1
|
Maksimovic K, Youssef M, You J, Sung HK, Park J. Evidence of Metabolic Dysfunction in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) Patients and Animal Models. Biomolecules 2023; 13:biom13050863. [PMID: 37238732 DOI: 10.3390/biom13050863] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2023] [Revised: 05/17/2023] [Accepted: 05/17/2023] [Indexed: 05/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a neurodegenerative disease that affects motor neurons, leading to muscle weakness, paralysis, and eventual death. Research from the past few decades has appreciated that ALS is not only a disease of the motor neurons but also a disease that involves systemic metabolic dysfunction. This review will examine the foundational research of understanding metabolic dysfunction in ALS and provide an overview of past and current studies in ALS patients and animal models, spanning from full systems to various metabolic organs. While ALS-affected muscle tissue exhibits elevated energy demand and a fuel preference switch from glycolysis to fatty acid oxidation, adipose tissue in ALS undergoes increased lipolysis. Dysfunctions in the liver and pancreas contribute to impaired glucose homeostasis and insulin secretion. The central nervous system (CNS) displays abnormal glucose regulation, mitochondrial dysfunction, and increased oxidative stress. Importantly, the hypothalamus, a brain region that controls whole-body metabolism, undergoes atrophy associated with pathological aggregates of TDP-43. This review will also cover past and present treatment options that target metabolic dysfunction in ALS and provide insights into the future of metabolism research in ALS.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Katarina Maksimovic
- Genetics and Genome Biology Program, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON M5G 0A4, Canada
| | - Mohieldin Youssef
- Genetics and Genome Biology Program, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON M5G 0A4, Canada
| | - Justin You
- Genetics and Genome Biology Program, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON M5G 0A4, Canada
| | - Hoon-Ki Sung
- Translational Medicine Program, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON M5G 0A4, Canada
- Department of Laboratory Medicine & Pathobiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 1A8, Canada
| | - Jeehye Park
- Genetics and Genome Biology Program, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON M5G 0A4, Canada
- Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 1A8, Canada
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Abstract
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a fatal neurodegenerative disease characterized by motor neuron loss. ALS is now associated with mutations in numerous genes, many of which cause disease in part through toxic gain-of-function mechanisms. Antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs) are small sequences of DNA that can reduce expression of a target gene at the post-transcriptional level, making them attractive for neutralizing mutant or toxic gene products. Advancements in the medicinal chemistries of ASOs have improved their pharmacodynamic profile to allow safe and effective delivery to the central nervous system. ASO therapies for ALS have rapidly developed over the last two decades, and ASOs that target SOD1, C9orf72, FUS, and ATXN2 are now in clinical trials for familial or sporadic forms of ALS. This review discusses the current state of ASO therapies for ALS, outlining their successes from preclinical development to early clinical trials.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Benjamin D Boros
- Department of Neurology, Hope Center for Neurological Disorders, Washington University School of Medicine, Box 8111, 115 Biotechnology Bldg, 660 S. Euclid Ave, MO, 63110, St. Louis, USA
| | - Kathleen M Schoch
- Department of Neurology, Hope Center for Neurological Disorders, Washington University School of Medicine, Box 8111, 115 Biotechnology Bldg, 660 S. Euclid Ave, MO, 63110, St. Louis, USA
| | - Collin J Kreple
- Department of Neurology, Hope Center for Neurological Disorders, Washington University School of Medicine, Box 8111, 115 Biotechnology Bldg, 660 S. Euclid Ave, MO, 63110, St. Louis, USA
| | - Timothy M Miller
- Department of Neurology, Hope Center for Neurological Disorders, Washington University School of Medicine, Box 8111, 115 Biotechnology Bldg, 660 S. Euclid Ave, MO, 63110, St. Louis, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Lewis MJ, Shomper JL, Williamson BG, Vansteenkiste DP, Bibi KF, Lim SHY, Kowal JB, Coates JR. Brain diffusion tensor imaging in dogs with degenerative myelopathy. J Vet Intern Med 2021; 35:2342-2349. [PMID: 34410026 PMCID: PMC8478048 DOI: 10.1111/jvim.16248] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [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: 02/03/2021] [Revised: 07/29/2021] [Accepted: 08/03/2021] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Degenerative myelopathy (DM) in dogs shares similarities with superoxide dismutase 1-associated human amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Brain microstructural lesions are quantified using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) in ALS patients. OBJECTIVE Characterize brain neurodegenerative changes in DM-affected dogs using DTI. ANIMALS Sixteen DM-affected and 8 control dogs. METHODS Prospective observational study. Brain DTI was performed at baseline and every 3 months on DM-affected dogs and compared to controls. Fractional anisotropy, mean diffusivity, axial diffusivity, and radial diffusivity were calculated on specified regions of interest. Gait scores (0, normal to 14, tetraplegia) were assigned at each scan. Diffusion tensor imaging values in DM-affected dogs were compared to controls, gait scores, and evaluated over time. RESULTS Mean age was 5.7 years (SD 3.2) in controls and 9.7 years (SD 1.4) in DM-affected dogs. In DM-affected dogs, mean baseline gait score was 4 (SD 1), and mean score change from baseline to last scan was 4.82 (SD 2.67). Nine dogs had ≤3 scans; 7 had >3 scans. Accounting for age, no differences in DTI indices were identified for any brain or proximal spinal cord regions between DM-affected dogs and controls (P > .05). Diffusion tensor imaging values poorly correlated with gait scores (R2 < .2). No significant changes were identified in diffusion indices over time (P > .05). CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE Diffusion tensor imaging indices did not differentiate DM-affected from control dogs, detect longitudinal changes, or differentiate disease severity. Findings do not yet support brain DTI as an imaging biomarker.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Melissa J. Lewis
- Department of Veterinary Clinical SciencesCollege of Veterinary Medicine, Purdue UniversityWest LafayetteINUSA
| | - Jeremy L. Shomper
- Department of Veterinary Medicine and SurgeryUniversity of Missouri, College of Veterinary MedicineColumbiaMOUSA
| | - Baye G. Williamson
- Department of Veterinary Medicine and SurgeryUniversity of Missouri, College of Veterinary MedicineColumbiaMOUSA
| | - Daniella P. Vansteenkiste
- Department of Veterinary Medicine and SurgeryUniversity of Missouri, College of Veterinary MedicineColumbiaMOUSA
| | - Katherine F. Bibi
- Department of Veterinary Medicine and SurgeryUniversity of Missouri, College of Veterinary MedicineColumbiaMOUSA
| | - Stefanie H. Y. Lim
- Department of Veterinary Medicine and SurgeryUniversity of Missouri, College of Veterinary MedicineColumbiaMOUSA
| | - Joseph B. Kowal
- Department of Veterinary Medicine and SurgeryUniversity of Missouri, College of Veterinary MedicineColumbiaMOUSA
| | - Joan R. Coates
- Department of Veterinary Medicine and SurgeryUniversity of Missouri, College of Veterinary MedicineColumbiaMOUSA
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Abstract
Stress granules are dynamic, reversible condensates composed of RNA and protein that assemble in eukaryotic cells in response to a variety of stressors and are normally disassembled after stress is removed. The composition and assembly of stress granules is well understood, but little is known about the mechanisms that govern disassembly. Impaired disassembly has been implicated in some diseases including amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, frontotemporal dementia, and multisystem proteinopathy. Using cultured human cells, we found that stress granule disassembly was context-dependent: Specifically in the setting of heat shock, disassembly required ubiquitination of G3BP1, the central protein within the stress granule RNA-protein network. We found that ubiquitinated G3BP1 interacted with the endoplasmic reticulum–associated protein FAF2, which engaged the ubiquitin-dependent segregase p97/VCP (valosin-containing protein). Thus, targeting of G3BP1 weakened the stress granule–specific interaction network, resulting in granule disassembly.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Youngdae Gwon
- Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Brian A. Maxwell
- Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Regina-Maria Kolaitis
- Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Peipei Zhang
- Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Hong Joo Kim
- Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - J. Paul Taylor
- Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Chevy Chase, MD 20815
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Si Y, Kazamel M, Benatar M, Wuu J, Kwon Y, Kwan T, Jiang N, Kentrup D, Faul C, Alesce L, King PH. FGF23, a novel muscle biomarker detected in the early stages of ALS. Sci Rep 2021; 11:12062. [PMID: 34103575 PMCID: PMC8187665 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-91496-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [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: 02/06/2021] [Accepted: 05/27/2021] [Indexed: 01/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a fatal neurodegenerative disease characterized by progressive muscle weakness. Skeletal muscle is a prime source for biomarker discovery since it is one of the earliest sites to manifest disease pathology. From a prior RNA sequencing project, we identified FGF23 as a potential muscle biomarker in ALS. Here, we validate this finding with a large collection of ALS muscle samples and found a 13-fold increase over normal controls. FGF23 was also increased in the SOD1G93A mouse, beginning at a very early stage and well before the onset of clinical symptoms. FGF23 levels progressively increased through end-stage in the mouse. Immunohistochemistry of ALS muscle showed prominent FGF23 immunoreactivity in the endomysial connective tissue and along the muscle membrane and was significantly higher around grouped atrophic fibers compared to non-atrophic fibers. ELISA of plasma samples from the SOD1G93A mouse showed an increase in FGF23 at end-stage whereas no increase was detected in a large cohort of ALS patients. In conclusion, FGF23 is a novel muscle biomarker in ALS and joins a molecular signature that emerges in very early preclinical stages. The early appearance of FGF23 and its progressive increase with disease progression offers a new direction for exploring the molecular basis and response to the underlying pathology of ALS.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ying Si
- Department of Neurology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Civitan 545C, 1530 3rd Avenue South, Birmingham, AL, 35294, USA
- Birmingham Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Birmingham, AL, 35294, USA
| | - Mohamed Kazamel
- Department of Neurology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Civitan 545C, 1530 3rd Avenue South, Birmingham, AL, 35294, USA
| | - Michael Benatar
- Department of Neurology, University of Miami, Miami, FL, 33136, USA
| | - Joanne Wuu
- Department of Neurology, University of Miami, Miami, FL, 33136, USA
| | - Yuri Kwon
- Department of Neurology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Civitan 545C, 1530 3rd Avenue South, Birmingham, AL, 35294, USA
| | - Thaddaeus Kwan
- Department of Neurology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Civitan 545C, 1530 3rd Avenue South, Birmingham, AL, 35294, USA
| | - Nan Jiang
- Department of Neurology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Civitan 545C, 1530 3rd Avenue South, Birmingham, AL, 35294, USA
- Birmingham Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Birmingham, AL, 35294, USA
| | - Dominik Kentrup
- Department of Medicine (Division of Nephrology and Hypertension), University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, 35294, USA
| | - Christian Faul
- Department of Medicine (Division of Nephrology and Hypertension), University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, 35294, USA
| | - Lyndsy Alesce
- Department of Neurology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Civitan 545C, 1530 3rd Avenue South, Birmingham, AL, 35294, USA
| | - Peter H King
- Department of Neurology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Civitan 545C, 1530 3rd Avenue South, Birmingham, AL, 35294, USA.
- Department of Cell, Developmental, and Integrative Biology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, 35294, USA.
