1
|
Rossi M, Kai H, Baiardi S, Bartoletti-Stella A, Carlà B, Zenesini C, Capellari S, Kitamoto T, Parchi P. The characterization of AD/PART co-pathology in CJD suggests independent pathogenic mechanisms and no cross-seeding between misfolded Aβ and prion proteins. Acta Neuropathol Commun 2019; 7:53. [PMID: 30961668 PMCID: PMC6454607 DOI: 10.1186/s40478-019-0706-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/08/2019] [Accepted: 03/21/2019] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Current evidence indicating a role of the human prion protein (PrP) in amyloid-beta (Aβ) formation or a synergistic effect between Aβ and prion pathology remains controversial. Conflicting results also concern the frequency of the association between the two protein misfolding disorders and the issue of whether the apolipoprotein E gene (APOE) and the prion protein gene (PRNP), the major modifiers of Aβ- and PrP-related pathologies, also have a pathogenic role in other proteinopathies, including tau neurofibrillary degeneration. Here, we thoroughly characterized the Alzheimer's disease/primary age-related tauopathy (AD/PART) spectrum in a series of 450 cases with definite sporadic or genetic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD). Moreover, we analyzed: (i) the effect of variables known to affect CJD pathogenesis and the co-occurring Aβ- and tau-related pathologies; (II) the influence of APOE genotype on CJD pathology, and (III) the effect of AD/PART co-pathology on the clinical CJD phenotype. AD/PART characterized 74% of CJD brains, with 53.3% and 8.2% showing low or intermediate-high levels of AD pathology, and 12.4 and 11.8% definite or possible PART. There was no significant correlation between variables affecting CJD (i.e., disease subtype, prion strain, PRNP genotype) and those defining the AD/PART spectrum (i.e., ABC score, Thal phase, prevalence of CAA and Braak stage), and no difference in the distribution of APOE ε4 and ε2 genotypes among CJD subtypes. Moreover, AD/PART co-pathology did not significantly affect the clinical presentation of typical CJD, except for a tendency to increase the frequency of cognitive symptoms. Altogether, the present results seem to exclude an increased prevalence AD/PART co-pathology in sporadic and genetic CJD, and indicate that largely independent pathogenic mechanisms drive AD/PART and CJD pathology even when they coexist in the same brain.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Marcello Rossi
- Department of Experimental, Diagnostic and Specialty Medicine (DIMES), University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
- IRCCS Istituto delle Scienze Neurologiche di Bologna, Ospedale Bellaria, Via Altura 1/8, 40139 Bologna, Italy
| | - Hideaki Kai
- IRCCS Istituto delle Scienze Neurologiche di Bologna, Ospedale Bellaria, Via Altura 1/8, 40139 Bologna, Italy
- Department of Neurological Sciences, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Sendai, Japan
| | - Simone Baiardi
- Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - Anna Bartoletti-Stella
- IRCCS Istituto delle Scienze Neurologiche di Bologna, Ospedale Bellaria, Via Altura 1/8, 40139 Bologna, Italy
| | - Benedetta Carlà
- IRCCS Istituto delle Scienze Neurologiche di Bologna, Ospedale Bellaria, Via Altura 1/8, 40139 Bologna, Italy
| | - Corrado Zenesini
- IRCCS Istituto delle Scienze Neurologiche di Bologna, Ospedale Bellaria, Via Altura 1/8, 40139 Bologna, Italy
| | - Sabina Capellari
- IRCCS Istituto delle Scienze Neurologiche di Bologna, Ospedale Bellaria, Via Altura 1/8, 40139 Bologna, Italy
- Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - Tetsuyuki Kitamoto
- Department of Neurological Sciences, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Sendai, Japan
| | - Piero Parchi
- Department of Experimental, Diagnostic and Specialty Medicine (DIMES), University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
- IRCCS Istituto delle Scienze Neurologiche di Bologna, Ospedale Bellaria, Via Altura 1/8, 40139 Bologna, Italy
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Cohen OS, Chapman J, Korczyn AD, Nitsan Z, Appel S, Kahana E, Rosenmann H, Hoffmann C. Disease duration in E200K familial Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease is correlated with clinical, radiological, and laboratory variables. J Neural Transm (Vienna) 2018; 126:607-611. [PMID: 30498951 DOI: 10.1007/s00702-018-1958-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/08/2018] [Accepted: 11/21/2018] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
