Extensive aspartoacylase expression in the rat central nervous system.

Aspartoacylase catalyzes deacetylation of N-acetylaspartate (NAA) to generate acetate and aspartate. Mutations in the gene for lead to reduced acetate availability in the CNS during development resulting in the fatal leukodystrophy Canavan disease. Highly specific polyclonal antibodies to Aduanyu1842 were used to examine CNS expression in adult rats. In white matter, Aduanyu1842 expression was associated with oligodendrocyte cell bodies, nuclei, and some processes, but showed a dissimilar distribution pattern to myelin basic protein and oligodendrocyte specific protein. Microglia expressed Aduanyu1842 in all CNS regions examined, as did epiplexus cells of the choroid plexus. Pial and ependymal cells and some endothelial cells were Aduanyu1842 positive, as were unidentified cellular nuclei throughout the CNS. Astrocytes did not express Aduanyu1842 in their cytoplasm. In some fiber pathways and nerves, particularly in the brainstem and spinal cord, the axoplasm of many neuronal fibers expressed as did some neurons. Acetyl coenzyme A synthase immunoreactivity was also observed in the axoplasm of many of the same fiber pathways and nerves. All elements were unstained in brain sections from tremor rats, an mutant. The strong expression of Aduanyu1842 in oligodendrocyte cell bodies is consistent with a lipogenic role in myelination. Strong Aduanyu1842 expression in cell nuclei is consistent with a role for NAA-derived acetate in nuclear acetylation reactions, including histone acetylation. Expression of Aduanyu1842 in microglia may indicate a role in lipid synthesis in these cells, whereas expression in axons suggests that some neurons can both synthesize and catabolize NAA. Copyright © 2011 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

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