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Ryan SK, Ugalde CL, Rolland AS, Skidmore J, Devos D, Hammond TR. Therapeutic inhibition of ferroptosis in neurodegenerative disease. Trends Pharmacol Sci 2023; 44:674-688. [PMID: 37657967 DOI: 10.1016/j.tips.2023.07.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2023] [Revised: 07/28/2023] [Accepted: 07/28/2023] [Indexed: 09/03/2023]
Abstract
Iron accumulation has been associated with the etiology and progression of multiple neurodegenerative diseases (NDDs). The exact role of iron in these diseases is not fully understood, but an iron-dependent form of regulated cell death called ferroptosis could be key. Although there is substantial preclinical and clinical evidence that ferroptosis plays a role in NDD, there are still questions regarding how to target ferroptosis therapeutically, including which proteins to target, identification of clinically relevant biomarkers, and which patients might benefit most. Clinical trials of iron- and ferroptosis-targeted therapies are beginning to provide some answers, but there is growing interest in developing new ferroptosis inhibitors. We describe newly identified ferroptosis targets, opportunities, and challenges in NDD, as well as key considerations for progressing new therapeutics to the clinic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sean K Ryan
- Sanofi, Rare and Neurologic Diseases, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Cathryn L Ugalde
- The ALBORADA Drug Discovery Institute, University of Cambridge, Island Research Building, Cambridge Biomedical Campus, Hills Road, Cambridge CB2 0AH, UK
| | - Anne-Sophie Rolland
- Department of Medical Pharmacology, Expert Center of Parkinson's Disease, ALS, and Neurogenetics, University of Lille, LilNCog, Lille Neuroscience and Cognition, INSERM UMR S1172, CHU de Lille, LICEND, COEN, Center, NS-PARK Network, France
| | - John Skidmore
- The ALBORADA Drug Discovery Institute, University of Cambridge, Island Research Building, Cambridge Biomedical Campus, Hills Road, Cambridge CB2 0AH, UK
| | - David Devos
- Department of Medical Pharmacology, Expert Center of Parkinson's Disease, ALS, and Neurogenetics, University of Lille, LilNCog, Lille Neuroscience and Cognition, INSERM UMR S1172, CHU de Lille, LICEND, COEN, Center, NS-PARK Network, France
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Ugalde CL, Gordon SE, Shambrook M, Nasiri Kenari A, Coleman BM, Perugini MA, Lawson VA, Finkelstein DI, Hill AF. An intact membrane is essential for small extracellular vesicle-induced modulation of α-synuclein fibrillization. J Extracell Vesicles 2020; 10:e12034. [PMID: 33318779 PMCID: PMC7726797 DOI: 10.1002/jev2.12034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/08/2020] [Revised: 10/09/2020] [Accepted: 11/08/2020] [Indexed: 01/05/2023] Open
Abstract
The misfolding and fibrillization of the protein, α-synuclein (αsyn), is associated with neurodegenerative disorders referred to as the synucleinopathies. Understanding the mechanisms of αsyn misfolding is an important area of interest given that αsyn misfolding contributes to disease pathogenesis. While many studies report the ability of synthetic lipid membranes to modulate αsyn folding, there is little data pertaining to the mechanism(s) of this interaction. αSyn has previously been shown to associate with small lipid vesicles released by cells called extracellular vesicles (EVs) and it is postulated these interactions may assist in the spreading of pathological forms of this protein. Together, this presents the need for robust characterisation studies on αsyn fibrillization using biologically-derived vesicles. In this study, we comprehensively characterised the ability of lipid-rich small extracellular vesicles (sEVs) to alter the misfolding of αsyn induced using the Protein Misfolding Cyclic Amplification (PMCA) assay. The biochemical and biophysical properties of misfolded αsyn were examined using a range of techniques including: Thioflavin T fluorescence, transmission electron microscopy, analytical centrifugation and western immunoblot coupled with protease resistance assays and soluble/insoluble fractionation. We show that sEVs cause an acceleration in αsyn fibrillization and provide comprehensive evidence that this results in an increase in the abundance of mature insoluble fibrillar species. In order to elucidate the relevance of the lipid membrane to this interaction, sEV lipid membranes were modified by treatment with methanol, or a combination of methanol and sarkosyl. These treatments altered the ultrastructure of the sEVs without changing the protein cargo. Critically, these modified sEVs had a reduced ability to influence αsyn fibrillization compared to untreated counterparts. This study reports the first comprehensive examination of αsyn:EV interactions and demonstrates that sEVs are powerful modulators of αsyn fibrillization, which is mediated by the sEV membrane. In doing so, this work provides strong evidence for a role of sEVs in contributing directly to αsyn misfolding in the synucleinopathy disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cathryn L. Ugalde