Abstract
Previous studies have suggested that disease duration in Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) may be related to the radiological findings or cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) tau levels; however, it is not yet established whether clinical, radiological, and laboratory findings at diagnosis can predict survival or have a prognostic value. The aim of this study was to examine whether the disease duration is correlated with clinical, radiological, and laboratory variables. The study population consisted of consecutive familial CJD (fCJD) patients that were assessed within 1 week from the diagnosis including the CJD neurological scale (CJD-NS), Minimental Status Examination, Frontal Assessment Battery, NIH Stroke Scale, and the expanded disability status scale. In addition, a single MRI study was done and measurements of the extent of the cortical and subcortical involvement were performed. CSF was examined as part of the workout, and tau levels were determined. Sixty-nine fCJD patients were included in the study (43 males, mean age 59.3 ± 8.4, range 44-79 years). The mean disease duration was 7.3 ± 6.9 months (median 5.6 months, range 2-20 months). A significant correlation was found between the disease duration and the CJD-NS, the disease burden as reflected by the degree of cortical involvement by DWI, and the CSF tau levels. The findings of the current study reveal that several findings at disease onset including the disease severity, the cortical changes, and the tau levels are each individually correlated with disease duration and can be used by the clinician as a tool to predict the disease course and prognosis.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Oren S Cohen
- Department of Neurology, Assaf Harofeh Medical Center, 70300, Zerifin, Israel. .,Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel.
| | - Joab Chapman
- Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel.,Department of Neurology, Chaim Sheba Medical Center, Tel-Hashomer, Israel.,Robert and Martha Harden Chair in Mental and Neurological Diseases, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Amos D Korczyn
- Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Zeev Nitsan
- Department of Neurology, Barzilai Medical Center, Ashkelon, Israel
| | - Shmuel Appel
- Department of Neurology, Barzilai Medical Center, Ashkelon, Israel
| | - Esther Kahana
- Department of Neurology, Barzilai Medical Center, Ashkelon, Israel
| | - Hanna Rosenmann
- Department of Neurology, Hadassah Hebrew University Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Chen Hoffmann
- Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel.,Department of Radiology, Chaim Sheba Medical Center, Tel-Hashomer, Israel
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Smid J, Studart A, Landemberger MC, Machado CF, Nóbrega PR, Canedo NHS, Schultz RR, Naslavsky MS, Rosemberg S, Kok F, Chimelli L, Martins VR, Nitrini R. High phenotypic variability in Gerstmann-Sträussler-Scheinker disease. ARQUIVOS DE NEURO-PSIQUIATRIA 2017; 75:331-338. [PMID: 28658400 DOI: 10.1590/0004-282x20170049] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2017] [Accepted: 02/15/2017] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
Gerstmann-Sträussler-Scheinker is a genetic prion disease and the most common mutation is p.Pro102Leu. We report clinical, molecular and neuropathological data of seven individuals, belonging to two unrelated Brazilian kindreds, carrying the p.Pro102Leu. Marked differences among patients were observed regarding age at onset, disease duration and clinical presentation. In the first kindred, two patients had rapidly progressive dementia and three exhibited predominantly ataxic phenotypes with variable ages of onset and disease duration. In this family, age at disease onset in the mother and daughter differed by 39 years. In the second kindred, different phenotypes were also reported and earlier ages of onset were associated with 129 heterozygosis. No differences were associated with apoE genotype. In these kindreds, the codon 129 polymorphism could not explain the clinical variability and 129 heterozygosis was associated with earlier disease onset. Neuropathological examination in two patients confirmed the presence of typical plaques and PrPsc immunopositivity.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jerusa Smid
- Universidade de São Paulo, Faculdade de Medicina, Departamento de Neurologia, São Paulo SP, Brasil
| | - Adalberto Studart