- Birmingham Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Birmingham, AL, 35294, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Abstract
Neurodegenerative diseases and other protein-misfolding disorders represent a longstanding biomedical challenge, and effective therapies remain largely elusive. This failure is due, in part, to the recalcitrant and diverse nature of misfolded protein conformers. Recent work has uncovered that many aggregation-prone proteins can also undergo liquid-liquid phase separation, a process by which macromolecules self-associate to form dense condensates with liquid properties that are compositionally distinct from the bulk cellular milieu. Efforts to combat diseases caused by toxic protein states focus on exploiting or enhancing the proteostasis machinery to prevent and reverse pathological protein conformations. Here, we discuss recent advances in elucidating and engineering therapeutic agents to combat the diverse aberrant protein states that underlie protein-misfolding disorders.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Charlotte M. Fare
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics Graduate Group, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - James Shorter
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics Graduate Group, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Abstract
The most common genetic cause of familial and sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a GGGGCC hexanucleotide repeat expansion (HRE) in the C9orf72 gene. While direct molecular hallmarks of the C9orf72 HRE (repeat RNA foci, dipeptide repeat protein pathology) are well characterized, the mechanisms by which the C9orf72 HRE causes ALS and the related neurodegenerative disease frontotemporal dementia (FTD) remain poorly understood. Recently, alterations to the nuclear pore complex and nucleocytoplasmic transport have been accepted as a prominent pathomechanism underlying C9orf72 ALS/FTD. However, global disruptions to nuclear morphology and the nuclear lamina itself remain controversial. Here, we use a large number of induced pluripotent stem cell derived spinal neurons and postmortem human motor cortex sections to thoroughly examine nuclear morphology and nuclear lamina disruptions with light microscopy. In contrast to previous studies in artificial overexpression model systems, endogenous levels of the C9orf72 HRE do not increase the frequency of nuclear lamina invaginations. In addition, the C9orf72 HRE has no impact on overall nuclear shape and size. Notably, the frequency of nuclear Lamin B1 invaginations increases with cellular aging, independent of the C9orf72 HRE. Together, our data suggest that nuclear morphology is unaltered in C9orf72 ALS/FTD.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Alyssa N. Coyne
- Brain Science Institute, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205 USA
- Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205 USA
| | - Jeffrey D. Rothstein
- Brain Science Institute, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205 USA
- Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205 USA
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Quezada E, Cappelli C, Diaz I, Jury N, Wightman N, Brown RH, Montecino M, van Zundert B. BET bromodomain inhibitors PFI-1 and JQ1 are identified in an epigenetic compound screen to enhance C9ORF72 gene expression and shown to ameliorate C9ORF72-associated pathological and behavioral abnormalities in a C9ALS/FTD model. Clin Epigenetics 2021; 13:56. [PMID: 33726839 PMCID: PMC7962347 DOI: 10.1186/s13148-021-01039-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [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: 12/30/2020] [Accepted: 02/23/2021] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND An intronic GGGGCC (G4C2) hexanucleotide repeat expansion (HRE) in the C9ORF72 gene is the most common cause of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD), referred to as C9ALS/FTD. No cure or effective treatment exist for C9ALS/FTD. Three major molecular mechanisms have emerged to explain C9ALS/FTD disease mechanisms: (1) C9ORF72 loss-of-function through haploinsufficiency, (2) dipeptide repeat (DPR) proteins mediated toxicity by the translation of the repeat RNAs, and more controversial, (3) RNA-mediated toxicity by bidirectional transcription of the repeats that form intranuclear RNA foci. Recent studies indicate a double-hit pathogenic mechanism in C9ALS/FTD, where reduced C9ORF72 protein levels lead to impaired clearance of toxic DPRs. Here we explored whether pharmacological compounds can revert these pathological hallmarks in vitro and cognitive impairment in a C9ALS/FTD mouse model (C9BAC). We specifically focused our study on small molecule inhibitors targeting chromatin-regulating proteins (epidrugs) with the goal of increasing C9ORF72 gene expression and reduce toxic DPRs. RESULTS We generated luciferase reporter cell lines containing 10 (control) or ≥ 90 (mutant) G4C2 HRE located between exon 1a and 1b of the human C9ORF72 gene. In a screen of 14 different epidrugs targeting bromodomains, chromodomains and histone-modifying enzymes, we found that several bromodomain and extra-terminal domain (BET) inhibitors (BETi), including PFI-1 and JQ1, increased luciferase reporter activity. Using primary cortical cultures from C9BAC mice, we further found that PFI-1 treatment increased the expression of V1-V3 transcripts of the human mutant C9ORF72 gene, reduced poly(GP)-DPR inclusions but enhanced intranuclear RNA foci. We also tested whether JQ1, an BETi previously shown to reach the mouse brain by intraperitoneal (i.p.) injection, can revert behavioral abnormalities in C9BAC mice. Interestingly, it was found that JQ1 administration (daily i.p. administration for 7 days) rescued hippocampal-dependent cognitive deficits in C9BAC mice. CONCLUSIONS Our findings place BET bromodomain inhibitors as a potential therapy for C9ALS/FTD by ameliorating C9ORF72-associated pathological and behavioral abnormalities. Our finding that PFI-1 increases accumulation of intranuclear RNA foci is in agreement with recent data in flies suggesting that nuclear RNA foci can be neuroprotective by sequestering repeat transcripts that result in toxic DPRs.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Esteban Quezada
- Institute of Biomedical Sciences (ICB), Faculty of Medicine & Faculty of Life Sciences, Universidad Andres Bello, Santiago, Chile
| | - Claudio Cappelli
- Institute of Biomedical Sciences (ICB), Faculty of Medicine & Faculty of Life Sciences, Universidad Andres Bello, Santiago, Chile
| | - Iván Diaz
- Institute of Biomedical Sciences (ICB), Faculty of Medicine & Faculty of Life Sciences, Universidad Andres Bello, Santiago, Chile
| | - Nur Jury
- Institute of Biomedical Sciences (ICB), Faculty of Medicine & Faculty of Life Sciences, Universidad Andres Bello, Santiago, Chile
| | - Nicholas Wightman
- Department of Neurology, University of Massachusetts Medical School (UMMS), Worcester, MA, USA
| | - Robert H Brown
- Department of Neurology, University of Massachusetts Medical School (UMMS), Worcester, MA, USA
| | - Martín Montecino
- Institute of Biomedical Sciences (ICB), Faculty of Medicine & Faculty of Life Sciences, Universidad Andres Bello, Santiago, Chile.
- FONDAP Center for Genome Regulation, Santiago, Chile.
| | - Brigitte van Zundert
- Institute of Biomedical Sciences (ICB), Faculty of Medicine & Faculty of Life Sciences, Universidad Andres Bello, Santiago, Chile.
- Department of Neurology, University of Massachusetts Medical School (UMMS), Worcester, MA, USA.
- CARE Biomedical Research Center, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Chile.
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Klingl YE, Pakravan D, Van Den Bosch L. Opportunities for histone deacetylase inhibition in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Br J Pharmacol 2021; 178:1353-1372. [PMID: 32726472 PMCID: PMC9327724 DOI: 10.1111/bph.15217] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [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: 05/11/2020] [Revised: 07/03/2020] [Accepted: 07/07/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a devastating neurodegenerative disease. ALS patients suffer from a progressive loss of motor neurons, leading to respiratory failure within 3 to 5 years after diagnosis. Available therapies only slow down the disease progression moderately or extend the lifespan by a few months. Epigenetic hallmarks have been linked to the disease, creating an avenue for potential therapeutic approaches. Interference with one class of epigenetic enzymes, histone deacetylases, has been shown to affect neurodegeneration in many preclinical models. Consequently, it is crucial to improve our understanding about histone deacetylases and their inhibitors in (pre)clinical models of ALS. We conclude that selective inhibitors with high tolerability and safety and sufficient blood-brain barrier permeability will be needed to interfere with both epigenetic and non-epigenetic targets of these enzymes. LINKED ARTICLES: This article is part of a themed issue on Neurochemistry in Japan. To view the other articles in this section visit http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/bph.v178.6/issuetoc.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yvonne E. Klingl
- Department of Neurosciences, Experimental Neurology and Leuven Brain Institute (LBI)KU Leuven‐University of LeuvenLeuvenBelgium
- Laboratory of NeurobiologyVIB, Center for Brain & Disease ResearchLeuvenBelgium
| | - Donya Pakravan
- Department of Neurosciences, Experimental Neurology and Leuven Brain Institute (LBI)KU Leuven‐University of LeuvenLeuvenBelgium
- Laboratory of NeurobiologyVIB, Center for Brain & Disease ResearchLeuvenBelgium
| | - Ludo Van Den Bosch
- Department of Neurosciences, Experimental Neurology and Leuven Brain Institute (LBI)KU Leuven‐University of LeuvenLeuvenBelgium
- Laboratory of NeurobiologyVIB, Center for Brain & Disease ResearchLeuvenBelgium
| |
Collapse
|
10
|
Aladesuyi Arogundade O, Nguyen S, Leung R, Wainio D, Rodriguez M, Ravits J. Nucleolar stress in C9orf72 and sporadic ALS spinal motor neurons precedes TDP-43 mislocalization. Acta Neuropathol Commun 2021; 9:26. [PMID: 33588953 PMCID: PMC7885352 DOI: 10.1186/s40478-021-01125-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2021] [Accepted: 01/30/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Nucleolar stress has been implicated in the pathology and disease pathogenesis of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD) from repeat expansions of GGGGCC in C9orf72 (C9-ALS/FTLD) but not in sporadic ALS (SALS). Previously we reported that antisense RNA transcripts are unique in C9-ALS because of their nucleolar localization in spinal motor neurons and correlation with TDP-43 mislocalization, the hallmark proteinopathy of ALS and FTLD. Here we report our further studies of 11 SALS, 11 C9-ALS and 11 control spinal cords. We find that nucleolar stress manifests specifically as shrinkage in nucleoli of C9-ALS spinal motor neurons. Nucleolar size reduction is greatest in similarly sized alpha motor neurons from C9-ALS cases and results are not skewed by the number of surviving neurons from each ALS spinal cord. Surprisingly, nucleolar shrinkage occurs before main pathological hallmarks-TDP-43 mislocalization or antisense RNA foci-appear and this suggest that nucleolar stress can precede pathology in C9-ALS, findings previously identified in C9-FTLD using sense RNA foci and dipeptide repeat proteins as pathological markers. Importantly, these observations are also seen in SALS motor neurons and thus nucleolar stress appears to be a significant and probably upstream problem in sporadic disease.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Sandra Nguyen
- University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Ringo Leung
- University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | | | | | - John Ravits
- University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Rozas P, Pinto C, Martínez Traub F, Díaz R, Pérez V, Becerra D, Ojeda P, Ojeda J, Wright MT, Mella J, Plate L, Henríquez JP, Hetz C, Medinas DB. Protein disulfide isomerase ERp57 protects early muscle denervation in experimental ALS. Acta Neuropathol Commun 2021; 9:21. [PMID: 33541434 PMCID: PMC7863244 DOI: 10.1186/s40478-020-01116-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [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: 09/24/2020] [Accepted: 12/30/2020] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive fatal neurodegenerative disease that affects motoneurons. Mutations in superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1) have been described as a causative genetic factor for ALS. Mice overexpressing ALS-linked mutant SOD1 develop ALS symptoms accompanied by histopathological alterations and protein aggregation. The protein disulfide isomerase family member ERp57 is one of the main up-regulated proteins in tissue of ALS patients and mutant SOD1 mice, whereas point mutations in ERp57 were described as possible risk factors to develop the disease. ERp57 catalyzes disulfide bond formation and isomerization in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), constituting a central component of protein quality control mechanisms. However, the actual contribution of ERp57 to ALS pathogenesis remained to be defined. Here, we studied the consequences of overexpressing ERp57 in experimental ALS using mutant SOD1 mice. Double transgenic SOD1G93A/ERp57WT animals presented delayed deterioration of electrophysiological activity and maintained muscle innervation compared to single transgenic SOD1G93A littermates at early-symptomatic stage, along with improved motor performance without affecting survival. The overexpression of ERp57 reduced mutant SOD1 aggregation, but only at disease end-stage, dissociating its role as an anti-aggregation factor from the protection of neuromuscular junctions. Instead, proteomic analysis revealed that the neuroprotective effects of ERp57 overexpression correlated with increased levels of synaptic and actin cytoskeleton proteins in the spinal cord. Taken together, our results suggest that ERp57 operates as a disease modifier at early stages by maintaining motoneuron connectivity.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Pablo Rozas
- Biomedical Neuroscience Institute, Faculty of Medicine, University of Chile, Independencia 1027, P.O. Box 70086, Santiago, Chile
- Center for Geroscience, Brain Health and Metabolism, Santiago, Chile
- Program of Cellular and Molecular Biology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Cristina Pinto
- Neuromuscular Studies Laboratory (NeSt Lab), Department of Cell Biology, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Center for Advanced Microscopy (CMA Bio-Bio), Universidad de Concepción, Concepción, Chile
| | - Francisca Martínez Traub
- Biomedical Neuroscience Institute, Faculty of Medicine, University of Chile, Independencia 1027, P.O. Box 70086, Santiago, Chile
- Center for Geroscience, Brain Health and Metabolism, Santiago, Chile
- Program of Cellular and Molecular Biology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Rodrigo Díaz
- Biomedical Neuroscience Institute, Faculty of Medicine, University of Chile, Independencia 1027, P.O. Box 70086, Santiago, Chile
- Center for Geroscience, Brain Health and Metabolism, Santiago, Chile
- Program of Cellular and Molecular Biology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Viviana Pérez
- Neuromuscular Studies Laboratory (NeSt Lab), Department of Cell Biology, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Center for Advanced Microscopy (CMA Bio-Bio), Universidad de Concepción, Concepción, Chile
| | - Daniela Becerra
- Biomedical Neuroscience Institute, Faculty of Medicine, University of Chile, Independencia 1027, P.O. Box 70086, Santiago, Chile
- Center for Geroscience, Brain Health and Metabolism, Santiago, Chile
- Program of Cellular and Molecular Biology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Patricia Ojeda
- Biomedical Neuroscience Institute, Faculty of Medicine, University of Chile, Independencia 1027, P.O. Box 70086, Santiago, Chile
- Center for Geroscience, Brain Health and Metabolism, Santiago, Chile
- Program of Cellular and Molecular Biology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Jorge Ojeda
- Neuromuscular Studies Laboratory (NeSt Lab), Department of Cell Biology, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Center for Advanced Microscopy (CMA Bio-Bio), Universidad de Concepción, Concepción, Chile
| | - Madison T Wright
- Department of Chemistry and Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - Jessica Mella
- Neuromuscular Studies Laboratory (NeSt Lab), Department of Cell Biology, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Center for Advanced Microscopy (CMA Bio-Bio), Universidad de Concepción, Concepción, Chile
| | - Lars Plate
- Department of Chemistry and Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - Juan Pablo Henríquez
- Neuromuscular Studies Laboratory (NeSt Lab), Department of Cell Biology, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Center for Advanced Microscopy (CMA Bio-Bio), Universidad de Concepción, Concepción, Chile
| | - Claudio Hetz
- Biomedical Neuroscience Institute, Faculty of Medicine, University of Chile, Independencia 1027, P.O. Box 70086, Santiago, Chile.
