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Çon N, Mercan S, Küçüköner A, Çalişkan N. Adolescent intermittent ethanol use in male rats do not change cerebellar cell numbers but initiate astroglial reaction. Int J Dev Neurosci 2024; 84:177-189. [PMID: 38327108 DOI: 10.1002/jdn.10317] [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: 11/07/2023] [Revised: 12/21/2023] [Accepted: 01/15/2024] [Indexed: 02/09/2024] Open
Abstract
Alcohol consumption during adolescence causes negative structural changes in the cerebellum and can lead to cognitive and motor skill disorders. Unfortunately, the age at which individuals begin drinking alcohol has decreased in recent years, which has drawn attention to the effects of alcohol on neurological changes during preadolescence. In this study, we investigated the effects of adolescent intermittent ethanol (AIE) exposure on the cellular composition of the cerebellum in male rats, particularly when alcohol consumption begins early. The male rats received eight doses of intermittent intraperitoneal injection of 25% (v/v) ethanol (3 g/kg) or saline from postnatal days (PND) 25 to PND 38. In rats, 28-42 days old corresponds to 10-18 years old in humans. Two hours after the last injection, the cells, neurons, and non-neuronal cells in the cerebellum were immunocytochemically labeled and the total numbers of related cells were calculated using the Isotropic Fractionator method. We found that AIE exposure does not change the cell numbers of the cerebellum in the short term, but it does activate astrocytes in the white matter of the cerebellum. These findings suggest that alcohol use during adolescence impairs the innate immune system and negatively affects brain plasticity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nurhan Çon
- Department of Medical Services and Techniques, Ondokuz Mayıs University, Samsun, Turkey
| | - Sevcan Mercan
- Department of Medical Services and Techniques, Ondokuz Mayıs University, Samsun, Turkey
| | - Asuman Küçüköner
- Department of Medical Services and Techniques, Ondokuz Mayıs University, Samsun, Turkey
| | - Nüket Çalişkan
- Department of Medical Services and Techniques, Ondokuz Mayıs University, Samsun, Turkey
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2
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Li X, Quan M, Wei Y, Wang W, Xu L, Wang Q, Jia J. Critical thinking of Alzheimer's transgenic mouse model: current research and future perspective. SCIENCE CHINA. LIFE SCIENCES 2023; 66:2711-2754. [PMID: 37480469 DOI: 10.1007/s11427-022-2357-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2022] [Accepted: 04/23/2023] [Indexed: 07/24/2023]
Abstract
Transgenic models are useful tools for studying the pathogenesis of and drug development for Alzheimer's Disease (AD). AD models are constructed usually using overexpression or knock-in of multiple pathogenic gene mutations from familial AD. Each transgenic model has its unique behavioral and pathological features. This review summarizes the research progress of transgenic mouse models, and their progress in the unique mechanism of amyloid-β oligomers, including the first transgenic mouse model built in China based on a single gene mutation (PSEN1 V97L) found in Chinese familial AD. We further summarized the preclinical findings of drugs using the models, and their future application in exploring the upstream mechanisms and multitarget drug development in AD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xinyue Li
- Innovation Center for Neurological Disorders and Department of Neurology, Xuanwu Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, 100053, China
| | - Meina Quan
- Innovation Center for Neurological Disorders and Department of Neurology, Xuanwu Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, 100053, China
- National Medical Center for Neurological Diseases and National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric Diseases, Beijing, 100053, China
| | - Yiping Wei
- Innovation Center for Neurological Disorders and Department of Neurology, Xuanwu Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, 100053, China
| | - Wei Wang
- Innovation Center for Neurological Disorders and Department of Neurology, Xuanwu Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, 100053, China
- National Medical Center for Neurological Diseases and National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric Diseases, Beijing, 100053, China
| | - Lingzhi Xu
- Innovation Center for Neurological Disorders and Department of Neurology, Xuanwu Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, 100053, China
| | - Qi Wang
- Innovation Center for Neurological Disorders and Department of Neurology, Xuanwu Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, 100053, China
- National Medical Center for Neurological Diseases and National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric Diseases, Beijing, 100053, China
| | - Jianping Jia
- Innovation Center for Neurological Disorders and Department of Neurology, Xuanwu Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, 100053, China.
- National Medical Center for Neurological Diseases and National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric Diseases, Beijing, 100053, China.
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Geriatric Cognitive Disorders, Beijing, 100053, China.
- Clinical Center for Neurodegenerative Disease and Memory Impairment, Capital Medical University, Beijing, 100053, China.
- Center of Alzheimer's Disease, Beijing Institute of Brain Disorders, Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Disorders, Capital Medical University, Beijing, 100053, China.
- Key Laboratory of Neurodegenerative Diseases, Ministry of Education, Beijing, 100053, China.
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Sharma H, Chang KA, Hulme J, An SSA. Mammalian Models in Alzheimer's Research: An Update. Cells 2023; 12:2459. [PMID: 37887303 PMCID: PMC10605533 DOI: 10.3390/cells12202459] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/04/2023] [Revised: 10/09/2023] [Accepted: 10/10/2023] [Indexed: 10/28/2023] Open
Abstract
A form of dementia distinct from healthy cognitive aging, Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a complex multi-stage disease that currently afflicts over 50 million people worldwide. Unfortunately, previous therapeutic strategies developed from murine models emulating different aspects of AD pathogenesis were limited. Consequently, researchers are now developing models that express several aspects of pathogenesis that better reflect the clinical situation in humans. As such, this review seeks to provide insight regarding current applications of mammalian models in AD research by addressing recent developments and characterizations of prominent transgenic models and their contributions to pathogenesis as well as discuss the advantages, limitations, and application of emerging models that better capture genetic heterogeneity and mixed pathologies observed in the clinical situation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Himadri Sharma
- Department of Bionano Technology, Gachon Bionano Research Institute, Gachon University, 1342 Seongnam-daero, Sujeong-gu, Seongnam-si 461-701, Gyeonggi-do, Republic of Korea
| | - Keun-A Chang
- Neuroscience Research Institute, Gachon University, Incheon 21565, Republic of Korea
| | - John Hulme
- Department of Bionano Technology, Gachon Bionano Research Institute, Gachon University, 1342 Seongnam-daero, Sujeong-gu, Seongnam-si 461-701, Gyeonggi-do, Republic of Korea
| | - Seong Soo A. An
- Department of Bionano Technology, Gachon Bionano Research Institute, Gachon University, 1342 Seongnam-daero, Sujeong-gu, Seongnam-si 461-701, Gyeonggi-do, Republic of Korea
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4
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Mortberg MA, Gentile JE, Nadaf N, Vanderburg C, Simmons S, Dubinsky D, Slamin A, Maldonado S, Petersen C, Jones N, Kordasiewicz H, Zhao H, Vallabh S, Minikel E. A single-cell map of antisense oligonucleotide activity in the brain. Nucleic Acids Res 2023; 51:7109-7124. [PMID: 37188501 PMCID: PMC10415122 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkad371] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2023] [Revised: 04/19/2023] [Accepted: 04/27/2023] [Indexed: 05/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs) dosed into cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) distribute broadly throughout the central nervous system (CNS). By modulating RNA, they hold the promise of targeting root molecular causes of disease and hold potential to treat myriad CNS disorders. Realization of this potential requires that ASOs must be active in the disease-relevant cells, and ideally, that monitorable biomarkers also reflect ASO activity in these cells. The biodistribution and activity of such centrally delivered ASOs have been deeply characterized in rodent and non-human primate (NHP) models, but usually only in bulk tissue, limiting our understanding of the distribution of ASO activity across individual cells and across diverse CNS cell types. Moreover, in human clinical trials, target engagement is usually monitorable only in a single compartment, CSF. We sought a deeper understanding of how individual cells and cell types contribute to bulk tissue signal in the CNS, and how these are linked to CSF biomarker outcomes. We employed single nucleus transcriptomics on tissue from mice treated with RNase H1 ASOs against Prnp and Malat1 and NHPs treated with an ASO against PRNP. Pharmacologic activity was observed in every cell type, though sometimes with substantial differences in magnitude. Single cell RNA count distributions implied target RNA suppression in every single sequenced cell, rather than intense knockdown in only some cells. Duration of action up to 12 weeks post-dose differed across cell types, being shorter in microglia than in neurons. Suppression in neurons was generally similar to, or more robust than, the bulk tissue. In macaques, PrP in CSF was lowered 40% in conjunction with PRNP knockdown across all cell types including neurons, arguing that a CSF biomarker readout is likely to reflect ASO pharmacodynamic effect in disease-relevant cells in a neuronal disorder. Our results provide a reference dataset for ASO activity distribution in the CNS and establish single nucleus sequencing as a method for evaluating cell type specificity of oligonucleotide therapeutics and other modalities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meredith A Mortberg
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA
| | - Juliana E Gentile
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA
| | - Naeem M Nadaf
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA
| | - Charles Vanderburg
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA
| | - Sean Simmons
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA
| | - Dan Dubinsky
- Genomics Platform, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA 02141, USA
| | - Adam Slamin
- Genomics Platform, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA 02141, USA
| | - Salome Maldonado
- Genomics Platform, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA 02141, USA
| | - Caroline L Petersen
- Genomics Platform, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA 02141, USA
| | - Nichole Jones
