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Myers C, Cornwall GA. Host defense amyloids: Biosensors of the immune system? Andrology 2024; 12:973-980. [PMID: 37963844 DOI: 10.1111/andr.13555] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2023] [Revised: 11/01/2023] [Accepted: 11/03/2023] [Indexed: 11/16/2023]
Abstract
There is considerable evidence showing that highly ordered aggregate structures known as amyloids carry out essential biological roles in species ranging from bacteria to humans. Indeed, many antimicrobial peptides/proteins form amyloids to carry out their host defense functions and many amyloids are antimicrobial. The similarity of host defense amyloids from bacterial biofilms to the mammalian epididymal amyloid matrix implies highly conserved host defense structures/functions. With an emphasis on the epididymal amyloid matrix, here we review the common properties of host defense amyloids including unique traits that would allow them to function as powerful biosensors of the immune system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caitlyn Myers
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Biomedicine, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Gail A Cornwall
- Department of Cell Biology and Biochemistry, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, Texas, USA
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2
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Krut' VG, Kalinichenko AL, Maltsev DI, Jappy D, Shevchenko EK, Podgorny OV, Belousov VV. Optogenetic and chemogenetic approaches for modeling neurological disorders in vivo. Prog Neurobiol 2024; 235:102600. [PMID: 38548126 DOI: 10.1016/j.pneurobio.2024.102600] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/15/2023] [Revised: 02/26/2024] [Accepted: 03/22/2024] [Indexed: 04/01/2024]
Abstract
Animal models of human neurological disorders provide valuable experimental tools which enable us to study various aspects of disorder pathogeneses, ranging from structural abnormalities and disrupted metabolism and signaling to motor and mental deficits, and allow us to test novel therapies in preclinical studies. To be valid, these animal models should recapitulate complex pathological features at the molecular, cellular, tissue, and behavioral levels as closely as possible to those observed in human subjects. Pathological states resembling known human neurological disorders can be induced in animal species by toxins, genetic factors, lesioning, or exposure to extreme conditions. In recent years, novel animal models recapitulating neuropathologies in humans have been introduced. These animal models are based on synthetic biology approaches: opto- and chemogenetics. In this paper, we review recent opto- and chemogenetics-based animal models of human neurological disorders. These models allow for the creation of pathological states by disrupting specific processes at the cellular level. The artificial pathological states mimic a range of human neurological disorders, such as aging-related dementia, Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, epilepsy, and ataxias. Opto- and chemogenetics provide new opportunities unavailable with other animal models of human neurological disorders. These techniques enable researchers to induce neuropathological states varying in severity and ranging from acute to chronic. We also discuss future directions for the development and application of synthetic biology approaches for modeling neurological disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Viktoriya G Krut'
- Pirogov Russian National Research Medical University, Moscow 117997, Russia; Federal Center of Brain Research and Neurotechnologies, Federal Medical Biological Agency, Moscow 117997, Russia
| | - Andrei L Kalinichenko
- Shemyakin-Ovchinnikov Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow 117997, Russia
| | - Dmitry I Maltsev
- Pirogov Russian National Research Medical University, Moscow 117997, Russia; Federal Center of Brain Research and Neurotechnologies, Federal Medical Biological Agency, Moscow 117997, Russia; Shemyakin-Ovchinnikov Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow 117997, Russia
| | - David Jappy
- Federal Center of Brain Research and Neurotechnologies, Federal Medical Biological Agency, Moscow 117997, Russia
| | - Evgeny K Shevchenko
- Federal Center of Brain Research and Neurotechnologies, Federal Medical Biological Agency, Moscow 117997, Russia
| | - Oleg V Podgorny
- Pirogov Russian National Research Medical University, Moscow 117997, Russia; Federal Center of Brain Research and Neurotechnologies, Federal Medical Biological Agency, Moscow 117997, Russia; Shemyakin-Ovchinnikov Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow 117997, Russia.
| | - Vsevolod V Belousov
- Pirogov Russian National Research Medical University, Moscow 117997, Russia; Federal Center of Brain Research and Neurotechnologies, Federal Medical Biological Agency, Moscow 117997, Russia; Shemyakin-Ovchinnikov Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow 117997, Russia; Life Improvement by Future Technologies (LIFT) Center, Skolkovo, Moscow 143025, Russia.
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Fuller OK, McLennan ED, Egan CL, Burrows EL, Febbraio MA. Impact of voluntary exercise training on the metabolic and behavioral characteristics of the rTg4510 transgenic mouse model of frontotemporal dementia. Behav Brain Res 2024; 460:114810. [PMID: 38122903 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2023.114810] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2023] [Revised: 12/08/2023] [Accepted: 12/09/2023] [Indexed: 12/23/2023]
Abstract
Frontotemporal dementia (FTD) is a neurodegenerative disorder that affects the frontal and temporal lobes of the brain, primarily in individuals under 65 years of age, and is the second most common form of dementia worldwide. There is no cure for FTD and current treatments offer limited symptomatic relief. Regular physical activity exhibits cognitive and neuroprotective benefits in healthy individuals and in various neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease, but few studies have examined its efficacy in FTD. Accordingly, we investigated the impact of voluntary exercise training (VET) on the metabolic and behavioral characteristics of the rTg4510 transgenic mouse model of familial FTD. We show that regardless of genotype, VET increased energy expenditure, decreased sleep duration, and improved long-term memory in rTg4510 mice and WT littermates. Moreover, VET appeared to improve hyperactivity, a common feature of FTD, in rTg4510 mice. Although further work is required, these findings provide important insights into the potential benefits of physical activity in FTD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Oliver K Fuller
- Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Emma D McLennan
- Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Casey L Egan
- Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Emma L Burrows
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Mark A Febbraio
- Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia.
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Wang H, Chang TS, Dombroski BA, Cheng PL, Patil V, Valiente-Banuet L, Farrell K, Mclean C, Molina-Porcel L, Rajput A, De Deyn PP, Bastard NL, Gearing M, Kaat LD, Swieten JCV, Dopper E, Ghetti BF, Newell KL, Troakes C, de Yébenes JG, Rábano-Gutierrez A, Meller T, Oertel WH, Respondek G, Stamelou M, Arzberger T, Roeber S, Müller U, Hopfner F, Pastor P, Brice A, Durr A, Ber IL, Beach TG, Serrano GE, Hazrati LN, Litvan I, Rademakers R, Ross OA, Galasko D, Boxer AL, Miller BL, Seeley WW, Deerlin VMV, Lee EB, White CL, Morris H, de Silva R, Crary JF, Goate AM, Friedman JS, Leung YY, Coppola G, Naj AC, Wang LS, Dickson DW, Höglinger GU, Schellenberg GD, Geschwind DH, Lee WP. Whole-Genome Sequencing Analysis Reveals New Susceptibility Loci and Structural Variants Associated with Progressive Supranuclear Palsy. MEDRXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR HEALTH SCIENCES 2024:2023.12.28.23300612. [PMID: 38234807 PMCID: PMC10793533 DOI: 10.1101/2023.12.28.23300612] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/19/2024]
Abstract
Background Progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) is a rare neurodegenerative disease characterized by the accumulation of aggregated tau proteins in astrocytes, neurons, and oligodendrocytes. Previous genome-wide association studies for PSP were based on genotype array, therefore, were inadequate for the analysis of rare variants as well as larger mutations, such as small insertions/deletions (indels) and structural variants (SVs). Method In this study, we performed whole genome sequencing (WGS) and conducted association analysis for single nucleotide variants (SNVs), indels, and SVs, in a cohort of 1,718 cases and 2,944 controls of European ancestry. Of the 1,718 PSP individuals, 1,441 were autopsy-confirmed and 277 were clinically diagnosed. Results Our analysis of common SNVs and indels confirmed known genetic loci at MAPT, MOBP, STX6, SLCO1A2, DUSP10, and SP1, and further uncovered novel signals in APOE, FCHO1/MAP1S, KIF13A, TRIM24, TNXB, and ELOVL1. Notably, in contrast to Alzheimer's disease (AD), we observed the APOE ε2 allele to be the risk allele in PSP. Analysis of rare SNVs and indels identified significant association in ZNF592 and further gene network analysis identified a module of neuronal genes dysregulated in PSP. Moreover, seven common SVs associated with PSP were observed in the H1/H2 haplotype region (17q21.31) and other loci, including IGH, PCMT1, CYP2A13, and SMCP. In the H1/H2 haplotype region, there is a burden of rare deletions and duplications (P = 6.73×10-3) in PSP. Conclusions Through WGS, we significantly enhanced our understanding of the genetic basis of PSP, providing new targets for exploring disease mechanisms and therapeutic interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hui Wang
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Penn Neurodegeneration Genomics Center, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Timothy S Chang
- Movement Disorders Programs, Department of Neurology, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Beth A Dombroski
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Penn Neurodegeneration Genomics Center, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Po-Liang Cheng
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Penn Neurodegeneration Genomics Center, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Vishakha Patil
- Movement Disorders Programs, Department of Neurology, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Leopoldo Valiente-Banuet
- Movement Disorders Programs, Department of Neurology, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Kurt Farrell
- Department of Pathology, Department of Artificial Intelligence & Human Health, Nash Family, Department of Neuroscience, Ronald M. Loeb Center for Alzheimer's Disease, Friedman Brain, Institute, Neuropathology Brain Bank & Research CoRE, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Catriona Mclean
- Victorian Brain Bank, The Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
| | - Laura Molina-Porcel
- Alzheimer's disease and other cognitive disorders unit. Neurology Service, Hospital Clínic, Fundació Recerca Clínic Barcelona (FRCB). Institut d'Investigacions Biomediques August Pi I Sunyer (IDIBAPS), University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
- Neurological Tissue Bank of the Biobanc-Hospital Clínic-IDIBAPS, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Alex Rajput
- Movement Disorders Program, Division of Neurology, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada
| | - Peter Paul De Deyn
- Laboratory of Neurochemistry and Behavior, Experimental Neurobiology Unit, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk (Antwerp), Belgium
- Department of Neurology, University Medical Center Groningen, NL-9713 AV Groningen, Netherlands
| | | | - Marla Gearing
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine and Department of Neurology, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | | | | | - Elise Dopper
- Netherlands Brain Bank and Erasmus University, Netherlands
| | - Bernardino F Ghetti
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, USA
| | - Kathy L Newell
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, USA
| | - Claire Troakes
- London Neurodegenerative Diseases Brain Bank, King's College London, London, UK
| | | | - Alberto Rábano-Gutierrez
- Fundación CIEN (Centro de Investigación de Enfermedades Neurológicas) - Centro Alzheimer Fundación Reina Sofía, Madrid, Spain
| | - Tina Meller
- Department of Neurology, Philipps-Universität, Marburg, Germany
| | | | - Gesine Respondek
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), Munich, Germany
| | - Maria Stamelou
- Parkinson's disease and Movement Disorders Department, HYGEIA Hospital, Athens, Greece
- European University of Cyprus, Nicosia, Cyprus
| | - Thomas Arzberger
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Munich, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Germany
- Center for Neuropathology and Prion Research, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Germany
| | | | | | - Franziska Hopfner
- Department of Biostatistics, Epidemiology, and Informatics, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Pau Pastor
- Unit of Neurodegenerative diseases, Department of Neurology, University Hospital Germans Trias i Pujol, Badalona, Barcelona, Spain
- Neurosciences, The Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP) Badalona, Badalona, Spain
| | - Alexis Brice
- Sorbonne Université, Paris Brain Institute - Institut du Cerveau - ICM, Inserm U1127, CNRS UMR 7225, APHP - Hôpital Pitié-Salpêtrière, Paris, France
| | - Alexandra Durr
- Sorbonne Université, Paris Brain Institute - Institut du Cerveau - ICM, Inserm U1127, CNRS UMR 7225, APHP - Hôpital Pitié-Salpêtrière, Paris, France
| | - Isabelle Le Ber
- Sorbonne Université, Paris Brain Institute - Institut du Cerveau - ICM, Inserm U1127, CNRS UMR 7225, APHP - Hôpital Pitié-Salpêtrière, Paris, France
| | | | | | | | - Irene Litvan
- Department of Neuroscience, University of California, San Diego, CA, USA
| | - Rosa Rademakers
- VIB Center for Molecular Neurology, University of Antwerp, Belgium
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic Jacksonville, FL, USA
| | - Owen A Ross
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic Jacksonville, FL, USA
| | - Douglas Galasko
- Department of Neuroscience, University of California, San Diego, CA, USA
| | - Adam L Boxer
- Memory and Aging Center, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Bruce L Miller
- Memory and Aging Center, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Willian W Seeley
- Memory and Aging Center, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Vivanna M Van Deerlin
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Edward B Lee
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Penn Center for Neurodegenerative Disease Research, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Charles L White
- University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
| | - Huw Morris
- Departmento of Clinical and Movement Neuroscience, University College of London, London, UK
| | - Rohan de Silva
- Reta Lila Weston Institute, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, London, UK
| | - John F Crary
- Department of Pathology, Department of Artificial Intelligence & Human Health, Nash Family, Department of Neuroscience, Ronald M. Loeb Center for Alzheimer's Disease, Friedman Brain, Institute, Neuropathology Brain Bank & Research CoRE, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Alison M Goate
- Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, New York, NY, USA; Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Jeffrey S Friedman
- Friedman Bioventure, Inc., Del Mar, CA, USA; Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, New York, NY, USA
| | - Yuk Yee Leung
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Penn Neurodegeneration Genomics Center, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Giovanni Coppola
- Movement Disorders Programs, Department of Neurology, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Adam C Naj
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Penn Neurodegeneration Genomics Center, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Department of Biostatistics, Epidemiology, and Informatics, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Li-San Wang
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Penn Neurodegeneration Genomics Center, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | | | - Günter U Höglinger
- Department of Neurology, LMU University Hospital, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (LMU) München; German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), Munich, Germany; and Munich Cluster for Systems Neurology (SyNergy), Munich, Germany
| | - Gerard D Schellenberg
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Penn Neurodegeneration Genomics Center, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Daniel H Geschwind
- Movement Disorders Programs, Department of Neurology, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Department of Human Genetics, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Institute of Precision Health, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Wan-Ping Lee
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Penn Neurodegeneration Genomics Center, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
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Peng C, Wei W, Zhang H, Wang Y, Chang B, Zhao W, Jia L, Li L, Lu F, Liu F. Heterologous expression and fibrillary characterization of the microtubule-binding domain of tau associated with tauopathies. Mol Biol Rep 2024; 51:184. [PMID: 38261107 DOI: 10.1007/s11033-024-09231-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2023] [Accepted: 01/08/2024] [Indexed: 01/24/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs) are one of the most common pathological characteristics of Alzheimer's disease. The NFTs are mainly composed of hyperphosphorylated microtubule-associated tau. Thus, recombinant tau is urgently required for the study of its fibrillogenesis and its associated cytotoxicity. METHODS AND RESULTS Heterologous expression, purification, and fibrillation of the microtubule-binding domain (MBD) of tau (tauMBD) were performed. The tauMBD was heterologously expressed in E. coli. Ni-chelating affinity chromatography was then performed to purify the target protein. Thereafter, tauMBD was systematically identified using the SDS-PAGE, western blot and MALDI-TOF MS methods. The aggregation propensity of the tauMBD was explored by both the thioflavin T fluorescence and atomic force microscopy experiments. CONCLUSIONS The final yield of the recombinant tauMBD was ~ 20 mg L-1. It is shown that TauMBD, in the absence of an inducer, self-assembled into the typical fibrils at a faster rate than wild-type tau. Finally, the in vitro cytotoxicity of tauMBD aggregates was validated using PC12 cells. The heterologously expressed tau in this study can be further used in the investigation of the biophysical and cellular cytotoxic properties of tau.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chong Peng
- College of Biotechnology, Tianjin University of Science & Technology, Tianjin, 300457, P. R. China
| | - Wei Wei
- College of Biotechnology, Tianjin University of Science & Technology, Tianjin, 300457, P. R. China
| | - Huitu Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Industrial Fermentation Microbiology, Ministry of Education, Tianjin, 300457, P. R. China
- Tianjin Key Laboratory of Industrial Microbiology, Tianjin, 300457, P. R. China
- College of Biotechnology, Tianjin University of Science & Technology, Tianjin, 300457, P. R. China
| | - Ying Wang
- College of Biotechnology, Tianjin University of Science & Technology, Tianjin, 300457, P. R. China
| | - Baogen Chang
- College of Biotechnology, Tianjin University of Science & Technology, Tianjin, 300457, P. R. China
| | - Wenping Zhao
- College of Biotechnology, Tianjin University of Science & Technology, Tianjin, 300457, P. R. China
| | - Longgang Jia
- College of Biotechnology, Tianjin University of Science & Technology, Tianjin, 300457, P. R. China
| | - Li Li
- College of Marine and Environmental Sciences, Tianjin University of Science & Technology, Tianjin, 300457, P. R. China
| | - Fuping Lu
- Key Laboratory of Industrial Fermentation Microbiology, Ministry of Education, Tianjin, 300457, P. R. China.