- Universidade de São Paulo, Faculdade de Medicina, Departamento de Neurologia, São Paulo SP, Brasil
| | | | | | - Paulo Ribeiro Nóbrega
- Universidade Federal do Ceará, Faculdade de Medicina, Departamento de Neurologia, Fortaleza CE Brasil
| | | | - Rodrigo Rizek Schultz
- Universidade Federal de São Paulo, Seção de Neurologia Comportamental, São Paulo SP, Brasil
| | - Michel Satya Naslavsky
- Universidade de São Paulo, Instituto de Biociências, Centro de Estudos do Genoma Humano, São Paulo SP, Brasil
| | - Sérgio Rosemberg
- Universidade de São Paulo, Departamento de Patologia, Divisão de Neuropatologia, São Paulo SP, Brasil
| | - Fernando Kok
- Universidade de São Paulo, Faculdade de Medicina, Departamento de Neurologia, São Paulo SP, Brasil
| | - Leila Chimelli
- Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Departamento de Patologia, Rio de Janeiro RJ, Brasil
| | | | - Ricardo Nitrini
- Universidade de São Paulo, Faculdade de Medicina, Departamento de Neurologia, São Paulo SP, Brasil
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Tousseyn T, Bajsarowicz K, Sánchez H, Gheyara A, Oehler A, Geschwind M, DeArmond B, DeArmond SJ. Prion Disease Induces Alzheimer Disease-Like Neuropathologic Changes. J Neuropathol Exp Neurol 2015; 74:873-88. [PMID: 26226132 PMCID: PMC5094352 DOI: 10.1097/nen.0000000000000228] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
We examined the brains of 266 patients with prion disease (PrionD) and found that 46 patients (17%) had Alzheimer disease (AD)-like changes. To explore potential mechanistic links between PrionD and AD, we exposed human brain aggregates (BrnAggs) to a brain homogenate from a patient with sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease and found that neurons in human BrnAggs produced many β-amyloid (Aβ; Aβ42) inclusions, whereas uninfected control-exposed human BrnAggs did not. Western blot analysis of 20 pooled Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease-infected BrnAggs verified Aβ42 levels higher than those in controls. We next examined the CA1 region of the hippocampus from 14 patients with PrionD and found that 5 patients had low levels of scrapie-associated prion protein (PrP), many Aβ42 intraneuronal inclusions, low apolipoprotein E-4 (APOE-4), and no significant nerve cell loss. Seven patients had high levels of PrP, low Aβ42, high APOE-4, and 40% nerve cell loss, suggesting that APOE-4 and PrP together cause neuron loss in PrionD. There were also increased levels of hyperphosphorylated tau protein (Hτ) and Hτ-positive neuropil threads and neuron bodies in both PrionD and AD groups. The brains of 6 age-matched control patients without dementia did not contain Aβ42 deposits; however, there were rare Hτ-positive threads in 5 controls, and 2 controls had few Hτ-positive nerve cell bodies. We conclude that PrionD may trigger biochemical changes similar to those triggered by AD and suggest that PrionD is a disease involving PrP, Aβ42, APOE-4, and abnormal tau.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Tousseyn
- From the Department of Pathology (Neuropathology) (TT, KB, HS, AG, AO, BD, SJD), Department of Neurology (MG), Memory and Aging Center (MG), and Institute for Neurodegenerative Diseases (SJD), University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, California
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
5
|
Wei Y, Tang Y, He W, Qu Z, Zeng J, Qin C. APOE gene polymorphisms and susceptibility to Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. J Clin Neurosci 2013; 21:390-4. [PMID: 24332811 DOI: 10.1016/j.jocn.2013.07.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2013] [Revised: 05/29/2013] [Accepted: 07/04/2013] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Associations between apolipoprotein E (APOE) gene polymorphisms and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) have been reported, but the results from many of these studies are conflicting. To investigate the association between APOE polymorphisms and CJD risk, we performed a meta-analysis. We used odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) to assess the strength of the association. The frequency of putative risk alleles in control subjects was estimated with the Mantel-Haenszel method. Cochran's Q statistic and the inconsistency index (I(2)) were used to test heterogeneity. Egger's test and an inverted funnel plot were used to assess bias. Our study included 11 published case-control studies with APOE genotyping, involving a total of 1001 CJD patients and 1211 controls. Overall, the