- Center for Geroscience, Brain Health and Metabolism, Santiago, Chile.
- Program of Cellular and Molecular Biology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of Chile, Santiago, Chile.
- Buck Institute for Research on Aging, Novato, CA, USA.
| | - Danilo B Medinas
- Biomedical Neuroscience Institute, Faculty of Medicine, University of Chile, Independencia 1027, P.O. Box 70086, Santiago, Chile.
- Center for Geroscience, Brain Health and Metabolism, Santiago, Chile.
- Program of Cellular and Molecular Biology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of Chile, Santiago, Chile.
| |
Collapse
|
12
|
Abstract
Neuronal networks are capable of undergoing rapid structural and functional changes called plasticity, which are essential for shaping circuit function during nervous system development. These changes range from short-term modifications on the order of milliseconds, to long-term rearrangement of neural architecture that could last for the lifetime of the organism. Neural plasticity is most prominent during development, yet also plays a critical role during memory formation, behavior, and disease. Therefore, it is essential to define and characterize the mechanisms underlying the onset, duration, and form of plasticity. Astrocytes, the most numerous glial cell type in the human nervous system, are integral elements of synapses and are components of a glial network that can coordinate neural activity at a circuit-wide level. Moreover, their arrival to the CNS during late embryogenesis correlates to the onset of sensory-evoked activity, making them an interesting target for circuit plasticity studies. Technological advancements in the last decade have uncovered astrocytes as prominent regulators of circuit assembly and function. Here, we provide a brief historical perspective on our understanding of astrocytes in the nervous system, and review the latest advances on the role of astroglia in regulating circuit plasticity and function during nervous system development and homeostasis.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Nelson A Perez-Catalan
- Institute of Neuroscience, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR, USA
- Kennedy Center, Department of Pediatrics, The University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Chris Q Doe
- Institute of Neuroscience, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR, USA
| | - Sarah D Ackerman
- Institute of Neuroscience, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
13
|
Dao TP, Castañeda CA. Ubiquitin-Modulated Phase Separation of Shuttle Proteins: Does Condensate Formation Promote Protein Degradation? Bioessays 2020; 42:e2000036. [PMID: 32881044 PMCID: PMC7737676 DOI: 10.1002/bies.202000036] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/26/2020] [Revised: 07/29/2020] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS) has recently emerged as a possible mechanism that enables ubiquitin-binding shuttle proteins to facilitate the degradation of ubiquitinated substrates via distinct protein quality control (PQC) pathways. Shuttle protein LLPS is modulated by multivalent interactions among their various domains as well as heterotypic interactions with polyubiquitin chains. Here, the properties of three different shuttle proteins (hHR23B, p62, and UBQLN2) are closely examined, unifying principles for the molecular determinants of their LLPS are identified, and how LLPS is connected to their functions is discussed. Evidence supporting LLPS of other shuttle proteins is also found. In this review, it is proposed that shuttle protein LLPS leads to spatiotemporal regulation of PQC activities by mediating the recruitment of PQC machinery (including proteasomes or autophagic components) to biomolecular condensates, assembly/disassembly of condensates, selective enrichment of client proteins, and extraction of ubiquitinated proteins from condensates in cells.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Thuy P Dao
- Departments of Biology and Chemistry, Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY, 13244, USA
| | - Carlos A Castañeda
- Departments of Biology and Chemistry, Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY, 13244, USA
- Bioinspired Institute, Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY, 13244, USA
- Interdisciplinary Neuroscience Program, Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY, 13244, USA
| |
Collapse
|
14
|
Braems E, Swinnen B, Van Den Bosch L. C9orf72 loss-of-function: a trivial, stand-alone or additive mechanism in C9 ALS/FTD? Acta Neuropathol 2020; 140:625-643. [PMID: 32876811 PMCID: PMC7547039 DOI: 10.1007/s00401-020-02214-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.8] [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: 06/14/2020] [Revised: 07/28/2020] [Accepted: 08/13/2020] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
A repeat expansion in C9orf72 is responsible for the characteristic neurodegeneration in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD) in a still unresolved manner. Proposed mechanisms involve gain-of-functions, comprising RNA and protein toxicity, and loss-of-function of the C9orf72 gene. Their exact contribution is still inconclusive and reports regarding loss-of-function are rather inconsistent. Here, we review the function of the C9orf72 protein and its relevance in disease. We explore the potential link between reduced C9orf72 levels and disease phenotypes in postmortem, in vitro, and in vivo models. Moreover, the significance of loss-of-function in other non-coding repeat expansion diseases is used to clarify its contribution in C9orf72 ALS/FTD. In conclusion, with evidence pointing to a multiple-hit model, loss-of-function on itself seems to be insufficient to cause neurodegeneration in C9orf72 ALS/FTD.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Elke Braems
- Department of Neurosciences, Experimental Neurology, and Leuven Brain Institute (LBI), KU Leuven-University of Leuven, 3000, Leuven, Belgium
- Laboratory of Neurobiology, Experimental Neurology, Center for Brain and Disease Research, VIB, Campus Gasthuisberg, O&N4, Herestraat 49, PB 602, 3000, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Bart Swinnen
- Department of Neurosciences, Experimental Neurology, and Leuven Brain Institute (LBI), KU Leuven-University of Leuven, 3000, Leuven, Belgium
- Laboratory of Neurobiology, Experimental Neurology, Center for Brain and Disease Research, VIB, Campus Gasthuisberg, O&N4, Herestraat 49, PB 602, 3000, Leuven, Belgium
- Department of Neurology, University Hospitals Leuven, 3000, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Ludo Van Den Bosch
- Department of Neurosciences, Experimental Neurology, and Leuven Brain Institute (LBI), KU Leuven-University of Leuven, 3000, Leuven, Belgium.
- Laboratory of Neurobiology, Experimental Neurology, Center for Brain and Disease Research, VIB, Campus Gasthuisberg, O&N4, Herestraat 49, PB 602, 3000, Leuven, Belgium.
| |
Collapse
|
15
|
Chapin JL, Gray LT, Vasilopoulos T, Anderson A, DiBiase L, York JD, Robison R, Wymer J, Plowman EK. Diagnostic utility of the amyotrophic lateral sclerosis Functional Rating Scale-Revised to detect pharyngeal dysphagia in individuals with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. PLoS One 2020; 15:e0236804. [PMID: 32790801 PMCID: PMC7425890 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0236804] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/14/2020] [Accepted: 07/13/2020] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Objective The ALS Functional Rating Scale–Revised (ALSFRS-R) is the most commonly utilized instrument to index bulbar function in both clinical and research settings. We therefore aimed to evaluate the diagnostic utility of the ALSFRS-R bulbar subscale and swallowing item to detect radiographically confirmed impairments in swallowing safety (penetration or aspiration) and global pharyngeal swallowing function in individuals with ALS. Methods Two-hundred and one individuals with ALS completed the ALSFRS-R and the gold standard videofluoroscopic swallowing exam (VFSE). Validated outcomes including the Penetration-Aspiration Scale (PAS) and Dynamic Imaging Grade of Swallowing Toxicity (DIGEST) were assessed in duplicate by independent and blinded raters. Receiver operator characteristic curve analyses were performed to assess accuracy of the ALSFRS-R bulbar subscale and swallowing item to detect radiographically confirmed unsafe swallowing (PAS > 3) and global pharyngeal dysphagia (DIGEST >1). Results Although below acceptable screening tool criterion, a score of ≤ 3 on the ALSFRS-R swallowing item optimized classification accuracy to detect global pharyngeal dysphagia (sensitivity: 68%, specificity: 64%, AUC: 0.68) and penetration/aspiration (sensitivity: 79%, specificity: 60%, AUC: 0.72). Depending on score selection, sensitivity and specificity of the ALSFRS-R bulbar subscale ranged between 34–94%. A score of < 9 optimized classification accuracy to detect global pharyngeal dysphagia (sensitivity: 68%, specificity: 68%, AUC: 0.76) and unsafe swallowing (sensitivity:78%, specificity:62%, AUC: 0.73). Conclusions The ALSFRS-R bulbar subscale or swallowing item did not demonstrate adequate diagnostic accuracy to detect radiographically confirmed swallowing impairment. These results suggest the need for alternate screens for dysphagia in ALS.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer L. Chapin
- Aerodigestive Research Core, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States of America
| | - Lauren Tabor Gray
- Aerodigestive Research Core, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States of America
- Department of Neurology, Phil Smith Neuroscience Institute, Holy Cross Hospital, Fort Lauderdale, FL, United States of America
| | - Terrie Vasilopoulos
- Department of Anesthesiology, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States of America
| | - Amber Anderson
- Aerodigestive Research Core, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States of America
- Department of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States of America
| | - Lauren DiBiase
- Aerodigestive Research Core, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States of America
- Department of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States of America
| | - Justine Dallal York
- Aerodigestive Research Core, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States of America
- Department of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States of America
| | - Raele Robison
- Aerodigestive Research Core, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States of America
- Department of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States of America
| | - James Wymer
- Department of Neurology, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States of America
| | - Emily K. Plowman
- Aerodigestive Research Core, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States of America
- Department of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States of America
- Department of Neurology, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States of America
- Department of Surgery, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| |
Collapse
|
16
|
Gao J, Jiang M, Magin RL, Gatto RG, Morfini G, Larson AC, Li W. Multicomponent diffusion analysis reveals microstructural alterations in spinal cord of a mouse model of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis ex vivo. PLoS One 2020; 15:e0231598. [PMID: 32310954 PMCID: PMC7170503 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0231598] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2019] [Accepted: 03/26/2020] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
