STAT3 interacts with the BACE1 promoter, and p25-overexpressing mice had elevated levels of pSTAT3 and BACE1, whereas cdk5-deficient mice had reduced levels. Furthermore, mice with a targeted mutation in the STAT3 cdk5 responsive site had lower levels of BACE1. Increased BACE levels in p25 overexpressing mice correlated with enhanced amyloidogenic processing that could be reversed by a cdk5 inhibitor. These data demonstrate a pathway by which p25/cdk5 increases the amyloidogenic processing of APP through STAT3-mediated transcriptional control of BACE1 that could have implications for AD pathogenesis.

The present study determined the effects of voluntary ethanol drinking and deprivation on basal extracellular glutamate concentrations and clearance in the mesolimbic system and tested the hypothesis that chronic ethanol drinking would persistently increase basal glutamate neurotransmission. Three groups of alcohol preferring (P) rats were used: ‘water group (WG)’, ‘ethanol maintenance group (MG; 24-hr free choice water vs 15% ethanol)’ and ‘ethanol deprivation group (DG; 2 weeks of deprivation)’. Quantitative microdialysis and Western blots were conducted to measure basal extracellular glutamate concentrations, clearance, and proteins associated with glutamate clearance. Chronic alcohol drinking produced a 70-100% increase of basal extracellular glutamate concentrations in the posterior ventral tegmental area (4.0 vs 7.0 μM) and nucleus accumbens shell (3.0 vs 6.0 μM). Glutamate clearances were reduced by 30-40% in both regions of MG rats compared to WG rats. In addition, Western blots revealed a 40-45% decrease of excitatory amino transporter 1 (EAAT1) protein, but no significant changes in the levels of EAAT2 or cystine-glutamate antiporter in these regions of MG vs WG rats. The enhanced glutamate concentrations returned to control levels, accompanied by a recovery of glutamate clearance following deprivation. These results indicated that chronic alcohol drinking enhanced extracellular glutamate concentrations in the mesolimbic system, as a result, in part, of reduced clearance, suggesting that enhanced glutamate neurotransmission may contribute to the maintenance of alcohol drinking. However, since the increased glutamate levels returned to normal after deprivation, elevated glutamate neurotransmission may not contribute to the initiation of relapse drinking.

Memantine is a moderate-affinity, uncompetitive N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonist that stabilizes cognitive, functional, and behavioral decline in patients with moderate to severe Alzheimer's disease (AD). In AD, the extracellular deposition of fibrillogenic amyloid-beta peptides (Aβ) occurs due to aberrant processing of the full-length Aβ precursor protein (APP). Memantine protects neurons from the neurotoxic effects of Aβ and improves cognition in transgenic mice with high brain levels of Aβ. However, it is unknown how memantine protects cells against neurodegeneration and affects APP processing and Aβ production. We report the effects of memantine in three different systems. In human neuroblastoma cells, memantine, at therapeutically relevant concentrations (1-4 μM), decreased levels of secreted APP and Aβ . Levels of the potentially amylodogenic Aβ 1-42 were undetectable in these cells. In primary rat cortical neuronal cultures, memantine treatment lowered Aβ 1-42 secretion. At the concentrations used, memantine treatment was not toxic to neuroblastoma or primary cultures and increased cell viability and/or metabolic activity under certain conditions. In APP/presenilin-1 (PS1) transgenic mice exhibiting high brain levels of Aβ 1-42 , oral dosing of memantine (20 mg/kg/day for 8 days) produced plasma drug concentration of 0.96 μM and significantly reduced the cortical levels of soluble Aβ . The ratio of Aβ 1-40 /Aβ 1-42 increased in treated mice, suggesting effects on the γ-secretase complex. Thus, memantine reduces the levels of Aβ peptides at therapeutic concentrations and may inhibit the accumulation of fibrillogenic Aβ in mammalian brains. Memantine's ability to preserve neuronal cells against neurodegeneration, increase metabolic activity, and lower Aβ level has therapeutic implications for neurodegenerative disorders. KeywordsAging; cortex; dementia; lysosome; membrane; tissue culture; memory In Alzheimer's disease (AD), a gradual impairment in short-term memory and cognition results from the dysfunction and death of neurons in the hippocampus, limbic system, and cerebral cortex (Goedert and Spillantini, 2006;Tanzi and Bertram, 2008). AD is characterized by brain * Contributed equally ** Corresponding author: Debomoy K. Lahiri, PhD, Department of Psychiatry, Indiana University School of Medicine, 791 Union Drive, Indianapolis, USA, Tel: (317) 274-2706; Fax: (317) NIH-PA Author ManuscriptNIH-PA Author Manuscript NIH-PA Author Manuscript depositions of amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles, loss of the synaptophysin protein, and deficits in cholinergic neurotransmission (Giacobini, 2003;Lahiri et al., 2003;Reinhard et al., 2005;Selkoe, 2005). These aberrations are believed to result, in part, from oxidative stress, membrane damage, and the over-production and accumulation of amyloid-β peptide (Aβ), a 39-43 amino acid polypeptide that is a core constituent of amyloid plaques (Dumery et al., 2001;Sambamurti et al., 2006). Two Aβ peptides predominate in brain tissue, one i...