APOE 34 (OR 1.37, 95% CI: 1.09-1.72), and APOE 44 (OR 3.16, 95% CI: 1.37-7.26) genotypes and the APOE 4 (OR 1.41, 95% CI: 1.08-1.85) allele were associated with an increased risk of CJD, and the APOE 33 (OR 0.81, 95% CI: 0.67-0.97) genotype tended to protect against CJD. However, we did not find significant evidence supporting associations of the APOE 22 (OR 1.15, 95% CI: 0.45-2.93), APOE 23 (OR 0.84, 95% CI: 0.64-1.09), or APOE 24 (OR 1.40, 95% CI: 0.70-2.77) genotypes, nor the APOE 2 (OR 1.02, 95% CI: 0.73-1.42) or APOE 3 (OR 0.82, 95% CI: 0.65-1.02) alleles with CJD using a fixed-effects model. Our results support a genetic association between APOE polymorphisms and CJD.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yunfei Wei
- Department of Neurology, First Affiliated Hospital, Guangxi Medical University, No. 22, Shuang Yong Lu, Nanning 530021, Guangxi, China
| | - Yanyan Tang
- Department of Neurology, First Affiliated Hospital, Guangxi Medical University, No. 22, Shuang Yong Lu, Nanning 530021, Guangxi, China
| | - Wenwu He
- Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Nanchong Central Hospital, The Second Clinical College of North Sichuan Medical College, Nanchong, Sichuan, China
| | - Zhanli Qu
- Department of Neurology, First Affiliated Hospital, Guangxi Medical University, No. 22, Shuang Yong Lu, Nanning 530021, Guangxi, China
| | - Jinming Zeng
- Department of Anesthesiology, Nanchong Central Hospital, The Second Clinical College of North Sichuan Medical College, Nanchong, Sichuan, China
| | - Chao Qin
- Department of Neurology, First Affiliated Hospital, Guangxi Medical University, No. 22, Shuang Yong Lu, Nanning 530021, Guangxi, China.
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Appel SA, Chapman J, Kahana E, Rosenmann H, Prohovnik I, Pras E, Reznik-Wolf H, Cohen OS. Rapidly progressive Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in patients with Familial Mediterranean Fever. Eur J Neurol 2010; 17:861-5. [PMID: 20113338 DOI: 10.1111/j.1468-1331.2010.02948.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The largest cluster of familial Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (fCJD) exists in Jews of Libyan origin. Familial Mediterranean fever (FMF) is an inflammatory disease also common in this population. OBJECTIVES We hypothesized that FMF, as a pro-inflammatory condition, may affect the course of CJD. METHODS Three hundred and seventy-two consecutive patients diagnosed clinically and genetically as CJD were included in the study. Two hundred and thirty-six had fCJD, and 136 had sporadic disease (sCJD). Review of the patient's records revealed three patients with FMF-CJD co-morbidity. In addition, 50 DNA samples of patients with CJD were genotyped as homozygote, heterozygote, and non-carriers of the FMF mutation. The demographic and clinical variables of the groups were compared. RESULTS The three patients with FMF had an earlier age of onset and significantly shorter disease duration than the patients without FMF. Heterozygote carriers did not differ in disease onset and duration from patients without FMF. CONCLUSIONS The shorter disease duration of CJD patients with FMF may indicate the importance of pro-inflammatory factors in the disease.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- S A Appel
- Department of Neurology, The Sagol Neuroscience Center at the Chaim Sheba Medical Center affiliated to the Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Hashomer, Israel
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
7
|
ApoE distribution and family history in genetic prion diseases in Germany. J Mol Neurosci 2007; 34:45-50. [PMID: 18157657 DOI: 10.1007/s12031-007-9001-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/06/2007] [Accepted: 08/10/2007] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
Abstract
We analyzed the ApoE genotype in patients with genetic prion diseases (gPD) with respect to family history (FH) of dementia/prion disease (PD) compared to non-demented controls. Fifty-nine gPD patients and 51 sex-/age-matched controls were included. A positive FH of dementia and PD (PFH) were evaluated. The prion protein gene (PRNP) codon 129 and ApoE genotype were determined by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The frequency of FH of neurodegenerative disorder/prion disease/dementia varied in different PRNP mutations. PFH was found in 87% of D178N patients, but was rarer in others. Although the ApoE genotype distribution was not significantly different between gPD patients and controls, the protective E2 alleles were more frequent in controls than in patients without a PFH and even less frequent in those with a PFH (18, 16, and 11%). E4 alleles as a risk factor of Alzheimer's disease were more common in controls and patients with a PFH than in those without PFH (25, 21, and 13%). No effect of the codon 129 genotype was detected. Only about two-thirds of gPD patients had PFH of PD, while in one-third, PFH of slowly progressive dementia was reported. Underreporting of PFH of gPD may play a role; however, the varying PFH frequency across various mutations is not explained by this factor only.