The microstructure changes associated with degeneration of spinal axons in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) may be reflected in altered water diffusion properties, potentially detectable with diffusion-weighted (DW) MRI. Prior work revealed the classical mono-exponential model fails to precisely depict decay in DW signal at high b-values. In this study, we aim to investigate signal decay behaviors at ultra-high b-values for non-invasive assessment of spinal cord alterations in the transgenic SOD1G93A mouse model of ALS. A multiexponential diffusion analysis using regularized non-negative least squares (rNNLS) algorithm was applied to a series of thirty DW MR images with b-values ranging from 0 to 858,022 s/mm2 on ex vivo spinal cords of transgenic SOD1G93A and age-matched control mice. We compared the distributions of measured diffusion coefficient fractions between the groups. The measured diffusion weighted signals in log-scale showed non-linear decay behaviors with increased b-values. Faster signal decays were observed with diffusion gradients applied parallel to the long axis of the spinal cord compared to when oriented in the transverse direction. Multiexponential analysis at the lumbar level in the spinal cord identified ten subintervals. A significant decrease of diffusion coefficient fractions was found in the ranges of [1.63×10−8,3.70×10−6] mm2/s (P = 0.0002) and of [6.01×10−6,4.20×10−5] mm2/s (P = 0.0388) in SOD1G93A mice. Anisotropic diffusion signals persisted at ultra-high b-value DWIs of the mouse spinal cord and multiexponential diffusion analysis offers the potential to evaluate microstructural alterations of ALS-affected spinal cord non-invasively.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jin Gao
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States of America
- Research Resource Center, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States of America
| | - Mingchen Jiang
- Department of Physiology, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, United States of America
| | - Richard L. Magin
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States of America
| | - Rodolfo G. Gatto
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States of America
| | - Gerardo Morfini
- Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States of America
| | - Andrew C. Larson
- Department of Radiology, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, United States of America
| | - Weiguo Li
- Research Resource Center, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States of America
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States of America
- Department of Radiology, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| |
Collapse
|
17
|
Howard MK, Sohn BS, von Borcke J, Xu A, Jackrel ME. Functional analysis of proposed substrate-binding residues of Hsp104. PLoS One 2020; 15:e0230198. [PMID: 32155221 PMCID: PMC7064214 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0230198] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/08/2020] [Accepted: 02/24/2020] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Hsp104 is a hexameric AAA+ yeast disaggregase capable of solubilizing disordered aggregates and amyloid. Hsp104 couples ATP hydrolysis to polypeptide translocation through its central channel. Substrate binding by Hsp104 is mediated primarily by two conserved tyrosine residues in nucleotide binding domain (NBD) 1 and NBD2. Recent structural studies have revealed that an additional tyrosine residue (Y650) located in NBD2 appears to contact substrate and may play an important role in Hsp104 function. Here, we functionally analyze the properties of this proposed Hsp104 –substrate interaction. We find that Y650 is not essential for Hsp104 to confer thermotolerance. Supporting these findings, in a potentiated Hsp104 variant background, the Y650A mutation does not abolish potentiation. However, modulation of this site does have subtle effects on the activity of this potentiated Hsp104 variant. We therefore suggest that while Y650 is not essential for Hsp104 function, its modulation may be useful for fine-tuning Hsp104 properties.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Matthew K. Howard
- Department of Chemistry, Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri, United States of America
| | - Brian S. Sohn
- Department of Chemistry, Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri, United States of America
| | - Julius von Borcke
- Department of Chemistry, Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri, United States of America
| | - Andy Xu
- Department of Chemistry, Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri, United States of America
| | - Meredith E. Jackrel
- Department of Chemistry, Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| |
Collapse
|
18
|
Dickson DW, Baker MC, Jackson JL, DeJesus-Hernandez M, Finch NA, Tian S, Heckman MG, Pottier C, Gendron TF, Murray ME, Ren Y, Reddy JS, Graff-Radford NR, Boeve BF, Petersen RC, Knopman DS, Josephs KA, Petrucelli L, Oskarsson B, Sheppard JW, Asmann YW, Rademakers R, van Blitterswijk M. Extensive transcriptomic study emphasizes importance of vesicular transport in C9orf72 expansion carriers. Acta Neuropathol Commun 2019; 7:150. [PMID: 31594549 PMCID: PMC6781370 DOI: 10.1186/s40478-019-0797-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [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: 08/07/2019] [Accepted: 08/24/2019] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The majority of the clinico-pathological variability observed in patients harboring a repeat expansion in the C9orf72-SMCR8 complex subunit (C9orf72) remains unexplained. This expansion, which represents the most common genetic cause of frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD) and motor neuron disease (MND), results in a loss of C9orf72 expression and the generation of RNA foci and dipeptide repeat (DPR) proteins. The C9orf72 protein itself plays a role in vesicular transport, serving as a guanine nucleotide exchange factor that regulates GTPases. To further elucidate the mechanisms underlying C9orf72-related diseases and to identify potential disease modifiers, we performed an extensive RNA sequencing study. We included individuals for whom frontal cortex tissue was available: FTLD and FTLD/MND patients with (n = 34) or without (n = 44) an expanded C9orf72 repeat as well as control subjects (n = 24). In total, 6706 genes were differentially expressed between these groups (false discovery rate [FDR] < 0.05). The top gene was C9orf72 (FDR = 1.41E-14), which was roughly two-fold lower in C9orf72 expansion carriers than in (disease) controls. Co-expression analysis revealed groups of correlated genes (modules) that were enriched for processes such as protein folding, RNA splicing, synaptic signaling, metabolism, and Golgi vesicle transport. Within our cohort of C9orf72 expansion carriers, machine learning uncovered interesting candidates associated with clinico-pathological features, including age at onset (vascular endothelial growth factor A [VEGFA]), C9orf72 expansion size (cyclin dependent kinase like 1 [CDKL1]), DPR protein levels (eukaryotic elongation factor 2 kinase [EEF2K]), and survival after onset (small G protein signaling modulator 3 [SGSM3]). Given the fact that we detected a module involved in vesicular transport in addition to a GTPase activator (SGSM3) as a potential modifier, our findings seem to suggest that the presence of a C9orf72 repeat expansion might hamper vesicular transport and that genes affecting this process may modify the phenotype of C9orf72-linked diseases.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Dennis W. Dickson
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic, 4500 San Pablo Road, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
| | - Matthew C. Baker
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic, 4500 San Pablo Road, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
| | - Jazmyne L. Jackson
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic, 4500 San Pablo Road, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
| | | | - NiCole A. Finch
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic, 4500 San Pablo Road, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
| | - Shulan Tian
- Department of Health Sciences Research, Mayo Clinic, 200 1st St SW, Rochester, MN 55905 USA
| | - Michael G. Heckman
- Division of Biomedical Statistics and Informatics, Mayo Clinic, 4500 San Pablo Road, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
| | - Cyril Pottier
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic, 4500 San Pablo Road, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
| | - Tania F. Gendron
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic, 4500 San Pablo Road, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
| | - Melissa E. Murray
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic, 4500 San Pablo Road, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
| | - Yingxue Ren
- Department of Health Sciences Research, Mayo Clinic, 4500 San Pablo Road, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
| | - Joseph S. Reddy
- Department of Health Sciences Research, Mayo Clinic, 4500 San Pablo Road, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
| | | | - Bradley F. Boeve
- Department of Neurology, Mayo Clinic, 200 1st St SW, Rochester, MN 55905 USA
| | - Ronald C. Petersen
- Department of Neurology, Mayo Clinic, 200 1st St SW, Rochester, MN 55905 USA
| | - David S. Knopman
- Department of Neurology, Mayo Clinic, 200 1st St SW, Rochester, MN 55905 USA
| | - Keith A. Josephs
- Department of Neurology, Mayo Clinic, 200 1st St SW, Rochester, MN 55905 USA
| | - Leonard Petrucelli
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic, 4500 San Pablo Road, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
| | - Björn Oskarsson
- Department of Neurology, Mayo Clinic, 4500 San Pablo Road, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
| | - John W. Sheppard
- Gianforte School of Computing, Montana State University, 357 Barnard Hall, Bozeman, MT 59717 USA
| | - Yan W. Asmann
- Department of Health Sciences Research, Mayo Clinic, 4500 San Pablo Road, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
| | - Rosa Rademakers
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic, 4500 San Pablo Road, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
| | - Marka van Blitterswijk
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic, 4500 San Pablo Road, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
| |
Collapse
|
19
|
Abstract
In 2011, a hexanucleotide repeat expansion in the first intron of the C9orf72 gene was identified as the most common genetic cause of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD). The proposed disease mechanisms include loss of C9orf72 function and gain of toxicity from the bidirectionally transcribed repeat-containing RNAs. Over the last few years, substantial progress has been made to determine the contribution of loss and gain of function in disease pathogenesis. The extensive body of molecular, cellular, animal, and human neuropathological studies is conflicted, but the predominance of evidence favors gain of toxicity as the main pathogenic mechanism for C9orf72 repeat expansions. Alterations in several downstream cellular functions, such as nucleocytoplasmic transport and autophagy, are implicated. Exciting progress has also been made in therapy development targeting this mutation, such as by antisense oligonucleotide therapies targeting sense transcripts and small molecules targeting nucleocytoplasmic transport, and these are now in phase 1 clinical trials.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jie Jiang
- Department of Cell Biology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, 30322, USA.