- Tianjin Key Laboratory of Industrial Microbiology, Tianjin, 300457, P. R. China.
- College of Biotechnology, Tianjin University of Science & Technology, Tianjin, 300457, P. R. China.
| | - Fufeng Liu
- Key Laboratory of Industrial Fermentation Microbiology, Ministry of Education, Tianjin, 300457, P. R. China.
- Tianjin Key Laboratory of Industrial Microbiology, Tianjin, 300457, P. R. China.
- College of Biotechnology, Tianjin University of Science & Technology, Tianjin, 300457, P. R. China.
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Kirschner M. The discovery of tau protein. Cytoskeleton (Hoboken) 2024; 81:78-82. [PMID: 37823566 DOI: 10.1002/cm.21796] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/15/2023] [Revised: 09/15/2023] [Accepted: 09/20/2023] [Indexed: 10/13/2023]
Abstract
In January of this year I received an unexpected request from George Bloom to contribute an historical perspective on "the discovery of tau protein," an event that occurred roughly 50 years ago. My first thought was that it could not have been that long ago, as the memories of what was my first independent scientific discovery are still fresh in my mind today. But 50 years is half a century and, as I thought about the events, I realized how much the practice of science has changed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marc Kirschner
- Department of Systems Biology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
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7
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Ahmed M, Spicer C, Harley J, Taylor JP, Hanna M, Patani R, Greensmith L. Amplifying the Heat Shock Response Ameliorates ALS and FTD Pathology in Mouse and Human Models. Mol Neurobiol 2023; 60:6896-6915. [PMID: 37516663 PMCID: PMC10657827 DOI: 10.1007/s12035-023-03509-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/08/2023] [Accepted: 07/12/2023] [Indexed: 07/31/2023]
Abstract
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD) are now known as parts of a disease spectrum with common pathological features and genetic causes. However, as both conditions are clinically heterogeneous, patient groups may be phenotypically similar but pathogenically and genetically variable. Despite numerous clinical trials, there remains no effective therapy for these conditions, which, in part, may be due to challenges of therapy development in a heterogeneous patient population. Disruption to protein homeostasis is a key feature of different forms of ALS and FTD. Targeting the endogenous protein chaperone system, the heat shock response (HSR) may, therefore, be a potential therapeutic approach. We conducted a preclinical study of a known pharmacological amplifier of the HSR, called arimoclomol, in mice with a mutation in valosin-containing protein (VCP) which causes both ALS and FTD in patients. We demonstrate that amplification of the HSR ameliorates the ALS/FTD-like phenotype in the spinal cord and brain of mutant VCP mice and prevents neuronal loss, replicating our earlier findings in the SOD1 mouse model of ALS. Moreover, in human cell models, we demonstrate improvements in pathology upon arimoclomol treatment in mutant VCP patient fibroblasts and iPSC-derived motor neurons. Our findings suggest that targeting of the HSR may have therapeutic potential, not only in non-SOD1 ALS, but also for the treatment of FTD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mhoriam Ahmed
- Department of Neuromuscular Diseases, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Charlotte Spicer
- Department of Neuromuscular Diseases, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Jasmine Harley
- Department of Neuromuscular Diseases, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
- The Francis Crick Institute, 1 Midland Road, London, NW1 1AT, UK
| | - J Paul Taylor
- Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, USA
| | - Michael Hanna
- Department of Neuromuscular Diseases, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Rickie Patani
- Department of Neuromuscular Diseases, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
- The Francis Crick Institute, 1 Midland Road, London, NW1 1AT, UK
| | - Linda Greensmith
- Department of Neuromuscular Diseases, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, London, WC1N 3BG, UK.
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Chen X, Xie L, Sheehy R, Xiong Y, Muneer A, Wrobel J, Park KS, Liu J, Velez J, Luo Y, Li YD, Quintanilla L, Li Y, Xu C, Wen Z, Song J, Jin J, Deshmukh M. Novel brain-penetrant inhibitor of G9a methylase blocks Alzheimer's disease proteopathology for precision medication. RESEARCH SQUARE 2023:rs.3.rs-2743792. [PMID: 38045363 PMCID: PMC10690335 DOI: 10.21203/rs.3.rs-2743792/v1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/05/2023]
Abstract
Current amyloid beta-targeting approaches for Alzheimer's disease (AD) therapeutics only slow cognitive decline for small numbers of patients. This limited efficacy exists because AD is a multifactorial disease whose pathological mechanism(s) and diagnostic biomarkers are largely unknown. Here we report a new mechanism of AD pathogenesis in which the histone methyltransferase G9a noncanonically regulates translation of a hippocampal proteome that defines the proteopathic nature of AD. Accordingly, we developed a novel brain-penetrant inhibitor of G9a, MS1262, across the blood-brain barrier to block this G9a-regulated, proteopathologic mechanism. Intermittent MS1262 treatment of multiple AD mouse models consistently restored both cognitive and noncognitive functions to healthy levels. Comparison of proteomic/phosphoproteomic analyses of MS1262-treated AD mice with human AD patient data identified multiple pathological brain pathways that elaborate amyloid beta and neurofibrillary tangles as well as blood coagulation, from which biomarkers of early stage of AD including SMOC1 were found to be affected by MS1262 treatment. Notably, these results indicated that MS1262 treatment may reduce or avoid the risk of blood clot burst for brain bleeding or a stroke. This mouse-to-human conservation of G9a-translated AD proteopathology suggests that the global, multifaceted effects of MS1262 in mice could extend to relieve all symptoms of AD patients with minimum side effect. In addition, our mechanistically derived biomarkers can be used for stage-specific AD diagnosis and companion diagnosis of individualized drug effects.
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9
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Sun Q, Rowland B, Wang W, Miller-Fleming TW, Cox N, Graff M, Faucon A, Shuey MM, Blue EE, Auer P, Li Y, Sankaran VG, Reiner AP, Raffield LM. Genetic examination of hematological parameters in SARS-CoV-2 infection and COVID-19. Blood Cells Mol Dis 2023; 103:102782. [PMID: 37558590 PMCID: PMC10507673 DOI: 10.1016/j.bcmd.2023.102782] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2023] [Accepted: 07/18/2023] [Indexed: 08/11/2023]
Abstract
People hospitalized with COVID-19 often exhibit altered hematological traits associated with disease prognosis (e.g., lower lymphocyte and platelet counts). We investigated whether inter-individual variability in baseline hematological traits influences risk of acute SARS-CoV-2 infection or progression to severe COVID-19. We report inconsistent associations between blood cell traits with incident SARS-CoV-2 infection and severe COVID-19 in UK Biobank and the Vanderbilt University Medical Center Synthetic Derivative (VUMC SD). Since genetically determined blood cell measures better represent cell abundance across the lifecourse, we also assessed the shared genetic architecture of baseline blood cell traits on COVID-19 related outcomes by Mendelian randomization (MR) analyses. We found significant relationships between COVID-19 severity and mean sphered cell volume after adjusting for multiple testing. However, MR results differed significantly across different freezes of COVID-19 summary statistics and genetic correlation between these traits was modest (0.1), decreasing our confidence in these results. We observed overlapping genetic association signals between other hematological and COVID-19 traits at specific loci such as MAPT and TYK2. In conclusion, we did not find convincing evidence of relationships between the genetic architecture of blood cell traits and either SARS-CoV-2 infection or COVID-19 hospitalization, though we do see evidence of shared signals at specific loci.
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Affiliation(s)
- Quan Sun
- Department of Biostatistics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, United States
| | - Bryce Rowland
- Department of Biostatistics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, United States
| | - Wanjiang Wang
- Department of Biostatistics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, United States
| | - Tyne W Miller-Fleming
- Division of Genetic Medicine, Department of Medicine, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, United States
| | - Nancy Cox
- Division of Genetic Medicine, Department of Medicine, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, United States
| | - Misa Graff
- Department of Epidemiology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, United States
| | - Annika Faucon
- Division of Genetic Medicine, Department of Medicine, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, United States
| | - Megan M Shuey
- Division of Genetic Medicine, Department of Medicine, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, United States
| | - Elizabeth E Blue
- Department of Medicine, Division of Medical Genetics, University of Washington, Brotman Baty Institute for Precision Medicine, Seattle, WA, United States
| | - Paul Auer
- Division of Biostatistics, Institute for Health and Equity, Cancer Center, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI, United States
| | - Yun Li
- Department of Biostatistics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, United States; Department of Genetics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, United States
| | - Vijay G Sankaran
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children's Hospital, Department of Pediatric Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Alexander P Reiner
- Department of Epidemiology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, United States
| | - Laura M Raffield
- Department of Genetics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, United States.
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10
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Sfera A, Andronescu L, Britt WG, Himsl K, Klein C, Rahman L, Kozlakidis Z. Receptor-Independent Therapies for Forensic Detainees with Schizophrenia-Dementia Comorbidity. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:15797. [PMID: 37958780 PMCID: PMC10647468 DOI: 10.3390/ijms242115797] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2023] [Revised: 10/23/2023] [Accepted: 10/28/2023] [Indexed: 11/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Forensic institutions throughout the world house patients with severe psychiatric illness and history of criminal violations. Improved medical care, hygiene, psychiatric treatment, and nutrition led to an unmatched longevity in this population, which previously lived, on average, 15 to 20 years shorter than the public at large. On the other hand, longevity has contributed to increased prevalence of age-related diseases, including neurodegenerative disorders, which complicate clinical management, increasing healthcare expenditures. Forensic institutions, originally intended for the treatment of younger individuals, are ill-equipped for the growing number of older offenders. Moreover, as antipsychotic drugs became available in 1950s and 1960s, we are observing the first generation of forensic detainees who have aged on dopamine-blocking agents. Although the consequences of long-term treatment with these agents are unclear, schizophrenia-associated gray matter loss may contribute to the development of early dementia. Taken together, increased lifespan and the subsequent cognitive deficit observed in long-term forensic institutions raise questions and dilemmas unencountered by the previous generations of clinicians. These include: does the presence of neurocognitive dysfunction justify antipsychotic dose reduction or discontinuation despite a lifelong history of schizophrenia and violent behavior? Should neurolipidomic interventions become the standard of care in elderly individuals with lifelong schizophrenia and dementia? Can patients with schizophrenia and dementia meet the Dusky standard to stand trial? Should neurocognitive disorders in the elderly with lifelong schizophrenia be treated differently than age-related neurodegeneration? In this article, we hypothesize that gray matter loss is the core symptom of schizophrenia which leads to dementia. We hypothesize further that strategies to delay or stop gray matter depletion would not only improve the schizophrenia sustained recovery, but also avert the development of major neurocognitive disorders in people living with schizophrenia. Based on this hypothesis, we suggest utilization of both receptor-dependent and independent therapeutics for chronic psychosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adonis Sfera
- Paton State Hospital, 3102 Highland Ave, Patton, CA 92369, USA; (L.A.); (K.H.)
- School of Behavioral Health, Loma Linda University, 11139 Anderson St., Loma Linda, CA 92350, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California, Riverside 900 University Ave, Riverside, CA 92521, USA
| | - Luminita Andronescu
- Paton State Hospital, 3102 Highland Ave, Patton, CA 92369, USA; (L.A.); (K.H.)
| | - William G. Britt
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Loma Linda University, Loma Linda, CA 92350, USA;
| | - Kiera Himsl
- Paton State Hospital, 3102 Highland Ave, Patton, CA 92369, USA; (L.A.); (K.H.)
| | - Carolina Klein
- California Department of State Hospitals, Sacramento, CA 95814, USA;
| | - Leah Rahman
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Oregon, 1585 E 13th Ave, Eugene, OR 97403, USA;
| | - Zisis Kozlakidis
- International Agency for Research on Cancer, 69366 Lyon Cedex, France;
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11
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Xie L, Sheehy RN, Xiong Y, Muneer A, Wrobel JA, Park KS, Velez J, Liu J, Luo YJ, Li YD, Quintanilla L, Li Y, Xu C, Deshmukh M, Wen Z, Jin J, Song J, Chen X. Novel brain-penetrant inhibitor of G9a methylase blocks Alzheimer's disease proteopathology for precision medication. MEDRXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR HEALTH SCIENCES 2023:2023.10.25.23297491. [PMID: 37961307 PMCID: PMC10635198 DOI: 10.1101/2023.10.25.23297491] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2023]
Abstract
Current amyloid beta-targeting approaches for Alzheimer's disease (AD) therapeutics only slow cognitive decline for small numbers of patients. This limited efficacy exists because AD is a multifactorial disease whose pathological mechanism(s) and diagnostic biomarkers are largely unknown. Here we report a new mechanism of AD pathogenesis in which the histone methyltransferase G9a noncanonically regulates translation of a hippocampal proteome that defines the proteopathic nature of AD. Accordingly, we developed a novel brain-penetrant inhibitor of G9a, MS1262, across the blood-brain barrier to block this G9a-regulated, proteopathologic mechanism. Intermittent MS1262 treatment of multiple AD mouse models consistently restored both cognitive and noncognitive functions to healthy levels. Comparison of proteomic/phosphoproteomic analyses of MS1262-treated AD mice with human AD patient data identified multiple pathological brain pathways that elaborate amyloid beta and neurofibrillary tangles as well as blood coagulation, from which biomarkers of early stage of AD including SMOC1 were found to be affected by MS1262 treatment. Notably, these results indicated that MS1262 treatment may reduce or avoid the risk of blood clot burst for brain bleeding or a stroke. This mouse-to-human conservation of G9a-translated AD proteopathology suggests that the global, multifaceted effects of MS1262 in mice could extend to relieve all symptoms of AD patients with minimum side effect. In addition, our mechanistically derived biomarkers can be used for stage-specific AD diagnosis and companion diagnosis of individualized drug effects. One-Sentence Summary A brain-penetrant inhibitor of G9a methylase blocks G9a translational mechanism to reverse Alzheimer's disease related proteome for effective therapy.