Collapse
|
8
|
Steiner J, Haughey N, Li W, Venkatesan A, Anderson C, Reid R, Malpica T, Pocernich C, Butterfield DA, Nath A. Oxidative stress and therapeutic approaches in HIV dementia. Antioxid Redox Signal 2006; 8:2089-100. [PMID: 17034352 DOI: 10.1089/ars.2006.8.2089] [Citation(s) in RCA: 48] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
Abstract
Despite the rapidly increasing incidence of HIV infection worldwide and the increasing prevalence of HIVassociated cognitive impairment, even in patients adequately treated with antiretroviral therapy, currently no effective treatment exists for HIV dementia. A broad range of studies using either brain or cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) tissues from well-characterized patients with HIV dementia, animal models, and in vitro studies from several laboratories using HIV-infected cells or HIV proteins provide overwhelming evidence for oxidative stress in mediating neuronal injury in this patient population. These studies also suggest that patients with apolipoprotein E (ApoE) 4 allele are more susceptible to such oxidative damage. In this review, we provide a critical analysis of these studies, including the few clinical trials that have used antioxidants to treat HIV dementia. We also discuss several novel agents with potent antioxidative properties and provide a rationale for combination antioxidant and neuroprotective therapy.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Joseph Steiner
- Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
9
|
Collinge J, Whitfield J, McKintosh E, Beck J, Mead S, Thomas DJ, Alpers MP. Kuru in the 21st century--an acquired human prion disease with very long incubation periods. Lancet 2006; 367:2068-74. [PMID: 16798390 DOI: 10.1016/s0140-6736(06)68930-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 240] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Kuru provides the principal experience of epidemic human prion disease. Its incidence has steadily fallen after the abrupt cessation of its route of transmission (endocannibalism) in Papua New Guinea in the 1950s. The onset of variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD), and the unknown prevalence of infection after the extensive dietary exposure to bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) prions in the UK, has led to renewed interest in kuru. We investigated possible incubation periods, pathogenesis, and genetic susceptibility factors in kuru patients in Papua New Guinea. METHODS We strengthened active kuru surveillance in 1996 with an expanded field team to investigate all suspected patients. Detailed histories of residence and exposure to mortuary feasts were obtained together with serial neurological examination, if possible. FINDINGS We identified 11 patients with kuru from July, 1996, to June, 2004, all living in the South Fore. All patients were born before the cessation of cannibalism in the late 1950s. The minimum estimated incubation periods ranged from 34 to 41 years. However, likely incubation periods in men ranged from 39 to 56 years and could have been up to 7 years longer. PRNP analysis showed that most patients with kuru were heterozygous at polymorphic codon 129, a genotype associated with extended incubation periods and resistance to prion disease. INTERPRETATION Incubation periods of infection with human prions can exceed 50 years. In human infection with BSE prions, species-barrier effects, which are characteristic of cross-species transmission, would be expected to further increase the mean and range of incubation periods, compared with recycling of prions within species. These data should inform attempts to model variant CJD epidemiology.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- John Collinge
- MRC Prion Unit and Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Institute of Neurology, University College London, London WC1N 3BG, UK.
| | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
10
|
Abstract
Prion diseases have stimulated intense scientific scrutiny since it was proposed that the infectious agent was devoid of nucleic acid. Despite this finding, genetics has played a key role in understanding the pathobiology and clinical aspects of prion disease through the effects of a series of polymorphisms and mutations in the prion protein gene (PRNP). The advent of variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease has confirmed one of the most powerful human genetic susceptibility factors, as all tested patients have an identical genotype at polymorphic codon 129 of PRNP. This review will also consider the accrued reports of inherited prion disease and attempt a genotype-phenotype correlation. The prospects for detection of novel genetic susceptibility factors using mouse models and human genetic association studies will be explored.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Simon Mead
- MRC Prion Unit, Department of Neurodegenerative Diseases, Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London WC1N 3BG, UK.
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Turchan-Cholewo J, Liu Y, Gartner S, Reid R, Jie C, Peng X, Chen KCC, Chauhan A, Haughey N, Cutler R, Mattson MP, Pardo C, Conant K, Sacktor N, McArthur JC, Hauser KF, Gairola C, Nath A. Increased vulnerability of ApoE4 neurons to HIV proteins and opiates: protection by diosgenin and L-deprenyl. Neurobiol Dis 2006; 23:109-19. [PMID: 16697650 DOI: 10.1016/j.nbd.2006.02.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 65] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/21/2005] [Revised: 01/25/2006] [Accepted: 02/11/2006] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection continues to rise in drug-abusing populations and causes a dementing illness in a subset of individuals. Factors contributing to the development of dementia in this population remain unknown. We found that HIV-infected individuals with the E4 allele of Apolipoprotein E (ApoE) or history of intravenous drug abuse had increased oxidative stress in the CNS. In vitro studies showed that HIV proteins, gp120 and Tat, Tat + morphine but not tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), caused increased neurotoxicity in human neuronal cultures with ApoE4 allele. Microarray analysis showed a differential alteration of transcripts involved in energy metabolism in cultures of ApoE3 and 4 neurons upon treatment with Tat + morphine. This was confirmed using assays of mitochondrial function and exposure of the neurons to Tat + morphine. Using this in vitro model, we screened a number of novel antioxidants and found that only L-deprenyl and diosgenin protected against the neurotoxicity of Tat + morphine. Furthermore, Tat-induced oxidative stress impaired morphine metabolism which could also be prevented by diosgenin. In conclusion, opiate abusers with HIV infection and the ApoE4 allele may be at increased risk of developing dementia. L-deprenyl and a plant estrogen, diosgenin, may have therapeutic potential in this population.
