Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most common neurodegenerative disorder characterized by progressive dementia that ultimately leads to death. Histopathological hallmarks of AD include brain amyloid deposits and neurofibrillary tangles. Major depression is a frequent diagnosis in every gerontopsychiatric clinic that sees patients with both cognitive and affective disorders. Many depressed patients, in fact, are clinically characterized by cognitive impairments. Thus, an assay that excludes – or confirms – probable AD in cognitively impaired patients is desirable. Such assays may use protein markers that are derived from such histopathologically relevant molecules as the amyloid precursor protein (APP) and its derivatives including the amyloid β-peptides (Aβ). To evaluate the differential diagnostic properties of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) Aβ and secreted soluble ectodomain (APPs), we quantitated CSF levels of these measures in AD patients and compared them to age-matched control patients with major depression. CSF levels of APPs and Aβ were similar in patients with AD or major depression, and the apolipoprotein E genotype had no influence on CSF levels of Aβ in AD patients. Measurement of Aβ peptide using a novel zinc/copper capture ELISA that detects aggregated Aβ peptides as well demonstrated similar levels in AD and major depression. In AD patients, CSF levels of total Aβ (Aβ1–40 plus Aβ1–42) were inversely correlated with a functional measure of dementia severity (NOSGER), suggesting that CSF levels of Aβ decrease with advancing severity of AD. Thus, CSF levels of Aβ are not useful for the differentiation of AD from major depression. However, CSF levels of Aβ reflect the severity of dementia and may be useful as biological markers of the stage of the disease.

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We established more than 200 primary cell lines of Cydia pomonella (codling moth). 81 of them were selected and screened for replication of two baculoviruses (from two different subgroups): the Choristoneura murinana NPV and the Cydia pomonella GV. Although all these cell lines had been derived from the same insect species, they varied largely in their response to challenge with the NPV. Most of them showed CPE or produced different amounts of polyhedra. Interestingly, we also found a few cell lines that were permissive for G V replication. To our knowledge this is the first time that G V replication in cell lines has been obtained.Our results show that cell line properties are most important for baculovirus in vitro replication.

Nuclear polyhedrosis virus (family Baculoviridae, subgroup A) in vitro systems have been well established for more than ten years, and have permitted application of modern microbiological techniques. Although widely tried, similar systems for granulosis virus (subgroup B) replication have not been obtained to our knowledge. We report here on the successful in vitro replication of Cydia pomonella granulosis virus in a Cydia pomonella primary cell line. The replication was confirmed by light and electron microscopy. This granulosis virus in vitro replication system will be an important tool for further granulosis virus research and for comparative studies on granulosis and nuclear polyhedrosis virus replication.