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12
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Deisseroth CA, Lee WS, Kim J, Jeong HH, Dhindsa RS, Wang J, Zoghbi HY, Liu Z. Literature-based predictions of Mendelian disease therapies. Am J Hum Genet 2023; 110:1661-1672. [PMID: 37741276 PMCID: PMC10577072 DOI: 10.1016/j.ajhg.2023.08.018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2023] [Revised: 08/31/2023] [Accepted: 08/31/2023] [Indexed: 09/25/2023] Open
Abstract
In the effort to treat Mendelian disorders, correcting the underlying molecular imbalance may be more effective than symptomatic treatment. Identifying treatments that might accomplish this goal requires extensive and up-to-date knowledge of molecular pathways-including drug-gene and gene-gene relationships. To address this challenge, we present "parsing modifiers via article annotations" (PARMESAN), a computational tool that searches PubMed and PubMed Central for information to assemble these relationships into a central knowledge base. PARMESAN then predicts putatively novel drug-gene relationships, assigning an evidence-based score to each prediction. We compare PARMESAN's drug-gene predictions to all of the drug-gene relationships displayed by the Drug-Gene Interaction Database (DGIdb) and show that higher-scoring relationship predictions are more likely to match the directionality (up- versus down-regulation) indicated by this database. PARMESAN had more than 200,000 drug predictions scoring above 8 (as one example cutoff), for more than 3,700 genes. Among these predicted relationships, 210 were registered in DGIdb and 201 (96%) had matching directionality. This publicly available tool provides an automated way to prioritize drug screens to target the most-promising drugs to test, thereby saving time and resources in the development of therapeutics for genetic disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cole A Deisseroth
- Medical Scientist Training Program, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Won-Seok Lee
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Integrative Molecular and Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Jiyoen Kim
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Department of Neuroscience, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Hyun-Hwan Jeong
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Ryan S Dhindsa
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Department of Pathology and Immunology, Baylor College of Medicine, 1 Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Julia Wang
- Medical Scientist Training Program, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Huda Y Zoghbi
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Integrative Molecular and Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Department of Neuroscience, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Chevy Chase, MD 20815, USA
| | - Zhandong Liu
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
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13
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Tu Z, Yan S, Han B, Li C, Liang W, Lin Y, Ding Y, Wei H, Wang L, Xu H, Ye J, Li B, Li S, Li XJ. Tauopathy promotes spinal cord-dependent production of toxic amyloid-beta in transgenic monkeys. Signal Transduct Target Ther 2023; 8:358. [PMID: 37735155 PMCID: PMC10514290 DOI: 10.1038/s41392-023-01601-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/16/2023] [Revised: 08/08/2023] [Accepted: 08/13/2023] [Indexed: 09/23/2023] Open
Abstract
Tauopathy, characterized by the hyperphosphorylation and accumulation of the microtubule-associated protein tau, and the accumulation of Aβ oligomers, constitute the major pathological hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease. However, the relationship and causal roles of these two pathological changes in neurodegeneration remain to be defined, even though they occur together or independently in several neurodegenerative diseases associated with cognitive and movement impairment. While it is widely accepted that Aβ accumulation leads to tauopathy in the late stages of the disease, it is still unknown whether tauopathy influences the formation of toxic Aβ oligomers. To address this, we generated transgenic cynomolgus monkey models expressing Tau (P301L) through lentiviral infection of monkey embryos. These monkeys developed age-dependent neurodegeneration and motor dysfunction. Additionally, we performed a stereotaxic injection of adult monkey and mouse brains to express Tau (P301L) via AAV9 infection. Importantly, we found that tauopathy resulting from embryonic transgenic Tau expression or stereotaxic brain injection of AAV-Tau selectively promoted the generation of Aβ oligomers in the monkey spinal cord. These Aβ oligomers were recognized by several antibodies to Aβ1-42 and contributed to neurodegeneration. However, the generation of Aβ oligomers was not observed in other brain regions of Tau transgenic monkeys or in the brains of mice injected with AAV9-Tau (P301L), suggesting that the generation of Aβ oligomers is species- and brain region-dependent. Our findings demonstrate for the first time that tauopathy can trigger Aβ pathology in the primate spinal cord and provide new insight into the pathogenesis and treatment of tauopathy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhuchi Tu
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Non-human Primate Research, Key Laboratory of CNS Regeneration (Ministry of Education), GHM Institute of CNS Regeneration, Jinan University, Guangzhou, 510632, China.
| | - Sen Yan
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Non-human Primate Research, Key Laboratory of CNS Regeneration (Ministry of Education), GHM Institute of CNS Regeneration, Jinan University, Guangzhou, 510632, China.
| | - Bofeng Han
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Non-human Primate Research, Key Laboratory of CNS Regeneration (Ministry of Education), GHM Institute of CNS Regeneration, Jinan University, Guangzhou, 510632, China
| | - Caijuan Li
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Non-human Primate Research, Key Laboratory of CNS Regeneration (Ministry of Education), GHM Institute of CNS Regeneration, Jinan University, Guangzhou, 510632, China
| | - Weien Liang
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Non-human Primate Research, Key Laboratory of CNS Regeneration (Ministry of Education), GHM Institute of CNS Regeneration, Jinan University, Guangzhou, 510632, China
| | - Yingqi Lin
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Non-human Primate Research, Key Laboratory of CNS Regeneration (Ministry of Education), GHM Institute of CNS Regeneration, Jinan University, Guangzhou, 510632, China
| | - Yongyan Ding
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Non-human Primate Research, Key Laboratory of CNS Regeneration (Ministry of Education), GHM Institute of CNS Regeneration, Jinan University, Guangzhou, 510632, China
| | - Huiyi Wei
- Center of Cyclotron and PET Radiopharmaceuticals, Department of Nuclear Medicine and PET/CT-MRI Center, the First Affiliated Hospital of Jinan University, Guangzhou, 510630, China
| | - Lu Wang
- Center of Cyclotron and PET Radiopharmaceuticals, Department of Nuclear Medicine and PET/CT-MRI Center, the First Affiliated Hospital of Jinan University, Guangzhou, 510630, China
| | - Hao Xu
- Center of Cyclotron and PET Radiopharmaceuticals, Department of Nuclear Medicine and PET/CT-MRI Center, the First Affiliated Hospital of Jinan University, Guangzhou, 510630, China
| | - Jianmeng Ye
- Guangdong Landau Biotechnology Co. Ltd., Guangzhou, 510555, China
| | - Bang Li
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Non-human Primate Research, Key Laboratory of CNS Regeneration (Ministry of Education), GHM Institute of CNS Regeneration, Jinan University, Guangzhou, 510632, China
| | - Shihua Li
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Non-human Primate Research, Key Laboratory of CNS Regeneration (Ministry of Education), GHM Institute of CNS Regeneration, Jinan University, Guangzhou, 510632, China
| | - Xiao-Jiang Li
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Non-human Primate Research, Key Laboratory of CNS Regeneration (Ministry of Education), GHM Institute of CNS Regeneration, Jinan University, Guangzhou, 510632, China.
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14
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Voicu V, Tataru CP, Toader C, Covache-Busuioc RA, Glavan LA, Bratu BG, Costin HP, Corlatescu AD, Ciurea AV. Decoding Neurodegeneration: A Comprehensive Review of Molecular Mechanisms, Genetic Influences, and Therapeutic Innovations. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:13006. [PMID: 37629187 PMCID: PMC10455143 DOI: 10.3390/ijms241613006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2023] [Revised: 08/17/2023] [Accepted: 08/18/2023] [Indexed: 08/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Neurodegenerative disorders often acquire due to genetic predispositions and genomic alterations after exposure to multiple risk factors. The most commonly found pathologies are variations of dementia, such as frontotemporal dementia and Lewy body dementia, as well as rare subtypes of cerebral and cerebellar atrophy-based syndromes. In an emerging era of biomedical advances, molecular-cellular studies offer an essential avenue for a thorough recognition of the underlying mechanisms and their possible implications in the patient's symptomatology. This comprehensive review is focused on deciphering molecular mechanisms and the implications regarding those pathologies' clinical advancement and provides an analytical overview of genetic mutations in the case of neurodegenerative disorders. With the help of well-developed modern genetic investigations, these clinically complex disturbances are highly understood nowadays, being an important step in establishing molecularly targeted therapies and implementing those approaches in the physician's practice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Victor Voicu
- Pharmacology, Toxicology and Clinical Psychopharmacology, “Carol Davila” University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Bucharest, 020021 Bucharest, Romania;
- Medical Section within the Romanian Academy, 010071 Bucharest, Romania
| | - Calin Petre Tataru
- Department of Opthamology, “Carol Davila” University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 020021 Bucharest, Romania
- Central Military Emergency Hospital “Dr. Carol Davila”, 010825 Bucharest, Romania
| | - Corneliu Toader
- Department of Neurosurgery, “Carol Davila” University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 020021 Bucharest, Romania; (R.-A.C.-B.); (L.A.G.); (B.-G.B.); (H.P.C.); (A.D.C.); (A.V.C.)
- Department of Vascular Neurosurgery, National Institute of Neurology and Neurovascular Diseases, 077160 Bucharest, Romania
| | - Razvan-Adrian Covache-Busuioc
- Department of Neurosurgery, “Carol Davila” University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 020021 Bucharest, Romania; (R.-A.C.-B.); (L.A.G.); (B.-G.B.); (H.P.C.); (A.D.C.); (A.V.C.)
| | - Luca Andrei Glavan
- Department of Neurosurgery, “Carol Davila” University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 020021 Bucharest, Romania; (R.-A.C.-B.); (L.A.G.); (B.-G.B.); (H.P.C.); (A.D.C.); (A.V.C.)
| | - Bogdan-Gabriel Bratu
- Department of Neurosurgery, “Carol Davila” University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 020021 Bucharest, Romania; (R.-A.C.-B.); (L.A.G.); (B.-G.B.); (H.P.C.); (A.D.C.); (A.V.C.)
| | - Horia Petre Costin
- Department of Neurosurgery, “Carol Davila” University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 020021 Bucharest, Romania; (R.-A.C.-B.); (L.A.G.); (B.-G.B.); (H.P.C.); (A.D.C.); (A.V.C.)
| | - Antonio Daniel Corlatescu
- Department of Neurosurgery, “Carol Davila” University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 020021 Bucharest, Romania; (R.-A.C.-B.); (L.A.G.); (B.-G.B.); (H.P.C.); (A.D.C.); (A.V.C.)
| | - Alexandru Vlad Ciurea
- Department of Neurosurgery, “Carol Davila” University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 020021 Bucharest, Romania; (R.-A.C.-B.); (L.A.G.); (B.-G.B.); (H.P.C.); (A.D.C.); (A.V.C.)
- Neurosurgery Department, Sanador Clinical Hospital, 010991 Bucharest, Romania
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15
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De Marchi F, Tondo G, Corrado L, Menegon F, Aprile D, Anselmi M, D’Alfonso S, Comi C, Mazzini L. Neuroinflammatory Pathways in the ALS-FTD Continuum: A Focus on Genetic Variants. Genes (Basel) 2023; 14:1658. [PMID: 37628709 PMCID: PMC10454262 DOI: 10.3390/genes14081658] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/15/2023] [Revised: 08/18/2023] [Accepted: 08/18/2023] [Indexed: 08/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) and Frontotemporal dementia (FDT) are progressive neurodegenerative disorders that, in several cases, overlap in clinical presentation, and genetic and pathological disease mechanisms. About 10-15% of ALS cases and up to 40% of FTD are familial, usually with dominant traits. ALS and FTD, in several cases, share common gene mutations, such as in C9ORF72, TARDBP, SQSTM-1, FUS, VCP, CHCHD10, and TBK-1. Also, several mechanisms are involved in ALS and FTD pathogenesis, such as protein misfolding, oxidative stress, and impaired axonal transport. In addition, neuroinflammation and neuroinflammatory cells, such as astrocytes, oligodendrocytes, microglia, and lymphocytes and, overall, the cellular microenvironment, have been proposed as pivotal players in the pathogenesis the ALS-FTD spectrum disorders. This review overviews the current evidence regarding neuroinflammatory markers in the ALS/FTD continuum, focusing on the neuroinflammatory pathways involved in the genetic cases, moving from post-mortem reports to in vivo biofluid and neuroimaging data. We further discuss the potential link between genetic and autoimmune disorders and potential therapeutic implications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fabiola De Marchi
- ALS Center, Neurology Unit, Department of Translational Medicine, University of Piemonte Orientale, 28100 Novara, Italy;
| | - Giacomo Tondo
- Neurology Unit, Department of Translational Medicine, S. Andrea Hospital, University of Piemonte Orientale, 13100 Vercelli, Italy; (G.T.); (D.A.); (C.C.)
| | - Lucia Corrado
- Department of Health Sciences, University of Eastern Piedmont, 28100 Novara, Italy; (L.C.); (S.D.)
| | - Federico Menegon
- Neurology Unit, Department of Translational Medicine, University of Piemonte Orientale, 28100 Novara, Italy; (F.M.); (M.A.)
| | - Davide Aprile
- Neurology Unit, Department of Translational Medicine, S. Andrea Hospital, University of Piemonte Orientale, 13100 Vercelli, Italy; (G.T.); (D.A.); (C.C.)
| | - Matteo Anselmi
- Neurology Unit, Department of Translational Medicine, University of Piemonte Orientale, 28100 Novara, Italy; (F.M.); (M.A.)
| | - Sandra D’Alfonso
- Department of Health Sciences, University of Eastern Piedmont, 28100 Novara, Italy; (L.C.); (S.D.)
| | - Cristoforo Comi
- Neurology Unit, Department of Translational Medicine, S. Andrea Hospital, University of Piemonte Orientale, 13100 Vercelli, Italy; (G.T.); (D.A.); (C.C.)
- Interdisciplinary Research Center of Autoimmune Diseases (IRCAD), University of Piemonte Orientale, 28100 Novara, Italy
| | - Letizia Mazzini
- ALS Center, Neurology Unit, Department of Translational Medicine, University of Piemonte Orientale, 28100 Novara, Italy;
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16
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Grossman M, Seeley WW, Boxer AL, Hillis AE, Knopman DS, Ljubenov PA, Miller B, Piguet O, Rademakers R, Whitwell JL, Zetterberg H, van Swieten JC. Frontotemporal lobar degeneration. Nat Rev Dis Primers 2023; 9:40. [PMID: 37563165 DOI: 10.1038/s41572-023-00447-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 06/12/2023] [Indexed: 08/12/2023]
Abstract
Frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD) is one of the most common causes of early-onset dementia and presents with early social-emotional-behavioural and/or language changes that can be accompanied by a pyramidal or extrapyramidal motor disorder. About 20-25% of individuals with FTLD are estimated to carry a mutation associated with a specific FTLD pathology. The discovery of these mutations has led to important advances in potentially disease-modifying treatments that aim to slow progression or delay disease onset and has improved understanding of brain functioning. In both mutation carriers and those with sporadic disease, the most common underlying diagnoses are linked to neuronal and glial inclusions containing tau (FTLD-tau) or TDP-43 (FTLD-TDP), although 5-10% of patients may have inclusions containing proteins from the FUS-Ewing sarcoma-TAF15 family (FTLD-FET). Biomarkers definitively identifying specific pathological entities in sporadic disease have been elusive, which has impeded development of disease-modifying treatments. Nevertheless, disease-monitoring biofluid and imaging biomarkers are becoming increasingly sophisticated and are likely to serve as useful measures of treatment response during trials of disease-modifying treatments. Symptomatic trials using novel approaches such as transcranial direct current stimulation are also beginning to show promise.