The genetic relatedness of Vibrio cholerae O1/O139 isolates obtained from 100 patients and 146 of their household contacts in Dhaka, Bangladesh, between 2002 and 2005 was assessed by multilocus variable-number tandem-repeat analysis. Isolate genotypes were analyzed at five loci containing tandem repeats. Across the population, as well as within households, isolates with identical genotypes were clustered in time. Isolates from individuals within the same household were more likely to have similar or identical genotypes than were isolates from different households, but even within a household, isolates from different individuals often had different genotypes. When household contacts were sampled regularly for 3 weeks after the illness of the household index patient, isolates with genotypes related to the index patient appeared in contacts, on average, ϳ3 days after the index patient, while isolates with unrelated genotypes appeared in contacts ϳ6 days after. Limited data revealed that multiple isolates from the same individual collected within days of each other or even from a single stool sample may have identical, similar, or unrelated genotypes as well. Our results demonstrate that genetically related V. cholerae strains cluster in local outbreaks but also suggest that multiple distinct strains of V. cholerae O1 may circulate simultaneously within a household.Vibrio cholerae is the etiologic agent of cholera, a secretory diarrheal disease with a high mortality rate in humans if untreated (25). Serogroups of V. cholerae, a motile, Gram-negative, curved rod, can be defined serologically by the O side chain of the lipopolysaccharide (LPS) component of the outer membrane (9). V. cholerae is found in a variety of forms in aquatic ecosystems (41, 42), and more than 200 different serogroups have been isolated, mostly from environmental sources (45). However, the vast majority of V. cholerae strains that cause the clinical disease cholera belong to serogroup O1 or O139 (37, 42). V. cholerae O1, the historical agent of epidemic and pandemic cholera and the current leading cause of cholera both globally and in Bangladesh (42), is classified into two major biotypes, classical and El Tor (44), and two major serotypes, Ogawa and Inaba (48). The current global pandemic is caused by V. cholerae O1 El Tor. A second pathogenic serogroup, O139, emerged in the Bengal region in 1992 by horizontal transfer of new LPS biosynthesis-encoding genes into the El Tor biotype (1, 4). This new serogroup continues to cocirculate with El Tor V. cholerae O1 serotypes Ogawa and Inaba as a cause of disease in humans, although it accounts for a smaller proportion of all cholera now than in its first years of circulation (16,20). Recently, comparative genomics has revealed an extensive amount of lateral gene transfer between strains, suggesting that genomic classification may be an alternative to serogrouping for classifying pathogenic V. cholerae strains (11).Toxigenic V. cholerae may be present in environmental sources in regions of endemicity ...

The endosymbiotic bacterium Wolbachia is being investigated as a potential control agent in several important vector insect species. Recent studies have shown that Wolbachia can protect the insect host against a wide variety of pathogens, resulting in reduced transmission of parasites and viruses. It has been proposed that compromised vector competence of Wolbachia-infected insects is due to up-regulation of the host innate immune system or metabolic competition. Anopheles mosquitoes, which transmit human malaria parasites, have never been found to harbor Wolbachia in nature. While transient somatic infections can be established in Anopheles, no stable artificially-transinfected Anopheles line has been developed despite numerous attempts. However, cultured Anopheles cells can be stably infected with multiple Wolbachia strains such as wAlbB from Aedes albopictus, wRi from Drosophila simulans and wMelPop from Drosophila melanogaster. Infected cell lines provide an amenable system to investigate Wolbachia-Anopheles interactions in the absence of an infected mosquito strain. We used Affymetrix GeneChip microarrays to investigate the effect of wAlbB and wRi infection on the transcriptome of cultured Anopheles Sua5B cells, and for a subset of genes used quantitative PCR to validate results in somatically-infected Anopheles mosquitoes. Wolbachia infection had a dramatic strain-specific effect on gene expression in this cell line, with almost 700 genes in total regulated representing a diverse array of functional classes. Very strikingly, infection resulted in a significant down-regulation of many immune, stress and detoxification-related transcripts. This is in stark contrast to the induction of immune genes observed in other insect hosts. We also identified genes that may be potentially involved in Wolbachia-induced reproductive and pathogenic phenotypes. Somatically-infected mosquitoes had similar responses to cultured cells. The data show that Wolbachia has a profound and unique effect on Anopheles gene expression in cultured cells, and has important implications for mechanistic understanding of Wolbachia-induced phenotypes and potential novel strategies to control malaria.

Amyloid β peptide (Aβ) plaque in the brain is the primary (post mortem) diagnostic criterion of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Any physiological role of Aβ constituent is poorly understood. We have previously determined an Aβ interacting domain (AβID) in the promoters of AD–associated genes (Maloney and Lahiri, 2011). This AβID interacts in a DNA–sequence specific manner with Aβ. We now demonstrate novel Aβ activity as a possible transcription factor. Herein, we demonstrate Aβ–chromatin interaction in cell culture by ChIP assay. We observed that human neuroblastoma (SK–N–SH) cells treated with FITC conjugated Aβ1–40 localized Aβ to the nucleus in the presence of H2O2–mediated oxidative stress. Furthermore, primary rat fetal cerebrocortical cultures were transfected with APP and BACE1 promoter–luciferase fusions, and rat PC12 cultures were transfected with polymorphic APP promoter–CAT fusion clones. Transfected cells were treated with different Aβ peptides and/or H2O2. Aβ treatment of cell cultures produced a DNA sequence–specific response in cells transfected with polymorphic APP clones. Our results suggest the Aβ peptide may regulate its own production through feedback on its precursor protein and BACE1, leading to amyloidogenesis in AD.