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Bosch PJ, Kerr G, Cole R, Warwick CA, Wendt LH, Pradeep A, Bagnall E, Aldridge GM. Enhanced Spine Stability and Survival Lead to Increases in Dendritic Spine Density as an Early Response to Local Alpha-Synuclein Overexpression in Mouse Prefrontal Cortex. Cell Mol Neurobiol 2024; 44:42. [PMID: 38668880 PMCID: PMC11052719 DOI: 10.1007/s10571-024-01472-7] [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: 11/28/2023] [Accepted: 03/18/2024] [Indexed: 04/29/2024]
Abstract
Lewy Body Dementias (LBD), including Parkinson's disease dementia and Dementia with Lewy Bodies, are characterized by widespread accumulation of intracellular alpha-Synuclein protein deposits in regions beyond the brainstem, including in the cortex. However, the impact of local pathology in the cortex is unknown. To investigate this, we employed viral overexpression of human alpha-Synuclein protein targeting the mouse prefrontal cortex (PFC). We then used in vivo 2-photon microscopy to image awake head-fixed mice via an implanted chronic cranial window to assess the early consequences of alpha-Synuclein overexpression in the weeks following overexpression. We imaged apical tufts of Layer V pyramidal neurons in the PFC of Thy1-YFP transgenic mice at 1-week intervals from 1 to 2 weeks before and 9 weeks following viral overexpression, allowing analysis of dynamic changes in dendritic spines. We found an increase in the relative dendritic spine density following local overexpression of alpha-Synuclein, beginning at 5 weeks post-injection, and persisting for the remainder of the study. We found that alpha-Synuclein overexpression led to an increased percentage and longevity of newly-persistent spines, without significant changes in the total density of newly formed or eliminated spines. A follow-up study utilizing confocal microscopy revealed that the increased spine density is found in cortical cells within the alpha-Synuclein injection site, but negative for alpha-Synuclein phosphorylation at Serine-129, highlighting the potential for effects of dose and local circuits on spine survival. These findings have important implications for the physiological role and early pathological stages of alpha-Synuclein in the cortex.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter J Bosch
- Department of Neurology, Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa, 169 Newton Road, Pappajohn Biomedical Discovery Building, Iowa City, 52242, USA
| | - Gemma Kerr
- Department of Neurology, Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa, 169 Newton Road, Pappajohn Biomedical Discovery Building, Iowa City, 52242, USA
| | - Rachel Cole
- Department of Neurology, Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa, 169 Newton Road, Pappajohn Biomedical Discovery Building, Iowa City, 52242, USA
| | | | - Linder H Wendt
- Institute for Clinical and Translational Science, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Akash Pradeep
- Department of Neurology, Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa, 169 Newton Road, Pappajohn Biomedical Discovery Building, Iowa City, 52242, USA
| | - Emma Bagnall
- Department of Neurology, Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa, 169 Newton Road, Pappajohn Biomedical Discovery Building, Iowa City, 52242, USA
| | - Georgina M Aldridge
- Department of Neurology, Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa, 169 Newton Road, Pappajohn Biomedical Discovery Building, Iowa City, 52242, USA.
- Iowa Neuroscience Institute, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA.