- La Trobe Institute of Molecular ScienceLa Trobe UniversityBundooraVictoriaAustralia
- Howard Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental HealthParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
- Department of Microbiology and ImmunologyUniversity of MelbourneParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular BiologyUniversity of MelbourneParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
| | - Shane E. Gordon
- La Trobe Institute of Molecular ScienceLa Trobe UniversityBundooraVictoriaAustralia
| | - Mitch Shambrook
- La Trobe Institute of Molecular ScienceLa Trobe UniversityBundooraVictoriaAustralia
| | | | - Bradley M. Coleman
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular BiologyUniversity of MelbourneParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
| | - Matthew A. Perugini
- La Trobe Institute of Molecular ScienceLa Trobe UniversityBundooraVictoriaAustralia
| | - Victoria A. Lawson
- Department of Microbiology and ImmunologyUniversity of MelbourneParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
| | - David I. Finkelstein
- Howard Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental HealthParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
| | - Andrew F. Hill
- La Trobe Institute of Molecular ScienceLa Trobe UniversityBundooraVictoriaAustralia
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular BiologyUniversity of MelbourneParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
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Ugalde CL, Lewis V, Stehmann C, McLean CA, Lawson VA, Collins SJ, Hill AF. Markers of A1 astrocytes stratify to molecular sub-types in sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease brain. Brain Commun 2020; 2:fcaa029. [PMID: 32954317 PMCID: PMC7425384 DOI: 10.1093/braincomms/fcaa029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/26/2019] [Revised: 01/17/2020] [Accepted: 01/24/2020] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Astrocytes are glial cells of the central nervous system that become reactive under conditions of stress. The functional properties of reactive astrocytes depend on their stimulus that induces the upregulation of specific genes. Reactive astrocytes are a neuropathological feature of prion disorders; however, their role in the disease pathogenesis is not well understood. Here, we describe our studies of one polarization state of reactive astrocytes, termed A1 astrocytes, in the frontal cortex region of 35 human sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease brains encompassing a range of molecular sub-types. Examination of two mRNA markers of A1 astrocytes, C3 and GBP2, revealed a strong linear correlation between the two following their log-normalization (P = 0.0011). Both markers were found upregulated in the sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease brain compared with age-matched control tissues (P = 0.0029 and 0.0002, for C3log and GBP2log, respectively), and stratifying samples based on codon 129 genotype revealed that C3log is highest in homozygous methionine and lowest in homozygous valine patients, which followed a linear trend (P = 0.027). Upon assessing other disease parameters, a significant positive correlation was found between GBP2log and disease duration (P = 0.031). These findings provide evidence for a divergence in the astrocytic environment amongst patients with sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease based on molecular sub-type parameters of disease. While more research will be needed to determine the global changes in the genomic profiles and resulting functional properties of reactive astrocytes in disease, considering the evidence demonstrating that A1 astrocytes harbour neurotoxic properties, the changes seen in C3log and GBP2log in the current study may reflect differences in pathogenic mechanisms amongst the sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease sub-types associated with the A1 polarization state.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cathryn L Ugalde
- Department of Biochemistry and Genetics, La Trobe Institute for Molecular Science, La Trobe University, Bundoora, Victoria 3086, Australia
| | - Victoria Lewis
- Australian National CJD Registry, Florey Institute of Neuroscience & Mental Health, Parkville, Victoria 3010, Australia.,Department of Medicine (Royal Melbourne Hospital), The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria 3010, Australia
| | - Christiane Stehmann
- Australian National CJD Registry, Florey Institute of Neuroscience & Mental Health, Parkville, Victoria 3010, Australia
| | - Catriona A McLean
- Australian National CJD Registry, Florey Institute of Neuroscience & Mental Health, Parkville, Victoria 3010, Australia.,Department of Anatomical Pathology, Alfred Health, Melbourne, Victoria 3004, Australia
