The glutamate transporter GLAST is localized on the cell membrane of mature astrocytes and is also expressed in the ventricular zone of developing brains. To characterize and follow the GLAST-expressing cells during development, we examined the mouse spinal cord by in situ hybridization and immunohistochemistry. At embryonic day (E) 11 and E13, cells expressing GLAST mRNA were present only in the ventricular zone, where GLAST immunoreactivity was associated with most of the cell bodies of neuroepithelial cells. In addition, GLAST immunoreactivity was detected in radial processes running through the mantle and marginal zones. From this characteristic cytology, GLAST-expressing cells at early stages were judged to be radial glia cells. At E15, cells expressing GLAST mRNA first appeared in the mantle zone, and GLAST-immunopositive punctate or reticular protrusions were formed along the radial processes. From E18 to postnatal day (P) 7, GLAST mRNA or its immunoreactivity gradually decreased from the ventricular zone and disappeared from radial processes, whereas cells with GLAST mRNA spread all over the mantle zone and GLAST-immunopositive punctate/reticular protrusions predominated in the neuropils. At P7, GLAST-expressing cells were immunopositive for glial fibrillary acidic protein, an intermediate filament specific to astrocytes. Therefore, the glutamate transporter GLAST is expressed from radial glia through astrocytes during spinal cord development. Furthermore, the distinct changes in the cell position and morphology suggest that both the migration and transformation of radial glia cells begin in the spinal cord between E13 and E15, when the active stage of neuronal migration is over.

region, is the pathologic target. However, by molecular cloning of t(2;14)(p13;q32.3) from 3 cases of aggressive B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL)/immunocytoma, this study has shown clustered breakpoints on chromosome 2p13 immediately upstream of a CpG island located about 300 kb telomeric of REL. This CpG island was associated with a Krü ppel zinc finger gene (BCL11A), which is normally expressed at high levels only in fetal brain and in germinal center B-cells. There were 3 major RNA isoforms of BCL11A, differing in the number of carboxy-terminal zinc fingers. All 3 RNA isoforms were deregulated as a consequence of t(2;14) (p13;q32.3). BCL11A was highly conserved, being 95% identical to mouse, chicken, and Xenopus homologues. BCL11A was also highly homologous to another gene ( IntroductionMany subtypes of malignancy are associated with specific chromosomal translocations, which play a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of disease. In the leukemias and lymphomas of mature B-cells, these frequently involve the immunoglobulin (IG) loci and result in deregulated expression of the translocated oncogene, due, in part, to the presence of potent B cell-specific transcriptional enhancers within the IG loci. 1 All the common IG translocations have been cloned. Paradigms include the deregulation of cyclin D1 by t(11;14)(q13;q32.3), found in all cases of mantle cell lymphoma; BCL2 by t(14;18)(q32.3;q21.3), found in 80% of follicular lymphoma; and MYC by t(8;14)(q24.1;q32.3) and variant translocations in all cases of Burkitt lymphoma. 1 On the basis of cytogenetics alone, several rare, but nonetheless recurrent IG translocations remain to be cloned, principally in aggressive large-cell B-NHL 2 ; their molecular cloning continues to allow the isolation of novel dominant oncogenes and to define new pathogenic mechanisms. 1,[3][4][5][6] Chromosomal translocation t(2;14) (p13;q32.3) is one example and has been reported in a variety of B-cell malignancies ranging from B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia to myeloma. This translocation is frequently the sole cytogenetic abnormality within the neoplastic clone (Watson et al,7 Geisler et al, 8 Sonoki et al, 9 and http://cgap.nci.nih.gov/ Chromosomes/Mitelman). We report here the recurrent involvement and deregulated expression of a Krüppel zinc finger gene, BCL11A, in 4 cases of B-cell malignancy with t(2;14)(p13;q32.3). Patients, materials, and methods Patient materialFour patients with B-cell malignancies and t(2;14)(p13;q32) were studied. Patient material was studied after obtaining written informed consent and local ethical committee approval. Two unusual pediatric patients with CLL (referred to here as patients AS and LH) who exhibited this translocation have been reported on previously 10 ; the translocation breakpoints in these 2 cases were cloned using bacteriophage cloning. 11 In addition, 2 adult patients identified from our cytogenetic databases with identical translocations were also studied. Patient 3 was a previously well 62-year-old female who pres...