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Affiliation(s)
- Murray Grossman
- Department of Neurology and Penn Frontotemporal Degeneration Center, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - William W Seeley
- Departments of Neurology and Memory and Aging Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
- Department of Pathology, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
| | - Adam L Boxer
- Departments of Neurology and Memory and Aging Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Argye E Hillis
- Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | | | - Peter A Ljubenov
- Departments of Neurology and Memory and Aging Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Bruce Miller
- Departments of Neurology and Memory and Aging Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Olivier Piguet
- School of Psychology and Brain and Mind Center, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Rosa Rademakers
- VIB Center for Molecular Neurology, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | | | - Henrik Zetterberg
- Department of Psychiatry and Neurochemistry, Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, The University of Gothenburg, Mölndal, Sweden
- Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg, Mölndal, Sweden
- Clinical Neurochemistry Laboratory, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Mölndal, Sweden
- Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, UCL Institute of Neurology, London, UK
- UK Dementia Research Institute at UCL, London, UK
- Hong Kong Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases, Clear Water Bay, Hong Kong, China
- Wisconsin Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
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17
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Zhu R, Makwana KM, Zhang Y, Rajewski BH, Del Valle JR, Wang Y. Blocking tau transmission by biomimetic graphene nanoparticles. J Mater Chem B 2023; 11:7378-7388. [PMID: 37431684 PMCID: PMC10528742 DOI: 10.1039/d3tb00850a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/12/2023]
Abstract
Tauopathies are a class of neurodegenerative diseases resulting in cognitive dysfunction, executive dysfunction, and motor disturbance. The primary pathological feature of tauopathies is the presence of neurofibrillary tangles in the brain composed of tau protein aggregates. Moreover, tau aggregates can spread from neuron to neuron and lead to the propagation of tau pathology. Although numerous small molecules are known to inhibit tau aggregation and block tau cell-to-cell transmission, it is still challenging to use them for therapeutic applications due to poor specificity and low blood-brain barrier (BBB) penetration. Graphene nanoparticles were previously demonstrated to penetrate the BBB and are amenable to functionalization for targeted delivery. Moreover, these nanoscale biomimetic particles can self-assemble or assemble with various biomolecules including proteins. In this paper, we show that graphene quantum dots (GQDs), as graphene nanoparticles, block the seeding activity of tau fibrils by inhibiting the fibrillization of monomeric tau and triggering the disaggregation of tau filaments. This behavior is attributed to electrostatic and π-π stacking interactions of GQDs with tau. Overall, our studies indicate that GQDs with biomimetic properties can efficiently inhibit and disassemble pathological tau aggregates, and thus block tau transmission, which supports their future developments as a potential treatment for tauopathies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Runyao Zhu
- Department of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, University of Notre Dame, Indiana 46556, USA.
| | - Kamlesh M Makwana
- Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, University of Notre Dame, Indiana 46556, USA
| | - Youwen Zhang
- Department of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, University of Notre Dame, Indiana 46556, USA.
| | - Benjamin H Rajewski
- Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, University of Notre Dame, Indiana 46556, USA
| | - Juan R Del Valle
- Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, University of Notre Dame, Indiana 46556, USA
| | - Yichun Wang
- Department of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, University of Notre Dame, Indiana 46556, USA.
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18
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Brown CW, Chen HY, Panegyres PK. Electroencephalography in young onset dementia. BMC Neurol 2023; 23:202. [PMID: 37221470 DOI: 10.1186/s12883-023-03248-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2023] [Accepted: 05/16/2023] [Indexed: 05/25/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Young onset dementia (YOD) is a major diagnostic and management problem. METHODS We set out to explore if electroencephalography (EEG) might be useful in the diagnosis of young onset Alzheimer's disease (YOAD) and young onset frontotemporal dementia (YOFTD). The ARTEMIS project is a 25-year prospective study of YOD based in Perth, Western Australia. 231 participants were included: YOAD: n = 103, YOFTD: n = 28, controls: n = 100. EEGs were performed prospectively, with 30-minute recording time for each subject, without knowledge of diagnosis or other diagnostic data. RESULTS 80.9% of patients with YOD had abnormal EEGs (P < 0.00001). Slow wave changes were more frequent in YOAD that YOFTD (P < 0.00001), but no difference in the frequency of epileptiform activity (P = 0.32), with 38.8% of YOAD and 28.6% of YOFTD patients having epileptiform activity. Slow wave changes were more generalized in YOAD (P = 0.001). Slow wave changes and epileptiform activity were not sensitive to the diagnosis of YOD, but highly specific (97-99%). The absence of slow wave changes and epileptiform activity had a 100% negative predictive value and likelihood radio 0.14 and 0.62 respectively, meaning that those without slow wave changes or epileptiform activity had low probability of having YOD. No relationship was established between EEG findings and the patient's presenting problem. Eleven patients with YOAD developed seizures during the study, and only one with YOFTD. CONCLUSIONS The EEG is highly specific for the diagnosis of YOD with the absence of slow wave changes and epileptiform phenomena making the diagnosis unlikely, with 100% negative predictive value and with low probability for the dementia diagnosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Casey W Brown
- Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, The University of Western Australia, Crawley, 6009, Australia
| | - Huei-Yang Chen
- Neurodegenerative Disorders Research Pty Ltd, 4 Lawrence Avenue, West Perth, West Perth, WA, 6005, Australia
| | - Peter K Panegyres
- Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, The University of Western Australia, Crawley, 6009, Australia.
- Neurodegenerative Disorders Research Pty Ltd, 4 Lawrence Avenue, West Perth, West Perth, WA, 6005, Australia.
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Kadlecova M, Freude K, Haukedal H. Complexity of Sex Differences and Their Impact on Alzheimer's Disease. Biomedicines 2023; 11:biomedicines11051261. [PMID: 37238932 DOI: 10.3390/biomedicines11051261] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2023] [Revised: 04/05/2023] [Accepted: 04/19/2023] [Indexed: 05/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Sex differences are present in brain morphology, sex hormones, aging processes and immune responses. These differences need to be considered for proper modelling of neurological diseases with clear sex differences. This is the case for Alzheimer's disease (AD), a fatal neurodegenerative disorder with two-thirds of cases diagnosed in women. It is becoming clear that there is a complex interplay between the immune system, sex hormones and AD. Microglia are major players in the neuroinflammatory process occurring in AD and have been shown to be directly affected by sex hormones. However, many unanswered questions remain as the importance of including both sexes in research studies has only recently started receiving attention. In this review, we provide a summary of sex differences and their implications in AD, with a focus on microglia action. Furthermore, we discuss current available study models, including emerging complex microfluidic and 3D cellular models and their usefulness for studying hormonal effects in this disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marion Kadlecova
- Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 1870 C Frederiksberg, Denmark
| | - Kristine Freude
- Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 1870 C Frederiksberg, Denmark
| | - Henriette Haukedal
- Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 1870 C Frederiksberg, Denmark
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20
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Initiation and modulation of Tau protein phase separation by the drug suramin. Sci Rep 2023; 13:3963. [PMID: 36894559 PMCID: PMC9997437 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-29846-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/03/2022] [Accepted: 02/10/2023] [Indexed: 03/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Tau is an intrinsically disordered neuronal protein in the central nervous system. Aggregated Tau is the main component of neurofibrillary tangles observed in Alzheimer's disease. In vitro, Tau aggregation can be triggered by polyanionic co-factors, like RNA or heparin. At different concentration ratios, the same polyanions can induce Tau condensates via liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS), which over time develop pathological aggregation seeding potential. Data obtained by time resolved Dynamic Light Scattering experiments (trDLS), light and electron microscopy show that intermolecular electrostatic interactions between Tau and the negatively charged drug suramin induce Tau condensation and compete with the interactions driving and stabilizing the formation of Tau:heparin and Tau:RNA coacervates, thus, reducing their potential to induce cellular Tau aggregation. Tau:suramin condensates do not seed Tau aggregation in a HEK cell model for Tau aggregation, even after extended incubation. These observations indicate that electrostatically driven Tau condensation can occur without pathological aggregation when initiated by small anionic molecules. Our results provide a novel avenue for therapeutic intervention of aberrant Tau phase separation, utilizing small anionic compounds.
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21
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Zhang F, Rakhimbekova A, Lashley T, Madl T. Brain regions show different metabolic and protein arginine methylation phenotypes in frontotemporal dementias and Alzheimer's disease. Prog Neurobiol 2023; 221:102400. [PMID: 36581185 DOI: 10.1016/j.pneurobio.2022.102400] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/06/2022] [Revised: 11/05/2022] [Accepted: 12/19/2022] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
Frontotemporal dementia (FTD) is a heterogeneous neurodegenerative disease with multiple histopathological subtypes. FTD patients share similar symptoms with Alzheimer's disease (AD). Hence, FTD patients are commonly misdiagnosed as AD, despite the consensus clinical diagnostic criteria. It is therefore of great clinical need to identify a biomarker that can distinguish FTD from AD and control individuals, and potentially further differentiate between FTD pathological subtypes. We conducted a metabolomic analysis on post-mortem human brain tissue from three regions: cerebellum, frontal cortex and occipital cortex from control, FTLD-TDP type A, type A-C9, type C and AD. Our results indicate that the brain subdivisions responsible for different functions show different metabolic patterns. We further explored the region-specific metabolic characteristics of different FTD subtypes and AD patients. Different FTD subtypes and AD share similar metabolic phenotypes in the cerebellum, but AD exhibited distinct metabolic patterns in the frontal and occipital regions compared to FTD. The identified brain region-specific metabolite biomarkers could provide a tool for distinguishing different FTD subtypes and AD and provide the first insights into the metabolic changes of FTLD-TDP type A, type A-C9, type C and AD in different regions of the brain. The importance of protein arginine methylation in neurodegenerative disease has come to light, so we investigated whether the arginine methylation level contributes to disease pathogenesis. Our findings provide new insights into the relationship between arginine methylation and metabolic changes in FTD subtypes and AD that could be further explored, to study the molecular mechanism of pathogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fangrong Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Gastrointestinal Cancer (Fujian Medical University), Ministry of Education, Fuzhou, China; Gottfried Schatz Research Center for Cell Signaling, Metabolism and Aging, Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, Research Unit Integrative Structural Biology, Medical University of Graz, 8010 Graz, Austria.
| | - Anastasia Rakhimbekova
- Gottfried Schatz Research Center for Cell Signaling, Metabolism and Aging, Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, Research Unit Integrative Structural Biology, Medical University of Graz, 8010 Graz, Austria.
| | - Tammaryn Lashley
- Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, London, UK; Queen Square Brain Bank for Neurological Diseases, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, London, UK.
| | - Tobias Madl
- Gottfried Schatz Research Center for Cell Signaling, Metabolism and Aging, Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, Research Unit Integrative Structural Biology, Medical University of Graz, 8010 Graz, Austria; BioTechMed-Graz, 8010 Graz, Austria.
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22
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Vignaroli F, Mele A, Tondo G, De Giorgis V, Manfredi M, Comi C, Mazzini L, De Marchi F. The Need for Biomarkers in the ALS-FTD Spectrum: A Clinical Point of View on the Role of Proteomics. Proteomes 2023; 11:proteomes11010001. [PMID: 36648959 PMCID: PMC9844364 DOI: 10.3390/proteomes11010001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/25/2022] [Revised: 12/30/2022] [Accepted: 01/04/2023] [Indexed: 01/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Frontotemporal dementia (FTD) and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) are severely debilitating and progressive neurodegenerative disorders. A distinctive pathological feature of several neurodegenerative diseases, including ALS and FTD, is the deposition of aberrant protein inclusions in neuronal cells, which leads to cellular dysfunction and neuronal damage and loss. Despite this, to date, the biological process behind developing these protein inclusions must be better clarified, making the development of disease-modifying treatment impossible until this is done. Proteomics is a powerful tool to characterize the expression, structure, functions, interactions, and modifications of proteins of tissue and biological fluid, including plasma, serum, and cerebrospinal fluid. This protein-profiling characterization aims to identify disease-specific protein alteration or specific pathology-based mechanisms which may be used as markers of these conditions. Our narrative review aims to highlight the need for biomarkers and the potential use of proteomics in clinical practice for ALS-FTD spectrum disorders, considering the emerging rationale in proteomics for new drug development. Certainly, new data will emerge in the near future in this regard and support clinicians in the development of personalized medicine.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Angelica Mele
- Neurology Unit, Maggiore della Carità Hospital, 28100 Novara, Italy
| | - Giacomo Tondo
- Department of Neurology, S. Andrea Hospital, University of Piemonte Orientale, 13100 Vercelli, Italy
| | - Veronica De Giorgis
- Department of Translational Medicine, University of Piemonte Orientale, 28100 Novara, Italy
- Center for Translational Research and Autoimmune and Allergic Diseases (CAAD), University of Piemonte Orientale, 28100 Novara, Italy
| | - Marcello Manfredi
- Department of Translational Medicine, University of Piemonte Orientale, 28100 Novara, Italy
- Center for Translational Research and Autoimmune and Allergic Diseases (CAAD), University of Piemonte Orientale, 28100 Novara, Italy
| | - Cristoforo Comi
- Department of Neurology, S. Andrea Hospital, University of Piemonte Orientale, 13100 Vercelli, Italy
- Department of Translational Medicine, University of Piemonte Orientale, 28100 Novara, Italy
| | - Letizia Mazzini
- Neurology Unit, Maggiore della Carità Hospital, 28100 Novara, Italy
- Department of Translational Medicine, University of Piemonte Orientale, 28100 Novara, Italy
| | - Fabiola De Marchi
- Neurology Unit, Maggiore della Carità Hospital, 28100 Novara, Italy
- Department of Translational Medicine, University of Piemonte Orientale, 28100 Novara, Italy
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +39-0321-3733962
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23
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Induction of Oxidative Stress in SH-SY5Y Cells by Overexpression of hTau40 and Its Mitigation by Redox-Active Nanoparticles. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 24:ijms24010359. [PMID: 36613801 PMCID: PMC9820486 DOI: 10.3390/ijms24010359] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2022] [Revised: 12/18/2022] [Accepted: 12/22/2022] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Abnormally phosphorylated tau protein is the principal component of neurofibrillary tangles, accumulating in the brain in many neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer's disease. The aim of this study was to examine whether overexpression of tau protein leads to changes in the redox status of human neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y cells. The level of reactive oxygen species (ROS) was elevated in tau-overexpressing cells (TAU cells) as compared with cells transfected with the empty vector (EP cells). The level of glutathione was increased in TAU cells, apparently due to overproduction as an adaptation to oxidative stress. The TAU cells had elevated mitochondrial mass. They were more sensitive to 6-hydroxydopamine, delphinidin, 4-amino-TEMPO, and nitroxide-containing nanoparticles (NPs) compared to EP controls. These results indicate that overexpression of the tau protein imposes oxidative stress on the cells. The nitroxide 4-amino-TEMPO and nitroxide-containing nanoparticles (NPs) mitigated oxidative stress in TAU cells, decreasing the level of ROS. Nitroxide-containing nanoparticles lowered the level of lipid peroxidation in both TAU and EP cells, suggesting that nitroxides and NPs may mitigate tau-protein-induced oxidative stress.
