Human CDNF blocking peptide

Today there is growing interest in the replacement of biological receptors in biosensing systems including point-of-care (PoC) diagnostics devices due to their high price and short shelf life. Molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs), which are wholly synthetic materials with antibody-like ability to bind and discriminate between molecules, demonstrate improved stability and reduced fabrication cost as compared with biological receptors. Here we report, for the first time, a MIP-based synthetic receptor capable of selective binding of a clinically relevant protein - the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). The BDNF-MIP was generated by surface-initiated controlled/living radical photopolymerization directly on a screen-printed electrode (SPE). The resulting BDNF-MIP/SPE electrochemical sensor could detect BDNF down to 6 pg/mL in the presence of the interfering HSA protein and was capable of discriminating BDNF among its structural analogues, i.e. neurotropic factors CDNF and MANF. We believe that the presented approach for the preparation of a neurotrophic factor-selective sensor could be a promising route towards the development of innovative PoC diagnostics devices for the early-stage diagnostics and/or monitoring the therapy of neurological diseases.

Cocaine-induced neuroplasticity changes in the mesocorticolimbic dopamine systems are thought to be involved in the pathophysiology of cocaine dependence. Since neurotrophic factors have been observed to prevent/reverse and mimic cocaine-induced neurobiological changes in the brain, related genes are plausible candidates for susceptibility to cocaine dependence. The novel conserved dopamine neurotrophic factor protein (CDNF) promotes the survival, growth, and function of dopamine-specific neurons and is expressed in brain regions that undergo cocaine-induced neuroplasticity. In this study, we hypothesize that polymorphisms in the CDNF gene (CDNF/ARMETL1) contribute to increased risk for cocaine dependence. Cocaine dependent individuals (n = 351) and unaffected controls (n = 257) of African descent were ere genotyped for four single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the CDNF gene (rs11259365, rs7094179, rs7900873. rs2278871). We observed no significant differences in allele, genotype, or haplotype frequencies between cases and controls for any of the tested SNPs. Our study suggests that there is no association between variants in the CDNF gene and cocaine dependence. However, additional studies using larger sample sizes, comprehensive SNP coverage, and clinically homogenous populations are necessary before confidently excluding CDNF as a significant genetic risk factor for cocaine dependence. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.