永津 俊治

The intraperitoneal administration of (6R)-L-erythro-5,6,7,8-tetrahydrobiopterin (6R-BH4), the natural cofactor of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH), increased the accumulation of L-3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine (DOPA) measured using microdialysis under the inhibition of aromatic L-amino acid decarboxylase by NSD-1015 (in vivo TH activity) in the striatum both of transgenic mice carrying human TH gene and of non-transgenic mice, to a similar extent by about 4-fold. The results indicate that the peripherally administered 6R-BH4 activates in vivo TH activity in the nigrostriatal dopamine neurons in both non-transgenic and transgenic mice.

Hereditary progressive dystonia with marked diurnal fluctuation (HPD) (also known as dopa responsive dystonia) is a dystonia with onset in childhood that shows a marked response without any side effects to levodopa. Recently the gene for dopa responsive dystonia (DRD) was mapped to chromosome 14q. Here we report that GTP cyclohydrolase I is mapped to 14q22.1-q22.2. The identification of four independent mutations of the gene for GTP cyclohydrolase I in patients with HPD, as well as a marked decrease in the enzymes activity in mononuclear blood cells, confirms that the GTP cyclohydrolase I gene is a causative gene for HPD/DRD. This is the first report of a causative gene for the inherited dystonias.

Interleukin (IL)-1 beta, IL-6, epidermal growth factor (EGF), and transforming growth factor-alpha (TGF-alpha) were measured for the first time in the brain (caudate nucleus, putamen and cerebral cortex) from control and parkinsonian patients by highly sensitive sandwich enzyme immunoassays. The concentrations of IL-1 beta, IL-6, EGF, and TGF-alpha in the dopaminergic, striatal regions were significantly higher in parkinsonian patients than those in controls, whereas those in the cerebral cortex did not show significant differences between parkinsonian and control subjects. Since these cytokines and growth factors may play important roles as neurotrophic factors in the brain, the present results suggest that they may be produced as compensatory responses in the nigrostriatal dopaminergic regions in Parkinson's disease, and may be related, at least in part, to the process of neurodegeneration in Parkinson's disease.

After 5-hydroxy-L-tryptophan (5-HTP) and L-3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine (L-DOPA) were injected i.p. in the laboratory shrew Suncus murinus, immunocytochemical and immunofluorescence studies were conducted on continuous or same sections of the brain, using specific anti-tyrosine hydroxylase (TH), anti-aromatic L-amino acid decarboxylase (AADC), anti-dopamine (DA) and antiserotonin (5-HT) antisera which were produced in our laboratory. The results of double-staining by the immunofluorescence method as well as immunoelectron microscopy strongly indicate that the cells of the premammillary nucleus of the laboratory shrew brain (AADC-only-positive neurons) are capable of synthesizing DA and 5-HT simultaneously upon simultaneous administration of L-DOPA and 5-HTP.

Human tyrosine hydroxylase (hTH) exists in four isoforms. The four recombinant hTH isoenzymes types 1-4 (hTH1-4) produced in and purified from Escherichia coli showed regulatory kinetic properties for the natural(6R)-L-erythro-tetrahydrobiopterin (RBPH4) as a cofactor. In contrast, the unnatural cofactor (6S)-L-erythro-tetrahydrobiopterin (SBPH4) and a synthetic cofactor (6RS)-methyl-tetrahydropterin (6MPH4) showed usual kinetic characteristics with each of hTH1-4. Substrate inhibition by tyrosine was observed for each of hTH1-4 with natural RBPH4. Two different K-m values for pterin cofactor were observed at a high concentration (200 mu M) of L-tyrosine only with natural RBPH4, in contrast to a single K-m value for unnatural SBPH4 or synthetic 6MPH4. The present results suggest that in the presence of relatively high concentrations (approximately 100 mu M) of tyrosine in vivo, RBPH4 cofactor may have a regulatory role for the activity of all four human isoenzymes in vivo. We also found that recombinant hTH1 and 3 were more unstable than hTH2 and 4, suggesting that the 4-amino-acid insertion in hTH2 and 4 may be responsible for the relative stability of hTH2 and 4 isoenzymes.

A new cancer cell line (Lu-165) producing a large amount of anti-diuretic hormone (ADH, 2.8 mu g/g protein) was established from a 50-year-old small cell lung cancer patient presenting with a syndrome of inappropriate anti-diuretic hormone secretion. These cells grew well in serum-supplemented medium and during more than 100 passages they continued producing a large amount of this hormone. This cell line will be a useful tool for studies of the biochemistry and pathology of ADH-producing cancer.

Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples from patients with a variety of neurological disorders were assayed to determine the concentrations of tetrahydrobiopterin (BH4), the active cofactor of hydroxylases. Dihydroneopterin (NH2) and neopterin (N), which are linked with BH4 synthesis and are inflammatory biochemical markers, were also measured simultaneously in a number of patients. 5-Hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5-HIAA) and homovanillic acid (HVA), the main products of serotonin and dopamine breakdown, were analyzed in parallel whenever possible. As BH4 and NH2 are difficult to analyze owing to their instability, CSF samples were collected under special conditions to preserve the reduced BH4 and NH2. Liquid chromatographic assays and detection of the various substances measured also required particular precautions. BH4 concentrations were elevated in patients with neurological disorders such as syphilis and lupus-like disease and especially in an AIDS patient with neurological complications with an increased N/BH4 ratio.