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Arginase exists in two isoforms. Liver-type arginase ciency [24]. Recently, arginase activity as well as nitric oxide (arginase I) is expressed almost exclusively in the liver and synthase (NOS) activity was found to be induced in murine catalyzes the last step of urea synthesis, whereas the nonhepatic precursor synthesized in vitro was imported into isolatedWe report here the cloning of a full-length cDNA for humitochondria and proteolytically processed, mRNA for human arginase II was present in the kidney and other tissues, but was man arginase II and a partial cDNA for the rat enzyme. The not detected in the liver. Arginas¢ II mRNA was coinduced with human enzyme contains 354 amino acid residues including the nitric oxide synthase mRNA in routine macrophage-like RAW putative NH2-terminal mitochondria-targeting presequence. cells by lipopolysaccharide. This induction was enhancedMitochondrial import of the arginase II precursor synthesized by dexamethasone and dibutyryl cAMP, and was prevented by in vitro with concomitant proteolytic processing was shown. interferon-y. Possible roles of arginase II in NO synthesis areInduction of mRNAs for arginase II and inducible form of discussed.NOS (iNOS or NOS2) by LPS and other compounds in RAW 264.7 cells was also reported.

HLA haplotypes of 27 patients with human T-lymphotropic virus type I (HTLV-I)-associated myelopathy (HAM) and 12 patients with adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma (ATLL) were examined by analyzing HLA types of the patients and their family members. Either A11Bw54Cw1DR4DQw3, A24Bw54Cw1DR4DQ-, A24B7Cw7DR1DQw1, or A24Bw52Cw-DR2DQw1 and the related haplotypes were found in 70% of cases with HAM. None of these "HAM-associated" haplotypes was found in patients with ATLL. HLA haplotypes made up of HLA components of A26Bw62Cw3DR5DQw3 and one particular haplotype of Aw33B44Cw-DRw6DQw1 were associated with the ATLL haplotypes. These "ATLL-associated" haplotypes were also found in the patients with HAM who had no previous history of blood transfusion. The in vitro cultures of peripheral blood lymphocytes with HTLV-I virion antigens revealed that the response with HAM peripheral blood lymphocytes was remarkably higher than that with ATLL peripheral blood lymphocytes. Based on this HTLV-I-specific immune responsiveness, we can segregate the high responders in HAM (14 of 16 cases) and the low responders in ATLL (6 of 7 cases). The existence of high and low responders was also confirmed by the normal healthy individuals, whose responses were segregated with HAM-associated and ATLL-associated haplotypes. These results suggested that two ethnic groups in southern Kyushu may get the two different diseases, HAM and ATLL, because of their different immunogenetic backgrounds. The high immune response to HTLV-I seems to be an important genetic factor in the development of HAM.

Nitric oxide is synthesized by nitric-oxide synthase from arginine, a common substrate of arginase. Rat peritoneal macrophages were cultured in the presence of bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS), and expression of the inducible isoform of nitric-oxide synthase (iNOS) and liver-type arginase (arginase I) was analyzed. mRNAs for iNOS and arginase I were induced by LPS in a dose-dependent manner. iNOS mRNA appeared 2 h after LPS treatment and increased to a near maximum at 8 -12 h. On the other hand, arginase I mRNA that was undetectable prior to the treatment began to increase after 4 h with a lag time and reached a maximum at 12 h. Immunoblot analysis showed that iNOS and arginase I proteins were also induced. mRNA for arginase II, an arginase isozyme, was not detected in the LPS-activated peritoneal cells. mRNA for CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein ␤ (C/EBP␤), a transactivator of the arginase I gene, was also induced, and the induction was more rapid than that of arginase I mRNA. Changes in iNOS and arginase I mRNAs were also examined in LPS-injected rats in vivo. iNOS mRNA increased rapidly in the lung and spleen, reached a maximum 2-6 h after the LPS treatment, and decreased thereafter. Arginase I mRNA was induced markedly and more slowly in both tissues, reaching a maximum in 12 h. Thus, arginase I appears to have an important role in down-regulating nitric oxide synthesis in murine macrophages by decreasing the availability of arginine, and the induction of arginase I is mediated by C/EBP␤. Nitric oxide (NO)1 is a major molecule regulating blood vessel dilatation and immune response and functions as a neurotransmitter in the brain and peripheral nervous system (see Refs. 1-3 for reviews). NO is synthesized from arginine by nitric-oxide synthase (NOS), generating citrulline. Cellular NO production is absolutely dependent on the availability of arginine. This amino acid can be obtained from exogenous sources via the blood circulation, from intracellular protein degradation, or by the endogenous synthesis of arginine. Major sites of arginine synthesis in ureotelic animals are the liver, where arginine generated in the urea cycle (ornithine cycle) is rapidly converted to urea and ornithine by arginase, and the kidney, where arginine is synthesized from citrulline and released into the blood circulation (see Ref. 4 for a review). In other tissues and cell types, arginine can be generated from citrulline, which is produced as a coproduct of the NOS reaction, forming a cycle that is composed of NOS, argininosuccinate synthetase, and argininosuccinate lyase and that is termed the "citrulline-NO cycle" (5-10). The inducible isoform of NOS (iNOS) and argininosuccinate synthetase are coinduced in activated murine macrophage-like RAW 264.7 cells (8), in cultured vascular smooth muscle cells (9), and in vivo (10, 11). Argininosuccinate lyase is also induced in vivo (10, 11).On the other hand, arginine is utilized for both the arginase and NOS reactions. Thus, these two enzymes compete for arginine. At least two isoforms of ...