- Genomics Platform, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA 02141, USA
| | | | - Hien T Zhao
- Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Carlsbad, CA 92010, USA
| | - Sonia M Vallabh
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA
- McCance Center for Brain Health and Department of Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA
- Department of Neurology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA02115, USA
- Prion Alliance, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Eric Vallabh Minikel
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA
- McCance Center for Brain Health and Department of Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA
- Department of Neurology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA02115, USA
- Prion Alliance, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
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5
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Mortberg MA, Gentile JE, Nadaf N, Vanderburg C, Simmons S, Dubinsky D, Slamin A, Maldonado S, Petersen CL, Jones N, Kordasiewicz HB, Zhao HT, Vallabh SM, Minikel EV. A single-cell map of antisense oligonucleotide activity in the brain. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.02.14.528473. [PMID: 36824749 PMCID: PMC9948956 DOI: 10.1101/2023.02.14.528473] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/16/2023]
Abstract
Antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs) dosed into cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) distribute broadly throughout the brain and hold the promise of treating myriad brain diseases by modulating RNA. CNS tissue is not routinely biopsied in living individuals, leading to reliance on CSF biomarkers to inform on drug target engagement. Animal models can link CSF biomarkers to brain parenchyma, but our understanding of how individual cells contribute to bulk tissue signal is limited. Here we employed single nucleus transcriptomics on tissue from mice treated with RNase H1 ASOs against Prnp and Malat1 and macaques treated with an ASO against PRNP . Activity was observed in every cell type, though sometimes with substantial differences in magnitude. Single cell RNA count distributions implied target suppression in every single sequenced cell, rather than intense knockdown in only some cells. Duration of action up to 12 weeks post-dose differed across cell types, being shorter in microglia than in neurons. Suppression in neurons was generally similar to, or more robust than, the bulk tissue. In macaques, PrP in CSF was lowered 40% in conjunction with PRNP knockdown across all cell types including neurons, arguing that a CSF biomarker readout is likely to reflect disease-relevant cells in a neuronal disorder.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meredith A Mortberg
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard,Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA
| | - Juliana E Gentile
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard,Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA
| | - Naeem Nadaf
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard,Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA
| | - Charles Vanderburg
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard,Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA
| | - Sean Simmons
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard,Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA
| | - Dan Dubinsky
- Genomics Platform, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, 02141, USA
| | - Adam Slamin
- Genomics Platform, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, 02141, USA
| | - Salome Maldonado
- Genomics Platform, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, 02141, USA
| | - Caroline L Petersen
- Genomics Platform, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, 02141, USA
| | - Nichole Jones
- Genomics Platform, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, 02141, USA
| | | | - Hien T Zhao
- Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Carlsbad, CA, 92010, USA
| | - Sonia M Vallabh
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard,Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA
- McCance Center for Brain Health and Department of Neurology, Massachusetts GeneralHospital, Boston, MA, 02114, USA
- Department of Neurology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
- Prion Alliance, Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA
| | - Eric Vallabh Minikel
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard,Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA
- McCance Center for Brain Health and Department of Neurology, Massachusetts GeneralHospital, Boston, MA, 02114, USA
- Department of Neurology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
- Prion Alliance, Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA
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6
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Xu QQ, Su ZR, Yang W, Zhong M, Xian YF, Lin ZX. Patchouli alcohol attenuates the cognitive deficits in a transgenic mouse model of Alzheimer's disease via modulating neuropathology and gut microbiota through suppressing C/EBPβ/AEP pathway. J Neuroinflammation 2023; 20:19. [PMID: 36717922 PMCID: PMC9887791 DOI: 10.1186/s12974-023-02704-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/19/2022] [Accepted: 01/22/2023] [Indexed: 01/31/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a chronic neurodegenerative disease characterized by progressive cognitive dysfunctions and behavioral impairments. Patchouli alcohol (PA), isolated from Pogostemonis Herba, exhibits multiple pharmacological properties, including neuroprotective effects. This study aimed to investigate the therapeutic effects of PA against AD using the TgCRND8 transgenic AD mouse model, and to explore the underlying mechanisms targeting CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein β/asparagine endopeptidase (C/EBPβ/AEP) signaling pathway. METHODS After genotyping to confirm the transgenicity, drug treatments were administered intragastrically once daily to 3-month-old TgCRND8 mice for 4 consecutive months. Several behavioral tests were applied to assess different aspects of neurological functions. Then the brain and colon tissues were harvested for in-depth mechanistic studies. To further verify whether PA exerts anti-AD effects via modulating C/EBPβ/AEP signaling pathway in TgCRND8 mice, adeno-associated virus (AAV) vectors encoding CEBP/β were bilaterally injected into the hippocampal CA1 region in TgCRND8 mice to overexpress C/EBPβ. Additionally, the fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) experiment was performed to verify the potential role of gut microbiota on the anti-AD effects of PA. RESULTS Our results showed that PA treatment significantly improved activities of daily living (ADL), ameliorated the anxiety-related behavioral deficits and cognitive impairments in TgCRND8 mice. PA modulated the amyloid precursor protein (APP) processing. PA also markedly reduced the levels of beta-amyloid (Aβ) 40 and Aβ42, suppressed Aβ plaque burdens, inhibited tau protein hyperphosphorylation at several sites and relieved neuroinflammation in the brains of TgCRND8 mice. Moreover, PA restored gut dysbiosis and inhibited the activation of the C/EBPβ/AEP signaling pathway in the brain and colon tissues of TgCRND8 mice. Interestingly, PA strikingly alleviated the AD-like pathologies induced by the overexpression of C/EBPβ in TgCRND8 mice. Additionally, the FMT of fecal microbiota from the PA-treated TgCRND8 mice significantly alleviated the cognitive impairments and AD-like pathologies in the germ-free TgCRND8 mice. CONCLUSION All these findings amply demonstrated that PA could ameliorate the cognitive deficits in TgCRND8 mice via suppressing Aβ plaques deposition, hyperphosphorylation of tau protein, neuroinflammation and gut dysbiosis through inhibiting the activation of C/EBPβ/AEP pathway, suggesting that PA is a promising naturally occurring chemical worthy of further development into the pharmaceutical treatment of AD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qing-Qing Xu
- grid.10784.3a0000 0004 1937 0482School of Chinese Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, N.T., Hong Kong SAR, People’s Republic of China
| | - Zi-Ren Su
- grid.411866.c0000 0000 8848 7685Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of New Drug Development and Research of Chinese Medicine, Mathematical Engineering Academy of Chinese Medicine, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Guangzhou, 510006 China
| | - Wen Yang
- grid.10784.3a0000 0004 1937 0482School of Chinese Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, N.T., Hong Kong SAR, People’s Republic of China
| | - Mei Zhong
- grid.10784.3a0000 0004 1937 0482School of Chinese Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, N.T., Hong Kong SAR, People’s Republic of China
| | - Yan-Fang Xian
- grid.10784.3a0000 0004 1937 0482School of Chinese Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, N.T., Hong Kong SAR, People’s Republic of China
| | - Zhi-Xiu Lin
- grid.10784.3a0000 0004 1937 0482School of Chinese Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, N.T., Hong Kong SAR, People’s Republic of China ,grid.10784.3a0000 0004 1937 0482Hong Kong Institute of Integrative Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, N.T., Hong Kong SAR, People’s Republic of China ,grid.10784.3a0000 0004 1937 0482Li Dak Sum Yip Yio Chin R&D Centre for Chinese Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, N.T., Hong Kong SAR, People’s Republic of China
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7
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Blood-brain barrier leakage in Alzheimer's disease: From discovery to clinical relevance. Pharmacol Ther 2022; 234:108119. [PMID: 35108575 PMCID: PMC9107516 DOI: 10.1016/j.pharmthera.2022.108119] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 16.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2021] [Revised: 01/14/2022] [Accepted: 01/18/2022] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common form of dementia. AD brain pathology starts decades before the onset of clinical symptoms. One early pathological hallmark is blood-brain barrier dysfunction characterized by barrier leakage and associated with cognitive decline. In this review, we summarize the existing literature on the extent and clinical relevance of barrier leakage in AD. First, we focus on AD animal models and their susceptibility to barrier leakage based on age and genetic background. Second, we re-examine barrier dysfunction in clinical and postmortem studies, summarize changes that lead to barrier leakage in patients and highlight the clinical relevance of barrier leakage in AD. Third, we summarize signaling mechanisms that link barrier leakage to neurodegeneration and cognitive decline in AD. Finally, we discuss clinical relevance and potential therapeutic strategies and provide future perspectives on investigating barrier leakage in AD. Identifying mechanistic steps underlying barrier leakage has the potential to unravel new targets that can be used to develop novel therapeutic strategies to repair barrier leakage and slow cognitive decline in AD and AD-related dementias.