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Hack W, Gladen-Kolarsky N, Chatterjee S, Liang Q, Maitra U, Ciesla L, Gray NE. Gardenin A treatment attenuates inflammatory markers, synuclein pathology and deficits in tyrosine hydroxylase expression and improves cognitive and motor function in A53T-α-syn mice. Biomed Pharmacother 2024; 173:116370. [PMID: 38458012 PMCID: PMC11017674 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopha.2024.116370] [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: 11/28/2023] [Revised: 02/27/2024] [Accepted: 02/28/2024] [Indexed: 03/10/2024] Open
Abstract
Oxidative stress and neuroinflammation are widespread in the Parkinson's disease (PD) brain and contribute to the synaptic degradation and dopaminergic cell loss that result in cognitive impairment and motor dysfunction. The polymethoxyflavone Gardenin A (GA) has been shown to activate the NRF2-regulated antioxidant pathway and inhibit the NFkB-dependent pro-inflammatory pathway in a Drosophila model of PD. Here, we evaluate the effects of GA on A53T alpha-synuclein overexpressing (A53TSyn) mice. A53TSyn mice were treated orally for 4 weeks with 0, 25, or 100 mg/kg GA. In the fourth week, mice underwent behavioral testing and tissue was harvested for immunohistochemical analysis of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) and phosphorylated alpha synuclein (pSyn) expression, and quantification of synaptic, antioxidant and inflammatory gene expression. Results were compared to vehicle-treated C57BL6J mice. Treatment with 100 mg/kg GA improved associative memory and decreased abnormalities in mobility and gait in A53TSyn mice. GA treatment also reduced pSyn levels in both the cortex and hippocampus and attenuated the reduction in TH expression in the striatum seen in A53Tsyn mice. Additionally, GA increased cortical expression of NRF2-regulated antioxidant genes and decreased expression of NFkB-dependent pro-inflammatory genes. GA was readily detectable in the brains of treated mice and modulated the lipid profile in the deep gray brain tissue of those animals. While the beneficial effects of GA on cognitive deficits, motor dysfunction and PD pathology are promising, future studies are needed to further fully elucidate the mechanism of action of GA, optimizing dosing and confirm these effects in other PD models.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wyatt Hack
- Oregon Health & Science University, Neurology, Portland, United States
| | | | | | - Qiaoli Liang
- University of Alabama, Mass spectrometry facility, Chemistry and Biochemistry, Tuscaloosa, United States
| | - Urmila Maitra
- University of Alabama, Biological Sciences, Tuscaloosa, United States
| | - Lukasz Ciesla
- University of Alabama, Biological Sciences, Tuscaloosa, United States.
| | - Nora E Gray
- Oregon Health & Science University, Neurology, Portland, United States.
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Thangavel R, Kaur H, Dubova I, Selvakumar GP, Ahmed ME, Raikwar SP, Govindarajan R, Kempuraj D. Parkinson's Disease Dementia Patients: Expression of Glia Maturation Factor in the Brain. Int J Mol Sci 2024; 25:1182. [PMID: 38256254 DOI: 10.3390/ijms25021182] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/09/2023] [Revised: 01/04/2024] [Accepted: 01/11/2024] [Indexed: 01/24/2024] Open
Abstract
Parkinson's disease (PD) is the second most common progressive neurodegenerative disease characterized by the presence of dopaminergic neuronal loss and motor disorders. PD dementia (PDD) is a cognitive disorder that affects many PD patients. We have previously demonstrated the proinflammatory role of the glia maturation factor (GMF) in neuroinflammation and neurodegeneration in AD, PD, traumatic brain injury (TBI), and experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) in human brains and animal models. The purpose of this study was to investigate the expression of the GMF in the human PDD brain. We analyzed the expression pattern of the GMF protein in conjunction with amyloid plaques (APs) and neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs) in the substantia nigra (SN) and striatum of PDD brains using immunostaining. We detected a large number of GMF-positive glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) reactive astrocytes, especially abundant in areas with degenerating dopaminergic neurons within the SN and striatum in PDD. Additionally, we observed excess levels of GMF in glial cells in the vicinity of APs, and NFTs in the SN and striatum of PDD and non-PDD patients. We found that the majority of GMF-positive immunoreactive glial cells were co-localized with GFAP-reactive astrocytes. Our findings suggest that the GMF may be involved in the pathogenesis of PDD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ramasamy Thangavel
- Department of Neurology, Center for Translational Neuroscience, School of Medicine, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65212, USA
| | - Harleen Kaur
- Department of Neurology, Center for Translational Neuroscience, School of Medicine, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65212, USA
| | - Iuliia Dubova
- Department of Neurology, Center for Translational Neuroscience, School of Medicine, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65212, USA
| | | | - Mohammad Ejaz Ahmed
- Department of Neurology, Center for Translational Neuroscience, School of Medicine, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65212, USA
| | - Sudhanshu P Raikwar
- Department of Neurology, Center for Translational Neuroscience, School of Medicine, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65212, USA
| | - Raghav Govindarajan
- Department of Neurology, Center for Translational Neuroscience, School of Medicine, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65212, USA
| | - Duraisamy Kempuraj
- Department of Neurology, Center for Translational Neuroscience, School of Medicine, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65212, USA
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