Chromosomal translocation t(6;14)(p21.1; q32.3) has been reported as a rare but recurrent event not only in myeloma and plasma cell leukemia but also in diffuse large B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma (B-NHL) (diffuse large B-cell lymphoma [DLBCL]) and splenic lymphoma with villous lymphocytes (SLVL); however, the nature of the target gene(s) has not been determined. This study identified t(6; 14)(p21.1;q32.3) in 3 cases of transformed extranodal marginal zone B-NHL, in 1 case of SLVL, and in 1 case of a low-grade B-cell lymphoproliferative disorder. In a sixth case, a CD5 ؉ DLBCL, the translocation was identified by molecular cloning in the absence of cytogenetically detectable change. Two chromosomal translocation breakpoints were cloned by using long-distance inverse polymerase chain reaction methods. IntroductionThe lymphomas and leukemias of mature B cells are a biologically and histologically heterogeneous group of malignancies. 1 Their molecular pathogenesis for the most part remains unknown, although cloning of chromosomal translocations targeted to the immunoglobulin (IG) loci continues to allow the identification of novel dominant oncogenes and to define new pathogenic mechanisms. 2 These translocations result in the deregulated expression of genes involved in several pathways, including the control of programmed cell death (apoptosis) and proliferation.IG translocations that involve genes controlling progression through the cell cycle have been described. Cyclin D1 (CCND1) on chromosome 11q13 is involved in the t(11;14)(q13;q32.3). This translocation is found in nearly all cases of mantle cell lymphoma but also in some cases of myeloma, in marginal zone malignancies, such as splenic lymphoma with villous lymphocytes (SLVL), and in B-cell prolymphocytic leukemia. [3][4][5][6] The cyclin-dependent kinase gene (CDK6) in chromosome band 7q22 is involved in t(7;14)(q22;q32) or more commonly in t(2;7)(p12;q22); these translocations appear to be specific for a subset of SLVL. 7,8 The involvement of the cell-cycle regulatory genes in marginal zone B-cell malignancies was unanticipated, because they are characteristically indolent diseases. Whether these genes might have functions in B-cell differentiation other than cell-cycle regulation in mature B cells is not yet clear; cyclin D3 expression, for example, is associated with differentiation of some cell types. 9 Cytogenetic abnormalities of chromosome band 6p21 reported in mature B-cell malignancies are various and include translocations, amplifications, and deletions. 10,11 Such translocations in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) often involve the BCL6 gene on chromosome band 3q27 and may juxtapose BCL6 with either the histone H4 gene or the PIM1 oncogene. 12,13 The t(6;14)(p12ϳp21;q32) has been previously reported in a variety of B-cell malignancies, principally in myeloma and plasma cell leukemia but also in DLBCL and splenic marginal zone lymphomas (SMZLs). 14-18 Here we report the recurrent involvement of a For personal use only. on May 12, 2018. by gues...

Bergmann glia (BG) are unipolar cerebellar astrocytes, whose radial (or Bergmann) fibers associate with developing granule cells and mature Purkinje cells (PCs). In the present study, we investigated the morphodifferentiation of BG by immunohistochemistry for glutamate transporter GLAST and electron microscopy. GLAST was expressed widely in cerebellar radial glia/astrocytes during fetal and neonatal periods and became concentrated in BG postnatally. During the second postnatal week when PC dendrites grow actively, GLAST immunostaining revealed dynamic cytologic changes in Bergmann fibers in a deep-to-superficial gradient; Bergmann fibers traversing the external granular layer were stained as rod-like fibers, whereas in the molecular layer, the rod-like pattern was gradually replaced with a reticular meshwork. At postnatal day 10, the superficial rod-like domain was composed of glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP)-positive/GLAST-positive straight fibers, forming cytoplasmic swellings and short filopodia. Along this domain, the tip of growing PC dendrites ascended vertically and entered the base of the external granular layer. The deeper reticular domain of Bergmann fibers was characterized by active expansion of GFAP-negative/GLAST-positive lamellate processes, which surrounded PC synapses almost completely. Therefore, the transformation of Bergmann fibers proceeds in correlation with dendritic differentiation of PCs. The intimate PC-BG relationships during cerebellar development raise the possibility that a preexisting glial shaft could serve as a structural substrate that directs dendritic outgrowth toward the pial surface, whereas the successive formation of a reticular glial meshwork should lead to structural maturation of newly formed PC synapses.