alpha B-crystallin is present in reactive glia in Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.
alpha-Crystallin is a major eye lens protein, composed of two types of subunits, alpha A and alpha B. The alpha A subunit is restricted to the lens, but alpha B-crystallin has recently also been detected in non-lenticular tissues, including the nervous system. With the use of a polyclonal antiserum directed against a synthetic C-terminal peptide of human alpha B-crystallin, the presence of alpha B-crystallin could be demonstrated immunohistochemically in astrocytes in the brains of patients with Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD). Most intensive localization was observed in the spongiotic tissue representing abundant progressively changed astrocytes in CJD. In age-matched control brains weak positive reaction was located in individual oligodendroglia cells and subpial astrocytes. Prominent increase of alpha B-crystallin in pathological glia in CJD may represent a response to stress.
Renkawek
K
K
Institute of Neurology, University Hospital Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
de Jong
W W
WW
Merck
K B
KB
Frenken
C W
CW
van Workum
F P
FP
Bosman
G J
GJ
D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D001921:Brain / Q000378:metabolism / Q000648:ultrastructure; D007562:Creutzfeldt-Jakob Syndrome / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D003459:Crystallins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism*; D000939:Epitopes; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry / Q000379:methods; D008875:Middle Aged; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009457:Neuroglia / Q000378:metabolism*; D013194:Staining and Labeling
D003459:Crystallins; D000939:Epitopes