| | - Victoria A Lawson
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria 3010, Australia
| | - Steven J Collins
- Australian National CJD Registry, Florey Institute of Neuroscience & Mental Health, Parkville, Victoria 3010, Australia.,Department of Medicine (Royal Melbourne Hospital), The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria 3010, Australia
| | - Andrew F Hill
- Department of Biochemistry and Genetics, La Trobe Institute for Molecular Science, La Trobe University, Bundoora, Victoria 3086, Australia
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Ugalde CL, Annesley SJ, Gordon SE, Mroczek K, Perugini MA, Lawson VA, Fisher PR, Finkelstein DI, Hill AF. Misfolded α-synuclein causes hyperactive respiration without functional deficit in live neuroblastoma cells. Dis Model Mech 2020; 13:dmm.040899. [PMID: 31848207 PMCID: PMC6994945 DOI: 10.1242/dmm.040899] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2019] [Accepted: 12/10/2019] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
The misfolding and aggregation of the largely disordered protein, α-synuclein, is a central pathogenic event that occurs in the synucleinopathies, a group of neurodegenerative disorders that includes Parkinson's disease. While there is a clear link between protein misfolding and neuronal vulnerability, the precise pathogenic mechanisms employed by disease-associated α-synuclein are unresolved. Here, we studied the pathogenicity of misfolded α-synuclein produced using the protein misfolding cyclic amplification (PMCA) assay. To do this, previous published methods were adapted to allow PMCA-induced protein fibrillization to occur under non-toxic conditions. Insight into potential intracellular targets of misfolded α-synuclein was obtained using an unbiased lipid screen of 15 biologically relevant lipids that identified cardiolipin (CA) as a potential binding partner for PMCA-generated misfolded α-synuclein. To investigate whether such an interaction can impact the properties of α-synuclein misfolding, protein fibrillization was carried out in the presence of the lipid. We show that CA both accelerates the rate of α-synuclein fibrillization and produces species that harbour enhanced resistance to proteolysis. Because CA is virtually exclusively expressed in the inner mitochondrial membrane, we then assessed the ability of these misfolded species to alter mitochondrial respiration in live non-transgenic SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma cells. Extensive analysis revealed that misfolded α-synuclein causes hyperactive mitochondrial respiration without causing any functional deficit. These data give strong support for the mitochondrion as a target for misfolded α-synuclein and reveal persistent, hyperactive respiration as a potential upstream pathogenic event associated with the synucleinopathies.This article has an associated First Person interview with the first author of the paper.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cathryn L Ugalde
- Department of Biochemistry and Genetics, La Trobe University, Bundoora, VIC 3086, Australia.,Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3052, Australia.,Howard Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, Parkville, VIC 3052, Australia.,Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3052, Australia
| | - Sarah J Annesley
- Department of Physiology, Anatomy and Microbiology, La Trobe University, Bundoora, VIC 3086, Australia
| | - Shane E Gordon
- Department of Biochemistry and Genetics, La Trobe University, Bundoora, VIC 3086, Australia.,La Trobe University-Comprehensive Proteomics Platform, La Trobe University, Bundoora, VIC 3086, Australia
| | - Katelyn Mroczek
- Department of Physiology, Anatomy and Microbiology, La Trobe University, Bundoora, VIC 3086, Australia
| | - Matthew A Perugini
- Department of Biochemistry and Genetics, La Trobe University, Bundoora, VIC 3086, Australia
| | - Victoria A Lawson
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3052, Australia
| | - Paul R Fisher
- Department of Physiology, Anatomy and Microbiology, La Trobe University, Bundoora, VIC 3086, Australia
| | - David I Finkelstein
- Howard Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, Parkville, VIC 3052, Australia
| | - Andrew F Hill
- Department of Biochemistry and Genetics, La Trobe University, Bundoora, VIC 3086, Australia .,Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3052, Australia
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Abstract