| | - John Ravits
- Department of Neurosciences, University of California at San Diego, La Jolla, CA, 92093, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
20
|
Burke T, Wilson O'Raghallaigh J, Maguire S, Galvin M, Heverin M, Hardiman O, Pender N. Group interventions for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis caregivers in Ireland: a randomised controlled trial protocol. BMJ Open 2019; 9:e030684. [PMID: 31542756 PMCID: PMC6756338 DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2019-030684] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [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] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a rapid and fatal motor disease marked by progressive physical impairment due to muscle weakness and wasting. It is multidimensional with many patients presenting with cognitive and/or behavioural impairment. Caregivers of patients with ALS, commonly non-paid immediate family members, often take primary responsibility for the complex care needs of patients in non-medicalised setting, and many as a consequence experience caregiver burden, anxiety, and/or depression. METHODS AND ANALYSIS This randomised controlled trial (RCT) will use randomisation to allocate n=75 caregivers of patients with ALS from the national ALS clinic into three groups with an equal distribution. The RCT consists of two intervention groups and a wait list control (treatment as usual [TAU]) group. The intervention arms of the trial consist of a 'mindfulness-based stress reduction' and 'building better caregivers' manualised group-based intervention, with 9 and 6 weekly sessions, respectively. The TAU group will have access to intervention at the end of the trial period. Primary outcomes are self-report questionnaires on anxiety and depression symptoms, with caregiver burden and quality of life considered secondary outcomes. Assessment will commence at baseline, immediately following the intervention period, and after a period of 12 weeks to assess the effectiveness and efficacy of participating in an intervention. Patient cognitive and behavioural data will also be considered. Means of treatment and control groups at Time 0 and 1 will be analysed using mixed model multivariate analysis of variance followed by analysis of variance, and treatment effect-sizes will be calculated. This RCT protocol is pre-results and has been registered with an international database resulting in an International Standard Randomised Controlled Trials Number (ISRCTN53226941). ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION Ethics approval was obtained from the Beaumont Hospital Medical Research Ethics Committee. Results of the main trial will be submitted for publication in a peer-reviewed journal.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Tom Burke
- Department of Psychology, Beaumont Hospital, Dublin, Ireland
- Academic Unit of Neurology, Trinity Biomedical Sciences Institute, University of Dublin Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland
| | | | - Sinead Maguire
- Department of Neurology, Beaumont Hospital, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Miriam Galvin
- Academic Unit of Neurology, Trinity Biomedical Sciences Institute, University of Dublin Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Mark Heverin
- Academic Unit of Neurology, Trinity Biomedical Sciences Institute, University of Dublin Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Orla Hardiman
- Academic Unit of Neurology, Trinity Biomedical Sciences Institute, University of Dublin Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland
- Department of Neurology, Beaumont Hospital, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Niall Pender
- Department of Psychology, Beaumont Hospital, Dublin, Ireland
- Academic Unit of Neurology, Trinity Biomedical Sciences Institute, University of Dublin Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland
| |
Collapse
|
21
|
McMackin R, Muthuraman M, Groppa S, Babiloni C, Taylor JP, Kiernan MC, Nasseroleslami B, Hardiman O. Measuring network disruption in neurodegenerative diseases: New approaches using signal analysis. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 2019; 90:1011-1020. [PMID: 30760643 PMCID: PMC6820156 DOI: 10.1136/jnnp-2018-319581] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2018] [Revised: 01/21/2019] [Accepted: 01/21/2019] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Advanced neuroimaging has increased understanding of the pathogenesis and spread of disease, and offered new therapeutic targets. MRI and positron emission tomography have shown that neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer's disease (AD), Lewy body dementia (LBD), Parkinson's disease (PD), frontotemporal dementia (FTD), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and multiple sclerosis (MS) are associated with changes in brain networks. However, the underlying neurophysiological pathways driving pathological processes are poorly defined. The gap between what imaging can discern and underlying pathophysiology can now be addressed by advanced techniques that explore the cortical neural synchronisation, excitability and functional connectivity that underpin cognitive, motor, sensory and other functions. Transcranial magnetic stimulation can show changes in focal excitability in cortical and transcortical motor circuits, while electroencephalography and magnetoencephalography can now record cortical neural synchronisation and connectivity with good temporal and spatial resolution.Here we reflect on the most promising new approaches to measuring network disruption in AD, LBD, PD, FTD, MS, and ALS. We consider the most groundbreaking and clinically promising studies in this field. We outline the limitations of these techniques and how they can be tackled and discuss how these novel approaches can assist in clinical trials by predicting and monitoring progression of neurophysiological changes underpinning clinical symptomatology.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Roisin McMackin
- Academic Unit of Neurology, Trinity College Dublin, the University of Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Muthuraman Muthuraman
- Department of Neurology, Universitätsmedizin der Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz, Mainz, Germany
| | - Sergiu Groppa
- Department of Neurology, Universitätsmedizin der Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz, Mainz, Germany
| | - Claudio Babiloni
- Dipartimento di Fisiologia e Farmacologia "Vittorio Erspamer", Università degli Studi di Roma "La Sapienza", Roma, Italy
- Istituto di Ricovero e Cura San Raffaele Cassino, Cassino, Italy
| | - John-Paul Taylor
- Institute of Neuroscience, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK
| | - Matthew C Kiernan
- Brain & Mind Centre, University of Sydney, Sydney, Sydney, Australia
- Institute of Clinical Neurosciences, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Sydney, Sydney, Australia
| | - Bahman Nasseroleslami
- Academic Unit of Neurology, Trinity College Dublin, the University of Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Orla Hardiman
- Academic Unit of Neurology, Trinity College Dublin, the University of Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
- Beaumont Hospital, Dublin, Ireland
| |
Collapse
|
22
|
Strayer AL, Dennys-Rivers CN, Ricart KC, Bae N, Beckman JS, Franco MC, Estevez AG. Ligand-independent activation of the P2X7 receptor by Hsp90 inhibition stimulates motor neuron apoptosis. Exp Biol Med (Maywood) 2019; 244:901-914. [PMID: 31142143 PMCID: PMC6690143 DOI: 10.1177/1535370219853798] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2019] [Accepted: 05/08/2019] [Indexed: 01/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Activation of the extracellular ATP ionotropic receptor P2X7 stimulates motor neuron apoptosis, whereas its inhibition in cell and animal models of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis can be protective. These observations suggest that P2X7 receptor activation is relevant to motor neuron disease and that it could be targeted for therapeutic development. Heat shock protein 90 (Hsp90) is an integral regulatory component of the P2X7 receptor complex, antagonizing ligand-induced receptor activation. Here, we show that the repressive activity of Hsp90 on P2X7 receptor activation in primary motor neurons is highly sensitive to inhibition. Primary motor neurons in culture are 100-fold more sensitive to Hsp90 inhibition by geldanamycin than other neuronal populations. Pharmacological inhibition and down-regulation of the P2X7 receptor prevented motor neuron apoptosis triggered by Hsp90 inhibition, which occurred in the absence of extracellular ATP. These observations suggest that inhibition of a seemingly motor neuron specific pool of Hsp90 leads to ligand independent activation of P2X7 receptor and motor neuron death. Downstream of Hsp90 inhibition, P2X7 receptor activated the phosphatase and tensin homolog (TPEN), which in turn suppressed the pro-survival phosphatidyl inositol 3 kinase (PI3K)/Akt pathway, leading to Fas-dependent motor neuron apoptosis. Conditions altering the interaction between P2X7 receptor and Hsp90, such as recruitment of Hsp90 to other subcellular compartments under stress conditions, or nitration following oxidative stress can induce motor neuron death. These findings may have broad implications in neurodegenerative disorders, including amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, in which activation of P2X7 receptor may be involved in both autonomous and non-autonomous motor neurons death.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Amy L Strayer
- Department of Neuroscience Weill Cornell Medical College, New
York, NY10021, USA
| | - Cassandra N Dennys-Rivers
- Burnett School of Biomedical Sciences, College of Medicine,
University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL 32826, USA
| | - Karina C Ricart
- Department of Pathology, University of Alabama at Birmingham,
Birmingham, AL 35294, USA
| | - Narae Bae
- Department of Pharmacology, Weill Cornell Medical College, New
York, NY10021, USA
| | - Joseph S Beckman
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, College of Science,
Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331, USA
| | - Maria Clara Franco
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, College of Science,
Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331, USA
| | - Alvaro G Estevez
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, College of Science,
Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331, USA
| |
Collapse
|
23
|
Ebbert MTW, Jensen TD, Jansen-West K, Sens JP, Reddy JS, Ridge PG, Kauwe JSK, Belzil V, Pregent L, Carrasquillo MM, Keene D, Larson E, Crane P, Asmann YW, Ertekin-Taner N, Younkin SG, Ross OA, Rademakers R, Petrucelli L, Fryer JD. Systematic analysis of dark and camouflaged genes reveals disease-relevant genes hiding in plain sight. Genome Biol 2019; 20:97. [PMID: 31104630 PMCID: PMC6526621 DOI: 10.1186/s13059-019-1707-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 93] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.6] [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: 12/21/2018] [Accepted: 05/06/2019] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The human genome contains "dark" gene regions that cannot be adequately assembled or aligned using standard short-read sequencing technologies, preventing researchers from identifying mutations within these gene regions that may be relevant to human disease. Here, we identify regions with few mappable reads that we call dark by depth, and others that have ambiguous alignment, called camouflaged. We assess how well long-read or linked-read technologies resolve these regions. RESULTS Based on standard whole-genome Illumina sequencing data, we identify 36,794 dark regions in 6054 gene bodies from pathways important to human health, development, and reproduction. Of these gene bodies, 8.7% are completely dark and 35.2% are ≥ 5% dark. We identify dark regions that are present in protein-coding exons across 748 genes. Linked-read or long-read sequencing technologies from 10x Genomics, PacBio, and Oxford Nanopore Technologies reduce dark protein-coding regions to approximately 50.5%, 35.6%, and 9.6%, respectively. We present an algorithm to resolve most camouflaged regions and apply it to the Alzheimer's Disease Sequencing Project. We rescue a rare ten-nucleotide frameshift deletion in CR1, a top Alzheimer's disease gene, found in disease cases but not in controls. CONCLUSIONS While we could not formally assess the association of the CR1 frameshift mutation with Alzheimer's disease due to insufficient sample-size, we believe it merits investigating in a larger cohort. There remain thousands of potentially important genomic regions overlooked by short-read sequencing that are largely resolved by long-read technologies.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Mark T. W. Ebbert
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
- Mayo Clinic Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
| | - Tanner D. Jensen
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
| | | | - Jonathon P. Sens
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
| | - Joseph S. Reddy
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
| | - Perry G. Ridge
- Department of Biology, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT 84602 USA
| | - John S. K. Kauwe
- Department of Biology, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT 84602 USA
| | - Veronique Belzil
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
| | - Luc Pregent
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
| | | | - Dirk Keene
- Department of Pathology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195 USA
| | - Eric Larson
- Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195 USA
| | - Paul Crane
- Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195 USA
| | - Yan W. Asmann
- Department of Health Sciences Research, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
| | - Nilufer Ertekin-Taner
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
- Department of Neurology, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
| | | | - Owen A. Ross
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
| | - Rosa Rademakers
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
| | - Leonard Petrucelli
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
- Mayo Clinic Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
| | - John D. Fryer
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
- Mayo Clinic Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
| |
Collapse
|
24
|
Moloney C, Rayaprolu S, Howard J, Fromholt S, Brown H, Collins M, Cabrera M, Duffy C, Siemienski Z, Miller D, Borchelt DR, Lewis J. Analysis of spinal and muscle pathology in transgenic mice overexpressing wild-type and ALS-linked mutant MATR3. Acta Neuropathol Commun 2018; 6:137. [PMID: 30563574 PMCID: PMC6299607 DOI: 10.1186/s40478-018-0631-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [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: 10/21/2018] [Accepted: 11/03/2018] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Mutations in MATR3 have been associated with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) as well as a form of distal myopathy termed vocal cord pharyngeal distal myopathy (VCPDM). To begin to understand how mutations in MATR3 may cause disease, here we provide initial characterization of transgenic (Tg) mice expressing human wild-type (WT) MATR3 (MATR3WT) and ALS-mutant F115C MATR3 (MATR3F115C) proteins under the control of the mouse prion promoter (MoPrP). For each construct, we established multiple independent lines of mice that stably transmitted the transgene. Unexpectedly, for all stably-transmitting lines examined, MATR3 transgenic mRNA expression was more robust in muscle, with minimal expression in spinal cord. The levels of transgenic mRNA in muscle did not differ between mice from our lead MATR3F115C line and lead MATR3WT line, but mice from the lead MATR3F115C line had significantly higher levels of MATR3 protein in muscle over the lead MATR3WT line. Mice from the three independent, established lines of MATR3F115C mice developed weakness in both fore- and hind-limbs as early as < 1 months of age; whereas, MATR3WT mice aged to > 20 months were not overtly distinguishable from non-transgenic (NT) littermates based on basic motor phenotype. Muscle of both MATR3WT and MATR3F115C mice showed vacuoles by 2 months of age which worsened by ~ 10 months, but vacuolation was noticeably more severe in MATR3F115C mice. Overall, our results indicate that increasing the levels of MATR3 in muscle can cause pathologic changes associated with myopathy, with MATR3F115C expression causing overt muscle atrophy and a profound motor phenotype. The findings suggest that analysis of muscle pathology in individuals harboring ALS-linked MATR3 mutations should be routinely considered.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Christina Moloney
- Center for Translational Research in Neurodegenerative Disease, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA
| | - Sruti Rayaprolu
- Center for Translational Research in Neurodegenerative Disease, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA
| | - John Howard
- Center for Translational Research in Neurodegenerative Disease, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA
| | - Susan Fromholt
- Center for Translational Research in Neurodegenerative Disease, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA
| | - Hilda Brown
- Center for Translational Research in Neurodegenerative Disease, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA
| | - Matt Collins
- Center for Translational Research in Neurodegenerative Disease, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA
| | - Mariela Cabrera
- Center for Translational Research in Neurodegenerative Disease, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA
| | - Colin Duffy
- Center for Translational Research in Neurodegenerative Disease, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA
| | - Zoe Siemienski
- Center for Translational Research in Neurodegenerative Disease, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA
| | - Dave Miller
- Center for Translational Research in Neurodegenerative Disease, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA
| | - David R Borchelt
- Center for Translational Research in Neurodegenerative Disease, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA.
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA.
- McKnight Brain Institute, Department of Neuroscience, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA.
| | - Jada Lewis
- Center for Translational Research in Neurodegenerative Disease, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA.
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA.