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8
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Effects of Involuntary and Voluntary Exercise in Combination with Acousto-Optic Stimulation on Adult Neurogenesis in an Alzheimer's Mouse Model. Mol Neurobiol 2022; 59:3254-3279. [PMID: 35297012 DOI: 10.1007/s12035-022-02784-9] [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: 11/07/2021] [Accepted: 02/10/2022] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
Single-factor intervention, such as physical exercise and auditory and visual stimulation, plays a positive role on the prevention and treatment of Alzheimer's disease (AD); however, the therapeutic effects of single-factor intervention are limited. The beneficial effects of these multifactor combinations on AD and its molecular mechanism have yet to be elucidated. Here, we investigated the effect of multifactor intervention, voluntary wheel exercise, and involuntary treadmill running in combination with acousto-optic stimulation, on adult neurogenesis and behavioral phenotypes in a mouse model of AD. We found that 4 weeks of multifactor intervention can significantly increase the production of newborn cells (BrdU+ cells) and immature neurons (DCX+ cells) in the hippocampus and lateral ventricle of Aβ oligomer-induced mice. Importantly, the multifactor intervention could promote BrdU+ cells to differentiate into neurons (BrdU+ DCX+ cells or BrdU+ NeuN+ cells) and astrocytes (BrdU+GFAP+ cells) in the hippocampus and ameliorate Aβ oligomer-induced cognitive impairment and anxiety- and depression-like behaviors in mice evaluated by novel object recognition, Morris water maze tests, elevated zero maze, forced swimming test, and tail suspension test, respectively. Moreover, multifactor intervention could lead to an increase in the protein levels of PSD-95, SYP, DCX, NeuN, GFAP, Bcl-2, BDNF, TrkB, and pSer473-Akt and a decrease in the protein levels of BAX and caspase-9 in the hippocampal lysates of Aβ oligomer-induced mice. Furthermore, sequencing analysis of serum metabolites revealed that aberrantly expressed metabolites modulated by multifactor intervention were highly enriched in the biological process associated with keeping neurons functioning and neurobehavioral function. Additionally, the intervention-mediated serum metabolites mainly participated in glutamate metabolism, glucose metabolism, and the tricarboxylic acid cycle in mice. Our findings suggest the potential of multifactor intervention as a non-invasive therapeutic strategy for AD to anti-Aβ oligomer neurotoxicity.
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Klonarakis M, De Vos M, Woo E, Ralph L, Thacker JS, Gil-Mohapel J. The three sisters of fate: Genetics, pathophysiology and outcomes of animal models of neurodegenerative diseases. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2022; 135:104541. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2022.104541] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2021] [Revised: 11/28/2021] [Accepted: 01/13/2022] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
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10
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Xhima K, Markham-Coultes K, Kofoed RH, Saragovi HU, Hynynen K, Aubert I. Ultrasound delivery of a TrkA agonist confers neuroprotection to Alzheimer-associated pathologies. Brain 2021; 145:2806-2822. [PMID: 34919633 PMCID: PMC9420023 DOI: 10.1093/brain/awab460] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2021] [Revised: 10/01/2021] [Accepted: 11/19/2021] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract
Early degeneration of basal forebrain cholinergic neurons (BFCNs) contributes substantially to cognitive decline in Alzheimer's disease (AD). Evidence from preclinical models of neuronal injury and aging support a pivotal role for nerve growth factor (NGF) in neuroprotection, resilience, and cognitive function. However, whether NGF can provide therapeutic benefit in the presence of AD-related pathologies remains unresolved. Perturbations in the NGF signaling system in AD may render neurons unable to benefit from NGF administration. Additionally, challenges related to brain delivery remain for clinical translation of NGF-based therapies in AD. To be safe and efficient, NGF-related agents should stimulate the NGF receptor, tropomyosin receptor kinase A (TrkA), avoid activation through the p75 neurotrophin receptor (p75NTR), and be delivered non-invasively to targeted brain areas using real-time monitoring. We addressed these limitations using MRI-guided focused ultrasound (MRIgFUS) to increase blood-brain barrier (BBB) permeability locally and transiently, allowing an intravenously administered TrkA agonist that does not activate p75NTR, termed D3, to enter targeted brain areas. Here, we report the therapeutic potential of selective TrkA activation in a transgenic mouse model that recapitulates numerous AD-associated pathologies. Repeated MRIgFUS-mediated delivery of D3 (D3/FUS) improved cognitive function in the TgCRND8 model of AD. Mechanistically, D3/FUS treatment effectively attenuated cholinergic degeneration and promoted functional recovery. D3/FUS treatment also resulted in widespread reduction of brain amyloid pathology and dystrophic neurites surrounding amyloid plaques. Furthermore, D3/FUS markedly enhanced hippocampal neurogenesis in TgCRND8 mice, implicating TrkA agonism as a novel therapeutic target to promote neurogenesis in the context of AD-related pathology. Thus, this study provides evidence that selective TrkA agonism confers neuroprotection to effectively counteract AD-related vulnerability. Recent clinical trials demonstrate that non-invasive BBB modulation using MRIgFUS is safe, feasible and reversible in AD patients. TrkA receptor agonists coupled with MRIgFUS delivery constitute a promising disease-modifying strategy to foster brain health and counteract cognitive decline in AD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kristiana Xhima
- Hurvitz Brain Sciences Research Program, Biological Sciences, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Toronto, ON, M4N 3M5, Canada
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, M5S 1A8, Canada
| | - Kelly Markham-Coultes
- Hurvitz Brain Sciences Research Program, Biological Sciences, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Toronto, ON, M4N 3M5, Canada
| | - Rikke Hahn Kofoed
- Hurvitz Brain Sciences Research Program, Biological Sciences, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Toronto, ON, M4N 3M5, Canada
| | - H. Uri Saragovi
- Lady Davis Institute, Jewish General Hospital, Montreal, QC, H3T 1E2, Canada
- Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, McGill University, Montreal, QC, H3G 1Y6, Canada
- Department of Ophthalmology and Vision Sciences, McGill University, Montreal, QC, H4A 3S5, Canada
| | - Kullervo Hynynen
- Physical Sciences, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Toronto, ON, M4N 3M5, Canada
- Department of Medical Biophysics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, M5G 1L7, Canada
| | - Isabelle Aubert
- Hurvitz Brain Sciences Research Program, Biological Sciences, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Toronto, ON, M4N 3M5, Canada
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, M5S 1A8, Canada
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11
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Nakai T, Yamada K, Mizoguchi H. Alzheimer's Disease Animal Models: Elucidation of Biomarkers and Therapeutic Approaches for Cognitive Impairment. Int J Mol Sci 2021; 22:ijms22115549. [PMID: 34074018 PMCID: PMC8197360 DOI: 10.3390/ijms22115549] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2021] [Accepted: 05/21/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is an age-related and progressive neurodegenerative disorder. It is widely accepted that AD is mainly caused by the accumulation of extracellular amyloid β (Aβ) and intracellular neurofibrillary tau tangles. Aβ begins to accumulate years before the onset of cognitive impairment, suggesting that the benefit of currently available interventions would be greater if they were initiated in the early phases of AD. To understand the mechanisms of AD pathogenesis, various transgenic mouse models with an accelerated accumulation of Aβ and tau tangles have been developed. However, none of these models exhibit all pathologies present in human AD. To overcome these undesirable phenotypes, APP knock-in mice, which were presented with touchscreen-based tasks, were developed to better evaluate the efficacy of candidate therapeutics in mouse models of early-stage AD. This review assesses several AD mouse models from the aspect of biomarkers and cognitive impairment and discusses their potential as tools to provide novel AD therapeutic approaches.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tsuyoshi Nakai
- Department of Neuropsychopharmacology and Hospital Pharmacy, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, Nagoya 466-8560, Japan; (T.N.); (K.Y.)
| | - Kiyofumi Yamada
- Department of Neuropsychopharmacology and Hospital Pharmacy, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, Nagoya 466-8560, Japan; (T.N.); (K.Y.)
| | - Hiroyuki Mizoguchi
- Department of Neuropsychopharmacology and Hospital Pharmacy, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, Nagoya 466-8560, Japan; (T.N.); (K.Y.)