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24
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Zecca C, Tortelli R, Carrera P, Dell'Abate MT, Logroscino G, Ferrari M. Genotype-phenotype correlation in the spectrum of frontotemporal dementia-parkinsonian syndromes and advanced diagnostic approaches. Crit Rev Clin Lab Sci 2022; 60:171-188. [PMID: 36510705 DOI: 10.1080/10408363.2022.2150833] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
The term frontotemporal dementia (FTD) refers to a group of progressive neurodegenerative disorders characterized mainly by atrophy of the frontal and anterior temporal lobes. Based on clinical presentation, three main clinical syndromes have traditionally been described: behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD), non-fluent/agrammatic primary progressive aphasia (nfPPA), and semantic variant PPA (svPPA). However, over the last 20 years, it has been recognized that cognitive phenotypes often overlap with motor phenotypes, either motor neuron diseases or parkinsonian signs and/or syndromes like progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) and cortico-basal syndrome (CBS). Furthermore, FTD-related genes are characterized by genetic pleiotropy and can cause, even in the same family, pure motor phenotypes, findings that underlie the clinical continuum of the spectrum, which has pure cognitive and pure motor phenotypes as the extremes. The genotype-phenotype correlation of the spectrum, FTD-motor neuron disease, has been well defined and extensively investigated, while the continuum, FTD-parkinsonism, lacks a comprehensive review. In this narrative review, we describe the current knowledge about the genotype-phenotype correlation of the spectrum, FTD-parkinsonism, focusing on the phenotypes that are less frequent than bvFTD, namely nfPPA, svPPA, PSP, CBS, and cognitive-motor overlapping phenotypes (i.e. PPA + PSP). From a pathological point of view, they are characterized mainly by the presence of phosphorylated-tau inclusions, either 4 R or 3 R. The genetic correlate of the spectrum can be heterogeneous, although some variants seem to lead preferentially to specific clinical syndromes. Furthermore, we critically review the contribution of genome-wide association studies (GWAS) and next-generation sequencing (NGS) in disentangling the complex heritability of the FTD-parkinsonism spectrum and in defining the genotype-phenotype correlation of the entire clinical scenario, owing to the ability of these techniques to test multiple genes, and so to allow detailed investigations of the overlapping phenotypes. Finally, we conclude with the importance of a detailed genetic characterization and we offer to patients and families the chance to be included in future randomized clinical trials focused on autosomal dominant forms of FTLD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chiara Zecca
- Department of Clinical Research in Neurology, Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases and the Aging Brain, University of Bari "Aldo Moro", Pia Fondazione Card G. Panico Hospital, Tricase, Italy
| | - Rosanna Tortelli
- Neuroscience and Rare Diseases Discovery and Translational Area, Roche Pharma Research and Early Development, F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Paola Carrera
- Unit of Genomics for Human Disease Diagnosis and Clinical Molecular Biology Laboratory, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Maria Teresa Dell'Abate
- Department of Clinical Research in Neurology, Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases and the Aging Brain, University of Bari "Aldo Moro", Pia Fondazione Card G. Panico Hospital, Tricase, Italy
| | - Giancarlo Logroscino
- Department of Clinical Research in Neurology, Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases and the Aging Brain, University of Bari "Aldo Moro", Pia Fondazione Card G. Panico Hospital, Tricase, Italy.,Department of Basic Medicine Sciences, Neuroscience, and Sense Organs, University of Bari "Aldo Moro", Bari, Italy
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25
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Brain Regional Identity and Cell Type Specificity Landscape of Human Cortical Organoid Models. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:ijms232113159. [PMID: 36361956 PMCID: PMC9654943 DOI: 10.3390/ijms232113159] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2022] [Revised: 10/21/2022] [Accepted: 10/25/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
In vitro models of corticogenesis from pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) have greatly improved our understanding of human brain development and disease. Among these, 3D cortical organoid systems are able to recapitulate some aspects of in vivo cytoarchitecture of the developing cortex. Here, we tested three cortical organoid protocols for brain regional identity, cell type specificity and neuronal maturation. Overall, all protocols gave rise to organoids that displayed a time-dependent expression of neuronal maturation genes such as those involved in the establishment of synapses and neuronal function. Comparatively, guided differentiation methods without WNT activation generated the highest degree of cortical regional identity, whereas default conditions produced the broadest range of cell types such as neurons, astrocytes and hematopoietic-lineage-derived microglia cells. These results suggest that cortical organoid models produce diverse outcomes of brain regional identity and cell type specificity and emphasize the importance of selecting the correct model for the right application.
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26
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Chiu PY, Yang FC, Chiu MJ, Lin WC, Lu CH, Yang SY. Relevance of plasma biomarkers to pathologies in Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease and frontotemporal dementia. Sci Rep 2022; 12:17919. [PMID: 36289355 PMCID: PMC9605966 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-22647-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/08/2022] [Accepted: 10/18/2022] [Indexed: 01/20/2023] Open
Abstract
Amyloid plaques and tau tangles are pathological hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Parkinson's disease (PD) results from the accumulation of α-synuclein. TAR DNA-binding protein (TDP-43) and total tau protein (T-Tau) play roles in FTD pathology. All of the pathological evidence was found in the biopsy. However, it is impossible to perform stein examinations in clinical practice. Assays of biomarkers in plasma would be convenient. It would be better to investigate the combinations of various biomarkers in AD, PD and FTD. Ninety-one subjects without neurodegenerative diseases, 76 patients with amnesic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) or AD dementia, combined as AD family, were enrolled. One hundred and nine PD patients with normal cognition (PD-NC) or dementia (PDD), combined as PD family, were enrolled. Twenty-five FTD patients were enrolled for assays of plasma amyloid β 1-40 (Aβ1-40), Aβ1-42, T-Tau, α-synuclein and TDP-43 using immunomagnetic reduction (IMR). The results show that Aβs and T-Tau are major domains in AD family. α-synuclein is highly dominant in PD family. FTD is closely associated with TDP-43 and T-Tau. The dominant plasma biomarkers in AD family, PD family and FTD are consistent with pathology. This implies that plasma biomarkers are promising for precise and differential assessments of AD, PD and FTD in clinical practice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pai-Yi Chiu
- grid.452796.b0000 0004 0634 3637Department of Neurology, Show Chwan Memorial Hospital, Chunghwa, 500 Taiwan ,MR-Guided Focus Ultrasound Center, Chang Bin Shaw Chwan Memorial Hospital, Changhwa, 505 Taiwan
| | - Fu-Chi Yang
- grid.278244.f0000 0004 0638 9360Department of Neurology, Tri-Service General Hospital, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, 114 Taiwan
| | - Ming-Jang Chiu
- grid.19188.390000 0004 0546 0241Department of Neurology, National Taiwan University Hospital, College of Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taipei, 100 Taiwan ,grid.19188.390000 0004 0546 0241Graduate Institute of Brain and Mind Sciences, College of Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taipei, 100 Taiwan ,grid.19188.390000 0004 0546 0241Department of Psychology, National Taiwan University, Taipei, 106 Taiwan ,grid.19188.390000 0004 0546 0241Graduate Institute of Biomedical Electronics and Bioinformatics, National Taiwan University, Taipei, 106 Taiwan
| | - Wei-Che Lin
- grid.145695.a0000 0004 1798 0922Department of Diagnostic Radiology, Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, College of Medicine, Chang Gung University, Kaohsiung, 833 Taiwan
| | - Cheng-Hsien Lu
- grid.145695.a0000 0004 1798 0922Department of Neurology, Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, College of Medicine, Chang Gung University, Kaohsiung, 833 Taiwan
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27
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Rawat P, Sehar U, Bisht J, Selman A, Culberson J, Reddy PH. Phosphorylated Tau in Alzheimer's Disease and Other Tauopathies. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:12841. [PMID: 36361631 PMCID: PMC9654278 DOI: 10.3390/ijms232112841] [Citation(s) in RCA: 59] [Impact Index Per Article: 29.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/11/2022] [Revised: 10/21/2022] [Accepted: 10/22/2022] [Indexed: 07/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the leading cause of dementia in elderly people. Amyloid beta (Aβ) deposits and neurofibrillary tangles are the major pathological features in an Alzheimer's brain. These proteins are highly expressed in nerve cells and found in most tissues. Tau primarily provides stabilization to microtubules in the part of axons and dendrites. However, tau in a pathological state becomes hyperphosphorylated, causing tau dysfunction and leading to synaptic impairment and degeneration of neurons. This article presents a summary of the role of tau, phosphorylated tau (p-tau) in AD, and other tauopathies. Tauopathies, including Pick's disease, frontotemporal dementia, corticobasal degeneration, Alzheimer's disease, argyrophilic grain disease, progressive supranuclear palsy, and Huntington's disease, are the result of misprocessing and accumulation of tau within the neuronal and glial cells. This article also focuses on current research on the post-translational modifications and genetics of tau, tau pathology, the role of tau in tauopathies and the development of new drugs targeting p-tau, and the therapeutics for treating and possibly preventing tauopathies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Priyanka Rawat
- Department of Internal Medicine, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX 79430, USA
| | - Ujala Sehar
- Department of Internal Medicine, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX 79430, USA
| | - Jasbir Bisht
- Department of Pediatrics, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX 79430, USA
| | - Ashley Selman
- Department of Internal Medicine, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX 79430, USA
| | - John Culberson
- Department of Family Medicine, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX 79430, USA
| | - P. Hemachandra Reddy
- Department of Internal Medicine, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX 79430, USA
- Nutritional Sciences Department, College Human Sciences, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX 79409, USA
- Department of Pharmacology and Neuroscience, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX 79430, USA
- Department of Neurology, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX 79430, USA
- Department of Public Health, Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX 79430, USA
- Department of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX 79430, USA
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28
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Helm J, Schöls L, Hauser S. Towards Personalized Allele-Specific Antisense Oligonucleotide Therapies for Toxic Gain-of-Function Neurodegenerative Diseases. Pharmaceutics 2022; 14:pharmaceutics14081708. [PMID: 36015334 PMCID: PMC9416334 DOI: 10.3390/pharmaceutics14081708] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/24/2022] [Revised: 08/11/2022] [Accepted: 08/12/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs) are single-stranded nucleic acid strings that can be used to selectively modify protein synthesis by binding complementary (pre-)mRNA sequences. By specific arrangements of DNA and RNA into a chain of nucleic acids and additional modifications of the backbone, sugar, and base, the specificity and functionality of the designed ASOs can be adjusted. Thereby cellular uptake, toxicity, and nuclease resistance, as well as binding affinity and specificity to its target (pre-)mRNA, can be modified. Several neurodegenerative diseases are caused by autosomal dominant toxic gain-of-function mutations, which lead to toxic protein products driving disease progression. ASOs targeting such mutations—or even more comprehensively, associated variants, such as single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs)—promise a selective degradation of the mutant (pre-)mRNA while sparing the wild type allele. By this approach, protein expression from the wild type strand is preserved, and side effects from an unselective knockdown of both alleles can be prevented. This makes allele-specific targeting strategies a focus for future personalized therapies. Here, we provide an overview of current strategies to develop personalized, allele-specific ASO therapies for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases, such Huntington’s disease (HD) and spinocerebellar ataxia type 3 (SCA3/MJD).
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacob Helm
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), 72076 Tübingen, Germany
- Hertie Institute for Clinical Brain Research and Department of Neurology, University of Tübingen, 72076 Tübingen, Germany
- Graduate School of Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience, University of Tübingen, 72076 Tübingen, Germany
| | - Ludger Schöls
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), 72076 Tübingen, Germany
- Hertie Institute for Clinical Brain Research and Department of Neurology, University of Tübingen, 72076 Tübingen, Germany
| | - Stefan Hauser
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), 72076 Tübingen, Germany
- Hertie Institute for Clinical Brain Research and Department of Neurology, University of Tübingen, 72076 Tübingen, Germany
- Correspondence:
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Campoy E, Puig M, Yakymenko I, Lerga-Jaso J, Cáceres M. Genomic architecture and functional effects of potential human inversion supergenes. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2022; 377:20210209. [PMID: 35694745 PMCID: PMC9189494 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2021.0209] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Supergenes are involved in adaptation in multiple organisms, but they are little known in humans. Genomic inversions are the most common mechanism of supergene generation and maintenance. Here, we review the information about two large inversions that are the best examples of potential human supergenes. In addition, we do an integrative analysis of the newest data to understand better their functional effects and underlying genetic changes. We have found that the highly divergent haplotypes of the 17q21.31 inversion of approximately 1.5 Mb have multiple phenotypic associations, with consistent effects in brain-related traits, red and white blood cells, lung function, male and female characteristics and disease risk. By combining gene expression and nucleotide variation data, we also analysed the molecular differences between haplotypes, including gene duplications, amino acid substitutions and regulatory changes, and identify CRHR1, KANLS1 and MAPT as good candidates to be responsible for these phenotypes. The situation is more complex for the 8p23.1 inversion, where there is no clear genetic differentiation. However, the inversion is associated with several related phenotypes and gene expression differences that could be linked to haplotypes specific of one orientation. Our work, therefore, contributes to the characterization of both exceptional variants and illustrates the important role of inversions. This article is part of the theme issue 'Genomic architecture of supergenes: causes and evolutionary consequences'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elena Campoy
- Institut de Biotecnologia i de Biomedicina, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Bellaterra (Barcelona), Spain
| | - Marta Puig
- Institut de Biotecnologia i de Biomedicina, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Bellaterra (Barcelona), Spain.,Departament de Genètica i de Microbiologia, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Bellaterra (Barcelona), Spain
| | - Illya Yakymenko
- Institut de Biotecnologia i de Biomedicina, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Bellaterra (Barcelona), Spain
| | - Jon Lerga-Jaso
- Institut de Biotecnologia i de Biomedicina, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Bellaterra (Barcelona), Spain
| | - Mario Cáceres
- Institut de Biotecnologia i de Biomedicina, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Bellaterra (Barcelona), Spain.,ICREA, Barcelona, Spain
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30
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Pharmacotherapy alleviates pathological changes in human direct reprogrammed neuronal cell model of myotonic dystrophy type 1. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0269683. [PMID: 35776705 PMCID: PMC9249217 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0269683] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2021] [Accepted: 05/25/2022] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Myotonic dystrophy type 1 (DM1) is a trinucleotide repeat disorder affecting multiple organs. However, most of the research is focused on studying and treating its muscular symptoms. On the other hand, despite the significant impact of the neurological symptoms on patients’ quality of life, no drug therapy was studied due to insufficient reproducibility in DM1 brain-specific animal models. To establish DM1 neuronal model, human skin fibroblasts were directly converted into neurons by using lentivirus expressing small hairpin RNA (shRNA) against poly-pyrimidine tract binding protein (PTBP). We found faster degeneration in DM1 human induced neurons (DM1 hiNeurons) compared to control human induced neurons (ctrl hiNeurons), represented by lower viability from 10 days post viral-infection (DPI) and abnormal axonal growth at 15 DPI. Nuclear RNA foci were present in most of DM1 hiNeurons at 10 DPI. Furthermore, DM1 hiNeurons modelled aberrant splicing of MBNL1 and 2, MAPT, CSNK1D and MPRIP at 10 DPI. We tested two drugs that were shown to be effective for DM1 in non-neuronal model and found that treatment of DM1 hiNeurons with 100 nM or 200 nM actinomycin D (ACT) for 24 h resulted in more than 50% reduction in the number of RNA foci per nucleus in a dose dependent manner, with 16.5% reduction in the number of nuclei containing RNA foci at 200 nM and treatment with erythromycin at 35 μM or 65 μM for 48 h rescued mis-splicing of MBNL1 exon 5 and MBNL 2 exons 5 and 8 up to 17.5%, 10% and 8.5%, respectively. Moreover, erythromycin rescued the aberrant splicing of MAPT exon 2, CSNK1D exon 9 and MPRIP exon 9 to a maximum of 46.4%, 30.7% and 19.9%, respectively. These results prove that our model is a promising tool for detailed pathogenetic examination and novel drug screening for the nervous system.
