Abstract |
Heme-a, is the heme prosthetic group of cytochrome c oxidase (COX), the terminal complex of the mitochondrial electron transport chain. We measured heme-a levels in postmortem brain tissue from nine patients diagnosed with dementia: Alzheimer's disease (AD) was the primary diagnosis in five, AD/ diffuse Lewy body disease (DLBD) was diagnosed in two, DLBD was diagnosed in one, and DLBD (severe)/AD (mild) was diagnosed in one. Eight non-demented patients who died from non-neurological causes served as controls. When the primary diagnosis was AD (AD and AD/DLBD), levels of cerebral heme-a were increased almost two-fold on a protein basis compared to controls (p<0.001). Using perfused and non-perfused rats we showed that measured levels of cerebral heme-a were unaffected by the presence of blood in brain tissue. In mice we showed that levels of cerebral heme-a were unaffected by 24h of storage at 4 degrees C prior to freezing. These animal studies suggest that increased levels of cerebral heme-a in AD were not due to blood in postmortem brain or variation in postmortem interval.
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Authors | Barney E Dwyer, Meghan L Stone, Nadia Gorman, Peter R Sinclair, George Perry, Mark A Smith, Xiongwei Zhu |
Journal | Neuroscience letters
(Neurosci Lett)
Vol. 461
Issue 3
Pg. 302-5
(Sep 25 2009)
ISSN: 1872-7972 [Electronic] Ireland |
PMID | 19539709
(Publication Type: Journal Article, Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't, Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.)
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Chemical References |
- Biomarkers
- Protein Subunits
- Electron Transport Complex IV
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Topics |
- Aged
- Alzheimer Disease
(enzymology)
- Animals
- Biomarkers
(metabolism)
- Brain
(enzymology)
- Electron Transport Complex IV
(metabolism)
- Frontal Lobe
(enzymology)
- Humans
- Mice
- Mice, Inbred C57BL
- Middle Aged
- Protein Subunits
(metabolism)
- Rats
- Rats, Inbred F344
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