- McKnight Brain Institute, Department of Neuroscience, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
25
|
Ibraheim R, Song CQ, Mir A, Amrani N, Xue W, Sontheimer EJ. All-in-one adeno-associated virus delivery and genome editing by Neisseria meningitidis Cas9 in vivo. Genome Biol 2018; 19:137. [PMID: 30231914 PMCID: PMC6146650 DOI: 10.1186/s13059-018-1515-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 74] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.3] [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: 07/20/2018] [Accepted: 08/22/2018] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Clustered, regularly interspaced, short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) and CRISPR-associated proteins (Cas) have recently opened a new avenue for gene therapy. Cas9 nuclease guided by a single-guide RNA (sgRNA) has been extensively used for genome editing. Currently, three Cas9 orthologs have been adapted for in vivo genome engineering applications: Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9 (SpyCas9), Staphylococcus aureus Cas9 (SauCas9), and Campylobacter jejuni (CjeCas9). However, additional in vivo editing platforms are needed, in part to enable a greater range of sequences to be accessed via viral vectors, especially those in which Cas9 and sgRNA are combined into a single vector genome. RESULTS Here, we present in vivo editing using Neisseria meningitidis Cas9 (NmeCas9). NmeCas9 is compact, edits with high accuracy, and possesses a distinct protospacer adjacent motif (PAM), making it an excellent candidate for safe gene therapy applications. We find that NmeCas9 can be used to target the Pcsk9 and Hpd genes in mice. Using tail-vein hydrodynamic-based delivery of NmeCas9 plasmid to target the Hpd gene, we successfully reprogram the tyrosine degradation pathway in Hereditary Tyrosinemia Type I mice. More importantly, we deliver NmeCas9 with its sgRNA in a single recombinant adeno-associated vector (rAAV) to target Pcsk9, resulting in lower cholesterol levels in mice. This all-in-one vector yielded > 35% gene modification after two weeks of vector administration, with minimal off-target cleavage in vivo. CONCLUSIONS Our findings indicate that NmeCas9 can enable the editing of disease-causing loci in vivo, expanding the targeting scope of RNA-guided nucleases.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Raed Ibraheim
- RNA Therapeutics Institute, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA, 01605, USA
| | - Chun-Qing Song
- RNA Therapeutics Institute, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA, 01605, USA
| | - Aamir Mir
- RNA Therapeutics Institute, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA, 01605, USA
| | - Nadia Amrani
- RNA Therapeutics Institute, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA, 01605, USA
| | - Wen Xue
- RNA Therapeutics Institute, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA, 01605, USA
- Program in Molecular Medicine, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA, 01605, USA
| | - Erik J Sontheimer
- RNA Therapeutics Institute, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA, 01605, USA.
- Program in Molecular Medicine, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA, 01605, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
26
|
Ebbert MTW, Farrugia SL, Sens JP, Jansen-West K, Gendron TF, Prudencio M, McLaughlin IJ, Bowman B, Seetin M, DeJesus-Hernandez M, Jackson J, Brown PH, Dickson DW, van Blitterswijk M, Rademakers R, Petrucelli L, Fryer JD. Long-read sequencing across the C9orf72 'GGGGCC' repeat expansion: implications for clinical use and genetic discovery efforts in human disease. Mol Neurodegener 2018; 13:46. [PMID: 30126445 PMCID: PMC6102925 DOI: 10.1186/s13024-018-0274-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 70] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.7] [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: 03/05/2018] [Accepted: 07/20/2018] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Many neurodegenerative diseases are caused by nucleotide repeat expansions, but most expansions, like the C9orf72 'GGGGCC' (G4C2) repeat that causes approximately 5-7% of all amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD) cases, are too long to sequence using short-read sequencing technologies. It is unclear whether long-read sequencing technologies can traverse these long, challenging repeat expansions. Here, we demonstrate that two long-read sequencing technologies, Pacific Biosciences' (PacBio) and Oxford Nanopore Technologies' (ONT), can sequence through disease-causing repeats cloned into plasmids, including the FTD/ALS-causing G4C2 repeat expansion. We also report the first long-read sequencing data characterizing the C9orf72 G4C2 repeat expansion at the nucleotide level in two symptomatic expansion carriers using PacBio whole-genome sequencing and a no-amplification (No-Amp) targeted approach based on CRISPR/Cas9. RESULTS Both the PacBio and ONT platforms successfully sequenced through the repeat expansions in plasmids. Throughput on the MinION was a challenge for whole-genome sequencing; we were unable to attain reads covering the human C9orf72 repeat expansion using 15 flow cells. We obtained 8× coverage across the C9orf72 locus using the PacBio Sequel, accurately reporting the unexpanded allele at eight repeats, and reading through the entire expansion with 1324 repeats (7941 nucleotides). Using the No-Amp targeted approach, we attained > 800× coverage and were able to identify the unexpanded allele, closely estimate expansion size, and assess nucleotide content in a single experiment. We estimate the individual's repeat region was > 99% G4C2 content, though we cannot rule out small interruptions. CONCLUSIONS Our findings indicate that long-read sequencing is well suited to characterizing known repeat expansions, and for discovering new disease-causing, disease-modifying, or risk-modifying repeat expansions that have gone undetected with conventional short-read sequencing. The PacBio No-Amp targeted approach may have future potential in clinical and genetic counseling environments. Larger and deeper long-read sequencing studies in C9orf72 expansion carriers will be important to determine heterogeneity and whether the repeats are interrupted by non-G4C2 content, potentially mitigating or modifying disease course or age of onset, as interruptions are known to do in other repeat-expansion disorders. These results have broad implications across all diseases where the genetic etiology remains unclear.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Mark T. W. Ebbert
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
- Mayo Graduate School, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905 USA
| | | | - Jonathon P. Sens
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
- Mayo Graduate School, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905 USA
| | | | - Tania F. Gendron
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
| | | | | | | | | | | | - Jazmyne Jackson
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
| | | | | | | | - Rosa Rademakers
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
| | - Leonard Petrucelli
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
- Mayo Graduate School, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905 USA
| | - John D. Fryer
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL 32224 USA
- Mayo Graduate School, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905 USA
| |
Collapse
|
27
|
Zhang XO, Fu Y, Mou H, Xue W, Weng Z. The temporal landscape of recursive splicing during Pol II transcription elongation in human cells. PLoS Genet 2018; 14:e1007579. [PMID: 30148885 PMCID: PMC6110456 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1007579] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/05/2018] [Accepted: 07/20/2018] [Indexed: 01/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Recursive splicing (RS) is an evolutionarily conserved process of removing long introns via multiple steps of splicing. It was first discovered in Drosophila and recently proven to occur also in humans. The detailed mechanism of recursive splicing is not well understood, in particular, whether it is kinetically coupled with transcription. To investigate the dynamic process that underlies recursive splicing, we systematically characterized 342 RS sites in three human cell types using published time-series data that monitored synchronized Pol II elongation and nascent RNA production with 4-thiouridine labeling. We found that half of the RS events occurred post-transcriptionally with long delays. For at least 18-47% RS introns, we detected RS junction reads only after detecting canonical splicing junction reads, supporting the notion that these introns were removed by both recursive splicing and canonical splicing. Furthermore, the choice of which splicing mechanism was used showed cell type specificity. Our results suggest that recursive splicing supplements, rather than replaces, canonical splicing for removing long introns.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Xiao-Ou Zhang
- Program in Bioinformatics and Integrative Biology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Yu Fu
- Program in Bioinformatics and Integrative Biology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States of America
- Bioinformatics Program, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Haiwei Mou
- RNA Therapeutics Institute, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Wen Xue
- RNA Therapeutics Institute, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States of America
- Program in Molecular Medicine, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States of America
- Department of Molecular, Cell and Cancer Biology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Zhiping Weng
- Program in Bioinformatics and Integrative Biology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States of America
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States of America
| |
Collapse
|
28
|
Bakkar N, Kovalik T, Lorenzini I, Spangler S, Lacoste A, Sponaugle K, Ferrante P, Argentinis E, Sattler R, Bowser R. Artificial intelligence in neurodegenerative disease research: use of IBM Watson to identify additional RNA-binding proteins altered in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Acta Neuropathol 2018; 135:227-247. [PMID: 29134320 PMCID: PMC5773659 DOI: 10.1007/s00401-017-1785-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 66] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [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: 09/29/2017] [Revised: 11/04/2017] [Accepted: 11/04/2017] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a devastating neurodegenerative disease with no effective treatments. Numerous RNA-binding proteins (RBPs) have been shown to be altered in ALS, with mutations in 11 RBPs causing familial forms of the disease, and 6 more RBPs showing abnormal expression/distribution in ALS albeit without any known mutations. RBP dysregulation is widely accepted as a contributing factor in ALS pathobiology. There are at least 1542 RBPs in the human genome; therefore, other unidentified RBPs may also be linked to the pathogenesis of ALS. We used IBM Watson® to sieve through all RBPs in the genome and identify new RBPs linked to ALS (ALS-RBPs). IBM Watson extracted features from published literature to create semantic similarities and identify new connections between entities of interest. IBM Watson analyzed all published abstracts of previously known ALS-RBPs, and applied that text-based knowledge to all RBPs in the genome, ranking them by semantic similarity to the known set. We then validated the Watson top-ten-ranked RBPs at the protein and RNA levels in tissues from ALS and non-neurological disease controls, as well as in patient-derived induced pluripotent stem cells. 5 RBPs previously unlinked to ALS, hnRNPU, Syncrip, RBMS3, Caprin-1 and NUPL2, showed significant alterations in ALS compared to controls. Overall, we successfully used IBM Watson to help identify additional RBPs altered in ALS, highlighting the use of artificial intelligence tools to accelerate scientific discovery in ALS and possibly other complex neurological disorders.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Nadine Bakkar
- Department of Neurobiology, Barrow Neurological Institute, 350 W Thomas Road, Phoenix, AZ, 85013, USA
| | - Tina Kovalik
- Department of Neurobiology, Barrow Neurological Institute, 350 W Thomas Road, Phoenix, AZ, 85013, USA
| | - Ileana Lorenzini
- Department of Neurobiology, Barrow Neurological Institute, 350 W Thomas Road, Phoenix, AZ, 85013, USA
| | | | | | - Kyle Sponaugle
- Department of Neurobiology, Barrow Neurological Institute, 350 W Thomas Road, Phoenix, AZ, 85013, USA
| | - Philip Ferrante
- Department of Neurobiology, Barrow Neurological Institute, 350 W Thomas Road, Phoenix, AZ, 85013, USA
| | | | - Rita Sattler
- Department of Neurobiology, Barrow Neurological Institute, 350 W Thomas Road, Phoenix, AZ, 85013, USA
| | - Robert Bowser
- Department of Neurobiology, Barrow Neurological Institute, 350 W Thomas Road, Phoenix, AZ, 85013, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
29
|
Trias E, Ibarburu S, Barreto-Núñez R, Varela V, Moura IC, Dubreuil P, Hermine O, Beckman JS, Barbeito L. Evidence for mast cells contributing to neuromuscular pathology in an inherited model of ALS. JCI Insight 2017; 2:95934. [PMID: 29046475 PMCID: PMC5846907 DOI: 10.1172/jci.insight.95934] [Citation(s) in RCA: 48] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2017] [Accepted: 09/11/2017] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Evidence indicates that neuroinflammation contributes to motor neuron degeneration in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a fatal neurodegenerative disease leading to progressive muscular paralysis. However, it remains elusive whether inflammatory cells can interact with degenerating distal motor axons, influencing the progressive denervation of neuromuscular junctions (NMJs). By analyzing the muscle extensor digitorum longus (EDL) following paralysis onset in the SOD1G93A rat model, we have observed a massive infiltration and degranulation of mast cells, starting after paralysis onset and correlating with progressive NMJ denervation. Remarkably, mast cells accumulated around degenerating motor axons and NMJs, and were also associated with macrophages. Mast cell accumulation and degranulation in paralytic EDL muscle was prevented by systemic treatment over 15 days with masitinib, a tyrosine kinase inhibitor currently in clinical trials for ALS exhibiting pharmacological activity affecting mast cells and microglia. Masitinib-induced mast cell reduction resulted in a 35% decrease in NMJ denervation and reduced motor deficits as compared with vehicle-treated rats. Masitinib also normalized macrophage infiltration, as well as regressive changes in Schwann cells and capillary networks observed in advanced paralysis. These findings provide evidence for mast cell contribution to distal axonopathy and paralysis progression in ALS, a mechanism that can be therapeutically targeted by masitinib.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | - Ivan C. Moura