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31
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Larson T, Khandelwal V, Weber MA, Leidinger MR, Meyerholz DK, Narayanan NS, Zhang Q. Mice expressing P301S mutant human tau have deficits in interval timing. Behav Brain Res 2022; 432:113967. [PMID: 35718229 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2022.113967] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2022] [Revised: 06/07/2022] [Accepted: 06/12/2022] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
Interval timing is a key executive process that involves estimating the duration of an interval over several seconds or minutes. Patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) have deficits in interval timing. Since temporal control of action is highly conserved across mammalian species, studying interval timing tasks in animal AD models may be relevant to human disease. Amyloid plaques and tau neurofibrillary tangles are hallmark features of AD. While rodent models of amyloid pathology are known to have interval timing impairments, to our knowledge, interval timing has not been studied in models of tauopathy. Here, we evaluate interval timing performance of P301S transgenic mice, a widely studied model of tauopathy that overexpresses human tau with the P301S mutation. We employed an interval timing task and found that P301S mice consistently underestimated temporal intervals compared to wild-type controls, responding early in anticipation of the target interval. Our study indicating timing deficits in a mouse tauopathy model could have relevance to human tauopathies such as AD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Travis Larson
- Medical Scientist Training Program, Duke University School of Medicine, United States of America; Department of Neurology, University of Iowa, United States of America
| | | | - Matthew A Weber
- Department of Neurology, University of Iowa, United States of America
| | | | - David K Meyerholz
- Department of Pathology, University of Iowa, United States of America
| | | | - Qiang Zhang
- Department of Neurology, University of Iowa, United States of America
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32
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Rahmani B, Ghashghayi E, Zendehdel M, Baghbanzadeh A, Khodadadi M. Molecular mechanisms highlighting the potential role of COVID-19 in the development of neurodegenerative diseases. Physiol Int 2022; 109:135-162. [DOI: 10.1556/2060.2022.00019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2021] [Revised: 03/17/2022] [Accepted: 04/11/2022] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
Abstract
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). In addition to the pulmonary manifestations, COVID-19 patients may present a wide range of neurological disorders as extrapulmonary presentations. In this view, several studies have recently documented the worsening of neurological symptoms within COVID-19 morbidity in patients previously diagnosed with neurodegenerative diseases (NDs). Moreover, several cases have also been reported in which the patients presented parkinsonian features after initial COVID-19 symptoms. These data raise a major concern about the possibility of communication between SARS-CoV-2 infection and the initiation and/or worsening of NDs. In this review, we have collected compelling evidence suggesting SARS-CoV-2, as an environmental factor, may be capable of developing NDs. In this respect, the possible links between SARS-CoV-2 infection and molecular pathways related to most NDs and the pathophysiological mechanisms of the NDs such as Alzheimer's disease, vascular dementia, frontotemporal dementia, Parkinson's disease, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis will be explained.
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Affiliation(s)
- Behrouz Rahmani
- Department of Basic Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Tehran, 14155-6453 Tehran, Iran
| | - Elham Ghashghayi
- Department of Basic Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Tehran, 14155-6453 Tehran, Iran
| | - Morteza Zendehdel
- Department of Basic Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Tehran, 14155-6453 Tehran, Iran
| | - Ali Baghbanzadeh
- Department of Basic Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Tehran, 14155-6453 Tehran, Iran
| | - Mina Khodadadi
- Department of Basic Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Tehran, 14155-6453 Tehran, Iran
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33
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Ruiz-Barrio I, Horta-Barba A, Illán-Gala I, Kulisevsky J, Pagonabarraga J. Genotype-Phenotype Correlation in Progressive Supranuclear Palsy Syndromes: Clinical and Radiological Similarities and Specificities. Front Neurol 2022; 13:861585. [PMID: 35557621 PMCID: PMC9087829 DOI: 10.3389/fneur.2022.861585] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2022] [Accepted: 03/23/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
The progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) syndrome encompasses different entities. PSP disease of sporadic origin is the most frequent presentation, but different genetic mutations can lead either to monogenic variants of PSP disease, or to other conditions with a different pathophysiology that eventually may result in PSP phenotype. PSP syndrome of monogenic origin is poorly understood due to the low prevalence and variable expressivity of some mutations. Through this review, we describe how early age of onset, family history of early dementia, parkinsonism, dystonia, or motor neuron disease among other clinical features, as well as some neuroimaging signatures, may be the important clues to suspect PSP syndrome of monogenic origin. In addition, a diagnostic algorithm is proposed that may be useful to guide the genetic diagnosis once there is clinical suspicion of a monogenic PSP syndrome.
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Affiliation(s)
- Iñigo Ruiz-Barrio
- Movement Disorders Unit, Neurology Department, Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Andrea Horta-Barba
- Movement Disorders Unit, Neurology Department, Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau, Barcelona, Spain.,Sant Pau Biomedical Research Institute (IIB-Sant Pau), Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación en Red - Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Madrid, Spain
| | - Ignacio Illán-Gala
- Sant Pau Biomedical Research Institute (IIB-Sant Pau), Barcelona, Spain.,Sant Pau Memory Unit, Neurology Department, Hospital de la Santa Creu I Sant Pau, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Jaime Kulisevsky
- Movement Disorders Unit, Neurology Department, Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau, Barcelona, Spain.,Sant Pau Biomedical Research Institute (IIB-Sant Pau), Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación en Red - Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Madrid, Spain
| | - Javier Pagonabarraga
- Movement Disorders Unit, Neurology Department, Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau, Barcelona, Spain.,Sant Pau Biomedical Research Institute (IIB-Sant Pau), Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación en Red - Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Madrid, Spain
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34
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Network Theoretical Approach to Explore Factors Affecting Signal Propagation and Stability in Dementia’s Protein-Protein Interaction Network. Biomolecules 2022; 12:biom12030451. [PMID: 35327643 PMCID: PMC8946103 DOI: 10.3390/biom12030451] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/09/2022] [Revised: 02/13/2022] [Accepted: 02/16/2022] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Dementia—a syndrome affecting human cognition—is a major public health concern given to its rising prevalence worldwide. Though multiple research studies have analyzed disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease and Frontotemporal dementia using a systems biology approach, a similar approach to dementia syndrome as a whole is required. In this study, we try to find the high-impact core regulating processes and factors involved in dementia’s protein–protein interaction network. We also explore various aspects related to its stability and signal propagation. Using gene interaction databases such as STRING and GeneMANIA, a principal dementia network (PDN) consisting of 881 genes and 59,085 interactions was achieved. It was assortative in nature with hierarchical, scale-free topology enriched in various gene ontology (GO) categories and KEGG pathways, such as negative and positive regulation of apoptotic processes, macroautophagy, aging, response to drug, protein binding, etc. Using a clustering algorithm (Louvain method of modularity maximization) iteratively, we found a number of communities at different levels of hierarchy in PDN consisting of 95 “motif-localized hubs”, out of which, 7 were present at deepest level and hence were key regulators (KRs) of PDN (HSP90AA1, HSP90AB1, EGFR, FYN, JUN, CELF2 and CTNNA3). In order to explore aspects of network’s resilience, a knockout (of motif-localized hubs) experiment was carried out. It changed the network’s topology from a hierarchal scale-free topology to scale-free, where independent clusters exhibited greater control. Additionally, network experiments on interaction of druggable genome and motif-localized hubs were carried out where UBC, EGFR, APP, CTNNB1, NTRK1, FN1, HSP90AA1, MDM2, VCP, CTNNA1 and GRB2 were identified as hubs in the resultant network (RN). We finally concluded that stability and resilience of PDN highly relies on motif-localized hubs (especially those present at deeper levels), making them important therapeutic intervention candidates. HSP90AA1, involved in heat shock response (and its master regulator, i.e., HSF1), and EGFR are most important genes in pathology of dementia apart from KRs, given their presence as KRs as well as hubs in RN.
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35
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Mckean NE, Handley RR, Snell RG. A Review of the Current Mammalian Models of Alzheimer's Disease and Challenges That Need to Be Overcome. Int J Mol Sci 2021; 22:13168. [PMID: 34884970 PMCID: PMC8658123 DOI: 10.3390/ijms222313168] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/12/2021] [Revised: 11/30/2021] [Accepted: 12/02/2021] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is one of the looming health crises of the near future. Increasing lifespans and better medical treatment for other conditions mean that the prevalence of this disease is expected to triple by 2050. The impact of AD includes both the large toll on individuals and their families as well as a large financial cost to society. So far, we have no way to prevent, slow, or cure the disease. Current medications can only alleviate some of the symptoms temporarily. Many animal models of AD have been created, with the first transgenic mouse model in 1995. Mouse models have been beset by challenges, and no mouse model fully captures the symptomatology of AD without multiple genetic mutations and/or transgenes, some of which have never been implicated in human AD. Over 25 years later, many mouse models have been given an AD-like disease and then 'cured' in the lab, only for the treatments to fail in clinical trials. This review argues that small animal models are insufficient for modelling complex disorders such as AD. In order to find effective treatments for AD, we need to create large animal models with brains and lifespan that are closer to humans, and underlying genetics that already predispose them to AD-like phenotypes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Natasha Elizabeth Mckean
- Applied Translational Genetics Group, School of Biological Sciences, University of Auckland, 3a Symonds Street, Auckland 1010, New Zealand; (N.E.M.); (R.R.H.)
- Centre for Brain Research, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland 1010, New Zealand
| | - Renee Robyn Handley
- Applied Translational Genetics Group, School of Biological Sciences, University of Auckland, 3a Symonds Street, Auckland 1010, New Zealand; (N.E.M.); (R.R.H.)
- Centre for Brain Research, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland 1010, New Zealand
| | - Russell Grant Snell
- Applied Translational Genetics Group, School of Biological Sciences, University of Auckland, 3a Symonds Street, Auckland 1010, New Zealand; (N.E.M.); (R.R.H.)
- Centre for Brain Research, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland 1010, New Zealand
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36
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Sundaria N, Upadhyay A, Prasad A, Prajapati VK, Poluri KM, Mishra A. Neurodegeneration & imperfect ageing: Technological limitations and challenges? Mech Ageing Dev 2021; 200:111574. [PMID: 34562507 DOI: 10.1016/j.mad.2021.111574] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2021] [Revised: 08/29/2021] [Accepted: 09/21/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
Cellular homeostasis is regulated by the protein quality control (PQC) machinery, comprising multiple chaperones and enzymes. Studies suggest that the loss of the PQC mechanisms in neurons may lead to the formation of abnormal inclusions that may lead to neurological disorders and defective aging. The questions could be raised how protein aggregate formation precisely engenders multifactorial molecular pathomechanism in neuronal cells and affects different brain regions? Such questions await thorough investigation that may help us understand how aberrant proteinaceous bodies lead to neurodegeneration and imperfect aging. However, these studies face multiple technological challenges in utilizing available tools for detailed characterizations of the protein aggregates or amyloids and developing new techniques to understand the biology and pathology of proteopathies. The lack of detection and analysis methods has decelerated the pace of the research in amyloid biology. Here, we address the significance of aggregation and inclusion formation, followed by exploring the evolutionary contribution of these structures. We also provide a detailed overview of current state-of-the-art techniques and advances in studying amyloids in the diseased brain. A comprehensive understanding of the structural, pathological, and clinical characteristics of different types of aggregates (inclusions, fibrils, plaques, etc.) will aid in developing future therapies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Naveen Sundaria
- Cellular and Molecular Neurobiology Unit, Indian Institute of Technology, Jodhpur, Rajasthan, 342037, India
| | - Arun Upadhyay
- Cellular and Molecular Neurobiology Unit, Indian Institute of Technology, Jodhpur, Rajasthan, 342037, India
| | - Amit Prasad
- School of Basic Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology Mandi, Mandi, India
| | - Vijay Kumar Prajapati
- Department of Biochemistry, School of Life Sciences, Central University of Rajasthan, NH‑8 Bandarsindri, Ajmer, Rajasthan, 305817, India
| | - Krishna Mohan Poluri
- Department of Biotechnology, Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee, Roorkee, 247667, Uttarakhand, India
| | - Amit Mishra
- Cellular and Molecular Neurobiology Unit, Indian Institute of Technology, Jodhpur, Rajasthan, 342037, India.
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37
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Mendsaikhan A, Tooyama I, Serrano GE, Beach TG, Walker DG. Loss of Lysosomal Proteins Progranulin and Prosaposin Associated with Increased Neurofibrillary Tangle Development in Alzheimer Disease. J Neuropathol Exp Neurol 2021; 80:741-753. [PMID: 34374777 PMCID: PMC8433593 DOI: 10.1093/jnen/nlab056] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Alzheimer disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease causing cognitive decline in the aging population. To develop disease-modifying treatments, understanding the mechanisms behind the pathology is important, which should include observations using human brain samples. We reported previously on the association of lysosomal proteins progranulin (PGRN) and prosaposin (PSAP) with amyloid plaques in non-demented aged control and AD brains. In this study, we investigated the possible involvement of PGRN and PSAP in tangle formation using human brain tissue sections of non-demented aged control subjects and AD cases and compared with cases of frontotemporal dementia with granulin (GRN) mutations. The study revealed that decreased amounts of PGRN and PSAP proteins were detected even in immature neurofibrillary tangles, while colocalization was still evident in adjacent neurons in all cases. Results suggest that neuronal loss of PGRN preceded loss of PSAP as tangles developed and matured. The GRN mutation cases exhibited almost complete absence of PGRN in most neurons, while PSAP signal was preserved. Although based on correlative data, we suggest that reduced levels of PGRN and PSAP and their interaction in neurons might predispose to accumulation of p-Tau protein.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anarmaa Mendsaikhan
- Molecular Neuroscience Research Center, Shiga University of Medical Science, Otsu, Shiga, Japan (AM, IT, DGW)
| | - Ikuo Tooyama
- Molecular Neuroscience Research Center, Shiga University of Medical Science, Otsu, Shiga, Japan (AM, IT, DGW)
| | - Geidy E Serrano
- Civin Laboratory for Neuropathology, Banner Sun Health Research Institute, Sun City, Arizona (GES, TGB)
| | - Thomas G Beach
- Civin Laboratory for Neuropathology, Banner Sun Health Research Institute, Sun City, Arizona (GES, TGB)
| | - Douglas G Walker
- Molecular Neuroscience Research Center, Shiga University of Medical Science, Otsu, Shiga, Japan (AM, IT, DGW)
- School of Life Sciences and Neurodegenerative Disease Research Center, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona (DGW)
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38
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Sinsky J, Pichlerova K, Hanes J. Tau Protein Interaction Partners and Their Roles in Alzheimer's Disease and Other Tauopathies. Int J Mol Sci 2021; 22:9207. [PMID: 34502116 PMCID: PMC8431036 DOI: 10.3390/ijms22179207] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2021] [Revised: 08/23/2021] [Accepted: 08/25/2021] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Tau protein plays a critical role in the assembly, stabilization, and modulation of microtubules, which are important for the normal function of neurons and the brain. In diseased conditions, several pathological modifications of tau protein manifest. These changes lead to tau protein aggregation and the formation of paired helical filaments (PHF) and neurofibrillary tangles (NFT), which are common hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease and other tauopathies. The accumulation of PHFs and NFTs results in impairment of physiological functions, apoptosis, and neuronal loss, which is reflected as cognitive impairment, and in the late stages of the disease, leads to death. The causes of this pathological transformation of tau protein haven't been fully understood yet. In both physiological and pathological conditions, tau interacts with several proteins which maintain their proper function or can participate in their pathological modifications. Interaction partners of tau protein and associated molecular pathways can either initiate and drive the tau pathology or can act neuroprotective, by reducing pathological tau proteins or inflammation. In this review, we focus on the tau as a multifunctional protein and its known interacting partners active in regulations of different processes and the roles of these proteins in Alzheimer's disease and tauopathies.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Jozef Hanes
- Institute of Neuroimmunology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dubravska Cesta 9, 845 10 Bratislava, Slovakia; (J.S.); (K.P.)
