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Background and Objective: Reduced progranulin levels are a hallmark of frontotemporal dementia (FTD) caused by loss-of-function (LoF) mutations in the progranulin gene (GRN). However, alterations of central nervous progranulin expression also occur in neurodegenerative disorders unrelated to GRN mutations, such as Alzheimer's disease. We hypothesised that central nervous progranulin levels are also reduced in GRN-negative FTD. Methods: Progranulin levels were determined in both cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and serum in 75 subjects (37 FTD patients and 38 controls). All FTD patients were assessed by whole-exome sequencing for GRN mutations, yielding a target cohort of 34 patients without pathogenic mutations in GRN (GRN-negative cohort) and 3 GRN mutation carriers (2 LoF variants and 1 novel missense variant). Results: Not only the GRN mutation carriers but also the GRN-negative patients showed decreased CSF levels of progranulin (serum levels in GRN-negative patients were normal). The decreased CSF progranulin levels were unrelated to patients' increased CSF levels of total tau, possibly indicating different destructive neuronal processes within FTD neurodegeneration. The patient with the novel GRN missense variant (c.1117C>T, p.P373S) showed substantially decreased CSF levels of progranulin, comparable to the 2 patients with GRN LoF mutations, suggesting a pathogenic effect of this missense variant. Conclusions: Our results indicate that central nervous progranulin reduction is not restricted to the relatively rare cases of FTD caused by GRN LoF mutations, but also contributes to the more common GRN-negative forms of FTD. Central nervous progranulin reduction might reflect a partially distinct pathogenic mechanism underlying FTD neurodegeneration and is not directly linked to tau alterations.

Neuronal death after brain ischemia is mainly due to necrosis but there is also evidence for involvement of apoptosis. To test the importance of apoptosis, we investigated the effect of targeted disruption of the apoptosis-suppressive gene bcl-2 on the severity of ischemic brain injury. Transient focal ischemia for 1 hour was induced by occlusion of the middle cerebral artery in homozygous (n = 7) and heterozygous (n = 6) bcl-2 knockout mice as well as in their wildtype littermates (n = 5). Bcl-2 ablation did not influence cerebral blood flow but it significantly increased infarct size and neurological deficit score at 1 day after reperfusion in a gene-dose dependent manner. The exacerbation of tissue damage in the absence of Bcl-2 underscores the importance of apoptotic pathways for the manifestation of ischemic injury after transient vascular occlusion. Metabolic Brain Disease

Single ultraviolet (u.v.) irradiation of mammalian cells in culture evokes the transcriptional activation of various proto-oncogenes, among them members of the fos/jun family which are known to play an important role in cell proliferation and differentiation. u.v. exposure of mammalian skin results in growth arrest and cell death followed by hyperproliferation of epidermal cells. To obtain information in vivo about a possible relationship between u.v.-induced proto-oncogene expression and cellular alterations, we have analysed the expression of c-fos, fosB, c-jun, junB, bcl-2 and bax in rat epidermis after single and chronic u.v. irradiation. We present data demonstrating that the transcripts of these genes are constitutively expressed in the epidermis and that expression is differentially modulated by u.v. exposure. Single u.v. irradiation causes a rapid and sustained increase in c-jun, junB and c-fos mRNA and a decline in bcl-2 transcripts, whereas expression of bax remained unchanged. c-Fos and c-Jun immunoreactivity was localized throughout the epidermal cell layers 1.5 h after single irradiation, but restricted to basal cells at 48 h suggesting an involvement in both u.v.-induced apoptosis and hyperproliferation. 48 h after chronic exposure a significantly higher induction and a totally different pattern of epidermal proto-oncogene expression was detectable which may be associated with malignancy. Superfusion of rat skin with c-fos antisense oligodeoxynucleotides inhibited the increase in c-Fos immunolabeled epidermal cells 1.5 h after single u.v. irradiation demonstrating that antisense oligodeoxynucleotides are capable of penetrating mammalian skin and modulating the u.v. response in vivo. However, suppression of the early c-Fos activation did not significantly affect the formation of sunburn cells in the u.v.-exposed epidermis. Thus, c-Fos does not seem to play a major role in u.v.-induced apoptosis or other members of the fos/jun family may compensate for a loss in c-Fos.