Integrated molecular landscape of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis provides insights into disease etiology

Does hazelnut consumption affect brain health and function against neurodegenerative diseases?

INTRODUCTION

A healthy daily diet and consuming certain nutrients, such as polyphenols, vitamins, and unsaturated fatty acids, may help neuronal health maintenance. Polyphenolic chemicals, which have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, are involved in the neuroprotective pathway. Because of their nutritional value, nuts have been shown in recent research to be helpful in neuroprotection.

OBJECTIVE

Hazelnut is often consumed worldwide in various items, including processed foods, particularly in bakery, chocolate, and confectionery products. This nut is an excellent source of vitamins, amino acids, tocopherols, phytosterols, polyphenols, minerals, and unsaturated fatty acids. Consuming hazelnut may attenuate the risk of neurodegenerative disorders including Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, multiple sclerosis, and Huntington's disease due to its anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant qualities.

RESULTS

Many documents introduce hazelnut as an excellent choice to provide neuroprotection against neurodegenerative disorders and there is some direct proof of its neuroprotective effects.

DISCUSSION

So hazelnut consumption in daily diet may reduce neurodegenerative disease risk and be advantageous in reducing the imposed costs of dealing with neurodegenerative diseases.

Exposure to endogenous and exogenous sex hormones and reproductive history influence prognosis in women with ALS

INTRODUCTION/AIMS

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a fatal neurodegenerative disease with a higher incidence in men suggesting an influence of sex steroids. Our objective was to investigate past exposure to endogenous and synthetic steroids in female ALS patients and controls.

METHODS

We administered a questionnaire to 158 postmenopausal women (75 ALS patients and 83 controls). We calculated reproductive time span (RTS), lifetime endogenous estrogen (LEE) and progesterone exposures (LPE), oral contraceptive pill (OCP) use, and reproductive history.

RESULTS

ALS patients showed shorter LEE and LPE, a lower proportion of breast cancer, and 11% showed no history of pregnancies vs. 4% of controls. Odds ratios (ORs) showed that <17 y of LEE and a delayed menarche (>13 y) constitute risk factors for ALS [OR = 2.1 (95% confidence interval {CI}, 1.08-4.2); and OR = 2.4 (95% CI, 1.1-5.1) respectively]. According to Cox survival analysis, for each year the LEE increased over 17 y, it was independently associated with longer survival [hazard ratio (HR) = 0.37 (95% CI, 0.16-0.85)] after adjusting for smoking, age and site of onset. Multivariate regression analysis demonstrated that for each month using OCP for longer than 40 mo increased the risk of ALS [adjusted OR = 4.1 (95% CI, 1.2-13.8)].

DISCUSSION

Thus, longer exposure to endogenous female sex steroids increased survival and reduced ALS susceptibility. In contrast, longer exposure to synthetic sex steroids showed a negative impact by reducing the production of endogenous female sex steroids or due to crossover with other steroid receptors. Given the neuroprotective effects of sex steroids, we suggest that abnormalities of neuroendocrine components may alter motor function in women with ALS.

Interplay of Metallome and Metabolome in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis: A Study on Cerebrospinal Fluid of Patients Carrying Disease-Related Gene Mutations

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a lethal progressive neurodegenerative disease, characterized by a loss of function of upper and lower motor neurons. This study aimed to explore probable pathological alterations occurring in individuals with ALS compared to neurologically healthy controls through the analysis of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), a medium, which directly interacts with brain parenchyma. A total of 7 ALS patients with disease-associated mutations (ATXN2, C9ORF72, FUS, SOD1, and TARDBP) and 13 controls were included in the study. Multiple analytical approaches were employed, including metabolomic and metallomics profiling, as well as genetic screening, using CSF samples obtained from the brain compartment. Data analysis involved the application of multivariate statistical methods. Advanced hyphenated selenium and redox metal (iron, copper, and manganese) speciation techniques and nontargeted Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry-based metabolomics were used for data acquisition. Nontargeted metabolomics showed reduced steroids, including sex hormones; additionally, copper and manganese species were found to be the most relevant features for ALS patients. This indicates a potential alteration of sex hormone pathways in the ALS-affected brain, as reflected in the CSF.

