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Taha HB, Chawla E, Bitan G. IM-MS and ECD-MS/MS Provide Insight into Modulation of Amyloid Proteins Self-Assembly by Peptides and Small Molecules. J Am Soc Mass Spectrom 2023; 34:2066-2086. [PMID: 37607351 DOI: 10.1021/jasms.3c00065] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/24/2023]
Abstract
Neurodegenerative proteinopathies are characterized by formation and deposition of misfolded, aggregated proteins in the nervous system leading to neuronal dysfunction and death. It is widely believed that metastable oligomers of the offending proteins, preceding the fibrillar aggregates found in the tissue, are the proximal neurotoxins. There are currently almost no disease-modifying therapies for these diseases despite an active pipeline of preclinical development and clinical trials for over two decades, largely because studying the metastable oligomers and their interaction with potential therapeutics is notoriously difficult. Mass spectrometry (MS) is a powerful analytical tool for structural investigation of proteins, including protein-protein and protein-ligand interactions. Specific MS tools have been useful in determining the composition and conformation of abnormal protein oligomers involved in proteinopathies and the way they interact with drug candidates. Here, we analyze critically the utilization of ion-mobility spectroscopy-MS (IM-MS) and electron-capture dissociation (ECD) MS/MS for analyzing the oligomerization and conformation of multiple amyloidogenic proteins. We also discuss IM-MS investigation of their interaction with two classes of compounds developed by our group over the last two decades: C-terminal fragments derived from the 42-residue form of amyloid β-protein (Aβ42) and molecular tweezers. Finally, we review the utilization of ECD-MS/MS for elucidating the binding sites of the ligands on multiple proteins. These approaches are readily applicable to future studies addressing similar questions and hold promise for facilitating the development of successful disease-modifying drugs against neurodegenerative proteinopathies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hash Brown Taha
- Department of Neurology, University of California Los Angeles, California 90095, United States
- Department of Integrative Biology & Physiology, University of California Los Angeles, California 90095, United States
| | - Esha Chawla
- Department of Neurology, University of California Los Angeles, California 90095, United States
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics, University of California Los Angeles, California 90095, United States
| | - Gal Bitan
- Department of Neurology, University of California Los Angeles, California 90095, United States
- Brain Research Institute, University of California Los Angeles, California 90095, United States
- Molecular Biology Institute, University of California Los Angeles, California 90095, United States
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Mlakar L, Garrett SM, Watanabe T, Sanderson M, Nishimoto T, Heywood J, Helke KL, Pilewski JM, Herzog EL, Feghali-Bostwick C. Ameliorating Fibrosis in Murine and Human Tissues with END55, an Endostatin-Derived Fusion Protein Made in Plants. Biomedicines 2022; 10:2861. [PMID: 36359382 PMCID: PMC9687961 DOI: 10.3390/biomedicines10112861] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2022] [Revised: 10/12/2022] [Accepted: 11/04/2022] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Organ fibrosis, particularly of the lungs, causes significant morbidity and mortality. Effective treatments are needed to reduce the health burden. A fragment of the carboxyl-terminal end of collagen XVIII/endostatin reduces skin and lung fibrosis. This fragment was modified to facilitate its production in plants, which resulted in the recombinant fusion protein, END55. We found that expression of END55 had significant anti-fibrotic effects on the treatment and prevention of skin and lung fibrosis in a bleomycin mouse model. We validated these effects in a second mouse model of pulmonary fibrosis involving inducible, lung-targeted expression of transforming growth factor β1. END55 also exerted anti-fibrotic effects in human lung and skin tissues maintained in organ culture in which fibrosis was experimentally induced. The anti-fibrotic effect of END55 was mediated by a decrease in the expression of extracellular matrix genes and an increase in the levels of matrix-degrading enzymes. Finally, END55 reduced fibrosis in the lungs of patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc) and idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) who underwent lung transplantation due to the severity of their lung disease, displaying efficacy in human tissues directly relevant to human disease. These findings demonstrate that END55 is an effective anti-fibrotic therapy in different organs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Logan Mlakar
- Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA
| | - Sara M. Garrett
- Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA
| | - Tomoya Watanabe
- Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA
| | - Matthew Sanderson
- Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA
| | - Tetsuya Nishimoto
- Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA
| | - Jonathan Heywood
- Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA
| | - Kristi L. Helke
- Department of Comparative Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA
| | - Joseph M. Pilewski
- Division of Pulmonary, Allergy and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15261, USA
| | - Erica L. Herzog
- Yale ILD Center of Excellence, Department of Medicine, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06519, USA
| | - Carol Feghali-Bostwick
- Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA
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Figueiredo F, Lopes-Marques M, Almeida B, Matscheko N, Martins PM, Silva A, Macedo-Ribeiro S. A Robust Assay to Monitor Ataxin-3 Amyloid Fibril Assembly. Cells 2022; 11:1969. [PMID: 35741099 DOI: 10.3390/cells11121969] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2022] [Revised: 06/14/2022] [Accepted: 06/16/2022] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Spinocerebellar ataxia type 3 (SCA3) is caused by the expansion of a glutamine repeat in the protein ataxin-3, which is deposited as intracellular aggregates in affected brain regions. Despite the controversial role of ataxin-3 amyloid structures in SCA3 pathology, the identification of molecules with the capacity to prevent aberrant self-assembly and stabilize functional conformation(s) of ataxin-3 is a key to the development of therapeutic solutions. Amyloid-specific kinetic assays are routinely used to measure rates of protein self-assembly in vitro and are employed during screening for fibrillation inhibitors. The high tendency of ataxin-3 to assemble into oligomeric structures implies that minor changes in experimental conditions can modify ataxin-3 amyloid assembly kinetics. Here, we determine the self-association rates of ataxin-3 and present a detailed study of the aggregation of normal and pathogenic ataxin-3, highlighting the experimental conditions that should be considered when implementing and validating ataxin-3 amyloid progress curves in different settings and in the presence of ataxin-3 interactors. This assay provides a unique and robust platform to screen for modulators of the first steps of ataxin-3 aggregation—a starting point for further studies with cell and animal models of SCA3.
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Karanji AK, Beasely M, Sharif D, Ranjbaran A, Legleiter J, Valentine SJ. Investigating the interactions of the first 17 amino acid residues of Huntingtin with lipid vesicles using mass spectrometry and molecular dynamics. J Mass Spectrom 2020; 55:e4470. [PMID: 31756784 PMCID: PMC7342490 DOI: 10.1002/jms.4470] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/09/2019] [Revised: 10/04/2019] [Accepted: 10/28/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
The first 17 amino acid residues of Huntingtin protein (Nt17 of htt) are thought to play an important role in the protein's function; Nt17 is one of two membrane binding domains in htt. In this study the binding ability of Nt17 peptide with vesicles comprised of two subclasses of phospholipids is studied using electrospray ionization - mass spectrometry (ESI-MS) and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. Overall, the peptide is shown to have a greater propensity to interact with vesicles of phosphatidylcholine (PC) rather than phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) lipids. Mass spectra show an increase in lipid-bound peptide adducts where the ordering of the number of such specie is 1,2-dioleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DOPC) > 1-palmitoyl-2-oleoyl-glycero-3-phosphocholine (POPC) > 1-palmitoyl-2-oleoyl-sn-glycero-3 phosphoethanolamine (POPE). MD simulations suggest that the compactness of the bilayer plays a role in governing peptide interactions. The peptide shows greater disruption of the DOPC bilayer order at the surface and interacts with the hydrophobic tails of lipid molecules via hydrophobic residues. Conversely, the POPE vesicle remains ordered and lipids display transient interactions with the peptide through the formation of hydrogen bonds with hydrophilic residues. The POPC system displays intermediate behavior with regard to the degree of peptide-membrane interaction. Finally, the simulations suggest a helix stabilizing effect resulting from the interactions between hydrophobic residues and the lipid tails of the DOPC bilayer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ahmad Kiani Karanji
- C. Eugene Bennett Department of Chemistry, West Virginia University, Morgantown WV 26506
| | - Maryssa Beasely
- C. Eugene Bennett Department of Chemistry, West Virginia University, Morgantown WV 26506
| | - Daud Sharif
- C. Eugene Bennett Department of Chemistry, West Virginia University, Morgantown WV 26506
| | - Ali Ranjbaran
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Cell Biology, West Virginia University School of Medicine, Morgantown WV 26506
| | - Justin Legleiter
- C. Eugene Bennett Department of Chemistry, West Virginia University, Morgantown WV 26506
- Blanchette Rockefeller Neurosciences Institute, Robert C. Byrd Health Sciences Center, P.O. Box 9304, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia 26506, United States
- NanoSAFE, P.O. Box 6223, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia 26506, United States
| | - Stephen J. Valentine
- C. Eugene Bennett Department of Chemistry, West Virginia University, Morgantown WV 26506
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