The intracellular localization of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH), which is the rate limiting enzyme in catecholamine (CA) biosynthesis, and its activity in various adrenal and other neuroendocrine tumors was studied. TH was strongly localized in adrenal medulla, pheochromocytoma, and paraganglioma, but was scatteredly expressed in neuroblastoma. TH was not detected in adrenocortical tumors, ganglioneuroma, and other neuroendocrine tumors. Neuron specific enolase (NSE) was found in all neuroendocrine tumors, but Grimelius staining showed only the secreting granules of the tumor cells. TH activity was significantly high in pheochromocytoma and paraganglioma as compared with that in normal adrenal gland, whereas TH activity was low in a neuroblastoma and was undetectable in other tumors. These findings indicate that TH correlates well with the biosynthetic function of CA in the tumor cell and, thus, both the immunostaining of TH and the measurement of its activity in adreno-medullary and related tumors may provide some information about the process of cell differentiation in these tumors.

The in vivo metabolic pathway for the synthesis of N-methylnorsalsolinol, an analogue of 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP), was studied in the rat brain. N-Methyldopamine (epinine) was perfused at the striatum of the rat brain by in vivo microdialysis. N-Methylnorsalsolinol (NMNSAL) was identified in the brain dialysate after epinine perfusion using gas chromatography-serected-ion monitoring mass spectrometry (GC-SIMMS). We demonstrated that NMNSAL could be synthesized from epinine with an aldehyde by the Piclet-Spengler condensation reaction in the rat brain.

The aim of this study is to examine whether protein products of the bacterial reporter gene are localized within axon terminals in transgenic mice. We have previously created transgenic mice carrying a chimeric gene composed of the human tyrosine hydroxylase gene promoter and the bacterial gene encoding chloramphenicol acetyltransferase (CAT). In the present study, we used an antiserum that detects specifically CAT, and examined immunocytochemically the brain of the transgenic mice. At a light microscopic level, CAT immunoreactivity was found in a dense plexus of fibers in the central nucleus of the amygdala, and in cell bodies of the ventral tegmental area. At an electron microscopic level, in the central nucleus of the amygdala, CAT immunoreactivity was observed in axon terminals. In the ventral tegmental area, the immunoreactivity was found in the perikaryal cytoplasm and on the microtubule of dendrites. The present findings suggest that protein products of the bacterial gene may be transported in axons up to their terminals, and also moved along the microtubules of dendrites.

Using the reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RTPCR), we developed a sensitive and quantitative method to detect all four types of human tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) mRNAs in the human brain (substantia nigra). All four types of TH mRNAs were found in the substantia nigra in the control brains examined, and the ratio of type-1, type-2, type-3, and type-4 mRNAs to the total amount of TH was 45, 52, 1.4, and 2.1%, respectively. The average amount of total TH mRNA in the normal brain (substantia nigra) was 5.5 amol of TH mRNA per mu g of total RNA. The ratios of four TH isoforms were not altered significantly in Parkinson's disease or schizophrenia. Further we measured the relative amount of aromatic L-amino acid decarboxylase (AADC) and beta-actin mRNAs in the brain samples. TH and AADC mRNAs were highly correlated in the control cases. We found that parkinsonian brains had very low levels of all four TH isoforms and AADC mRNAs in the substantia nigra compared with control brains, while no significant differences were found between schizophrenic brains and normal ones. Since the decrease in AADC mRNA was comparable to that in TH mRNA, the alteration of TH in Parkinson's disease would not be a primary event, but it would reflect the degeneration of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra. This is the first reported measurement of mRNA contents of TH isoforms and AADC in Parkinson's disease and schizophrenia.

Oxanosine is an unusual nucleoside that inhibits ras functions. Oxanosine inhibited nerve growth factor (NGF)-induced morphological and enzymic differentiation in rat pheochromocytoma PC12h cells, a subline of PC12. The inhibition was reversed by guanosine. Oxanosine did not inhibit dibutyl cyclic AMP-induced morphological differentiation but did inhibit cholera toxin-induced differentiation. Both NGF and chorela toxin receptors are known to associate with G proteins. Thus, oxanosine was shown to specifically inhibit differentiation mediated by G-proteins including Ras.

The effects of heterocyclic amines, pyrolysis products of tryptophan, on monoamine metabolism were examined. Among these amines, 3-amino-1,4-dimethyl-5H-pyrido[4,3-b]indole (Trp-P-1) and 3-amino-1-methyl-5H-pyrido[4,3-b]indole (Trp-P-2) are potent inhibitors of the enzymes related to amine metabolism. They inhibited type A monoamine oxidase more markedly than type B. After culture of a dopamine cell model, clonal pheochromocytoma PC12h cells, with Trp-P-1 activity of tyrosine hydroxylase was decreased by reduction of its affinity to the biopterin cofactor. Trp-P-1 and Trp-P-2 inhibited tryptophan hydroxylase competitively with the substrate and non-competitively with biopterin. These results suggest that food-derived heterocyclic amines may perturb the monoamine levels in the brain through the inhibition of the biosynthesis and metabolism of biogenic amines.