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Kapoor M, Chao MJ, Johnson EC, Novikova G, Lai D, Meyers JL, Schulman J, Nurnberger JI, Porjesz B, Liu Y, Foroud T, Edenberg HJ, Marcora E, Agrawal A, Goate A. Multi-omics integration analysis identifies novel genes for alcoholism with potential overlap with neurodegenerative diseases. Nat Commun 2021; 12:5071. [PMID: 34417470 PMCID: PMC8379159 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-25392-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2020] [Accepted: 08/03/2021] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Identification of causal variants and genes underlying genome-wide association study (GWAS) loci is essential to understand the biology of alcohol use disorder (AUD) and drinks per week (DPW). Multi-omics integration approaches have shown potential for fine mapping complex loci to obtain biological insights to disease mechanisms. In this study, we use multi-omics approaches, to fine-map AUD and DPW associations at single SNP resolution to demonstrate that rs56030824 on chromosome 11 significantly reduces SPI1 mRNA expression in myeloid cells and lowers risk for AUD and DPW. Our analysis also identifies MAPT as a candidate causal gene specifically associated with DPW. Genes prioritized in this study show overlap with causal genes associated with neurodegenerative disorders. Multi-omics integration analyses highlight, genetic similarities and differences between alcohol intake and disordered drinking, suggesting molecular heterogeneity that might inform future targeted functional and cross-species studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Manav Kapoor
- Departments of Genetics and Genomic Sciences and Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA.
| | - Michael J Chao
- Departments of Genetics and Genomic Sciences and Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Emma C Johnson
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Gloriia Novikova
- Departments of Genetics and Genomic Sciences and Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Dongbing Lai
- Department of Medical and Molecular Genetics, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, USA
| | - Jacquelyn L Meyers
- Department of Psychiatry, State University of New York, Downstate Medical Center, Brooklyn, NY, USA
| | - Jessica Schulman
- Departments of Genetics and Genomic Sciences and Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - John I Nurnberger
- Department of Psychiatry, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, USA
| | - Bernice Porjesz
- Department of Psychiatry, State University of New York, Downstate Medical Center, Brooklyn, NY, USA
| | - Yunlong Liu
- Department of Medical and Molecular Genetics, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, USA
| | - Tatiana Foroud
- Department of Medical and Molecular Genetics, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, USA
| | - Howard J Edenberg
- Department of Medical and Molecular Genetics, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, USA
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, USA
| | - Edoardo Marcora
- Departments of Genetics and Genomic Sciences and Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Arpana Agrawal
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Alison Goate
- Departments of Genetics and Genomic Sciences and Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA.
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40
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Huq AJ, Sexton A, Lacaze P, Masters CL, Storey E, Velakoulis D, James PA, Winship IM. Genetic testing in dementia-A medical genetics perspective. Int J Geriatr Psychiatry 2021; 36:1158-1170. [PMID: 33779003 DOI: 10.1002/gps.5535] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/19/2020] [Revised: 02/15/2021] [Accepted: 02/26/2021] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE When a genetic cause is suspected in a person with dementia, it creates unique diagnostic and management challenges to the treating clinician. Many clinicians may be unaware of the practicalities surrounding genetic testing for their patients, such as when to test and what tests to use and how to counsel patients and their families. This review was conducted to provide guidance to clinicians caring for patients with dementia regarding clinically relevant genetics. METHODS We searched PubMed for studies that involved genetics of dementia up to March 2020. Patient file reviews were also conducted to create composite cases. RESULTS In addition to families where a strong Mendelian pattern of family history is seen, people with younger age of onset, especially before the age of 65 years were found to be at an increased risk of harbouring a genetic cause for their dementia. This review discusses some of the most common genetic syndromes, including Alzheimer disease, frontotemporal dementia, vascular dementia, Parkinson disease dementia/dementia with Lewy bodies and some rarer types of genetic dementias, along with illustrative clinical case studies. This is followed by a brief review of the current genetic technologies and a discussion on the unique genetic counselling issues in dementia. CONCLUSIONS Inclusion of genetic testing in the diagnostic pathway in some patients with dementia could potentially reduce the time taken to diagnose the cause of their dementia. Although a definite advantage as an addition to the diagnostic repository, genetic testing has many pros and cons which need to be carefully considered first.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aamira J Huq
- Department of Genomic Medicine, The Royal Melbourne Hospital, Parkville, Victoria, Australia.,Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine Dentistry and Health Sciences, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
| | - Adrienne Sexton
- Department of Genomic Medicine, The Royal Melbourne Hospital, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
| | - Paul Lacaze
- Department of Genomic Medicine, The Royal Melbourne Hospital, Parkville, Victoria, Australia.,Department of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine, School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, The Alfred Centre, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Colin L Masters
- Neurosciences, The Florey Institute, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
| | - Elsdon Storey
- Department of Genomic Medicine, The Royal Melbourne Hospital, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
| | - Dennis Velakoulis
- Department of Neuropsychiatry, The Royal Melbourne Hospital, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
| | - Paul A James
- Department of Genomic Medicine, The Royal Melbourne Hospital, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
| | - Ingrid M Winship
- Department of Genomic Medicine, The Royal Melbourne Hospital, Parkville, Victoria, Australia.,Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine Dentistry and Health Sciences, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
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Wong B, Lucente D, Krivensky S, Krahn E, Karlawish J, Dickerson BC. Knowledge assessment and psychological impact of genetic counseling in people at risk for familial FTD. ALZHEIMER'S & DEMENTIA (AMSTERDAM, NETHERLANDS) 2021; 13:e12225. [PMID: 34337135 PMCID: PMC8319661 DOI: 10.1002/dad2.12225] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/09/2021] [Revised: 06/25/2021] [Accepted: 06/28/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION The decision to undergo genetic testing for familial frontotemporal dementia (fFTD) is challenging and complex. When counseling individuals, clinicians need to know what individuals understand about the type of fFTD for which they may be at elevated risk. Unfortunately, no tools to measure understanding of fFTD exist, and no study has investigated knowledge gain from fFTD genetic counseling. METHODS Before and after genetic counseling, 42 asymptomatic individuals from fFTD families completed the newly developed fFTD Knowledge Assessment and Psychological Impact Questionnaire (fFTD KAPI-Q), along with affect and mood questionnaires. RESULTS Genetic counseling resulted in substantial knowledge gain on the fFTD KAPI-Q (average gain = 40%); those with lower pre-counseling scores gained the most. Negative affect diminished by 11%. Individuals who gained the greatest knowledge demonstrated the greatest reduction in negative affect. CONCLUSIONS Genetic counseling was effective regardless of level of baseline knowledge and has an immediate ameliorative impact on negative affect.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bonnie Wong
- Departments of Neurology and PsychiatryFrontotemporal Disorders Unit and Alzheimer's Disease Research CenterBostonMassachusettsUSA
| | - Diane Lucente
- Departments of Neurology and PsychiatryFrontotemporal Disorders Unit and Alzheimer's Disease Research CenterBostonMassachusettsUSA
- Center for Genomic MedicineMassachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical SchoolBostonMassachusettsUSA
| | - Samantha Krivensky
- Departments of Neurology and PsychiatryFrontotemporal Disorders Unit and Alzheimer's Disease Research CenterBostonMassachusettsUSA
| | - Erin Krahn
- Departments of Neurology and PsychiatryFrontotemporal Disorders Unit and Alzheimer's Disease Research CenterBostonMassachusettsUSA
| | - Jason Karlawish
- Penn Memory Center & Division of GeriatricsDepartments of MedicineMedical Ethics and Health Policyand NeurologyPerelman School of MedicineUniversity of Pennsylvania School of MedicinePhiladelphiaPennsylvaniaUSA
| | - Bradford C. Dickerson
- Departments of Neurology and PsychiatryFrontotemporal Disorders Unit and Alzheimer's Disease Research CenterBostonMassachusettsUSA
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Lance EI, Faulcon LM, Fu Z, Yang J, Whyte-Stewart D, Strouse JJ, Barron-Casella E, Jones K, Van Eyk JE, Casella JF, Everett AD. Proteomic discovery in sickle cell disease: Elevated neurogranin levels in children with sickle cell disease. Proteomics Clin Appl 2021; 15:e2100003. [PMID: 33915030 PMCID: PMC8666096 DOI: 10.1002/prca.202100003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/15/2021] [Revised: 04/06/2021] [Accepted: 04/26/2021] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
Abstract
PURPOSE Sickle cell disease (SCD) is an inherited hemoglobinopathy that causes stroke and silent cerebral infarct (SCI). Our aim was to identify markers of brain injury in SCD. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN Plasma proteomes were analyzed using a sequential separation approach of hemoglobin (Hb) and top abundant plasma protein depletion, followed by reverse phase separation of intact proteins, trypsin digestion, and tandem mass spectrometry. We compared plasma proteomes of children with SCD with and without SCI in the Silent Cerebral Infarct Multi-Center Clinical Trial (SIT Trial) to age-matched, healthy non-SCD controls. RESULTS From the SCD group, 1172 proteins were identified. Twenty-five percent (289/1172) were solely in the SCI group. Twenty-five proteins with enriched expression in the human brain were identified in the SCD group. Neurogranin (NRGN) was the most abundant brain-enriched protein in plasma of children with SCD. Using a NRGN sandwich immunoassay and SIT Trial samples, median NRGN levels were higher at study entry in children with SCD (0.28 ng/mL, N = 100) compared to control participants (0.12 ng/mL, N = 25, p < 0.0004). CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE NRGN levels are elevated in children with SCD. NRGN and other brain-enriched plasma proteins identified in plasma of children with SCD may provide biochemical evidence of neurological injury.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eboni I Lance
- Department of Neurodevelopmental Medicine, Kennedy Krieger Institute, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.,Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Lisa M Faulcon
- Food and Drug Administration, Silver Spring, Maryland, USA
| | - Zongming Fu
- Division of Pediatric Hematology, Department of Pediatrics, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Jun Yang
- Division of Pediatric Cardiology, Department of Pediatrics, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Donna Whyte-Stewart
- Division of Pediatric Hematology, Department of Pediatrics, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - John J Strouse
- Division of Pediatric Hematology, Department of Pediatrics, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.,Division of Hematology, Department of Medicine, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, North Carolina
| | - Emily Barron-Casella
- Division of Pediatric Hematology, Department of Pediatrics, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Kimberly Jones
- Division of Pediatric Hematology, Department of Pediatrics, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Jennifer E Van Eyk
- Division of Cardiology, Department of Internal Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.,The Smidt Heart Institute, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, California, USA
| | - James F Casella
- Division of Pediatric Hematology, Department of Pediatrics, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Allen D Everett
- Division of Pediatric Cardiology, Department of Pediatrics, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
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Pilliod J, Desjardins A, Pernègre C, Jamann H, Larochelle C, Fon EA, Leclerc N. Clearance of intracellular tau protein from neuronal cells via VAMP8-induced secretion. J Biol Chem 2021; 295:17827-17841. [PMID: 33454017 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.ra120.013553] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2020] [Revised: 10/03/2020] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
In Alzheimer's disease (AD), tau, a microtubule-associated protein (MAP), becomes hyperphosphorylated, aggregates, and accumulates in the somato-dendritic compartment of neurons. In parallel to its intracellular accumulation in AD, tau is also released in the extracellular space, as revealed by its increased presence in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). Consistent with this, recent studies, including ours, have reported that neurons secrete tau, and several therapeutic strategies aim to prevent the intracellular tau accumulation. Previously, we reported that late endosomes were implicated in tau secretion. Here, we explore the possibility of preventing intracellular tau accumulation by increasing tau secretion. Using neuronal models, we investigated whether overexpression of the vesicle-associated membrane protein 8 (VAMP8), an R-SNARE found on late endosomes, could increase tau secretion. The overexpression of VAMP8 significantly increased tau secretion, decreasing its intracellular levels in the neuroblastoma (N2a) cell line. Increased tau secretion by VAMP8 was also observed in murine hippocampal slices. The intracellular reduction of tau by VAMP8 overexpression correlated to a decrease of acetylated tubulin induced by tau overexpression in N2a cells. VAMP8 staining was preferentially found on late endosomes in N2a cells. Using total internal reflection fluorescence (TIRF) microscopy, the fusion of VAMP8-positive vesicles with the plasma membrane was correlated to the depletion of tau in the cytoplasm. Finally, overexpression of VAMP8 reduced the intracellular accumulation of tau mutants linked to frontotemporal dementia with parkinsonism and α-synuclein by increasing their secretion. Collectively, the present data indicate that VAMP8 could be used to increase tau and α-synuclein clearance to prevent their intracellular accumulation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julie Pilliod
- Research Center of the University of Montreal Hospital (CRCHUM), Montréal, Canada
| | - Alexandre Desjardins
- Research Center of the University of Montreal Hospital (CRCHUM), Montréal, Canada
| | - Camille Pernègre
- Research Center of the University of Montreal Hospital (CRCHUM), Montréal, Canada; Département de Neurosciences, Faculté de Médecine, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Canada
| | - Hélène Jamann
- Research Center of the University of Montreal Hospital (CRCHUM), Montréal, Canada; Département de Neurosciences, Faculté de Médecine, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Canada
| | - Catherine Larochelle
- Research Center of the University of Montreal Hospital (CRCHUM), Montréal, Canada; Département de Neurosciences, Faculté de Médecine, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Canada
| | - Edward A Fon
- McGill Parkinson Program, Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University, Montréal, Canada
| | - Nicole Leclerc
- Research Center of the University of Montreal Hospital (CRCHUM), Montréal, Canada; Département de Neurosciences, Faculté de Médecine, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Canada.
