Growth Factors And Alzheimer’s Disease (research And Perspectives In Alzheimer's Disease)

The study of the relationships between neurotrophic factors (NGF, FGF, amyloid) and neurodegenerative disorders (especially Alzheimer's disease) is of major importance not only for understanding the pathogenesis of the latter, but also for the pharmacological approach to this disease. Information on the subject stemming from the symposium in Strasbourg in April, 1990, organized by the Fondation IPSEN is presented in this book. It provides stimulating hypotheses about the possible role of growth factors in the generation of senile plaques, the process of degeneration and regeneration in Alzheimer's disease, the expression of the gene of NGF and the possible use of NGF in treatment. Front Matter....Pages I-XV Neurotrophic Factors and Neurodegenerative Diseases....Pages 1-14 Survival, Regrowth, and Reconnection of Injured Retinal Ganglion Cells....Pages 15-28 Localizing Expression of the Three Members of the Nerve Growth Factor Family to Neurons in the Brain....Pages 29-38 Nerve Growth Factor: Studies Addressing Its Expression and Actions in the Central Nervous System....Pages 39-60 Nerve Growth Factor Gene Expression in Actively Growing Brain Glia....Pages 61-61 Human Nerve Growth Factor Receptor Expression in the CNS of Transgenic Mice....Pages 62-72 Involvement of Protein Kinase C in the Regulation of Nerve Growth Factor Synthesis: A Possible Cause of Impaired Trophic Supply in Alzheimer’s Disease?....Pages 73-80 Distribution and Characterization of β-Nerve Growth Factor Receptors in Alzheimer’s Disease....Pages 81-97 Regulation of Nerve Growth Factor Synthesis in the Central Nervous System by Cytokines and Implications for the Treatment of Alzheimer’s Disease....Pages 98-105 Nerve Growth Factor Expression and Function in the CNS....Pages 106-116 Nerve Growth Factor and Behavioral Recovery After Brain Damage in Rats....Pages 117-130 Functional Impairments that Develop in Nerve Growth Factor-Sensitive Neuronal Projections in the PNS and CNS of Aged Rats Are Ameliorated by Dietary Interventions....Pages 131-148 Morphological and Behavioral Effects of Basic Fibroblast Growth Factor and Heparin on Transplanted Fetal Dopaminergic Neurons and Astrocytes in the Denervated Rat Caudate-Putamen....Pages 149-164 Acidic Fibroblast Growth Factor Localization and Basic Fibroblast Growth Factor Binding Sites in the Eye and Optic Nerve....Pages 165-174 Synthetic Peptide Agonists and Antagonists of Basic Fibroblast Growth Factor: Increasing Cellular Specificity of a Multifunctional Growth Factor....Pages 175-192 ACTH (4–10) Analog Potentiates Cognitive and Morphological Recovery After Frontal Cortex Lesions in Adult Rats....Pages 193-207 Effects of Neurotrophic Factors on the Secretion and Metabolism of the Alzheimer Amyloid Precursor....Pages 208-215 Nerve Growth Factor Induces Differential Splicing of β-Amyloid Precursor mRNAs in the PC 12 Cell Line....Pages 216-221 The Role of Misdirected Plasticity in Plaque Biogenesis and Alzheimer’s Disease Pathology....Pages 222-233 The Neuritic Dystrophy of Alzheimer’s Disease: Degeneration or Regeneration?....Pages 234-240 Back Matter....Pages 241-244