In human brains, a series of monoamine-derived 1,2,3,4-tetrahydroisoquinolines and the 6,7-dihydroxy derivatives has been identified. A tetrahydroisoquinoline was found to cause parkinsonism in monkey, but its toxicity was not so potent as 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine. Two metabolic steps were found to increase cytotoxicity of isoquinolines. N-Methylation by a non-specific N-methyltransferase was proved by in vivo and in vitro experiments. The N-methylated compound was oxidized into N-methylisoquinolinium ion by monoamine oxidase from human brain mitochondria. The oxidation was proved by microdialysis in the rat brain. The isoquinolinium ion was more cytotoxic than the two metabolic precursors. N-Methylation of dopamine-derived 1-methyl-6,7-dihydroxy-1,2,3,4-tetrahydroisoquinoline was detected by in vivo microdialysis in the rat striatum, and their presence in the human brain was confirmed by GC-MS. The metabolic bioactivation may be a general pathway to produce neurotoxins as the pathogenic agents of Parkinson's disease.

We produced transgenic (Tg) mice carrying the human tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) gene. To investigate differences in the dopaminergic (DAergic) neuronal activity between the Tg and nTg mice, we examined changes in the locomotor activity induced by methamphetamine (MAP) and nicotine (NIC), which enhances DA release and induces TH enzyme activation, respectively. Surprisingly, however, the intensity of MAP (2.5 mg/kg, once a day for 14 days)-induced hyperlocomotion in the nTg mice was greater than that in the Tg mice, and, furthermore, the Tg mice were less sensitive to subacute administration of NIC (0.5 mg/kg, once a day for 14 days) than the nTg mice. These results suggest that DAergic neuronal function is suppressed in Tg mice to compensate for the overexpression of TH.

The present study was aimed to determine the effect of the nearly complete nigro-striatal dopaminergic denervation on GTP-binding protein, Goalpha and Gi2, in the caudate nucleus, and putamen from parkinsonian patients. Using post-morterm human brains, we measured the concentrations of Goalpha and Gi2 in the putamen and caudate nucleus of controls and parkinsonian disease by enzyme immunoassay. The level of Goalpha and Gi2 were not changed between parkinsonian and control brains. These results indicate that striatal dopaminergic denervation may not modify the amount of G-proteins.

After L-3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine (L-DOPA) was injected intraperitoneally in the laboratory shrew (Suncus murinus), the animals were anesthetized and perfused with 5% glutaraldehyde solution. Serial sections of the brain were reacted immunohistochemically with specific anti-tyrosine hydroxylase (TH), anti-DOPA, anti-aromatic L-amino acid decarboxylase (AADC), and anti-dopamine (DA) antisera which were produced in our laboratory. We observed that all TH-negative, AADC-positive neurons (designated as D neurons in the rat brain by Jaeger) showed anti-DA immunopositive reaction. Our findings strongly suggest that D neuron system belongs to the APUD (amine precursor uptake and decarboxylation) system.

We have produced transgenic (Tg) mice carrying 5.0-kb fragment from the 5'-flanking region of the human tyrosine hydroxylase (hTH) gene fused to a reporter:gene, chloramphenicol acetyltransferase (CAT) [Sasaoka et al. (1992) Mol Brain Res 16: 274-286]. In the brain of the Tg mice, CAT expression has been observed in catecholaminergic (CAnergic) neurons and also in non-CAnergic neurons. The aim of the present study is to examine in detail the cell-type specific expression of the hTH-CAT fusion gene in the brain of the Tg mice, by use of immunohistochemistry for CAT, TH, and aromatic L-amino acid decarboxylase (AADC). CAT-immunoreactive cells were found in CAnergic brain regions which contained TH-positive cells, and also in non-CAnergic brain regions which contained no TH-labeled cells. The non-CAnergic brain regions that represented CAT-stained cells were further divided into two groups: (i) regions containing AADC-labeled cells, for example, bed nucleus of the stria terminalis, nucleus suprachiasmaticus, mammillary body, nucleus raphe dorsalis, inferior colliculus, and nucleus parabrachialis, and (ii) regions containing no AADC-positive cells, for example, main olfactory bulb (except A16), accessory olfactory bulb, nucleus olfactorius anterior, caudoputamen, septum, nucleus accumbens, hippocampus, medial nucleus of the amygdala, entorhinal cortex, nucleus supraopticus, and parasubiculum. The results indicate that the 5.0-kb DNA fragment flanking the 5' end of the hTH gene may contain the element(s) specific for neuron-specific TH expression but which may be insufficient to attenuate ectopic expression.