- Imagine Institute, Hôpital Necker, Paris, France
- INSERM UMR 1163, Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Mechanisms of Hematological Disorders and Therapeutic Implications, Paris, France
- Paris Descartes–Sorbonne Paris Cité University, Imagine Institute, Paris, France
- CNRS ERL 8254, Paris, France
- Laboratory of Excellence GR-Ex, Paris, France
- Equipe Labélisée par la Ligue Nationale contre le cancer, Parisa, France
| | - Patrice Dubreuil
- Equipe Labélisée par la Ligue Nationale contre le cancer, Parisa, France
- AB Science, Paris, France
- Signaling, Hematopoiesis and Mechanism of Oncogenesis, Cancer Research Center of Marseille (CRCM), Inserm U1068, Institut Paoli-Calmettes, Aix-Marseille University UM105, CNRS UMR7258, Marseille, France
| | - Olivier Hermine
- Imagine Institute, Hôpital Necker, Paris, France
- INSERM UMR 1163, Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Mechanisms of Hematological Disorders and Therapeutic Implications, Paris, France
- Paris Descartes–Sorbonne Paris Cité University, Imagine Institute, Paris, France
- CNRS ERL 8254, Paris, France
- Laboratory of Excellence GR-Ex, Paris, France
- Equipe Labélisée par la Ligue Nationale contre le cancer, Parisa, France
- AB Science, Paris, France
- Department of Hematology, Necker Hospital, Paris, France
- Centre national de référence des mastocytoses (CEREMAST), Paris, France
| | - Joseph S. Beckman
- Linus Pauling Institute, Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Environmental Health Sciences Center, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon, USA
| | | |
Collapse
|
30
|
Beard JD, Engel LS, Richardson DB, Gammon MD, Baird C, Umbach DM, Allen KD, Stanwyck CL, Keller J, Sandler DP, Schmidt S, Kamel F. Military service, deployments, and exposures in relation to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis survival. PLoS One 2017; 12:e0185751. [PMID: 29016608 PMCID: PMC5634564 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0185751] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/22/2016] [Accepted: 09/18/2017] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Military veterans may have higher rates of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) mortality than non-veterans. Few studies, with sparse exposure information and mixed results, have studied relationships between military-related factors and ALS survival. We evaluated associations between military-related factors and ALS survival among U.S. military veteran cases. METHODS We followed 616 medical record-confirmed cases from enrollment (2005-2010) in the Genes and Environmental Exposures in Veterans with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis study until death or July 25, 2013, whichever came first. We ascertained vital status information from several sources within the Department of Veterans Affairs. We obtained information regarding military service, deployments, and 39 related exposures via standardized telephone interviews. We used Cox proportional hazards regression models to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals. We adjusted for potential confounding and missing covariate data biases via inverse probability weights. We also used inverse probability weights to adjust for potential selection bias among a case group that included a disproportionate number of long-term survivors at enrollment. RESULTS We observed 446 deaths during 24,267 person-months of follow-up (median follow-up: 28 months). Survival was shorter for cases who served before 1950, were deployed to World War II, or mixed and applied burning agents, with HRs between 1.58 and 2.57. Longer survival was associated with exposure to: paint, solvents, or petrochemical substances; local food not provided by the Armed Forces; or burning agents or Agent Orange in the field with HRs between 0.56 and 0.73. CONCLUSIONS Although most military-related factors were not associated with survival, associations we observed with shorter survival are potentially important because of the large number of military veterans.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- John D. Beard
- Department of Epidemiology, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States of America
- Epidemiology Branch, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, United States of America
| | - Lawrence S. Engel
- Department of Epidemiology, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States of America
| | - David B. Richardson
- Department of Epidemiology, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States of America
| | - Marilie D. Gammon
- Department of Epidemiology, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States of America
| | - Coleen Baird
- Environmental Medicine Program, US Army Public Health Command, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, United States of America
| | - David M. Umbach
- Biostatistics and Computational Biology Branch, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, United States of America
| | - Kelli D. Allen
- Durham VA Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina, United States of America
- Department of Medicine and Thurston Arthritis Research Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States of America
| | - Catherine L. Stanwyck
- Durham VA Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina, United States of America
- Department of Medicine, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina, United States of America
| | - Jean Keller
- Westat, Inc., Durham, North Carolina, United States of America
| | - Dale P. Sandler
- Epidemiology Branch, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, United States of America
| | - Silke Schmidt
- Department of Medicine, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina, United States of America
| | - Freya Kamel
- Epidemiology Branch, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, United States of America
| |
Collapse
|
31
|
Schludi MH, Becker L, Garrett L, Gendron TF, Zhou Q, Schreiber F, Popper B, Dimou L, Strom TM, Winkelmann J, von Thaden A, Rentzsch K, May S, Michaelsen M, Schwenk BM, Tan J, Schoser B, Dieterich M, Petrucelli L, Hölter SM, Wurst W, Fuchs H, Gailus-Durner V, de Angelis MH, Klopstock T, Arzberger T, Edbauer D. Spinal poly-GA inclusions in a C9orf72 mouse model trigger motor deficits and inflammation without neuron loss. Acta Neuropathol 2017; 134:241-254. [PMID: 28409281 PMCID: PMC5508040 DOI: 10.1007/s00401-017-1711-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 84] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [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: 01/09/2017] [Revised: 04/04/2017] [Accepted: 04/04/2017] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Translation of the expanded (ggggcc)n repeat in C9orf72 patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD) causes abundant poly-GA inclusions. To elucidate their role in pathogenesis, we generated transgenic mice expressing codon-modified (GA)149 conjugated with cyan fluorescent protein (CFP). Transgenic mice progressively developed poly-GA inclusions predominantly in motoneurons and interneurons of the spinal cord and brain stem and in deep cerebellar nuclei. Poly-GA co-aggregated with p62, Rad23b and the newly identified Mlf2, in both mouse and patient samples. Consistent with the expression pattern, 4-month-old transgenic mice showed abnormal gait and progressive balance impairment, but showed normal hippocampus-dependent learning and memory. Apart from microglia activation we detected phosphorylated TDP-43 but no neuronal loss. Thus, poly-GA triggers behavioral deficits through inflammation and protein sequestration that likely contribute to the prodromal symptoms and disease progression of C9orf72 patients.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Martin H Schludi
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) Munich, Feodor-Lynen-Straße 17, 81377, Munich, Germany
- Munich Cluster for System Neurology (SyNergy), Feodor-Lynen-Straße 17, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Lore Becker
- German Mouse Clinic, Institute of Experimental Genetics, German Research Center for Environmental Health, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Ingolstädter Landstrasse 1, 85764, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Lillian Garrett
- German Mouse Clinic, Institute of Experimental Genetics, German Research Center for Environmental Health, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Ingolstädter Landstrasse 1, 85764, Neuherberg, Germany
- Institute of Developmental Genetics, German Research Center for Environmental Health, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Ingolstädter Landstrasse 1, 85764, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Tania F Gendron
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic, 4500 San Pablo Road, Jacksonville, FL, 32224, USA
| | - Qihui Zhou
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) Munich, Feodor-Lynen-Straße 17, 81377, Munich, Germany
- Munich Cluster for System Neurology (SyNergy), Feodor-Lynen-Straße 17, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Franziska Schreiber
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) Munich, Feodor-Lynen-Straße 17, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Bastian Popper
- Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, Biomedical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Großhaderner Str. 9, 82152, Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Leda Dimou
- Physiological Genomics, Biomedical Center, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Großhaderner Str. 9, 82152, Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
- Molecular and Translational Neuroscience, Department of Neurology, University of Ulm, Albert-Einstein-Allee 11, 89081, Ulm, Germany
| | - Tim M Strom
- Institut für Humangenetik, Helmholtz Zentrum München, 85764, Munich, Germany
| | - Juliane Winkelmann
- Munich Cluster for System Neurology (SyNergy), Feodor-Lynen-Straße 17, 81377, Munich, Germany
- Institut für Neurogenomik, Helmholtz Zentrum München, 85764, Munich, Germany
- Neurologische Klinik, Klinikum rechts der Isar, Technische Universität München, 81675, Munich, Germany
- Institut für Humangenetik, Klinikum rechts der Isar, Technische Universität München, 81675, Munich, Germany
| | - Anne von Thaden
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) Munich, Feodor-Lynen-Straße 17, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Kristin Rentzsch
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) Munich, Feodor-Lynen-Straße 17, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Stephanie May
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) Munich, Feodor-Lynen-Straße 17, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Meike Michaelsen
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) Munich, Feodor-Lynen-Straße 17, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Benjamin M Schwenk
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) Munich, Feodor-Lynen-Straße 17, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Jing Tan
- Institut für Neurogenomik, Helmholtz Zentrum München, 85764, Munich, Germany
| | - Benedikt Schoser
- Department of Neurology, Friedrich-Baur-Institute, Klinikum der Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Ziemssenstr. 1a, 80336, Munich, Germany
| | - Marianne Dieterich
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) Munich, Feodor-Lynen-Straße 17, 81377, Munich, Germany
- Munich Cluster for System Neurology (SyNergy), Feodor-Lynen-Straße 17, 81377, Munich, Germany
- Department of Neurology, Friedrich-Baur-Institute, Klinikum der Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Ziemssenstr. 1a, 80336, Munich, Germany
| | - Leonard Petrucelli
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic, 4500 San Pablo Road, Jacksonville, FL, 32224, USA
| | - Sabine M Hölter
- German Mouse Clinic, Institute of Experimental Genetics, German Research Center for Environmental Health, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Ingolstädter Landstrasse 1, 85764, Neuherberg, Germany
- Institute of Developmental Genetics, German Research Center for Environmental Health, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Ingolstädter Landstrasse 1, 85764, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Wolfgang Wurst
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) Munich, Feodor-Lynen-Straße 17, 81377, Munich, Germany
- Munich Cluster for System Neurology (SyNergy), Feodor-Lynen-Straße 17, 81377, Munich, Germany
- Institute of Developmental Genetics, German Research Center for Environmental Health, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Ingolstädter Landstrasse 1, 85764, Neuherberg, Germany
- Chair of Developmental Genetics, Technische Universität München, Freising-Weihenstephan, Germany
| | - Helmut Fuchs
- German Mouse Clinic, Institute of Experimental Genetics, German Research Center for Environmental Health, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Ingolstädter Landstrasse 1, 85764, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Valerie Gailus-Durner
- German Mouse Clinic, Institute of Experimental Genetics, German Research Center for Environmental Health, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Ingolstädter Landstrasse 1, 85764, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Martin Hrabe de Angelis
- German Mouse Clinic, Institute of Experimental Genetics, German Research Center for Environmental Health, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Ingolstädter Landstrasse 1, 85764, Neuherberg, Germany
- Chair of Experimental Genetics, School of Life Science Weihenstephan, Technische Universität München, Alte Akademie 8, 85354, Freising, Germany
- German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD), Ingolstädter Landstr. 1, 85764, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Thomas Klopstock
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) Munich, Feodor-Lynen-Straße 17, 81377, Munich, Germany
- Munich Cluster for System Neurology (SyNergy), Feodor-Lynen-Straße 17, 81377, Munich, Germany
- Department of Neurology, Friedrich-Baur-Institute, Klinikum der Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Ziemssenstr. 1a, 80336, Munich, Germany
| | - Thomas Arzberger
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) Munich, Feodor-Lynen-Straße 17, 81377, Munich, Germany
- Munich Cluster for System Neurology (SyNergy), Feodor-Lynen-Straße 17, 81377, Munich, Germany
- Center for Neuopathology and Prion Research, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Feodor-Lynen-Straße 23, 81377, Munich, Germany
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Ludwig-Maximilians University Munich, Nußbaumstraße 7, 80336, Munich, Germany
| | - Dieter Edbauer
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) Munich, Feodor-Lynen-Straße 17, 81377, Munich, Germany.
- Munich Cluster for System Neurology (SyNergy), Feodor-Lynen-Straße 17, 81377, Munich, Germany.