- Medical Interactive Research and Academia Industry Collaboration Center, Research Institute of Environmental Medicine, Nagoya University, Nagoya 464-8601, Japan
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +81-52-744-2674; Fax: +81-52-744-2979
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12
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Eskandari-Sedighi G, Cortez LM, Yang J, Daude N, Shmeit K, Sim V, Westaway D. Quaternary Structure Changes for PrP Sc Predate PrP C Downregulation and Neuronal Death During Progression of Experimental Scrapie Disease. Mol Neurobiol 2021; 58:375-390. [PMID: 32959170 PMCID: PMC7695655 DOI: 10.1007/s12035-020-02112-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/28/2020] [Accepted: 09/01/2020] [Indexed: 01/20/2023]
Abstract
Prion diseases are fatal neurodegenerative diseases in mammals with the unique characteristics of misfolding and aggregation of the cellular prion protein (PrPC) to the scrapie prion (PrPSc). Although neuroinflammation and neuronal loss feature within the disease process, the details of PrPC/PrPSc molecular transition to generate different aggregated species, and the correlation between each species and sequence of cellular events in disease pathogenesis are not fully understood. In this study, using mice inoculated with the RML isolate of mouse-adapted scrapie as a model, we applied asymmetric flow field-flow fractionation to monitor PrPC and PrPSc particle sizes and we also measured seeding activity and resistance to proteases. For cellular analysis in brain tissue, we measured inflammatory markers and synaptic damage, and used the isotropic fractionator to measure neuronal loss; these techniques were applied at different timepoints in a cross-sectional study of disease progression. Our analyses align with previous reports defining significant decreases in PrPC levels at pre-clinical stages of the disease and demonstrate that these decreases become significant before neuronal loss. We also identified the earliest PrPSc assemblies at a timepoint equivalent to 40% elapsed time for the disease incubation period; we propose that these assemblies, mostly composed of proteinase K (PK)-sensitive species, play an important role in triggering disease pathogenesis. Lastly, we show that the PK-resistant assemblies of PrPSc that appear at timepoints close to the terminal stage have similar biophysical characteristics, and hence that preparative use of PK-digestion selects for this specific subpopulation. In sum, our data argue that qualitative, as well as quantitative, changes in PrP conformers occur at the midpoint of subclinical phase; these changes affect quaternary structure and may occur at the threshold where adaptive responses become inadequate to deal with pathogenic processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ghazaleh Eskandari-Sedighi
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
- Centre for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, 204 Brain and Aging Research Building, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2M8, Canada
| | - Leonardo M Cortez
- Centre for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, 204 Brain and Aging Research Building, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2M8, Canada
- Department of Medicine, Division of Neurology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Jing Yang
- Centre for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, 204 Brain and Aging Research Building, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2M8, Canada
| | - Nathalie Daude
- Centre for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, 204 Brain and Aging Research Building, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2M8, Canada
| | - Klinton Shmeit
- Centre for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, 204 Brain and Aging Research Building, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2M8, Canada
| | - Valerie Sim
- Centre for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, 204 Brain and Aging Research Building, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2M8, Canada
- Department of Medicine, Division of Neurology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - David Westaway
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada.
- Centre for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, 204 Brain and Aging Research Building, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2M8, Canada.
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13
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Wan YW, Al-Ouran R, Mangleburg CG, Perumal TM, Lee TV, Allison K, Swarup V, Funk CC, Gaiteri C, Allen M, Wang M, Neuner SM, Kaczorowski CC, Philip VM, Howell GR, Martini-Stoica H, Zheng H, Mei H, Zhong X, Kim JW, Dawson VL, Dawson TM, Pao PC, Tsai LH, Haure-Mirande JV, Ehrlich ME, Chakrabarty P, Levites Y, Wang X, Dammer EB, Srivastava G, Mukherjee S, Sieberts SK, Omberg L, Dang KD, Eddy JA, Snyder P, Chae Y, Amberkar S, Wei W, Hide W, Preuss C, Ergun A, Ebert PJ, Airey DC, Mostafavi S, Yu L, Klein HU, Carter GW, Collier DA, Golde TE, Levey AI, Bennett DA, Estrada K, Townsend TM, Zhang B, Schadt E, De Jager PL, Price ND, Ertekin-Taner N, Liu Z, Shulman JM, Mangravite LM, Logsdon BA. Meta-Analysis of the Alzheimer's Disease Human Brain Transcriptome and Functional Dissection in Mouse Models. Cell Rep 2020; 32:107908. [PMID: 32668255 PMCID: PMC7428328 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2020.107908] [Citation(s) in RCA: 155] [Impact Index Per Article: 38.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/02/2019] [Revised: 06/01/2020] [Accepted: 06/24/2020] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
We present a consensus atlas of the human brain transcriptome in Alzheimer's disease (AD), based on meta-analysis of differential gene expression in 2,114 postmortem samples. We discover 30 brain coexpression modules from seven regions as the major source of AD transcriptional perturbations. We next examine overlap with 251 brain differentially expressed gene sets from mouse models of AD and other neurodegenerative disorders. Human-mouse overlaps highlight responses to amyloid versus tau pathology and reveal age- and sex-dependent expression signatures for disease progression. Human coexpression modules enriched for neuronal and/or microglial genes broadly overlap with mouse models of AD, Huntington's disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and aging. Other human coexpression modules, including those implicated in proteostasis, are not activated in AD models but rather following other, unexpected genetic manipulations. Our results comprise a cross-species resource, highlighting transcriptional networks altered by human brain pathophysiology and identifying correspondences with mouse models for AD preclinical studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ying-Wooi Wan
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurologic Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Rami Al-Ouran
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurologic Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Carl G Mangleburg
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurologic Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | | | - Tom V Lee
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurologic Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Department of Neurology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Katherine Allison
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurologic Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Department of Neurology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Vivek Swarup
- Department of Neurobiology and Behavior, University of California, Irvine, CA 92697, USA
| | - Cory C Funk
- Institute for Systems Biology, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Chris Gaiteri
- Rush Alzheimer's Disease Center, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Mariet Allen
- Mayo Clinic, Department of Neuroscience, Jacksonville, FL 32224, USA
| | - Minghui Wang
- Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Mount Sinai Center for Transformative Disease Modeling, Icahn Institute for Data Science and Genomic Technology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, One Gustave L. Levy Place, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | | | | | | | | | | | - Hui Zheng
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Huffington Center on Aging, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Hongkang Mei
- Neuroscience DPU, Shanghai R&D, GlaxoSmithKline, Shanghai, China
| | - Xiaoyan Zhong
- Neuroscience DPU, Shanghai R&D, GlaxoSmithKline, Shanghai, China
| | - Jungwoo Wren Kim
- Neuroregeneration and Stem Cell Programs, Institute for Cell Engineering, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA; Department of Physiology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - Valina L Dawson
- Neuroregeneration and Stem Cell Programs, Institute for Cell Engineering, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA; Department of Physiology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA; Solomon H. Snyder Department of Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA; Adrienne Helis Malvin & Diana Helis Henry Medical Research Foundations, New Orleans, LA 70130, USA; Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - Ted M Dawson
- Neuroregeneration and Stem Cell Programs, Institute for Cell Engineering, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA; Solomon H. Snyder Department of Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA; Adrienne Helis Malvin & Diana Helis Henry Medical Research Foundations, New Orleans, LA 70130, USA; Department of Pharmacology and Molecular Sciences, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA; Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - Ping-Chieh Pao
- The Picower Institute for Learning and Memory, Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; Broad Institute of Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Li-Huei Tsai
- The Picower Institute for Learning and Memory, Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; Broad Institute of Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Jean-Vianney Haure-Mirande
- Departments of Neurology and Pediatrics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, One Gustave L. Levy Place, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Michelle E Ehrlich
- Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Mount Sinai Center for Transformative Disease Modeling, Icahn Institute for Data Science and Genomic Technology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, One Gustave L. Levy Place, New York, NY 10029, USA; Departments of Neurology and Pediatrics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, One Gustave L. Levy Place, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Paramita Chakrabarty
- Evelyn F. and William L. McKnight Brain Institute, Center for Translational Research in Neurodegenerative Disease, Department of Neuroscience, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA
| | - Yona Levites
- Evelyn F. and William L. McKnight Brain Institute, Center for Translational Research in Neurodegenerative Disease, Department of Neuroscience, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA
| | - Xue Wang
- Mayo Clinic, Department of Neuroscience, Jacksonville, FL 32224, USA; Mayo Clinic, Department of Health Sciences Research, Jacksonville, FL 32224, USA
| | - Eric B Dammer
- Department of Biochemistry, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Sandeep Amberkar
- Sheffield Institute of Translational Neuroscience, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, S10 2HQ, UK; Molecular Oncology Lab, Cancer Research UK - Manchester Institute, The University of Manchester, Manchester, SK10 4TG, UK
| | - Wenbin Wei
- Sheffield Institute of Translational Neuroscience, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, S10 2HQ, UK; Department of Biosciences, Durham University, Durham, DH1 3LE, UK
| | - Winston Hide
- Sheffield Institute of Translational Neuroscience, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, S10 2HQ, UK; Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | | | - Ayla Ergun
- Translational Genome Sciences, Biogen, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Phillip J Ebert
- Eli Lilly & Company, Lilly Corporate Center, Indianapolis, IN 46285, USA
| | - David C Airey
- Eli Lilly & Company, Lilly Corporate Center, Indianapolis, IN 46285, USA
| | | | - Lei Yu
- Rush Alzheimer's Disease Center, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Hans-Ulrich Klein
- Center for Translational & Computational Neuroimmunology, Department of Neurology and Taub Institute for the Study of Alzheimer's Disease and the Aging Brain, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY 10032, USA; Cell Circuits Program, Broad Institute, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA
| | | | - David A Collier
- Eli Lilly & Company, Erl Wood Manor, Sunninghill Road, Windlesham, Surrey, GU20 6PH, UK
| | - Todd E Golde
- Evelyn F. and William L. McKnight Brain Institute, Center for Translational Research in Neurodegenerative Disease, Department of Neuroscience, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA
| | - Allan I Levey
- Department of Neurology, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - David A Bennett
- Rush Alzheimer's Disease Center, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Karol Estrada
- Translational Genome Sciences, Biogen, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | | | - Bin Zhang
- Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Mount Sinai Center for Transformative Disease Modeling, Icahn Institute for Data Science and Genomic Technology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, One Gustave L. Levy Place, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Eric Schadt
- Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Mount Sinai Center for Transformative Disease Modeling, Icahn Institute for Data Science and Genomic Technology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, One Gustave L. Levy Place, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Philip L De Jager
- Center for Translational & Computational Neuroimmunology, Department of Neurology and Taub Institute for the Study of Alzheimer's Disease and the Aging Brain, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY 10032, USA; Cell Circuits Program, Broad Institute, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA
| | | | - Nilüfer Ertekin-Taner
- Mayo Clinic, Department of Neuroscience, Jacksonville, FL 32224, USA; Mayo Clinic, Department of Neurology, Jacksonville, FL 32224, USA
| | - Zhandong Liu
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurologic Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
| | - Joshua M Shulman
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurologic Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Department of Neurology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Huffington Center on Aging, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Department of Neuroscience, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
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14
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Pahrudin Arrozi A, Shukri SNS, Wan Ngah WZ, Mohd Yusof YA, Ahmad Damanhuri MH, Jaafar F, Makpol S. Comparative Effects of Alpha- and Gamma-Tocopherol on Mitochondrial Functions in Alzheimer's Disease In Vitro Model. Sci Rep 2020; 10:8962. [PMID: 32488024 PMCID: PMC7265356 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-65570-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/25/2019] [Accepted: 05/04/2020] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Vitamin E acts as an antioxidant and reduces the level of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in Alzheimer's disease (AD). Alpha-tocopherol (ATF) is the most widely studied form of vitamin E besides gamma-tocopherol (GTF) which also shows beneficial effects in AD. The levels of amyloid-beta (Aβ) and amyloid precursor protein (APP) increased in the brains of AD patients, and mutations in the APP gene are known to enhance the production of Aβ. Mitochondrial function was shown to be affected by the increased level of Aβ and may induce cell death. Here, we aimed to compare the effects of ATF and GTF on their ability to reduce Aβ level, modulate mitochondrial function and reduce the apoptosis marker in SH-SY5Y cells stably transfected with the wild-type or mutant form of the APP gene. The Aβ level was measured by ELISA, the mitochondrial ROS and ATP level were quantified by fluorescence and luciferase assay respectively whereas the complex V enzyme activity was measured by spectrophotometry. The expressions of genes involved in the regulation of mitochondrial membrane permeability such as voltage dependent anion channel (VDAC1), adenine nucleotide translocase (ANT), and cyclophilin D (CYPD) were determined by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR), while the expressions of cyclophilin D (CypD), cytochrome c, Bcl2 associated X (BAX), B cell lymphoma-2 (Bcl-2), and pro-caspase-3 were determined by western blot. Our results showed that mitochondrial ROS level was elevated accompanied by decreased ATP level and complex V enzyme activity in SH-SY5Y cells expressing the mutant APP gene (p < 0.05). Treatment with both ATF and GTF reduced the mitochondrial ROS level with maximum reduction was observed in the cells treated with high concentrations of ATF and GTF (p < 0.05). However, only GTF at 80 µM significantly increase the ATP level and complex V enzyme activity (p < 0.05). VDAC1 and CYPD were downregulated and CypD protein was significantly overexpressed in cells transfected with the wild-type (WT) and mutant APP gene (p < 0.05). Cytochrome c release, the ratio of BAX/Bcl-2, and pro-caspase-3 expression increased in cells expressing mutated APP gene (p < 0.05). The expression of CypD and pro-caspase 3 protein, and the ratio of BAX/Bcl-2 were increased in the following order; SH-SY5Y-APP-WT < SH-SY5Y-APP Swe
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Affiliation(s)
- Aslina Pahrudin Arrozi
- Department of Biochemistry, Level 17, Preclinical Building, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Medical Centre, Jalan Yaacob Latif, Bandar Tun Razak, Cheras, 56000, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
| | - Siti Nur Syazwani Shukri
- Department of Biochemistry, Level 17, Preclinical Building, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Medical Centre, Jalan Yaacob Latif, Bandar Tun Razak, Cheras, 56000, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
| | - Wan Zurinah Wan Ngah
- Department of Biochemistry, Level 17, Preclinical Building, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Medical Centre, Jalan Yaacob Latif, Bandar Tun Razak, Cheras, 56000, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
| | - Yasmin Anum Mohd Yusof
- Department of Biochemistry, Level 17, Preclinical Building, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Medical Centre, Jalan Yaacob Latif, Bandar Tun Razak, Cheras, 56000, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
| | - Mohd Hanafi Ahmad Damanhuri
- Department of Biochemistry, Level 17, Preclinical Building, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Medical Centre, Jalan Yaacob Latif, Bandar Tun Razak, Cheras, 56000, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
| | - Faizul Jaafar
- Department of Biochemistry, Level 17, Preclinical Building, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Medical Centre, Jalan Yaacob Latif, Bandar Tun Razak, Cheras, 56000, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
| | - Suzana Makpol
- Department of Biochemistry, Level 17, Preclinical Building, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Medical Centre, Jalan Yaacob Latif, Bandar Tun Razak, Cheras, 56000, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
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15
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Mouse models of neurodegenerative disease: preclinical imaging and neurovascular component. Brain Imaging Behav 2017; 12:1160-1196. [PMID: 29075922 DOI: 10.1007/s11682-017-9770-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Neurodegenerative diseases represent great challenges for basic science and clinical medicine because of their prevalence, pathologies, lack of mechanism-based treatments, and impacts on individuals. Translational research might contribute to the study of neurodegenerative diseases. The mouse has become a key model for studying disease mechanisms that might recapitulate in part some aspects of the corresponding human diseases. Neurodegenerative disorders are very complicated and multifactorial. This has to be taken in account when testing drugs. Most of the drugs screening in mice are very difficult to be interpretated and often useless. Mouse models could be condiderated a 'pathway models', rather than as models for the whole complicated construct that makes a human disease. Non-invasive in vivo imaging in mice has gained increasing interest in preclinical research in the last years thanks to the availability of high-resolution single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT), positron emission tomography (PET), high field Magnetic resonance, Optical Imaging scanners and of highly specific contrast agents. Behavioral test are useful tool to characterize different animal models of neurodegenerative pathology. Furthermore, many authors have observed vascular pathological features associated to the different neurodegenerative disorders. Aim of this review is to focus on the different existing animal models of neurodegenerative disorders, describe behavioral tests and preclinical imaging techniques used for diagnose and describe the vascular pathological features associated to these diseases.
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16
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Eskandari-Sedighi G, Daude N, Gapeshina H, Sanders DW, Kamali-Jamil R, Yang J, Shi B, Wille H, Ghetti B, Diamond MI, Janus C, Westaway D. The CNS in inbred transgenic models of 4-repeat Tauopathy develops consistent tau seeding capacity yet focal and diverse patterns of protein deposition. Mol Neurodegener 2017; 12:72. [PMID: 28978354 PMCID: PMC5628424 DOI: 10.1186/s13024-017-0215-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2017] [Accepted: 09/27/2017] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND MAPT mutations cause neurodegenerative diseases such as frontotemporal dementia but, strikingly, patients with the same mutation may have different clinical phenotypes. METHODS Given heterogeneities observed in a transgenic (Tg) mouse line expressing low levels of human (2 N, 4R) P301L Tau, we backcrossed founder stocks of mice to C57BL/6Tac, 129/SvEvTac and FVB/NJ inbred backgrounds to discern the role of genetic versus environmental effects on disease-related phenotypes. RESULTS Three inbred derivatives of a TgTauP301L founder line had similar quality and steady-state quantity of Tau production, accumulation of abnormally phosphorylated 64-68 kDa Tau species from 90 days of age onwards and neuronal loss in aged Tg mice. Variegation was not seen in the pattern of transgene expression and seeding properties in a fluorescence-based cellular assay indicated a single "strain" of misfolded Tau. However, in other regards, the aged Tg mice were heterogeneous; there was incomplete penetrance for Tau deposition despite maintained transgene expression in aged animals and, for animals with Tau deposits, distinctions were noted even within each subline. Three classes of rostral deposition in the cortex, hippocampus and striatum accounted for 75% of pathology-positive mice yet the mean ages of mice scored as class I, II or III were not significantly different and, hence, did not fit with a predictable progression from one class to another defined by chronological age. Two other patterns of Tau deposition designated as classes IV and V, occurred in caudal structures. Other pathology-positive Tg mice of similar age not falling within classes I-V presented with focal accumulations in additional caudal neuroanatomical areas including the locus coeruleus. Electron microscopy revealed that brains of Classes I, II and IV animals all exhibit straight filaments, but with coiled filaments and occasional twisted filaments apparent in Class I. Most strikingly, Class I, II and IV animals presented with distinct western blot signatures after trypsin digestion of sarkosyl-insoluble Tau. CONCLUSIONS Qualitative variations in the neuroanatomy of Tau deposition in genetically constrained slow models of primary Tauopathy establish that non-synchronous, focal events contribute to the pathogenic process. Phenotypic diversity in these models suggests a potential parallel to the phenotypic variation seen in P301L patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ghazaleh Eskandari-Sedighi
- Centre for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, 204 Brain and Aging Research Building, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2M8, Canada.,Department of Biochemistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Nathalie Daude
- Centre for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, 204 Brain and Aging Research Building, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2M8, Canada
| | - Hristina Gapeshina
- Centre for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, 204 Brain and Aging Research Building, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2M8, Canada
| | - David W Sanders
- Center for Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Diseases, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, USA
| | - Razieh Kamali-Jamil
- Centre for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, 204 Brain and Aging Research Building, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2M8, Canada.,Department of Biochemistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Jing Yang
- Centre for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, 204 Brain and Aging Research Building, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2M8, Canada
| | - Beipei Shi
- Centre for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, 204 Brain and Aging Research Building, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2M8, Canada
| | - Holger Wille
- Centre for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, 204 Brain and Aging Research Building, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2M8, Canada.,Department of Biochemistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Bernardino Ghetti
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Indiana University, Indianapolis, USA
| | - Marc I Diamond
- Center for Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Diseases, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, USA
| | - Christopher Janus
- Center for Translational Research in Neurodegenerative Disease, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - David Westaway
- Centre for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, 204 Brain and Aging Research Building, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2M8, Canada. .,Department of Biochemistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada.