We investigated the effect of subcutaneous injection of nicotine on in vitro tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) activity in adrenal gland and brain of the transgenic mice carrying an 11-kb fragment containing the entire human TH gene. Injection of 5 mg nicotine/kg (as free base) for 3 days caused a statistically significant increase in in vitro TH activity in the adrenal gland, whereas brain TH activity was not affected at all. The adrenal gland of non-transgenic C57BL/6J mice treated in the same way as for transgenic mice tended to enhance TH activity, although not to a significant level. This observation might indicate the possibility that the machinery used by nicotine in regulating the properties or expression of TH in the adrenal gland should be similar between transgenic and non-transgenic mice.

Tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), a glial-cell-related factor, was measured for the first time in the brain (striatum) and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) from control and parkinsonian patients by a sensitive sandwich enzyme immunoassay. The concentrations of TNF-alpha in the brain and CSF were significantly higher in parkinsonian patients than those in controls. Since TNF-alpha is an important signal transducer of the immune system with cytotoxic and stimulator properties, these results suggest that an immune response may occur in the nigrostriatal dopaminergic regions in Parkinson's disease and that TNF-alpha may be related, at least in part, to the neuronal degeneration.

The distribution of beta1- and beta2-adrenoceptor subtypes in mice was determined in crude membranes prepared from the submandibular gland, lung, spleen, heart and kidney, all of which are major target tissues of sympathoadrenal neurons. Scatchard analysis using [I-125]-(-)iodocyanopindolol gave linear plots and the order of the density of total beta-adrenoceptors was lung > submandibular gland > spleen > kidney > heart. Competition binding studies using beta1-selective antagonist CGP20712A indicated that all tissues examined possessed both high and low affinity sites which approximately stand for beta1- and beta2-adrenoceptor subtypes respectively despite the notable difference in the ratios of high and low affinity sites depending on the tissues. The order of the occupancy of high affinity sites was submandibular gland (71%), heart (55%), spleen (18%), kidney (17%), lung (14%). These results will be helpful to elucidate the regulatory mechanism which underlies beta-adrenergic functions in mice.

The aim of this study was to examine whether protein products of a transgene are localized within axon terminals in transgenic mice. We have previously created transgenic mice containing a chimeric gene composed of the human dopamine beta-hydroxylase gene promoter and the human phenylethanolamine N-methyltransferase (PNMT) cDNA. In the present study, we used an antiserum that detects specifically human PNMT but not mouse PNMT, and examined immunocytochemically the hippocampal formation of the transgenic mice. At a light microscopic level, immunoreactivity of human PNMT was found in fiber plexuses in the outer molecular layer of the dentate gyrus, and in cell bodies of layer 2 of the entorhinal cortex. At an electron microscopic level, in the outer molecular layer of the dentate gyrus, human PNMT immunoreactivity was observed in axon terminals that formed synapses with dendritic spines. The present study provides the evidence for localization of the transgene's protein products in axon terminals, suggesting axonal transport of the products.

The effects of a naturally occurring heterocyclic amine, 3-amino-1,4-dimethyl-5H-pyrido[4,3-b]indol (Trp-P-1), on tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) mRNA levels were examined in PC12h cells using Northern blot analysis. Dose-dependency of Trp-P-1 for 24h incubation gave biphasic results; 0.1 muM Trp-P-1 enhanced and 10 muM Trp-P-1 reduced TH mRNA levels. These effects were faded out in 48 h. One hundred muM Trp-P-1 caused the almost complete abolishment of TH mRNA expression as well as cell death. These results suggest the possibility that lower dose of Trp-P-1 might function as a trophic factor in contrast to neurotoxic effect in higher doses.

We investigated the regulatory mechanism of dopamine biosynthesis in the striatum of transgenic mice carrying multiple copies of human tyrosine hydroxylase (TH). The in vitro TH activity of transgenic striatum at pH 7.0 was approximately 2.8-fold higher than that of non-transgenic striatum. This augmentation is similar to that of the in vitro TH activity at pH 6.0, indicating that the expression of human TH in transgenic striatum induced little change in the phosphorylation level of TH. L-3,4-Dihydroxyphenylalanine (DOPA) formation in striatal slices of transgenic mice was approximately 2.7-fold higher than that of non-transgenic mice. The addition of 0.5 mM (6R)-L-erythro-5,6,7,8-tetrahydrobiopterin (6R-BH4) to the incubation medium brought a negligible increase in DOPA formation in both cases. These results suggest that 6R-BH4 is not the limiting factor of TH in situ both in the transgenic and non-transgenic mice.

N-Methyldopamine (epinine) has been identified for the first time in parkinsonian and normal human brains by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. N-Methylsalsolinol and N-methylnorsalsolinol, which are analogues of 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine, which produces parkinsonism in humans, may be synthesized from N-methyldopamine by the Pictet-Spengler condensation reaction as an alternative metabolic pathway.

