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Keskin I, Birve A, Berdynski M, Hjertkvist K, Rofougaran R, Nilsson TK, Glass JD, Marklund SL, Andersen PM. Comprehensive analysis to explain reduced or increased SOD1 enzymatic activity in ALS patients and their relatives. Amyotroph Lateral Scler Frontotemporal Degener 2017; 18:457-463. [DOI: 10.1080/21678421.2017.1301481] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Isil Keskin
- Department of Pharmacology and Clinical Neurosciences, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden,
| | - Anna Birve
- Department of Pharmacology and Clinical Neurosciences, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden,
| | - Mariusz Berdynski
- Department of Pharmacology and Clinical Neurosciences, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden,
- Department of Neurodegenerative Disorders, Mossakowski Medical Research Centre, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland,
| | - Karin Hjertkvist
- Department of Medical Biosciences, Clinical Chemistry, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden, and
| | - Reza Rofougaran
- Department of Pharmacology and Clinical Neurosciences, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden,
| | - Torbjörn K. Nilsson
- Department of Medical Biosciences, Clinical Chemistry, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden, and
| | - Jonathan D. Glass
- Department of Neurology, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Stefan L. Marklund
- Department of Medical Biosciences, Clinical Chemistry, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden, and
| | - Peter M. Andersen
- Department of Pharmacology and Clinical Neurosciences, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden,
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Ingre C, Wuolikainen A, Marklund SL, Birve A, Press R, Andersen PM. A 50 bp deletion in the SOD1 promoter lowers enzyme expression but is not associated with ALS in Sweden. Amyotroph Lateral Scler Frontotemporal Degener 2016; 17:452-7. [PMID: 27002425 DOI: 10.3109/21678421.2016.1159223] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Mutations in the superoxide dismutase (SOD1) gene have been linked to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). A 50 base pair (bp) deletion of SOD1 has been suggested to reduce transcription and to be associated with later disease onset in ALS. This study was aimed to reveal if the 50 bp deletion influenced SOD1 enzymatic activity, occurrence and phenotype of the disease in a Swedish ALS/control cohort. Blood samples from 512 Swedish ALS patients and 354 Swedish controls without coding SOD1 mutations were analysed for the 50 bp deletion allele. The enzymatic activity of SOD1 in erythrocytes was analysed and genotype-phenotype correlations were assessed. Results demonstrated that the genotype frequencies of the 50 bp deletion were all found to be in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. No significant differences were found for age of onset, disease duration or site of onset. SOD1 enzymatic activity showed a statistically significant decreasing trend in the control group, in which the allele was associated with a 5% reduction in SOD1 activity. The results suggest that the 50 bp deletion has a moderate reducing effect on SOD1 synthesis. No modulating effects, however, were found on ALS onset, phenotype and survival in the Swedish population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caroline Ingre
- a Departments of Pharmacology and Clinical Neuroscience .,b Department of Clinical Neuroscience , Karolinska Institute , Stockholm , Sweden
| | | | | | - Anna Birve
- a Departments of Pharmacology and Clinical Neuroscience
| | - Rayomand Press
- b Department of Clinical Neuroscience , Karolinska Institute , Stockholm , Sweden
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Keskin I, Forsgren E, Lange DJ, Weber M, Birve A, Synofzik M, Gilthorpe JD, Andersen PM, Marklund SL. Effects of Cellular Pathway Disturbances on Misfolded Superoxide Dismutase-1 in Fibroblasts Derived from ALS Patients. PLoS One 2016; 11:e0150133. [PMID: 26919046 PMCID: PMC4769150 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0150133] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/05/2015] [Accepted: 02/09/2016] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Mutations in superoxide dismutase-1 (SOD1) are a common known cause of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). The neurotoxicity of mutant SOD1s is most likely caused by misfolded molecular species, but disease pathogenesis is still not understood. Proposed mechanisms include impaired mitochondrial function, induction of endoplasmic reticulum stress, reduction in the activities of the proteasome and autophagy, and the formation of neurotoxic