Molecular Landscape of Tourette's Disorder

Tourette's disorder (TD) is a highly heritable childhood-onset neurodevelopmental disorder and is caused by a complex interplay of multiple genetic and environmental factors. Yet, the molecular mechanisms underlying the disorder remain largely elusive. In this study, we used the available omics data to compile a list of TD candidate genes, and we subsequently conducted tissue/cell type specificity and functional enrichment analyses of this list. Using genomic data, we also investigated genetic sharing between TD and blood and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) metabolite levels. Lastly, we built a molecular landscape of TD through integrating the results from these analyses with an extensive literature search to identify the interactions between the TD candidate genes/proteins and metabolites. We found evidence for an enriched expression of the TD candidate genes in four brain regions and the pituitary. The functional enrichment analyses implicated two pathways ('cAMP-mediated signaling' and 'Endocannabinoid Neuronal Synapse Pathway') and multiple biological functions related to brain development and synaptic transmission in TD etiology. Furthermore, we found genetic sharing between TD and the blood and CSF levels of 39 metabolites. The landscape of TD not only provides insights into the (altered) molecular processes that underlie the disease but, through the identification of potential drug targets (such as FLT3, NAALAD2, CX3CL1-CX3CR1, OPRM1, and HRH2), it also yields clues for developing novel TD treatments.

Identification of an immune-related gene prognostic index for predicting prognosis, immunotherapeutic efficacy, and candidate drugs in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Rationale and objectives

Considering the great insufficiency in the survival prediction and therapy of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), it is fundamental to determine an accurate survival prediction for both the clinical practices and the design of treatment trials. Therefore, there is a need for more accurate biomarkers that can be used to identify the subtype of ALS which carries a high risk of progression to guide further treatment.

Methods

The transcriptome profiles and clinical parameters of a total of 561 ALS patients in this study were analyzed retrospectively by analysis of four public microarray datasets. Based on the results from a series of analyses using bioinformatics and machine learning, immune signatures are able to be used to predict overall survival (OS) and immunotherapeutic response in ALS patients. Apart from other comprehensive analyses, the decision tree and the nomogram, based on the immune signatures, were applied to guide individual risk stratification. In addition, molecular docking methodology was employed to screen potential small molecular to which the immune signatures might response.

Results

Immune was determined as a major risk factor contributing to OS among various biomarkers of ALS patients. As compared with traditional clinical features, the immune-related gene prognostic index (IRGPI) had a significantly higher capacity for survival prediction. The determination of risk stratification and assessment was optimized by integrating the decision tree and the nomogram. Moreover, the IRGPI may be used to guide preventative immunotherapy for patients at high risks for mortality. The administration of 2MIU IL2 injection in the short-term was likely to be beneficial for the prolongment of survival time, whose dosage should be reduced to 1MIU if the long-term therapy was required. Besides, a useful clinical application for the IRGPI was to screen potential compounds by the structure-based molecular docking methodology.

Conclusion

Ultimately, the immune-derived signatures in ALS patients were favorable biomarkers for the prediction of survival probabilities and immunotherapeutic responses, and the promotion of drug development.

Whole Exome Sequencing in Multi-Incident Families Identifies Novel Candidate Genes for Multiple Sclerosis