Dopamine beta-hydroxylase (DBH, EC 1.14.17.1) catalyzes the conversion of dopamine to norepinephrine, the third step of catecholamine biosynthesis. We have previously created transgenic mice harboring a chimeric gene consisting of the 4-kb DNA fragment of the human DBH gene promoter and the human phenylethanolamine N-methyltransferase (PNMT, EC 2.1.1.28) cDNA, to express PNMT in norepinephrine- and epinephrine-producing cells in the brain, sympathetic ganglia, and adrenal medullary chromaffin cells (Kobayashi et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A., 89 (1992) 1631-1635). In this paper, we produced for the first time the antibody that specifically detects human PNMT, but not mouse PNMT, with the synthetic oligopeptide characteristic of the human PNMT sequence, and used this antibody to investigate the cells expressing human PNMT in transgenic mice. Immunohistochemical analysis of transgenic mice showed typical expression of human PNMT immunoreactivity in norepinephrinergic and epinephrinergic neurons in brain, as well as norepinephrine- and epinephrine-producing cells in the adrenal gland, indicating that the 4-kb 5'-flanking region is essential for the tissue-specific expression of the DBH gene. We also detected the ectopic expression in some DBH-immunonegative cells in the olfactory bulb of transgenic mice.

Aromatic L-amino acid decarboxylase (AADC) decarboxylates both L-5-hydroxytryptophan to serotonin in serotonergic neurons and pineal cells, and L-dopa to dopamine in catecholaminergic neurons and adrenal medullary cells. Thus AADC produces two major mammalian neurotransmitters and hormones. We isolated and sequenced a full-length, neuronal-type, cDNA encoding human AADC. It consisted of 1932 bases containing an open reading frame encoding 480 amino acids residues with a molecular weight of 53,891. We expressed a recombinant human AADC in COS cells and proved that the expressed enzyme decarboxylated both L-5-hydroxytryptophan to serotonin and L-dopa to dopamine. We have cloned genomic DNA of human AADC and determined the structure. The genomic DNA of human AADC consists of 15 exons spanning about 100 kilobases and exists as a single copy in the hapoloid genome. We have mapped the gene to chromosome band 7p12.1-p12.3 by fluorescence in situ hybridization. We cloned the nonneuronal type cDNA from human liver and identified another first exon different from the neuronal type cDNA. This showed that an alternative usage of the first exon produced two types of mRNAs in AADC and suggested that alternative splicing would regulate the tissue-specific expression of AADC.

Dopamine-derived 1-methyl-6,7-dihydroxy-1,2,3,4-tetrahydroisoquinolines, (R)- and (S)salsolinol, released an enormous amount of serotonin in the rat striatum; the concentration of serotonin increased from undetectable level to 2.53 +/- 0.12 and 3.69 +/- 0.01 muM after perfusion of (R)- and (S)salsolinol, respectively. Salsolinols increased extracellular dopamine level, but to a much lesser degree than serotonin. Other naturally occurring isoquinolines with catechol structure released serotonin and dopamine, but salsolinols were the most potent and selective releaser of serotonin. Serotonin release by salsolinols may be involved in some psychiatric symptoms in L-DOPA therapy or alcoholism.

As a stress model, a forced swimming test was applied to mice; and a typical behavioral change, an immobile posture, was recognized. This affected the brain monoamine levels significantly. The norepinephrine concentration was reduced, while that of its product was increased; and in the case of dopamine, both the amount of the amine and its product were increased. Stress increased the levels of serotonin and its product in the brain. The effects of RS-8359, (+/-)-4-(4-cyanophenyl)amino-6,7-dihydro-7-hydroxy-5H-cyclopenta[d]-pyrimidine, a new inhibitor of type A monoamine oxidase, on the behavioral and biochemical changes caused by forced swimming were also investigated. RS-8359 significantly improved the immobile posture elicited by the forced swimming test. It reduced the increased turnover of norepinephrine and serotonin systems caused by swimming. These results suggest that the effect of RS-8359 on behavioral and biochemical changes by stress may be mainly due to its effects on norepinephrine and serotonin systems, presumably by the inhibition of type A monoamine oxidase.

In order to supplement the deficient catecholamine neurotransmitters, dopamine and noradrenaline, in parkinsonian brains, the following strategies have been tried: (1) the precursor amino acids, L-DOPA and L-threo-dihydroxyphenylserine (DOPS), (2) 6R-L-erythro-tetrahydrobiopterin (BPH4) as tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) cofactor and nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH) as cofactor of dihydropteridine reductase to stimulate TH, (3) brain transplant of TH-containing cells, (4) inhibitors of monoamine oxidase (MAO) and/or catechol O-methyltransferase (COMT) with or without L-DOPA or L-DOPS, and (5) dopamine receptor agonists. Among these strategies, the precursor, L-DOPA, L-DOPS, MAO and COMT inhibitors, and dopamine receptor agonists have proved to be clinically effective. As a new strategy, increase in deficient TH activity has been tried experimentally and clinically either by stimulation of residual TH activity by the cofactors, BPH4 or NADH, or by brain transplant of natural TH-containing cells (fetal substantia nigra) or genetically engineered TH-containing cells.