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17
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Kaur G, Pawlik M, Gandy SE, Ehrlich ME, Smiley JF, Levy E. Lysosomal dysfunction in the brain of a mouse model with intraneuronal accumulation of carboxyl terminal fragments of the amyloid precursor protein. Mol Psychiatry 2017; 22:981-989. [PMID: 27777419 PMCID: PMC5405008 DOI: 10.1038/mp.2016.189] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2016] [Revised: 08/05/2016] [Accepted: 08/25/2016] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
Abstract
Recent data suggest that intraneuronal accumulation of metabolites of the amyloid-β-precursor protein (APP) is neurotoxic. We observed that transgenic mice overexpressing in neurons a human APP gene harboring the APPE693Q (Dutch) mutation have intraneuronal lysosomal accumulation of APP carboxylterminal fragments (APP-CTFs) and oligomeric amyloid β (oAβ) but no histological evidence of amyloid deposition. Morphometric quantification using the lysosomal marker protein 2 (LAMP-2) immunolabeling showed higher neuronal lysosomal counts in brain of 12-months-old APPE693Q as compared with age-matched non-transgenic littermates, and western blots showed increased lysosomal proteins including LAMP-2, cathepsin D and LC3. At 24 months of age, these mice also exhibited an accumulation of α-synuclein in the brain, along with increased conversion of LC3-I to LC3-II, an autophagosomal/autolysosomal marker. In addition to lysosomal changes at 12 months of age, these mice developed cholinergic neuronal loss in the basal forebrain, GABAergic neuronal loss in the cortex, hippocampus and basal forebrain and gliosis and microgliosis in the hippocampus. These findings suggest a role for the intraneuronal accumulation of oAβ and APP-CTFs and resultant lysosomal pathology at early stages of Alzheimer's disease-related pathology.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Sam E. Gandy
- Departments of Neurology and Psychiatry, and Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, and James J. Peters Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Bronx, NY, USA
| | - Michelle E. Ehrlich
- Departments of Neurology and Pediatrics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - John F. Smiley
- Nathan S. Kline Institute, Orangeburg, NY, USA,Department of Psychiatry, NYU Langone Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Efrat Levy
- Nathan S. Kline Institute, Orangeburg, NY, USA,Department of Psychiatry, NYU Langone Medical Center, New York, NY, USA,Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, NYU Langone Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
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18
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Ngwenya A, Nahirney J, Brinkman B, Williams L, Iwaniuk AN. Comparison of estimates of neuronal number obtained using the isotropic fractionator method and unbiased stereology in day old chicks (Gallus domesticus). J Neurosci Methods 2017; 287:39-46. [PMID: 28587893 DOI: 10.1016/j.jneumeth.2017.05.025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2017] [Revised: 05/28/2017] [Accepted: 05/30/2017] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The relative size and neuronal density of brain regions are important metrics in both comparative and experimental studies in neuroscience. Consequently, it is imperative to have accurate, reliable and reproducible methods of quantifying cell number. NEW METHOD The isotropic fractionator (IF) method estimates the number of neurons and non-neurons in the central nervous system by homogenizing tissue into discrete nuclei and determining the proportion of neurons from non-neurons using immunohistochemistry (Herculano- Herculano-Houzel and Lent, 2005). COMPARISON WITH EXISTING METHOD One of the advantages of IF is that it is considerably faster than stereology. However, as the method is relatively new, concerns about its accuracy remain, particularly whether homogenization results in underestimation of cell number. In this study, we compared estimates of neuronal number in the telencephalon and 'rest of brain' (i.e. the diencephalon and brainstem excluding the optic lobes) of day old chicks using the IF method and stereology. RESULTS In the telencephalon, there was a significant difference in estimates of neuronal number between the 2 methods, but not estimates of neuronal density (neurons/mg of tissue). Whereas in the 'rest of brain', there was a significant difference in estimates of neuronal density, but not neuronal number. In all cases, stereological estimates were lower than those obtained using the IF method. CONCLUSION Despite the statistically significant differences, there was considerable overlap (all estimates were within 16% of one another) between estimates obtained using the two methods suggesting that the two methods provide comparable estimates of neuronal number in birds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ayanda Ngwenya
- Canadian Centre for Behavioural Neuroscience, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, AB, Canada.
| | - Janae Nahirney
- Canadian Centre for Behavioural Neuroscience, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, AB, Canada
| | - Ben Brinkman
- Canadian Centre for Behavioural Neuroscience, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, AB, Canada
| | - Lauren Williams
- Canadian Centre for Behavioural Neuroscience, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, AB, Canada
| | - Andrew N Iwaniuk
- Canadian Centre for Behavioural Neuroscience, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, AB, Canada
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19
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von Bartheld CS, Bahney J, Herculano-Houzel S. The search for true numbers of neurons and glial cells in the human brain: A review of 150 years of cell counting. J Comp Neurol 2016; 524:3865-3895. [PMID: 27187682 PMCID: PMC5063692 DOI: 10.1002/cne.24040] [Citation(s) in RCA: 552] [Impact Index Per Article: 69.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2015] [Revised: 05/13/2016] [Accepted: 05/16/2016] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
For half a century, the human brain was believed to contain about 100 billion neurons and one trillion glial cells, with a glia:neuron ratio of 10:1. A new counting method, the isotropic fractionator, has challenged the notion that glia outnumber neurons and revived a question that was widely thought to have been resolved. The recently validated isotropic fractionator demonstrates a glia:neuron ratio of less than 1:1 and a total number of less than 100 billion glial cells in the human brain. A survey of original evidence shows that histological data always supported a 1:1 ratio of glia to neurons in the entire human brain, and a range of 40-130 billion glial cells. We review how the claim of one trillion glial cells originated, was perpetuated, and eventually refuted. We compile how numbers of neurons and glial cells in the adult human brain were reported and we examine the reasons for an erroneous consensus about the relative abundance of glial cells in human brains that persisted for half a century. Our review includes a brief history of cell counting in human brains, types of counting methods that were and are employed, ranges of previous estimates, and the current status of knowledge about the number of cells. We also discuss implications and consequences of the new insights into true numbers of glial cells in the human brain, and the promise and potential impact of the newly validated isotropic fractionator for reliable quantification of glia and neurons in neurological and psychiatric diseases. J. Comp. Neurol. 524:3865-3895, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Jami Bahney
- Department of Physiology and Cell Biology, University of Nevada School of Medicine, Reno, Nevada, USA
| | - Suzana Herculano-Houzel
- Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, and Instituto Nacional de Neurociência Translacional, CNPq/MCT, Brasil
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20
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von Bartheld CS, Bahney J, Herculano-Houzel S. The search for true numbers of neurons and glial cells in the human brain: A review of 150 years of cell counting. J Comp Neurol 2016; 524:3865-3895. [PMID: 27187682 DOI: 10.1002/cne.2404] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2015] [Revised: 05/13/2016] [Accepted: 05/16/2016] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
For half a century, the human brain was believed to contain about 100 billion neurons and one trillion glial cells, with a glia:neuron ratio of 10:1. A new counting method, the isotropic fractionator, has challenged the notion that glia outnumber neurons and revived a question that was widely thought to have been resolved. The recently validated isotropic fractionator demonstrates a glia:neuron ratio of less than 1:1 and a total number of less than 100 billion glial cells in the human brain. A survey of original evidence shows that histological data always supported a 1:1 ratio of glia to neurons in the entire human brain, and a range of 40-130 billion glial cells. We review how the claim of one trillion glial cells originated, was perpetuated, and eventually refuted. We compile how numbers of neurons and glial cells in the adult human brain were reported and we examine the reasons for an erroneous consensus about the relative abundance of glial cells in human brains that persisted for half a century. Our review includes a brief history of cell counting in human brains, types of counting methods that were and are employed, ranges of previous estimates, and the current status of knowledge about the number of cells. We also discuss implications and consequences of the new insights into true numbers of glial cells in the human brain, and the promise and potential impact of the newly validated isotropic fractionator for reliable quantification of glia and neurons in neurological and psychiatric diseases. J. Comp. Neurol. 524:3865-3895, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Jami Bahney
- Department of Physiology and Cell Biology, University of Nevada School of Medicine, Reno, Nevada, USA
| | - Suzana Herculano-Houzel
- Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, and Instituto Nacional de Neurociência Translacional, CNPq/MCT, Brasil
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21
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Repetto IE, Monti R, Tropiano M, Tomasi S, Arbini A, Andrade-Moraes CH, Lent R, Vercelli A. The Isotropic Fractionator as a Tool for Quantitative Analysis in Central Nervous System Diseases. Front Cell Neurosci 2016; 10:190. [PMID: 27547177 PMCID: PMC4974250 DOI: 10.3389/fncel.2016.00190] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/23/2016] [Accepted: 07/19/2016] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