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a degenerative disease of the central nervous system in which auto-immunity-induced demyelination occurs. MS is thought to be caused by a complex interplay of environmental and genetic risk factors. While most genetic studies have focused on identifying common genetic variants for MS through genome-wide association studies, the objective of the present study was to identify rare genetic variants contributing to MS susceptibility. We used whole exome sequencing (WES) followed by co-segregation analyses in nine multi-incident families with two to four affected individuals. WES was performed in 31 family members with and without MS. After applying a suite of selection criteria, co-segregation analyses for a number of rare variants selected from the WES results were performed, adding 24 family members. This approach resulted in 12 exonic rare variants that showed acceptable co-segregation with MS within the nine families, implicating the genes MBP, PLK1, MECP2, MTMR7, TOX3, CPT1A, SORCS1, TRIM66, ITPR3, TTC28, CACNA1F, and PRAM1. Of these, three genes (MBP, MECP2, and CPT1A) have been previously reported as carrying MS-related rare variants. Six additional genes (MTMR7, TOX3, SORCS1, ITPR3, TTC28, and PRAM1) have also been implicated in MS through common genetic variants. The proteins encoded by all twelve genes containing rare variants interact in a molecular framework that points to biological processes involved in (de-/re-)myelination and auto-immunity. Our approach provides clues to possible molecular mechanisms underlying MS that should be studied further in cellular and/or animal models.

Riluzole does not ameliorate disease caused by cytoplasmic TDP-43 in a mouse model of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a neurodegenerative disease commonly treated with riluzole, a small molecule that may act via modulation of glutamatergic neurotransmission. However, riluzole only modestly extends lifespan for people living with ALS, and its precise mechanisms of action remain unclear. Most ALS cases are characterised by accumulation of cytoplasmic TAR DNA binding protein of 43 kDa (TDP-43), and understanding the effects of riluzole in models that closely recapitulate TDP-43 pathology may provide insights for development of improved therapeutics. We therefore investigated the effects of riluzole in female transgenic mice that inducibly express nuclear localisation sequence (NLS)-deficient human TDP-43 in neurons (NEFH-tTA/tetO-hTDP-43ΔNLS, 'rNLS8', mice). Riluzole treatment from the first day of hTDP-43ΔNLS expression did not alter disease onset, weight loss or performance on multiple motor behavioural tasks. Riluzole treatment also did not alter TDP-43 protein levels, solubility or phosphorylation. Although we identified a significant decrease in GluA2 and GluA3 proteins in the cortex of rNLS8 mice, riluzole did not ameliorate this disease-associated molecular phenotype. Likewise, riluzole did not alter the disease-associated atrophy of hindlimb muscle in rNLS8 mice. Finally, riluzole treatment beginning after disease onset in rNLS8 mice similarly had no effect on progression of late-stage disease or animal survival. Together, we demonstrate specific glutamatergic receptor alterations and muscle fibre-type changes reminiscent of ALS in female rNLS8 mice, but riluzole had no effect on these or any other disease phenotypes. Future targeting of pathways related to accumulation of TDP-43 pathology may be needed to develop better treatments for ALS.

Astrocyte adenosine deaminase loss increases motor neuron toxicity in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

As clinical evidence supports a negative impact of dysfunctional energy metabolism on the disease progression in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, it is vital to understand how the energy metabolic pathways are altered and whether they can be restored to slow disease progression. Possible approaches include increasing or rerouting catabolism of alternative fuel sources to supplement the glycolytic and mitochondrial pathways such as glycogen, ketone bodies and nucleosides. To analyse the basis of the catabolic defect in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis we used a novel phenotypic metabolic array. We profiled fibroblasts and induced neuronal progenitor-derived human induced astrocytes from C9orf72 amyotrophic lateral sclerosis patients compared to normal controls, measuring the rates of production of reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotides from 91 potential energy substrates. This approach shows for the first time that C9orf72 human induced astrocytes and fibroblasts have an adenosine to inosine deamination defect caused by reduction of adenosine deaminase, which is also observed in induced astrocytes from sporadic patients. Patient-derived induced astrocyte lines were more susceptible to adenosine-induced toxicity, which could be mimicked by inhibiting adenosine deaminase in control lines. Furthermore, adenosine deaminase inhibition in control induced astrocytes led to increased motor neuron toxicity in co-cultures, similar to the levels observed with patient derived induced astrocytes. Bypassing metabolically the adenosine deaminase defect by inosine supplementation was beneficial bioenergetically in vitro, increasing glycolytic energy output and leading to an increase in motor neuron survival in co-cultures with induced astrocytes. Inosine supplementation, in combination with modulation of the level of adenosine deaminase may represent a beneficial therapeutic approach to evaluate in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.