- Institute for Metabolic Biochemistry, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Feodor-Lynen-Straße 17, 81337, Munich, Germany.
| |
Collapse
|
32
|
Chang JC, Morton DB. Drosophila lines with mutant and wild type human TDP-43 replacing the endogenous gene reveals phosphorylation and ubiquitination in mutant lines in the absence of viability or lifespan defects. PLoS One 2017; 12:e0180828. [PMID: 28686708 PMCID: PMC5501610 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0180828] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/06/2017] [Accepted: 06/21/2017] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Mutations in TDP-43 are associated with proteinaceous inclusions in neurons and are believed to be causative in neurodegenerative diseases such as frontotemporal dementia or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Here we describe a Drosophila system where we have engineered the genome to replace the endogenous TDP-43 orthologue with wild type or mutant human TDP-43(hTDP-43). In contrast to other models, these flies express both mutant and wild type hTDP-43 at similar levels to those of the endogenous gene and importantly, no age-related TDP-43 accumulation observed among all the transgenic fly lines. Immunoprecipitation of TDP-43 showed that flies with hTDP-43 mutations had increased levels of ubiquitination and phosphorylation of the hTDP-43 protein. Furthermore, histologically, flies expressing hTDP-43 M337V showed global, robust neuronal staining for phospho-TDP. All three lines: wild type hTDP-43, -G294A and -M337V were homozygous viable, with no defects in development, life span or behaviors observed. The primary behavioral defect was that flies expressing either hTDP-43 G294A or M337V showed a faster decline with age in negative geotaxis. Together, these observations implied that neurons could handle these TDP-43 mutations by phosphorylation- and ubiquitin-dependent proteasome systems, even in a background without the wild type TDP-43. Our findings suggest that these two specific TDP-43 mutations are not inherently toxic, but may require additional environmental or genetic factors to affect longevity or survival.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jer-Cherng Chang
- Department of Integrative Biosciences, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, Oregon, United States of America
| | - David B. Morton
- Department of Integrative Biosciences, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, Oregon, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| |
Collapse
|
33
|
Smith R, Pioro E, Myers K, Sirdofsky M, Goslin K, Meekins G, Yu H, Wymer J, Cudkowicz M, Macklin EA, Schoenfeld D, Pattee G. Enhanced Bulbar Function in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis: The Nuedexta Treatment Trial. Neurotherapeutics 2017; 14:762-772. [PMID: 28070747 PMCID: PMC5509619 DOI: 10.1007/s13311-016-0508-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [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] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The goal of this randomized, blinded, crossover clinical trial was to determine whether Nuedexta (dextromethorphan and quinidine) enhanced speech, swallowing, and salivation in patients with ALS. Sixty patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) received either Nuedexta or placebo for 28 to 30 days, followed by a 10 to 15-day washout period. Subsequently, patients were switched to the opposite treatment arm for the remaining days of the trial. The primary endpoint was a reduction in the self-report Center for Neurologic Study Bulbar Function Scale (CNS-BFS) score. The rater-administered ALS Functional Rating Scale Revised was the principal secondary endpoint. The CNS-BFS score improved with active treatment, decreasing from a mean of 59.3 in the placebo arm of the trial to 53.5 during the drug-treatment arm (p < 0.001). Each of the individual domains of bulbar function interrogated by the CNS-BFS responded to treatment with Nuedexta as follows: salivation: 15.8 versus 14.3 (p = 0.004); speech: 24.6 versus 22.2 (p = 0.003); swallowing: 18.9 versus 17.1 (p = 0.009). Similarly, the bulbar component of the ALS Functional Rating Scale Revised improved with active treatment (p = 0.003), although the drug did not affect the motor and respiratory components of this scale. This study is unique for several reasons. Firstly, it was driven by patient reports of improved speech and swallowing while taking Nuedexta for control of emotional lability. Secondly, the study was conducted over a short duration (70 days), and thirdly, a self-report scale was selected as the principle outcome measure. Considering the importance of bulbar functions, these results, if confirmed, point to an additional use of Nuedexta as an adjunct to the management of ALS.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Richard Smith
- Center for Neurologic Study, 7590 Fay Ave., Suite 517, La Jolla, CA, 92037, USA.
| | - Erik Pioro
- Cleveland Clinic, Department of Neurology, Mail Code S90, 9500 Euclid Ave., Cleveland, OH, 44195, USA
| | - Kathleen Myers
- Center for Neurologic Study, 7590 Fay Ave., Suite 517, La Jolla, CA, 92037, USA
| | - Michael Sirdofsky
- Georgetown University Hospital, Department of Neurology, Pasquerilla Healthcare Center, 7th Floor, 3800 Reservoir Road, N.W., Washington, DC, 20007, USA
| | - Kimberly Goslin
- Providence ALS Center, 5050 NE Hoyt St., #315, Portland, OR, 97123, USA
| | - Gregg Meekins
- Department of Neurology, University of Minnesota, 420 Delaware St. SE, Minneapolis, MN, 55455, USA
| | - Hong Yu
- Neurological Clinical Research Institute and Biostatistics Center, Massachusetts General Hospital, 15 Parkman Street, Boston, MA, 02114, USA
- Harvard Medical School, 25 Shattuck St, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
| | - James Wymer
- Department of Neurology, University of Florida College of Medicine, HSC P.O. Box 100236, Gainesville, FL, 32610-0236, USA
| | - Merit Cudkowicz
- Neurological Clinical Research Institute and Biostatistics Center, Massachusetts General Hospital, 15 Parkman Street, Boston, MA, 02114, USA
- Harvard Medical School, 25 Shattuck St, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
| | - Eric A Macklin
- Neurological Clinical Research Institute and Biostatistics Center, Massachusetts General Hospital, 15 Parkman Street, Boston, MA, 02114, USA
- Harvard Medical School, 25 Shattuck St, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
| | - David Schoenfeld
- Neurological Clinical Research Institute and Biostatistics Center, Massachusetts General Hospital, 15 Parkman Street, Boston, MA, 02114, USA
- Harvard Medical School, 25 Shattuck St, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
| | - Gary Pattee
- Neurology Associates, 2631 S. 70th St., Lincoln, NE, 68506, USA
| |
Collapse
|
34
|
Jeong YH, Ling JP, Lin SZ, Donde AN, Braunstein KE, Majounie E, Traynor BJ, LaClair KD, Lloyd TE, Wong PC. Tdp-43 cryptic exons are highly variable between cell types. Mol Neurodegener 2017; 12:13. [PMID: 28153034 PMCID: PMC5289002 DOI: 10.1186/s13024-016-0144-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [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: 05/25/2016] [Accepted: 12/20/2016] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND TDP-43 proteinopathy is a prominent pathological feature that occurs in a number of human diseases including amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), frontotemporal dementia (FTD), and inclusion body myositis (IBM). Our recent finding that TDP-43 represses nonconserved cryptic exons led us to ask whether cell type-specific cryptic exons could exist to impact unique molecular pathways in brain or muscle. METHODS In the present work, we investigated TDP-43's function in various mouse tissues to model disease pathogenesis. We generated mice to conditionally delete TDP-43 in excitatory neurons or skeletal myocytes and identified the cell type-specific cryptic exons associated with TDP-43 loss of function. RESULTS Comparative analysis of nonconserved cryptic exons in various mouse cell types revealed that only some cryptic exons were common amongst stem cells, neurons, and myocytes; the majority of these nonconserved cryptic exons were cell type-specific. CONCLUSIONS Our results suggest that in human disease, TDP-43 loss of function may impair cell type-specific pathways.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yun Ha Jeong
- Departments of Pathology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205 USA
- Neural Development and Disease Department, Korea Brain Research Institute, Daegu, 701-300 South Korea
| | - Jonathan P. Ling
- Departments of Pathology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205 USA
| | - Sophie Z. Lin
- Departments of Pathology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205 USA
| | - Aneesh N. Donde
- Departments of Pathology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205 USA
- Departments of Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205 USA
| | - Kerstin E. Braunstein
- Departments of Pathology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205 USA
| | - Elisa Majounie
- Laboratory of Neurogenetics, NIA, NIH, Bethesda, MD 20892 USA
- Present address: Institute of Psychological Medicine and Clinical Neurosciences, Cardiff University School of Medicine, Cardiff, CF24 4HQ UK
| | - Bryan J. Traynor
- Departments of Neurology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205 USA
- Laboratory of Neurogenetics, NIA, NIH, Bethesda, MD 20892 USA
| | - Katherine D. LaClair
- Departments of Pathology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205 USA
| | - Thomas E. Lloyd
- Departments of Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205 USA
- Departments of Neurology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205 USA
| | - Philip C. Wong
- Departments of Pathology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205 USA
- Departments of Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205 USA
| |
Collapse
|
35
|
Ma H, Tu LC, Naseri A, Huisman M, Zhang S, Grunwald D, Pederson T. CRISPR-Cas9 nuclear dynamics and target recognition in living cells. J Cell Biol 2016; 214:529-37. [PMID: 27551060 PMCID: PMC5004447 DOI: 10.1083/jcb.201604115] [Citation(s) in RCA: 126] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/26/2016] [Accepted: 07/21/2016] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
The bacterial CRISPR-Cas9 system has been repurposed for genome engineering, transcription modulation, and chromosome imaging in eukaryotic cells. However, the nuclear dynamics of clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)-associated protein 9 (Cas9) guide RNAs and target interrogation are not well defined in living cells. Here, we deployed a dual-color CRISPR system to directly measure the stability of both Cas9 and guide RNA. We found that Cas9 is essential for guide RNA stability and that the nuclear Cas9-guide RNA complex levels limit the targeting efficiency. Fluorescence recovery after photobleaching measurements revealed that single mismatches in the guide RNA seed sequence reduce the target residence time from >3 h to as low as <2 min in a nucleotide identity- and position-dependent manner. We further show that the duration of target residence correlates with cleavage activity. These results reveal that CRISPR discriminates between genuine versus mismatched targets for genome editing via radical alterations in residence time.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Hanhui Ma
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA 01605
| | - Li-Chun Tu
- RNA Therapeutics Institute, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA 01605
| | - Ardalan Naseri
- Department of Computer Science, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL 32816
| | - Maximiliaan Huisman
- RNA Therapeutics Institute, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA 01605
| | - Shaojie Zhang
- Department of Computer Science, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL 32816
| | - David Grunwald
- RNA Therapeutics Institute, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA 01605
| | - Thoru Pederson
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA 01605
| |
Collapse
|
36
|
Chenji S, Jha S, Lee D, Brown M, Seres P, Mah D, Kalra S. Investigating Default Mode and Sensorimotor Network Connectivity in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. PLoS One 2016; 11:e0157443. [PMID: 27322194 PMCID: PMC4913931 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0157443] [Citation(s) in RCA: 69] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/14/2016] [Accepted: 05/30/2016] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a neurodegenerative condition characterized by degeneration of upper motor neurons (UMN) arising from the motor cortex in the brain and lower motor neurons (LMN) in the brainstem and spinal cord. Cerebral changes create differences in brain activity captured by functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), including the spontaneous and simultaneous activity occurring between regions known as the resting state networks (RSNs). Progressive neurodegeneration as observed in ALS may lead to a disruption of RSNs which could provide insights into the disease process. Previous studies have reported conflicting findings of increased, decreased, or unaltered RSN functional connectivity in ALS and do not report the contribution of UMN changes to RSN connectivity. We aimed to bridge this gap by exploring two networks, the default mode network (DMN) and the sensorimotor network (SMN), in 21 ALS patients and 40 age-matched healthy volunteers. An UMN score dichotomized patients into UMN+ and UMN- groups. Subjects underwent resting state fMRI scan on a high field MRI operating at 4.7 tesla. The DMN and SMN changes between subject groups were compared. Correlations between connectivity and clinical measures such as the ALS Functional Rating Scale—Revised (ALSFRS-R), disease progression rate, symptom duration, UMN score and finger tapping were assessed. Significant group differences in resting state networks between patients and controls were absent, as was the dependence on degree of UMN burden. However, DMN connectivity was increased in patients with greater disability and faster progression rate, and SMN connectivity was reduced in those with greater motor impairment. These patterns of association are in line with literature supporting loss of inhibitory interneurons.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sneha Chenji
- Neuroscience and Mental Health Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
- * E-mail:
| | - Shankar Jha
- Department of Medicine, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
| | - Dawon Lee
- Department of Medicine, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
| | - Matthew Brown
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
| | - Peter Seres
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
| | - Dennell Mah
- Division of Neurology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
| | - Sanjay Kalra
- Neuroscience and Mental Health Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
- Division of Neurology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
| |
Collapse
|