One major aim in quantitative and translational neuroscience is to achieve a precise and fast neuronal counting method to work on high throughput scale to obtain reliable results. Here, we tested the isotropic fractionator (IF) method for evaluating neuronal and non-neuronal cell loss in different models of central nervous system (CNS) pathologies. Sprague-Dawley rats underwent: (i) ischemic brain damage; (ii) intraperitoneal injection with kainic acid (KA) to induce epileptic seizures; and (iii) monolateral striatal injection with quinolinic acid (QA) mimicking human Huntington's disease. All specimens were processed for IF method and cell loss assessed. Hippocampus from KA-treated rats and striatum from QA-treated rats were carefully dissected using a dissection microscope and a rat brain matrix. Ischemic rat brains slices were first processed for TTC staining and then for IF. In the ischemic group the cell loss corresponded to the neuronal loss suggesting that hypoxia primarily affects neurons. Combining IF with TTC staining we could correlate the volume of lesion to the neuronal loss; by IF, we could assess that neuronal loss also occurs contralaterally to the ischemic side. In the epileptic group we observed a reduction of neuronal cells in treated rats, but also evaluated the changes in the number of non-neuronal cells in response to the hippocampal damage. In the QA model, there was a robust reduction of neuronal cells on ipsilateral striatum. This neuronal cell loss was not related to a drastic change in the total number of cells, being overcome by the increase in non-neuronal cells, thus suggesting that excitotoxic damage in the striatum strongly activates inflammation and glial proliferation. We concluded that the IF method could represent a simple and reliable quantitative technique to evaluate the effects of experimental lesions mimicking human diseases, and to consider the neuroprotective/anti-inflammatory effects of different treatments in the whole brain and also in discrete regions of interest, with the potential to investigate non-neuronal alterations. Moreover, IF could be used in addition or in substitution to classical stereological techniques or TTC staining used so far, since it is fast, precise and easily combined with complex molecular analysis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ivan E. Repetto
- Neuroscience Institute Cavalieri Ottolenghi, Department of Neuroscience, University of TurinTurin, Italy
| | - Riccardo Monti
- Neuroscience Institute Cavalieri Ottolenghi, Department of Neuroscience, University of TurinTurin, Italy
| | - Marta Tropiano
- Neuroscience Institute Cavalieri Ottolenghi, Department of Neuroscience, University of TurinTurin, Italy
| | - Simone Tomasi
- Child Study Center, Yale School of Medicine, New HavenCT, USA
| | - Alessia Arbini
- Neuroscience Institute Cavalieri Ottolenghi, Department of Neuroscience, University of TurinTurin, Italy
| | | | - Roberto Lent
- Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Federal University of Rio de JaneiroRio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Alessandro Vercelli
- Neuroscience Institute Cavalieri Ottolenghi, Department of Neuroscience, University of TurinTurin, Italy
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22
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Brautigam H, Moreno CL, Steele JW, Bogush A, Dickstein DL, Kwok JBJ, Schofield PR, Thinakaran G, Mathews PM, Hof PR, Gandy S, Ehrlich ME. Physiologically generated presenilin 1 lacking exon 8 fails to rescue brain PS1-/- phenotype and forms complexes with wildtype PS1 and nicastrin. Sci Rep 2015; 5:17042. [PMID: 26608390 PMCID: PMC4660297 DOI: 10.1038/srep17042] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2015] [Accepted: 10/20/2015] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
The presenilin 1 (PSEN1) L271V mutation causes early-onset familial Alzheimer’s disease by disrupting the alternative splicing of the PSEN1 gene, producing some transcripts harboring the L271V point mutation and other transcripts lacking exon 8 (PS1∆exon8). We previously reported that PS1 L271V increased amyloid beta (Aβ) 42/40 ratios, while PS1∆exon8 reduced Aβ42/40 ratios, indicating that the former and not the exon 8 deletion transcript is amyloidogenic. Also, PS1∆exon8 did not rescue Aβ generation in PS1/2 double knockout cells indicating its identity as a severe loss-of-function splice form. PS1∆exon8 is generated physiologically raising the possibility that we had identified the first physiological inactive PS1 isoform. We studied PS1∆exon8in vivo by crossing PS1∆exon8 transgenics with either PS1-null or Dutch APPE693Q mice. As a control, we crossed APPE693Q with mice expressing a deletion in an adjacent exon (PS1∆exon9). PS1∆exon8 did not rescue embryonic lethality or Notch-deficient phenotypes of PS1-null mice displaying severe loss of function in vivo. We also demonstrate that this splice form can interact with wildtype PS1 using cultured cells and co-immunoprecipitation (co-IP)/bimolecular fluorescence complementation. Further co-IP demonstrates that PS1∆exon8 interacts with nicastrin, participating in the γ–secretase complex formation. These data support that catalytically inactive PS1∆exon8 is generated physiologically and participates in protein-protein interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hannah Brautigam
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029.,Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029.,Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029.,Ronald M. Loeb Center for Alzheimer's Disease, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029.,School of Pharmacy, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53706
| | - Cesar L Moreno
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029.,Department of Neurology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029.,Department of Pediatrics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029.,Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029.,Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029.,Ronald M. Loeb Center for Alzheimer's Disease, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029
| | - John W Steele
- Department of Neurology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029.,Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029.,Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine,University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92037.,Department of Preclinical Biology, OrPhi Therapeutics, Carlsbad, CA 92008
| | - Alexey Bogush
- Department of Physiology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, PA 19104
| | - Dara L Dickstein
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029.,Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029.,Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029.,Ronald M. Loeb Center for Alzheimer's Disease, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029
| | - John B J Kwok
- Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, NSW 2031, Australia.,School of Medical Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia
| | - Peter R Schofield
- Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, NSW 2031, Australia.,School of Medical Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia
| | - Gopal Thinakaran
- Departments of Neurobiology, Neurology, and Pathology, The University of Chicago, IL 60637
| | - Paul M Mathews
- Department of Psychiatry, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY 10016.,Nathan Kline Institute Center for Dementia Research, Orangeburg, NY 10962
| | - Patrick R Hof
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029.,Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029.,Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029.,Ronald M. Loeb Center for Alzheimer's Disease, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029
| | - Sam Gandy
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029.,Department of Neurology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029.,Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029.,Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029.,Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029.,James J. Peters VA Medical Center, Bronx, NY 10468
| | - Michelle E Ehrlich
- Department of Neurology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029.,Department of Pediatrics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029.,Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029.,Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029.,Ronald M. Loeb Center for Alzheimer's Disease, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029.,Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029
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23
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Oliveira-Pinto AV, Andrade-Moraes CH, Oliveira LM, Parente-Bruno DR, Santos RM, Coutinho RA, Alho ATL, Leite REP, Suemoto CK, Grinberg LT, Pasqualucci CA, Jacob-Filho W, Lent R. Do age and sex impact on the absolute cell numbers of human brain regions? Brain Struct Funct 2015; 221:3547-59. [PMID: 26416171 DOI: 10.1007/s00429-015-1118-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2015] [Accepted: 09/23/2015] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
What is the influence of sex and age on the quantitative cell composition of the human brain? By using the isotropic fractionator to estimate absolute cell numbers in selected brain regions, we looked for sex- and age-related differences in 32 medial temporal lobes (comprised basically by the hippocampal formation, amygdala and parahippocampal gyrus), sixteen male (29-92 years) and sixteen female (25-82); and 31 cerebella, seventeen male (29-92 years) and fourteen female (25-82). These regions were dissected from the brain, fixed and homogenized, and then labeled with a DNA-marker (to count all nuclei) and with a neuron-specific nuclear marker (to estimate neuron number). Total number of cells in the medial temporal lobe was found to be 1.91 billion in men, and 1.47 billion in women, a difference of 23 %. This region showed 34 % more neurons in men than in women: 525.1 million against 347.4 million. In contrast, no sex differences were found in the cerebellum. Regarding the influence of age, a quadratic correlation was found between neuronal numbers and age in the female medial temporal lobe, suggesting an early increase followed by slight decline after age 50. The cerebellum showed numerical stability along aging for both neurons and non-neuronal cells. In sum, results indicate a sex-related regional difference in total and neuronal cell numbers in the medial temporal lobe, but not in the cerebellum. On the other hand, aging was found to impact on cell numbers in the medial temporal lobe, while the cerebellum proved resilient to neuronal losses in the course of life.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ana V Oliveira-Pinto
- Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Carlos H Andrade-Moraes
- Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Lays M Oliveira
- Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | | | - Raquel M Santos
- Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Renan A Coutinho
- Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Ana T L Alho
- Brazilian Aging Brain Study Group, LIM 22, University of São Paulo Medical School, São Paulo, Brazil.,Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein, Brain Institute, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - Renata E P Leite
- Brazilian Aging Brain Study Group, LIM 22, University of São Paulo Medical School, São Paulo, Brazil.,Discipline of Geriatrics, University of São Paulo Medical School, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - Claudia K Suemoto
- Brazilian Aging Brain Study Group, LIM 22, University of São Paulo Medical School, São Paulo, Brazil.,Discipline of Geriatrics, University of São Paulo Medical School, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - Lea T Grinberg
- Brazilian Aging Brain Study Group, LIM 22, University of São Paulo Medical School, São Paulo, Brazil.,Department of Neurology and Pathology, University of California, San Francisco, USA
| | - Carlos A Pasqualucci
- Brazilian Aging Brain Study Group, LIM 22, University of São Paulo Medical School, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Wilson Jacob-Filho
- Brazilian Aging Brain Study Group, LIM 22, University of São Paulo Medical School, São Paulo, Brazil.,Discipline of Geriatrics, University of São Paulo Medical School, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - Roberto Lent
- Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. .,National Institute of Translational Neuroscience, Ministry of Science and Technology, São Paulo, Brazil. .,Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Av. Carlos Chagas 373, Sl. F1-31, Ilha do Fundão, Rio de Janeiro, CEP 21941-902, Brazil.
