We have previously reported anti-amyloidogenic effects of leptin using in vitro and in vivo models and, more recently, demonstrated the ability of leptin to reduce tau phosphorylation in neuronal cells. The present study examined the efficacy of leptin in ameliorating the Alzheimer's disease (AD)-like pathology in 6-month old CRND8 transgenic mice (TgCRND8) following 8 weeks of treatment. Leptin-treated transgenic mice showed significantly reduced levels of amyloid-β (Aβ) 1-40 in both brain extracts (52% reduction, p=0.047) and serum (55% reduction, p=0.049), as detected by ELISA, and significant reduction in amyloid burden (47% reduction, p=0.041) in the hippocampus, as detected by immunocytochemistry. The decrease in the levels of Aβ in the brain correlated with a decrease in the levels of C99 C-terminal fragments of the amyloid-β protein precursor, consistent with a role for β-secretase in mediating the effect of leptin. In addition, leptin-treated TgCRND8 mice had significantly lower levels of phosphorylated tau, as detected by AT8 and anti-tau-Ser 396 antibodies. Importantly, after 4 or 8 weeks of treatment, there was no significant increase in the levels of C-reactive protein, tumor necrosis factor-α, and cortisol in the plasma of leptin-treated TgCRND8 animals compared to saline-treated controls, indicating no inflammatory reaction. These biochemical and pathological changes were correlated with behavioral improvements, as early as after 4 weeks of treatment, as recorded by a novel object recognition test and particularly the contextual and cued fear conditioning test after 8 weeks of treatment. Leptin-treated TgCRND8 animals significantly outperformed saline-treated littermates in these behavioral tests. These findings solidly demonstrate the potential for leptin as a disease modifying therapeutic in transgenic animals of AD, driving optimism for its safety and efficacy in humans.

Post-transplant monitoring of cellular immunity has the potential to guide alterations in medical therapy. To this end, our laboratory has developed an enzymelinked immunosorbent spot (ELISPOT) assay for detection of peripheral blood alloimmunity. Peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBLs) from normal volunteers and from renal allograft recipients were tested against donor stimulator cells for their ability to respond in 'one-way' cytokine ELISPOT assays. T cell depletion of donor spleen or PBLs eliminated donor cell cytokine secretion while preserving the ability of these cells to present allo-antigen to responding T cells. Alloreactive IFNg-producing PBLs derive from the memory T cell pool and are readily detectable in recipients of renal allografts taking immunosuppressant medications. A significant expansion of IFN-g-producing donor-reactive memory PBLs was detectable at 4-6 months posttransplant in those who had experienced an acute rejection episode compared with those with a stable post-transplant course. The data demonstrate the feasibility of repeated post-transplant monitoring of allograft recipients, and provide the foundation for improving the care of human transplant recipients through rational clinical decision-making based on measures of immune function.

J. Neurochem. (2010) 112, 870–881. Abstract Declining levels of estrogen in women result in increases in gonadotropins such as luteinizing hormone (LH) through loss of feedback inhibition. LH, like estrogen, is modulated by hormone replacement therapy. However, the role of post‐menopausal gonadotropin increases on cognition has not been evaluated. Here, we demonstrate that the down‐regulation of ovariectomy‐driven LH elevations using the gonadotropin releasing hormone super‐analogue, leuprolide acetate, improves cognitive function in the Morris water maze and Y‐maze tests in the absence of E2. Furthermore, our data suggest that these effects are independent of the modulation of estrogen receptors α and β, or activation of CYP19 and StAR, associated with the production of endogenous E2. Importantly, pathways associated with improved cognition such as CaMKII and GluR1‐Ser831 are up‐regulated by leuprolide treatment but not by chronic long‐term E2 replacement suggesting independent cognition‐modulating properties. Our findings suggest that down‐regulation of gonadotropins is as effective as E2 in modulating cognition but likely acts through different molecular mechanisms. These findings provide a potential novel protective strategy to treat menopause/age‐related cognitive decline and/or prevent the development of AD.

Alzheimer disease (AD) is a chronic neurodegenerative disease that is characterized by progressive memory loss. Pathological markers of AD include neurofibrillary tangles, accumulation of amyloid-β plaques, neuronal loss, and inflammation. The exact events that lead to the neuronal dysfunction and loss are not completely understood. However, pro-inflammatory cytokines, such as interleukin-1β, interleukin-6, and tumor necrosis factor α, are increased in AD, along with gene expression of major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class II molecules and macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF). MHC class II molecules are found in microglia of the brain, while MIF is found in both microglia and neurons of the hypothalamus, hippocampus, and cortex. MIF is not only a lymphocyte mediator but also a pituitary factor with endocrine properties and can mediate phosphorylation of the extracellular signal-regulated kinase-1/2 MAP kinases pathway. In this study, we looked at CD74, an integral membrane protein that acts as both a chaperone for MHC class II molecules as well as a receptor binding site for MIF. CD74 was recently found to be increased in microglia in AD cases compared to age-matched controls, but has not been reported in neurons. In our analysis, immunohistochemistry revealed a significant increase in CD74 primarily in neurofibrillary tangles, amyloid-β plaques, and microglia. This is the first finding to our knowledge that CD74 is increased in neurons of AD cases compared to age-matched control cases.

Adiponectin, an adipokine predominantly secreted from adipose tissue, has potent anti-inflammatory properties. Although the mechanisms for the anti-inflammatory properties of adiponectin are not well understood, recent evidence suggests that increased production of interleukin-10 (IL-10), a potent immunomodulatory cytokine, is involved in the anti-inflammatory actions of adiponectin. Globular adiponectin (gAcrp) increased IL-10 promoter activity and IL-10 mRNA accumulation in RAW 264.7 macrophages. Deletion of the sequences from -416 and -369 in the IL-10 promoter, containing a cyclic AMP-response element (CRE), decreased gAcrp-induced IL-10 promoter activation. Treatment of RAW 264.7 macrophages with gAcrp increased the phosphorylation of cyclic AMP response element binding protein (CREB) at Ser(133), as well as enhanced the DNA binding activity of CREB. Further, overexpression of a dominant negative form of CREB suppressed gAcrp-induced transcriptional activation of IL-10. gAcrp-stimulated CREB phosphorylation was mediated by the activation of both ERK1/2- and cAMP-dependent protein kinase (PKA)-dependent pathways. Inhibition of either ERK1/2 or PKA activity prevented gAcrp-stimulated CREB phosphorylation, as well as gAcrp-stimulated IL-10 promoter activation. Taken together, these data identify gAcrp-stimulated phospho-CREB as a key transcription factor responsible for gAcrp-induced IL-10 promoter activation.