Collapse
|
12
|
Vogelgesang S, Glatzel M, Walker LC, Kroemer HK, Aguzzi A, Warzok RW. Cerebrovascular P-glycoprotein expression is decreased in Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. Acta Neuropathol 2006; 111:436-43. [PMID: 16523342 DOI: 10.1007/s00401-006-0042-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/21/2005] [Accepted: 12/19/2005] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
Abstract
The abnormal conformation and assembly of proteins in the central nervous system is increasingly thought to be a critical pathogenic mechanism in neurodegenerative disorders such as Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) and Alzheimer's disease (AD). CJD is marked primarily by the buildup of misfolded prion protein (PrP(Sc)) in brain, whereas the accrual of beta-amyloid protein (Abeta) and tau protein are characteristic for AD. Prior studies have shown that the ATP-binding cassette transporter P-glycoprotein (P-gp) is a cellular efflux pump for Abeta, and that age-associated deficits in P-gp may be involved in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease. In the present study, we investigated the relationship between P-gp and idiopathic CJD, and found that CJD, like AD, is associated with a decrease in the expression of cerebrovascular P-gp. In some instances, Abeta and PrP deposits coexist in cases of CJD, suggesting the possibility of pathogenic interactions. Since there is, to date, no evidence that PrP itself is a substrate for P-gp, we hypothesize that the age-related deficits in P-gp could promote the accumulation of PrP(Sc) either by promoting the buildup of Abeta (which could act as a seed for the aggregation of PrP(Sc)), or by overloading the ubiquitin-proteasomal catabolic system, and thereby facilitating the accumulation of PrP. Alternatively, the loss of P-gp could be a non-specific response to neurodegenerative changes in the central nervous system. In either case, dysfunction of this critical toxin-elimination pathway in CJD and AD suggests that selectively increasing cerebrovascular P-gp function could open new therapeutic pathways for the prevention and/or treatment of a number of proteopathic disorders of the central nervous system.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Silke Vogelgesang
- Department of Neuropathology, University of Greifswald, 17487, Greifswald, Germany.
| | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
13
|
Finch CE, Stanford CB. Meat‐Adaptive Genes and the Evolution of Slower Aging in Humans. QUARTERLY REVIEW OF BIOLOGY 2004; 79:3-50. [PMID: 15101252 DOI: 10.1086/381662] [Citation(s) in RCA: 164] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
The chimpanzee life span is shorter than that of humans, which is consistent with a faster schedule of aging. We consider aspects of diet that may have selected for genes that allowed the evolution of longer human life spans with slower aging. Diet has changed remarkably during human evolution. All direct human ancestors are believed to have been largely herbivorous. Chimpanzees eat more meat than other great apes, but in captivity are sensitive to hypercholesterolemia and vascular disease. We argue that this dietary shift to increased regular consumption of fatty animal tissues in the course of hominid evolution was mediated by selection for "meat-adaptive" genes. This selection conferred resistance to disease risks associated with meat eating also increased life expectancy. One candidate gene is apolipoprotein E (apoE), with the E3 allele evolved in the genus Homo that reduces the risks for Alzheimer's and vascular disease, as well as influencing inflammation, infection, and neuronal growth. Other evolved genes mediate lipid metabolism and host defense. The timing of the evolution of apoE and other candidates for meat-adaptive genes is discussed in relation to key events in human evolution.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Caleb E Finch
- Andrus Gerontology Center, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California 90089, USA.
| | | |
Collapse
|
14
|
|
15
|
Holm IE, Abelskov K, Bojsen-Møller M, Nielsen AL, Jørgensen AL. Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease segregating in a three generation Danish family. Acta Neurol Scand 2001; 103:139-47. [PMID: 11240560 DOI: 10.1034/j.1600-0404.2001.103003139.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
A three generation family is presented in which rapidly progressive, early-onset Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease without typical EEG changes segregates as an autosomal dominant disease. An aspartic acid to asparagine mutation at codon 178 of the prion gene, PRNP, co-segregates with the disease. As expected, the disease allele also carries the valine codon of the polymorphic valine/methionine codon 129 of the gene. In family members homozygous for this valine codon the disease was more rapidly progressive than in a heterozygous family member, who had a variant clinical phenotype. Definite neuropathological diagnosis required prion staining with specific antibodies.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- I E Holm
- Department of Pathology, Aarhus University Hospital, Denmark
| | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|