6,7-Dihydroxy-1,2,3,4-tetrahydroisoquinoline (norsalsolinol) and 1-methyl-6,7-dihydroxy-1,2,3,4-tetrahydroisoquinoline (salsolinol), and their N-methylated derivatives were found to inhibit type A and B monoamine oxidase isolated from human brain synaptosomal mitochondria. N-Methyl-norsalsolinol, (R) and (S) enantiomer of salsolinol, and N-methyl-salsolinols inhibited type A monoamine oxidase competitively to the substrate, kynuramine, and R enantiomers were more potent inhibitors than S enantiomers. The inhibition was reversible. Norsalsolinol induced positive cooperativity toward kynuramine. Both norsalsolinol and N-methyl-norsalsolinol inhibited type B oxidase non-competitively to the substrate, and their K(i) values were much higher than those to type A. Types of inhibition of type A monoamine oxidase depended on the enzyme sources. Inhibition of monoamine oxidase by 6,7-dihydroxy-1,2,3,4-tetrahydroisoquinolines is discussed in relation to their chemical structures.

The concentrations of oncopterin, N2-(3-aminopropyl)biopterin, a new pterin compound, were determined in urine from various cancer patients by HPLC on a reverse-phase or ion-exchange column. The concentration of oncopterin increased after acid hydrolysis, indicating that it exists as an amide in urine. The oncopterin concentrations were very low in the urine of healthy controls. Among the urine samples examined, those from cases of solid cancers, e.g., hepatomas, prostatic cancer and bladder cancer, exhibited very high levels; and those from cases of blood cancers, e.g., myelomas, acute myelocytic leukemia, and lymphomas, showed moderate increases. Oncopterin may thus be a new biochemical marker of some types of cancer.

To investigate cis-elements responsible for catecholaminergic (CAnergic) neuron-specific expression of the tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) gene, we produced lines of transgenic mice carrying 5.0-kb, 2.5-kb and 0.2-kb fragments from the 5'-flanking region of the human TH gene fused to a reporter gene. chloramphenicol acetyltransferase (CAT), and designated them as TC 50. TC 25, and TC 02, respectively. and reporter gene expression in transgenic mice was analyzed by CAT assay by immunocytochemistry with anti-CAT antibody. High-level CAT expression was observed in the brain and adrenal gland using the 5.0-kb promoter of the TC 50 mice, but ectopic expression was consistently observed in several somatic tissues, e.g. thymus, colon, and testis. In brain, expression was achieved in CAnergic neurons with the largest construct (5.0 kb), but not with 2.5 kb or 0.2 kb of 5' flanking sequence. However, TC 50 mice also expressed CAT immunoreactivity in non-CAnergic neurons. In the TC 25 line CAT immunoreactivity was detected only in some non-CAnergic neurons. In the TC 02 line no CAT immunoreactivity was detected in any of the tissues examined. These results indicate that the 5.0-kb DNA fragment of the TH gene upstream region contains activity to express CAT in CAnergic neurons and surprisingly, lacks some regulatory elements attenuating ectopic expression, and that the 2.5-kb and 0.2-kb fragment are not sufficient for the proper expression. We discuss the presence of the tissue-specific regulatory elements in the structure portion of the TH gene and/or 3'-flanking region.

Aromatic-L-amino-acid decarboxylase (AADC) is an enzyme that plays an essential role in synthesizing catecholamines and serotonin in neuronal and endocrine tissues. AADC has also been detected in other nonneuronal tissues including liver and kidney, although its physiological role in nonneuronal tissues has not yet been defined. Previously we have cloned a human AADC cDNA from a neuronal tissue (pheochromocytoma) [Ichinose, H., Kurosawa, Y., Titani, K., Fujita, K., & Nagatsu, T. (1989) Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 164,1024-1030] and the corresponding genomic DNA [Sumi-Ichinose, C., Ichinose, H., Takahashi, E., Hori, T., & Nagatsu, T. (1992) Biochemistry 31, 2229-2238]. Here we present isolation and characterization of AADC cDNA and genomic DNA from a nonneuronal tissue (human liver). The nonneuronal and neuronal AADC mRNAs differed only in the region corresponding to the untranslated first exon. The first exon for the nonneuronal-type mRNA was located 4.2 kilobases upstream to that for the neuronal-type mRNA and 22 kilobases from exon 2, to which it is spliced. Determination of the transcription initiation site indicated that the length of the nonneuronal-type exon 1 was 200 bp. A TATA box-like motif was located between positions -26 and -20 from the transcription initiation site. These results showed that an alternative usage of the first exon in the 5'-untranslated regions produces two types of mRNAs in AADC and suggested that alternative splicing would regulate the tissue-specific expression of AADC.