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Osborne JF, Yanagi KS, Hart AC. Genetic interactions in a C. elegans sod-1 ALS model: glutamatergic neuron degeneration. MICROPUBLICATION BIOLOGY 2021; 2021. [PMID: 33474528 PMCID: PMC7812382 DOI: 10.17912/micropub.biology.000338] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer F Osborne
- Department of Neuroscience, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912.,Robert J. and Nancy D. Carney Institute for Brain Science, Providence, RI 02912
| | - Katherine S Yanagi
- Department of Neuroscience, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912.,Neuroscience Graduate Program, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912.,Robert J. and Nancy D. Carney Institute for Brain Science, Providence, RI 02912
| | - Anne C Hart
- Department of Neuroscience, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912.,Robert J. and Nancy D. Carney Institute for Brain Science, Providence, RI 02912
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45
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Wen Y, Zhou Y, Jiao B, Shen L. Genetics of Progressive Supranuclear Palsy: A Review. JOURNAL OF PARKINSON'S DISEASE 2021; 11:93-105. [PMID: 33104043 PMCID: PMC7990399 DOI: 10.3233/jpd-202302] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 09/26/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) is an atypical parkinsonism with prominent 4R-tau neuropathology, and the classical clinical phenotype is characterized by vertical supranuclear gaze palsy, unprovoked falls, akinetic-rigid syndrome and cognitive decline. Though PSP is generally regarded as sporadic, there is increasing evidence suggesting that a series of common and rare genetic variants impact on sporadic and familial forms of PSP. To date, more than 10 genes have been reported to show a potential association with PSP. Among these genes, the microtubule-associated protein tau (MAPT) is the risk locus with the strongest effect size on sporadic PSP in the case-control genome-wide association studies (GWAS). Additionally, MAPT mutations are the most common cause of familial PSP while the leucine-rich repeat kinase 2 (LRRK2) is a rare monogenic cause of PSP, and several other gene mutations may mimic the PSP phenotype, like the dynactin subunit 1 (DCTN1). In total, 15 MAPT mutations have been identified in cases with PSP, and the mean age at onset is much earlier than in cases carrying LRRK2 or DCTN1 mutations. GWAS have further identified several risk loci of PSP, proposing molecular pathways related to PSP. The present review focused on genetic studies on PSP and summarized genetic factors of PSP, which may help to elucidate the underlying pathogenesis and provide new perspectives for therapeutic strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yafei Wen
- Department of Neurology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, PR China
| | - Yafang Zhou
- Department of Geriatrics Neurology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, PR China
| | - Bin Jiao
- Department of Neurology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, PR China
- National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric Disorders, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, PR China
- Key Laboratory of Hunan Province in Neurodegenerative Disorders, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, PR China
| | - Lu Shen
- Department of Neurology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, PR China
- National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric Disorders, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, PR China
- Key Laboratory of Hunan Province in Neurodegenerative Disorders, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, PR China
- Key Laboratory of Organ Injury, Aging and Regenerative Medicine of Hunan Province, Changsha, Hunan, PR China
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46
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Shabir O, Moll TA, Matuszyk MM, Eyre B, Dake MD, Berwick J, Francis SE. Preclinical models of disease and multimorbidity with focus upon cardiovascular disease and dementia. Mech Ageing Dev 2020; 192:111361. [DOI: 10.1016/j.mad.2020.111361] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2020] [Revised: 08/28/2020] [Accepted: 09/16/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
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Coppola C, Saracino D, Oliva M, Puoti G, Lus G, Le Ber I, Pariente J, Tessitore A, Benussi L, Ghidoni R, Carrara M, Ricci M, Redaelli V, Tiraboschi P, Caroppo P, Giaccone G, Bonavita S, Rossi G. The Rise of the GRN C157KfsX97 Mutation in Southern Italy: Going Back to the Fall of the Western Roman Empire. J Alzheimers Dis 2020; 78:387-394. [PMID: 33016921 DOI: 10.3233/jad-200924] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD) designates a group of neurodegenerative diseases with remarkable clinical, pathological, and genetic heterogeneity. Mutations in progranulin gene (GRN) are among the most common causes of familial FTLD. The GRN C157KfsX97 mutation is the most frequent mutation occurring in Southern Italy and has been already described in a previous work. OBJECTIVE In this study, we reported on additional cases carrying the same mutation and performed a genetic study on the whole cohort, aiming at demonstrating the existence of a founder effect and estimating the age of this mutation. METHODS/RESULTS Based on the haplotype sharing analysis, a founder effect was highly probable, while the age of the mutation, estimated by means of DMLE+ software, resulted in a range between 52 and 82 generations, with the highest frequency at about 62 generations, 1,550 years ago. CONCLUSION This is the first study that reports the age estimation of the most recent common ancestor for the GRN C157KfsX97 mutation recurring in Southern Italy. Mutation dating in a geographically restricted population may be useful in order to plan genetic counseling and screening programs in the field of public health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cinzia Coppola
- Department of Advanced Medical and Surgical Sciences, University of Campania "L. Vanvitelli", Naples, Italy
| | - Dario Saracino
- Sorbonne Université, Inserm U1127, CNRS UMR 7225, Institut du Cerveau (ICM), AP-HP - Hôpital Pitié-Salpêtrière, Paris, France and Centre de référence des démences rares ou précoces, IM2A, Département de Neurologie, AP-HP - Hôpital Pitié-Salpêtrière, Paris, France
| | - Mariano Oliva
- Department of Advanced Medical and Surgical Sciences, University of Campania "L. Vanvitelli", Naples, Italy
| | - Gianfranco Puoti
- Department of Advanced Medical and Surgical Sciences, University of Campania "L. Vanvitelli", Naples, Italy
| | - Giacomo Lus
- Department of Advanced Medical and Surgical Sciences, University of Campania "L. Vanvitelli", Naples, Italy
| | - Isabelle Le Ber
- Sorbonne Université, Inserm U1127, CNRS UMR 7225, Institut du Cerveau (ICM), AP-HP - Hôpital Pitié-Salpêtrière, Paris, France and Centre de référence des démences rares ou précoces, IM2A, Département de Neurologie, AP-HP - Hôpital Pitié-Salpêtrière, Paris, France
| | - Jérémie Pariente
- Department of Neurology, Toulouse University Hospital, Toulouse, France
| | - Alessandro Tessitore
- Department of Advanced Medical and Surgical Sciences, University of Campania "L. Vanvitelli", Naples, Italy
| | - Luisa Benussi
- Molecular Markers Laboratory, IRCCS Istituto Centro San Giovanni di Dio Fatebenefratelli, Brescia, Italy
| | - Roberta Ghidoni
- Molecular Markers Laboratory, IRCCS Istituto Centro San Giovanni di Dio Fatebenefratelli, Brescia, Italy
| | - Matteo Carrara
- Service of Statistics, IRCCS Istituto Centro San Giovanni di Dio Fatebenefratelli, Brescia, Italy
| | - Martina Ricci
- Division of Neurology V - Neuropathology, Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Carlo Besta, Milan, Italy
| | - Veronica Redaelli
- Division of Neurology V - Neuropathology, Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Carlo Besta, Milan, Italy
| | - Pietro Tiraboschi
- Division of Neurology V - Neuropathology, Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Carlo Besta, Milan, Italy
| | - Paola Caroppo
- Division of Neurology V - Neuropathology, Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Carlo Besta, Milan, Italy
| | - Giorgio Giaccone
- Division of Neurology V - Neuropathology, Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Carlo Besta, Milan, Italy
| | - Simona Bonavita
- Department of Advanced Medical and Surgical Sciences, University of Campania "L. Vanvitelli", Naples, Italy
| | - Giacomina Rossi
- Division of Neurology V - Neuropathology, Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Carlo Besta, Milan, Italy
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Phenotype Heterogeneity and Genotype Correlation of MAPT Mutations in a Chinese PUMCH Cohort. J Mol Neurosci 2020; 71:1015-1022. [PMID: 33006106 DOI: 10.1007/s12031-020-01723-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/24/2020] [Accepted: 09/25/2020] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
Frontotemporal dementia (FTD) is a heterogeneous disease both clinically and pathologically. Genetic mutation in microtubule-associated protein tau (MAPT) is the most common cause of FTD, and the phenotype is related to the mutation location. However, the phenotype and genotype correlation varies somewhat among different cohorts and ethnicities. Whole-genome next-generation sequencing (NGS) was carried out for 1351 patients with dementia at Peking Union Medical College Hospital. MAPT variations classified as pathogenic and of uncertain significance were identified. Demographic information, clinical presentations, and neuroimaging were collected, and the phenotype-genotype correlation was analyzed with a concurrent literature review. Twenty-four patients were enrolled; 8 patients carrying the D177V mutation are discussed separately. The average onset age was young, and most of them had a positive family history. Cognitive dysfunction, behavior, and personality changes as well as aphasia were the most common presentations. Most structural MRIs showed asymmetrical atrophy of the temporal lobe, with/without similar changes in the frontal lobe. L266V carriers presented with youngest onset typical behavior variant FTD or aphasia; P301L carriers presented with behavior variant FTD or aphasia. Functional MRI and molecular imaging also showed that the involved areas were similar to those with structural atrophy. D296N carriers presented atypical parkinsonism and cognitive dysfunction at older ages. Eight D177V carriers had extraordinarily different manifestations. The clinical phenotype of most of them was not FTD, though cerebral vascular lesions were obvious in some of them. MAPT mutation is rare in Chinese dementia patients. The phenotype and genotype correlation is specific and overlaps. The D177V mutation is possibly not directly pathogenic in our cohort. Some of the variants might increase the genetic risk of neurodegenerative diseases.
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Ramanan VK, Wang X, Przybelski SA, Raghavan S, Heckman MG, Batzler A, Kosel ML, Hohman TJ, Knopman DS, Graff-Radford J, Lowe VJ, Mielke MM, Jack CR, Petersen RC, Ross OA, Vemuri P. Variants in PPP2R2B and IGF2BP3 are associated with higher tau deposition. Brain Commun 2020; 2:fcaa159. [PMID: 33426524 PMCID: PMC7780444 DOI: 10.1093/braincomms/fcaa159] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/10/2020] [Revised: 07/29/2020] [Accepted: 08/24/2020] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Tau deposition is a key biological feature of Alzheimer’s disease that is closely related to cognitive impairment. However, it remains poorly understood why certain individuals may be more susceptible to tau deposition while others are more resistant. The recent availability of in vivo assessment of tau burden through positron emission tomography provides an opportunity to test the hypothesis that common genetic variants may influence tau deposition. We performed a genome-wide association study of tau-positron emission tomography on a sample of 754 individuals over age 50 (mean age 72.4 years, 54.6% men, 87.6% cognitively unimpaired) from the population-based Mayo Clinic Study of Aging. Linear regression was performed to test nucleotide polymorphism associations with AV-1451 (18F-flortaucipir) tau-positron emission tomography burden in an Alzheimer’s-signature composite region of interest, using an additive genetic model and covarying for age, sex and genetic principal components. Genome-wide significant associations with higher tau were identified for rs76752255 (P = 9.91 × 10−9, β = 0.20) in the tau phosphorylation regulatory gene PPP2R2B (protein phosphatase 2 regulatory subunit B) and for rs117402302 (P = 4.00 × 10−8, β = 0.19) near IGF2BP3 (insulin-like growth factor 2 mRNA-binding protein 3). The PPP2R2B association remained genome-wide significant after additionally covarying for global amyloid burden and cerebrovascular disease risk, while the IGF2BP3 association was partially attenuated after accounting for amyloid load. In addition to these discoveries, three single nucleotide polymorphisms within MAPT (microtubule-associated protein tau) displayed nominal associations with tau-positron emission tomography burden, and the association of the APOE (apolipoprotein E) ɛ4 allele with tau-positron emission tomography was marginally nonsignificant (P = 0.06, β = 0.07). No associations with tau-positron emission tomography burden were identified for other single nucleotide polymorphisms associated with Alzheimer’s disease clinical diagnosis in prior large case–control studies. Our findings nominate PPP2R2B and IGF2BP3 as novel potential influences on tau pathology which warrant further functional characterization. Our data are also supportive of previous literature on the associations of MAPT genetic variation with tau, and more broadly supports the inference that tau accumulation may have a genetic architecture distinct from known Alzheimer’s susceptibility genes, which may have implications for improved risk stratification and therapeutic targeting.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vijay K Ramanan
- Department of Neurology, Mayo Clinic-Minnesota, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | - Xuewei Wang
- Department of Health Sciences Research, Mayo Clinic-Minnesota, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | - Scott A Przybelski
- Department of Health Sciences Research, Mayo Clinic-Minnesota, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | | | - Michael G Heckman
- Division of Biomedical Statistics and Informatics, Mayo Clinic-Florida, Jacksonville, FL 32224, USA
| | - Anthony Batzler
- Department of Health Sciences Research, Mayo Clinic-Minnesota, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | - Matthew L Kosel
- Department of Health Sciences Research, Mayo Clinic-Minnesota, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | - Timothy J Hohman
- Department of Neurology, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN 37232, USA
| | - David S Knopman
- Department of Neurology, Mayo Clinic-Minnesota, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | | | - Val J Lowe
- Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic-Minnesota, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | - Michelle M Mielke
- Department of Neurology, Mayo Clinic-Minnesota, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | - Clifford R Jack
- Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic-Minnesota, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | - Ronald C Petersen
- Department of Neurology, Mayo Clinic-Minnesota, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | - Owen A Ross
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic-Florida, Jacksonville, FL 32224, USA
| | - Prashanthi Vemuri
- Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic-Minnesota, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
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Modelling frontotemporal dementia using patient-derived induced pluripotent stem cells. Mol Cell Neurosci 2020; 109:103553. [PMID: 32956830 DOI: 10.1016/j.mcn.2020.103553] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/08/2020] [Revised: 08/27/2020] [Accepted: 09/12/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Frontotemporal dementia (FTD) describes a group of clinically heterogeneous conditions that frequently affect people under the age of 65 (Le Ber et al., 2013). There are multiple genetic causes of FTD, including coding or splice-site mutations in MAPT, GRN mutations that lead to haploinsufficiency of progranulin protein, and a hexanucleotide GGGGCC repeat expansion in C9ORF72. Pathologically, FTD is characterised by abnormal protein accumulations in neurons and glia. These aggregates can be composed of the microtubule-associated protein tau (observed in FTD with MAPT mutations), the DNA/RNA-binding protein TDP-43 (seen in FTD with mutations in GRN or C9ORF72 repeat expansions) or dipeptide proteins generated by repeat associated non-ATG translation of the C9ORF72 repeat expansion. There are currently no disease-modifying therapies for FTD and the availability of in vitro models that recapitulate pathologies in a disease-relevant cell type would accelerate the development of novel therapeutics. It is now possible to generate patient-specific stem cells through the reprogramming of somatic cells from a patient with a genotype/phenotype of interest into induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). iPSCs can subsequently be differentiated into a plethora of cell types including neurons, astrocytes and microglia. Using this approach has allowed researchers to generate in vitro models of genetic FTD in human cell types that are largely inaccessible during life. In this review we explore the recent progress in the use of iPSCs to model FTD, and consider the merits, limitations and future prospects of this approach.
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