The misfolding and aggregation of α-synuclein (αsyn) in the central nervous system is associated with a group of neurodegenerative disorders referred to as the synucleinopathies. In addition to being a pathological hallmark of disease, it is now well-established that upon misfolding, αsyn acquires pathogenic properties, such as neurotoxicity, that can contribute to disease development. The mechanisms that produce αsyn misfolding and the molecular events underlying the neuronal damage caused by these misfolded species are not well-defined. A consistent observation that may be relevant to αsyn's pathogenicity is its ability to associate with lipids. This appears important not only to how αsyn aggregates, but also to the mechanism by which the misfolded protein causes intracellular damage. This review discusses the current literature reporting a role of lipids in αsyn misfolding and neurotoxicity in various synucleinopathy disorders and provides an overview of current methods to assess protein misfolding and pathogenicity both in vitro and in vivo.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cathryn L Ugalde
- From the Department of Biochemistry and Genetics, La Trobe Institute for Molecular Science, La Trobe University, Bundoora, Victoria 3086, Australia, .,the Departments of Microbiology and Immunology and.,the Howard Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, Parkville, Victoria 3052, Australia.,Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria 3052, Australia, and
| | | | - David I Finkelstein
- the Howard Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, Parkville, Victoria 3052, Australia
| | - Andrew F Hill
- From the Department of Biochemistry and Genetics, La Trobe Institute for Molecular Science, La Trobe University, Bundoora, Victoria 3086, Australia, .,Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria 3052, Australia, and
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Ugalde CL, Finkelstein DI, Lawson VA, Hill AF. Pathogenic mechanisms of prion protein, amyloid-β and α-synuclein misfolding: the prion concept and neurotoxicity of protein oligomers. J Neurochem 2016; 139:162-180. [PMID: 27529376 DOI: 10.1111/jnc.13772] [Citation(s) in RCA: 64] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/13/2016] [Revised: 07/24/2016] [Accepted: 08/09/2016] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
Proteinopathies represent a group of diseases characterized by the unregulated misfolding and aggregation of proteins. Accumulation of misfolded protein in the central nervous system (CNS) is associated with neurodegenerative diseases, such as the transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (or prion diseases), Alzheimer's disease, and the synucleinopathies (the most common of which is Parkinson's disease). Of these, the pathogenic mechanisms of prion diseases are particularly striking where the transmissible, causative agent of disease is the prion, or proteinaceous infectious particle. Prions are composed almost exclusively of PrPSc ; a misfolded isoform of the normal cellular protein, PrPC , which is found accumulated in the CNS in disease. Today, mounting evidence suggests other aggregating proteins, such as amyloid-β (Aβ) and α-synuclein (α-syn), proteins associated with Alzheimer's disease and synucleinopathies, respectively, share similar biophysical and biochemical properties with PrPSc that influences how they misfold, aggregate, and propagate in disease. In this regard, the definition of a 'prion' may ultimately expand to include other pathogenic proteins. Unifying knowledge of folded proteins may also reveal common mechanisms associated with other features of disease that are less understood, such as neurotoxicity. This review discusses the common features Aβ and α-syn share with PrP and neurotoxic mechanisms associated with these misfolded proteins. Several proteins are known to misfold and accumulate in the central nervous system causing a range of neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and the prion diseases. Prions are transmissible misfolded conformers of the prion protein, PrP, which seed further generation of infectious proteins. Similar effects have recently been observed in proteins associated with Alzheimer's disease and the synucleinopathies, leading to the proposition that the definition of a 'prion' may ultimately expand to include other pathogenic proteins. Unifying knowledge of misfolded proteins may also reveal common mechanisms associated with other features of disease that are less understood, such as neurotoxicity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cathryn L Ugalde
- Department of Biochemistry and Genetics, La Trobe Institute for Molecular Science, La Trobe University, Bundoora, Vic., Australia.,Howard Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, Parkville, Vic., Australia.,Department of Pathology, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Vic., Australia.,Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Vic., Australia
| | - David I Finkelstein
- Howard Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, Parkville, Vic., Australia
| | - Victoria A Lawson
- Department of Pathology, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Vic., Australia
| | - Andrew F Hill
- Department of Biochemistry and Genetics, La Trobe Institute for Molecular Science, La Trobe University, Bundoora, Vic., Australia. .,Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Vic., Australia.