An enzyme immunosorbent assay of neopterin and biopterin on a polystyrene microtiter plate has been developed. A conjugate of neopterin or biopterin to bovine serum albumin was used to raise a specific antiserum against neopterin or biopterin in rabbits. An incubation mixture of the antiserum and samples prepared from human serum underwent another antigen-antibody reaction with the hapten fixed on the microtiter plate. The amount of antibody bound to the fixed hapten, which is inverse to the amount of hapten in the sample, was determined by using anti-rabbit IgG-horseradish peroxidase conjugate in a usual manner by measuring absorbance at 490 nm after reaction with o-phenylenediamine and hydrogen peroxide. The minimal detectable amounts of neopterin and biopterin were approximately 0.1 pmol. The specificity of the assay was so high that the assay system for neopterin completely distinguished it from biopterin, as judged from the cross-reaction of 0.002%, and vice versa. The amounts of neopterin and biopterin in human serum determined by the present method agreed well with those determined by high-performance liquid chromatography. We used the present method to determine the concentrations of neopterin in serum from healthy control subjects and patients with cancers and systemic lupus erythematosus; the results were consistent with literature data.

N-Methylation of (R)-1-methyl-6,7-dihydroxy-1,2,3,4-tetrahydroisoquinoline [(R)-salsolinol] derived from dopamine was proved by in vivo microdialysis study in the rat brain. The striatum was perfused with (R)-salsolinol and N-methylated compound was identified in the dialysate using HPLC and electrochemical detection with multichanneled electrodes. N-Methylation of (R)-salsolinol was confirmed in three other regions of the brain, the substantia nigra, hypothalamus, and hippocampus. In the substantia nigra, the amount of N-methylated (R)-salsolinol was significantly larger than in the other three regions. These results indicate that around dopaminergic neurons, particularly in the substantia nigra, (R)-salsolinol was methylated into (N-methyl-(R)-salsolinol, which has a chemical structure similar to that of 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine, the selective dopaminergic neurotoxin. N-Methylation of tetrahydroisoquinolines and beta-carbolines have already been proven to increase their toxicity to dopaminergic neurons and N-methylation might be an essential step for these alkaloids to increase their toxicity. On the other hand, after perfusion of (R)-salsolinol, release of dopamine and 5-hydroxy-tryptamine was observed and inhibition of monoamine oxidase was indicated. (R)-Salsolinol and its derivatives may be candidates for being dopaminergic neurotoxins.

N-Methylsalsolinol, an analogue of 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine, is present in the brains of patients with Parkinson's disease. To determine the metabolic pathway for the synthesis of N-methylsalsolinol in the brain, salsolinol was perfused through the striatum or the substantia nigra of the rat brain by in vivo microdialysis. N-Methylsalsolinol was detected in the brain dialysate samples during microdialysis with salsolinol using gas chromatography mass spectrometry with selected-ion monitoring. These results demonstrate that endogenous N-methylation of salsolinol into N-methylsalsolinol occurs in the brain in vivo.

Salsolinol is one of the dopamine-derived tetrahydroisoquinolines and is synthesized from pyruvate or acetaldehyde and dopamine. As it cannot cross the blood-brain harrier, salsolinol as the R enantiomer in the brain is considered to be synthesized in situ in dopaminergic neurons. Effects of R and S enantiomers of salsolinol on kinetic properties of tyrosine hydroxylase [tyrosine, tetrahydrobiopterin:oxygen oxidoreductase (3-hydroxylating); EC 1.14.16.2], the rate-limiting enzyme of catecholamine biosynthesis, were examined. The naturally occurring cofactor of tyrosine hydroxylase, L-erythro-5,6,7,8-tetrahydrobioptein, was found to induce allostery to the enzyme polymers and to change the affinity to the biopterin itself. Using L-erytho-5,6,7,8-tetrahydrobiopterin, tyrosine hydroxylase recognized the stereochemical structures of the salsolinols differently. The asymmetric center of salsolinol at C-1 played an important role in changing the affinity to L-tyrosine. The allostery of tyrosine hydroxylase toward biopterin cofactors disappeared. and at low concentrations of biopterin such as in brain tissue, the affinity to the cofactor changed markedly. A new type of inhibition of tyrosine hydroxylase, by depleting the allosteric effect of the endogenous biopterin, was found. It is suggested that under physiological conditions. such a conformational change may alter the regulation of DOPA biosynthesis in the brain.

Aromatic L-amino acid decarboxylase (AADC) catalyzes the decarboxylation of both L-3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine and L-5-hydroxytryptophan to dopamine and serotonin, respectively, which are major mammalian neurotransmitters and hormones belonging to catecholamines and indoleamines. This report describes the organization of the human AADC gene. We proved that the gene of human AADC consists of 15 exons spanning more than 85 kilobases and exists as a single copy in the haploid genome. The boundaries between exon and intron followed the AG/GT rule. The sizes of exons and introns ranged from 20 to 400 bp and from 1.0 to 17.7 kb, respectively, while the sizes of four introns were not determined. Untranslated regions located in the 5' region of mRNA were encoded by two exons, exons 1 and 2. The transcriptional starting point was determined around G at position -111 by primer extension and S1 mapping. There were no typical "TATA box" and "CAAT box" within 540 bp from the transcriptional starting point. The human AADC gene was mapped to chromosome band 7p12.1-p12.3 by fluorescence in situ hybridization. This is the first report on the genomic structure and chromosomal localization of the AADC gene in mammals.

