Regional and cellular distribution of bleomycin hydrolase mRNA in human brain: comparison between Alzheimer's diseased and control brains

Genetic polymorphism of human bleomycin hydrolase (hBH) has been reported t o be associated with the risk of sporadic Alzheimer's disease (AD). The reg ional and cellular distribution of mRNA encoding hBH in the brain from cont rols and patients with AD was examined using in situ hybridization. A hybri dization signal, in the form of clusters of single cells, was observed in t he white matter. Our results indicate a predominantly astrocytic expression of hBH in the investigated human brain regions. Although the signal intens ity was generally reduced in AD brains, the large variability among control s rendered this trend statistically insignificant. (C) 2000 Elsevier Scienc e Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.