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24
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Herculano-Houzel S, von Bartheld CS, Miller DJ, Kaas JH. How to count cells: the advantages and disadvantages of the isotropic fractionator compared with stereology. Cell Tissue Res 2015; 360:29-42. [PMID: 25740200 DOI: 10.1007/s00441-015-2127-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 60] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2014] [Accepted: 01/15/2015] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
Abstract
The number of cells comprising biological structures represents fundamental information in basic anatomy, development, aging, drug tests, pathology and genetic manipulations. Obtaining unbiased estimates of cell numbers, however, was until recently possible only through stereological techniques, which require specific training, equipment, histological processing and appropriate sampling strategies applied to structures with a homogeneous distribution of cell bodies. An alternative, the isotropic fractionator (IF), became available in 2005 as a fast and inexpensive method that requires little training, no specific software and only a few materials before it can be used to quantify total numbers of neuronal and non-neuronal cells in a whole organ such as the brain or any dissectible regions thereof. This method entails transforming a highly anisotropic tissue into a homogeneous suspension of free-floating nuclei that can then be counted under the microscope or by flow cytometry and identified morphologically and immunocytochemically as neuronal or non-neuronal. We compare the advantages and disadvantages of each method and provide researchers with guidelines for choosing the best method for their particular needs. IF is as accurate as unbiased stereology and faster than stereological techniques, as it requires no elaborate histological processing or sampling paradigms, providing reliable estimates in a few days rather than many weeks. Tissue shrinkage is also not an issue, since the estimates provided are independent of tissue volume. The main disadvantage of IF, however, is that it necessarily destroys the tissue analyzed and thus provides no spatial information on the cellular composition of biological regions of interest.
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Affiliation(s)
- Suzana Herculano-Houzel
- Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil,
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25
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Steele JW, Brautigam H, Short JA, Sowa A, Shi M, Yadav A, Weaver CM, Westaway D, Fraser PE, St George-Hyslop PH, Gandy S, Hof PR, Dickstein DL. Early fear memory defects are associated with altered synaptic plasticity and molecular architecture in the TgCRND8 Alzheimer's disease mouse model. J Comp Neurol 2014; 522:2319-35. [PMID: 24415002 DOI: 10.1002/cne.23536] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2013] [Revised: 12/23/2013] [Accepted: 01/07/2014] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a complex and slowly progressing dementing disorder that results in neuronal and synaptic loss, deposition in brain of aberrantly folded proteins, and impairment of spatial and episodic memory. Most studies of mouse models of AD have employed analyses of cognitive status and assessment of amyloid burden, gliosis, and molecular pathology during disease progression. Here we sought to understand the behavioral, cellular, ultrastructural, and molecular changes that occur at a pathological stage equivalent to the early stages of human AD. We studied the TgCRND8 mouse, a model of aggressive AD amyloidosis, at an early stage of plaque pathology (3 months of age) in comparison to their wildtype littermates and assessed changes in cognition, neuron and spine structure, and expression of synaptic glutamate receptor proteins. We found that, at this age, TgCRND8 mice display substantial plaque deposition in the neocortex and hippocampus and impairment on cued and contextual memory tasks. Of particular interest, we also observed a significant decrease in the number of neurons in the hippocampus. Furthermore, analysis of CA1 neurons revealed significant changes in apical and basal dendritic spine types, as well as altered expression of GluN1 and GluA2 receptors. This change in molecular architecture within the hippocampus may reflect a rising representation of inherently less stable thin spine populations, which can cause cognitive decline. These changes, taken together with toxic insults from amyloid-β protein, may underlie the observed neuronal loss.
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Affiliation(s)
- John W Steele
- Laboratory of Molecular and Cellular Neuroscience, Rockefeller University, New York, NY, 10065, USA; Fishberg Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA; Department of Neurology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA.
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26
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Price KA, Varghese M, Sowa A, Yuk F, Brautigam H, Ehrlich ME, Dickstein DL. Altered synaptic structure in the hippocampus in a mouse model of Alzheimer's disease with soluble amyloid-β oligomers and no plaque pathology. Mol Neurodegener 2014; 9:41. [PMID: 25312309 PMCID: PMC4210526 DOI: 10.1186/1750-1326-9-41] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2014] [Accepted: 08/27/2014] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Mounting evidence suggests that soluble oligomers of amyloid-β (oAβ) represent the pertinent synaptotoxic form of Aβ in sporadic Alzheimer’s disease (AD); however, the mechanistic links between oAβ and synaptic degeneration remain elusive. Most in vivo experiments to date have been limited to examining the toxicity of oAβ in mouse models that also possess insoluble fibrillar Aβ (fAβ), and data generated from these models can lead to ambiguous interpretations. Our goal in the present study was to examine the effects of soluble oAβ on neuronal and synaptic structure in the amyloid precursor protein (APP) E693Q (“Dutch”) mouse model of AD, which develops intraneuronal accumulation of soluble oAβ with no detectable plaques in AD-relevant brain regions. We performed quantitative analyses of neuronal pathology, including dendrite morphology, spine density, and synapse ultrastructure in individual hippocampal CA1 neurons. Results When assessing neuronal morphology and complexity we observed significant alterations in apical but not in basal dendritic arbor length in Dutch mice compared to wild type. Moreover, Dutch mice exhibited a significant decrease in dendritic arborization with a decrease in dendritic length and number of intersections at 120 μm and 150 μm from the soma, respectively. We next examined synaptic parameters and found that while there were no differences in overall synaptic structure, Dutch mice displayed a significant reduction in the post-synaptic density (PSD) length of synapses on mushroom spines, in comparison to wild type littermates. Conclusion The structural alterations to individual neurons in Dutch mice along with the changes in larger dendritic spines support the Aβ oligomer hypothesis, which postulates that the early cognitive impairments that occur in AD are attributed to the accumulation of soluble oAβ first affecting at the synaptic level with subsequent structural disturbances and cellular degeneration. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/1750-1326-9-41) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | | | - Dara L Dickstein
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, One Gustave L, Levy Place, Box 1639, New York, NY 10029, USA.
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27
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Herculano-Houzel S. The glia/neuron ratio: how it varies uniformly across brain structures and species and what that means for brain physiology and evolution. Glia 2014; 62:1377-91. [PMID: 24807023 DOI: 10.1002/glia.22683] [Citation(s) in RCA: 366] [Impact Index Per Article: 36.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2012] [Revised: 10/03/2013] [Accepted: 04/18/2014] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
It is a widespread notion that the proportion of glial to neuronal cells in the brain increases with brain size, to the point that glial cells represent "about 90% of all cells in the human brain." This notion, however, is wrong on both counts: neither does the glia/neuron ratio increase uniformly with brain size, nor do glial cells represent the majority of cells in the human brain. This review examines the origin of interest in the glia/neuron ratio; the original evidence that led to the notion that it increases with brain size; the extent to which this concept can be applied to white matter and whole brains and the recent supporting evidence that the glia/neuron ratio does not increase with brain size, but rather, and in surprisingly uniform fashion, with decreasing neuronal density due to increasing average neuronal cell size, across brain structures and species. Variations in the glia/neuron ratio are proposed to be related not to the supposed larger metabolic cost of larger neurons (given that this cost is not found to vary with neuronal density), but simply to the large variation in neuronal sizes across brain structures and species in the face of less overall variation in glial cell sizes, with interesting implications for brain physiology. The emerging evidence that the glia/neuron ratio varies uniformly across the different brain structures of mammalian species that diverged as early as 90 million years ago in evolution highlights how fundamental for brain function must be the interaction between glial cells and neurons.
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Affiliation(s)
- Suzana Herculano-Houzel
- Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil; Instituto Nacional de Neurociência Translacional, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
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