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Jamasbi E, Ciccotosto GD, Tailhades J, Robins-Browne RM, Ugalde CL, Sharples RA, Patil N, Wade JD, Hossain MA, Separovic F. Site of fluorescent label modifies interaction of melittin with live cells and model membranes. Biochim Biophys Acta 2015; 1848:2031-9. [PMID: 26051124 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbamem.2015.06.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/18/2015] [Revised: 05/30/2015] [Accepted: 06/02/2015] [Indexed: 02/01/2023]
Abstract
The mechanism of membrane disruption by melittin (MLT) of giant unilamellar vesicles (GUVs) and live cells was studied using fluorescence microscopy and two fluorescent synthetic analogues of MLT. The N-terminus of one of these was acylated with thiopropionic acid to enable labeling with maleimido-AlexaFluor 430 to study the interaction of MLT with live cells. It was compared with a second analogue labeled at P14C. The results indicated that the fluorescent peptides adhered to the membrane bilayer of phosphatidylcholine GUVs and inserted into the plasma membrane of HeLa cells. Fluorescence and light microscopy revealed changes in cell morphology after exposure to MLT peptides and showed bleb formation in the plasma membrane of HeLa cells. However, the membrane disruptive effect was dependent upon the location of the fluorescent label on the peptide and was greater when MLT was labeled at the N-terminus. Proline at position 14 appeared to be important for antimicrobial activity, hemolysis and cytotoxicity, but not essential for cell membrane disruption.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elaheh Jamasbi
- School of Chemistry, Bio21 Institute, The University of Melbourne, VIC 3010, Australia
| | | | - Julien Tailhades
- The Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, The University of Melbourne, VIC 3010, Australia
| | - Roy M Robins-Browne
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity, The University of Melbourne, VIC 3010, Australia; Murdoch Childrens Research Institute, Royal Children's Hospital, Parkville, VIC 3052, Australia
| | - Cathryn L Ugalde
- Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, Bio21 Institute, The University of Melbourne, VIC 3010, Australia
| | - Robyn A Sharples
- Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, Bio21 Institute, The University of Melbourne, VIC 3010, Australia
| | - Nitin Patil
- School of Chemistry, Bio21 Institute, The University of Melbourne, VIC 3010, Australia; The Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, The University of Melbourne, VIC 3010, Australia
| | - John D Wade
- School of Chemistry, Bio21 Institute, The University of Melbourne, VIC 3010, Australia; The Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, The University of Melbourne, VIC 3010, Australia
| | - Mohammed Akhter Hossain
- School of Chemistry, Bio21 Institute, The University of Melbourne, VIC 3010, Australia; The Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, The University of Melbourne, VIC 3010, Australia
| | - Frances Separovic
- School of Chemistry, Bio21 Institute, The University of Melbourne, VIC 3010, Australia
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