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Mary Yost wrote: > Below is Prof. Fischbach's Harvard website describing the research that he > himself has been doing with his own group. Would those Listmembers who > are scientifically literate take a look at it, and give us plain folk some > feedback? His work may not be directly related to PD. > Selected publications: > > Falls DL, Rosen KM, Corfas G, Lane WS and Fischbach GD (1993) > ARIA, a protein that stimulates acetylcholine receptor synthesis, is a > member of the neu-ligand family. > Cell 72:801-815. > > Corfas G, Rosen KM, Aratake H, Krauss R and Fischbach GD (1995) > Differential expression of ARIA isoforms in the rat brain. > Neuron 14:103-115. > > Goodearl ADJ and Fischbach GD (1995) > ARIA is concentrated in the synaptic basal lamina of the developing chick > neuromuscular junction. > J. Cell Biol. 130(6):1423-1434. > > Loeb JA and Fischbach GD (1997) > Neurotrophic factors increase neuregulin expression in embry-onic ventral > spinal cord neurons. > J. Neurosci. 17(4):1416-1424. > > Fischbach GD and Rosen KM (1997) > ARIA: Neuromuscular junction neuregulin. > Ann. Rev. Neurosci. 20:429-458. > > Sandrock AW, Dryer SE, Rosen KM, Gozani SN, Kramer R, Theill LE and > Fischbach GD (1997) > Maintenance of acetylcholine receptor number by neuregulins at the > neuromuscular junction in vivo. Science 276:599-603. Not all neurotrophic factors are alike! Briefly, without getting in over my own head, a nerve cell (neuron) is a specialized elongated cell whose function is to carry a signal, via links with other neurons, from one place in the body to another. As the growing body develops, new cells of all kinds appear. Neurons in particular must not only appear in the right place, they must also find the "right" other neurons to connect with, and a neurotrophic factor helps them do that. Dr. Fischbach's special interest appears to be not in the basal ganglia or other brain sites involved in PD, but in the junction of neurons with muscle cells, at the end of the message route, so to speak. Not to say that he therefore will ignore PD research, but only that it doesn't happen to be his own specialty. Cheers, Joe -- J. R. Bruman (818) 789-3694 3527 Cody Road Sherman Oaks, CA 91403-5013