Epinephrine-producing cells are characterized by the presence of phenylethanolamine N-methyltransferase (PNMT), which catalyzes the formation of epinephrine from norepinephrine. We generated a line of transgenic mice carrying a chimeric gene containing human PNMT cDNA fused to the 4-kilobase fragment of the human dopamine beta-hydroxylase (DBH) gene promoter, to switch catecholamine phenotype in the nervous and endocrine systems. Human PNMT transcripts and immunoreactivity were mainly detected, in norepinephrine neurons in brain and sympathetic ganglion as well as in norepinephrine-producing cells in adrenal medulla of transgenic mice, indicating that the human DBH gene promoter of 4 kilobases is sufficient to direct expression of the gene in norepinephrine-producing cells. Analysis of catecholamines in the various tissues showed that the expression of human PNMT in transgenic mice induced the appearance of epinephrine in sympathetic ganglion and dramatic changes in norepinephrine and epinephrine levels in brain, adrenal gland, and blood. These results indicate that the additional PNMT expression in norepinephrine-producing cells can convert these cells to the epinephrine phenotype, and suggest that norepinephrine-producing cells normally possess the basic machinery required for the synthesis of epinephrine except for PNMT. Thus it appears that the only major difference between norepinephrine- and epinephrine-producing cells is the expression of PNMT. Our transgenic animals provide an experimental model to investigate the functional differences between norepinephrine and epinephrine.

Catecholamine neurotransmitters-dopamine, noradrenaline (norepinephrine), adrenaline (epinephrine) -are synthesized in catecholaminergic neurons from tyrosine, via dopa, dopamine and noradrenaline, to adrenaline. Four enzymes are involved in the biosynthesis of adrenaline: (1) tyrosine 3-mono-oxygenase (tyrosine hydroxylase, TH); (2) aromatic L-amino acid decarboxylase (AADC, or DOPA decarboxylase, DDC); (3) dopamine beta-mono-oxygenase (dopamine beta-hydroxylase, DBH); and (4) noradrenaline N-methyltransferase (phenylethanolamine N-methyltransferase, PNMT). We cloned full-length complementary DNAs (cDNAs) and genomic DNAs of human catecholamine-synthesizing enzymes (TH, AADC, DBH, PNMT) and determined the nucleotide sequences and the deduced amino acid sequences. We discovered multiple messenger RNAs (mRNAs) of human TH, human DBH, and human PNMT. Four types (types 1, 2, 3, and 4) of human TH mRNAs are produced by alternative mRNA splicing mechanism from a single gene. We found the multiple forms of TH in two species of monkeys, but only a single mRNA corresponding to human TH type 1 in Sunkus murinus and rat, suggesting that the multiplicity of TH mRNA is primate-specific. Total TH mRNA, especially the most abundant type 2 and type 1 mRNAs in the human brain, were found to be reduced during the process of aging. The multiple forms of human TH may give additional regulation to the human enzyme, probably through altered phosphorylation and activation. We have succeeded in producing transgenic mice carrying multiple copies of the human TH gene in brain and adrenal medulla. The level of human TH mRNA in brain was about 50-fold higher than that of endogenous mouse TH mRNA. In situ hybridization demonstrated an enormous region-specific expression of the transgene in substantia nigra and ventral tegmental area. TH immunoreactivity in these regions, Western blot analysis, and TH activity measurements proved definitely increased TH in transgenic mice, though not comparable to the increment of the mRNA. However, catecholamine levels in transgenics were not significantly different from those in non-transgenics. The results suggest complex regulatory mechanisms for human TH gene expression and for the catecholamine levels in transgenic mice. Kohsaka and Uchida in collaboration with us applied genetically engineered (human TH cDNA-transfected) non-neuronal cells to brain tissue transplantation in parkinsonian rat models. We isolated and sequenced a full-length cDNA encoding human AADC. We expressed a recombinant human AADC in COS cells and proved that the expressed enzyme decarboxylated both L-DOPA and L-5-hydroxytryptophan. We isolated two different cDNAs (types A and B) for human DBH and the genomic DNA, and showed that the two mRNAs are generated through alternative polyadenylation from a single gene. Type A mRNA (2.7 kilobase pairs, kb) and type B mRNA (2.4 kb) encoded the same amino acid sequence and were different only in the 3'-untranslated region. Type A mRNA contained a 3'-extension of 300 base pairs (bp) at the end of the type B mRNA sequence. We assigned the human PNMT gene to chromosome 17. We observed the presence of a minor human PNMT mRNA (type B, 1.7 kb) besides the major mRNA (type A, 1.0 kb). Type B mRNA of human PNMT carries an approximately 700-bp-long untranslated region in the 5'-terminus, suggesting that the two types of human PNMT mRNA are produced from a single gene through the use of two alternative promoters. The 5'-flanking regions of the genes of human TH, DBH and PNMT contain possible transcription regulatory elements such as cyclic AMP response element (CRE) (TH, DBH, and PNMT), glucocorticoid response element (GRE) (DBH and PNMT), and Sp1 binding site (TH and PNMT).