In the interesting debate entitled "Challenging Views of Alzheimer's Disease II," we defended the position that factors such as oxygen, the single methionine residue of amyloid beta-peptide(1-42) [Abeta(1-42)], and redox metal ions were important for the oxidative stress and neurotoxic properties of this peptide that is critically involved in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease. This brief ...

A major advantage of hippocampal slice preparations is that the cytoarchitecture and synaptic circuits of the hippocampus are largely retained. In neurotoxicology research, organotypic hippocampal slices have mostly been used as acute ex vivo preparations for investigating the effects of neurotoxic chemicals on synaptic function. More recently, hippocampal slice cultures, which can be maintaine...

Dinoflagellates are microalgae that are associated with the production of many marine toxins. These toxins poison fish, other wildlife and humans. Dinoflagellate-associated human poisonings include paralytic shellfish poisoning, diarrhetic shellfish poisoning, neurotoxic shellfish poisoning, and ciguatera fish poisoning. Dinoflagellate toxins and bioactives are of increasing interest because of...

Tauopathies are a class of neurodegenerative diseases associated with the microtubule-associated protein tau, with Alzheimer's disease (AD) being the most prevalent related disorder. Neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs) are one of the neuropathological hallmarks present in the brains of AD patients. Because NFTs are aberrant intracellular inclusions formed by hyperphosphorylated tau, it was initially...

In the CNS, minor changes in the concentration of neurotransmitters such as glutamate or dopamine can lead to neurodegenerative diseases. We present an evolutionary perspective on the function of neurotransmitter toxicity in the CNS. We hypothesize that neurotransmitters are selected because of their toxicity, which serves as a test of neuron quality and facilitates the selection of neuronal pa...

Intraocular injection of 120 nmol. of kainic acid, a powerful glutamate receptor agonist, induces a marked degeneration of cells in the inner nuclear layer of the retina. Within 2 hours after injection there is a significant decrement in the specific activities of tyrosine hydroxylase, choline acetyltransferase, and glutamic acid decarboxylase; by 48 hours after injection there is nearly a comp...

Recognition of the deleterious neurological effects of chemicals has evolved from anecdotal observation to studies of illness in persons exposed to high doses. Now, the more subtle effects of exposures to environmental neurotoxicants are being documented: reduction in intelligence, impairment in reasoning ability, shortening of attention span, and alteration of behavior. Substances to which mil...

Saxitoxin (STX) and its 57 analogs are a broad group of natural neurotoxic alkaloids, commonly known as the paralytic shellfish toxins (PSTs). PSTs are the causative agents of paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP) and are mostly associated with marine dinoflagellates (eukaryotes) and freshwater cyanobacteria (prokaryotes), which form extensive blooms around the world. PST producing dinoflagellate...

Western Pacific amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and parkinsonism-dementia complex, a disappearing neurodegenerative disease linked to use of the neurotoxic cycad plant for food and/or medicine, is intensively studied because the neuropathology (tauopathy) is similar to that of Alzheimer's disease. Cycads contain neurotoxic and genotoxic principles, notably cycasin and methylazoxymethanol, the lat...

Decreased discrimination of colors caused by adverse environment, such as long-term occupational exposure to or consumption of drugs, substances, and food containing neurotoxic chemicals. Color vision early manifests adverse effects of exposure to an environment that contains neurotoxic substances [1, 2]. The acquired color vision impairments, or dyschromatopsias, can be very subtle (subclinica...