aggregates. Here we examined whether perturbations in these cellular pathways in turn influence levels of misfolded SOD1 species, potentially amplifying neurotoxicity. For the study we used fibroblasts, which express SOD1 at physiological levels under regulation of the native promoter. The cells were derived from ALS patients expressing 9 different SOD1 mutants of widely variable molecular characteristics, as well as from patients carrying the GGGGCC-repeat-expansion in C9orf72 and from non-disease controls. A specific ELISA was used to quantify soluble, misfolded SOD1, and aggregated SOD1 was analysed by western blotting. Misfolded SOD1 was detected in all lines. Levels were found to be much lower in non-disease control and the non-SOD1 C9orf72 ALS lines. This enabled us to validate patient fibroblasts for use in subsequent perturbation studies. Mitochondrial inhibition, endoplasmic reticulum stress or autophagy inhibition did not affect soluble misfolded SOD1 and in most cases, detergent-resistant SOD1 aggregates were not detected. However, proteasome inhibition led to uniformly large increases in misfolded SOD1 levels in all cell lines and an increase in SOD1 aggregation in some. Thus the ubiquitin-proteasome pathway is a principal determinant of misfolded SOD1 levels in cells derived both from patients and controls and a decline in activity with aging could be one of the factors behind the mid-to late-life onset of inherited ALS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Isil Keskin
- Department of Pharmacology and Clinical Neurosciences, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
| | - Elin Forsgren
- Department of Pharmacology and Clinical Neurosciences, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
| | - Dale J. Lange
- Department of Neurology, Hospital for Special Surgery and Weill Cornell Medical Center, New York, NY, United States of America
| | - Markus Weber
- Neuromusucular Diseases Unit/ALS Clinic, Kantonsspital St.Gallen, St. Gallen, Switzerland
| | - Anna Birve
- Department of Pharmacology and Clinical Neurosciences, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
| | - Matthis Synofzik
- Department of Neurodegenerative Diseases, Hertie Institute for Clinical Brain Research, Tübingen, Germany
- German Research Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Jonathan D. Gilthorpe
- Department of Pharmacology and Clinical Neurosciences, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
| | - Peter M. Andersen
- Department of Pharmacology and Clinical Neurosciences, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
| | - Stefan L. Marklund
- Department of Medical Biosciences, Clinical Chemistry, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
- * E-mail:
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Nordin A, Akimoto C, Wuolikainen A, Alstermark H, Jonsson P, Birve A, Marklund SL, Graffmo KS, Forsberg K, Brännström T, Andersen PM. Extensive size variability of the GGGGCC expansion in C9orf72 in both neuronal and non-neuronal tissues in 18 patients with ALS or FTD. Hum Mol Genet 2015; 24:3133-42. [DOI: 10.1093/hmg/ddv064] [Citation(s) in RCA: 80] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2014] [Accepted: 02/13/2015] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
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Hugosson F, Sjögren C, Birve A, Hedlund L, Eriksson T, Palmer RH. The Drosophila midkine/pleiotrophin homologues Miple1 and Miple2 affect adult lifespan but are dispensable for alk signaling during embryonic gut formation. PLoS One 2014; 9:e112250. [PMID: 25380037 PMCID: PMC4224452 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0112250] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2014] [Accepted: 10/10/2014] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Midkine (MDK) and Pleiotrophin (PTN) are small heparin-binding cytokines with closely related structures. The Drosophila genome harbours two genes encoding members of the MDK/PTN family of proteins, known as miple1 and miple2. We have investigated the role of Miple proteins in vivo, in particular with regard to their proposed role as ligands for the Alk receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK). Here we show that Miple proteins are neither required to drive Alk signaling during Drosophila embryogenesis, nor are they essential for development in the fruit fly. Additionally we show that neither MDK nor PTN can activate hALK in vivo when ectopically co-expressed in the fly. In conclusion, our data suggest that Alk is not activated by MDK/PTN related growth factors Miple1 and Miple 2 in vivo.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Camilla Sjögren
- Department of Molecular Biology, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
| | - Anna Birve
- Department of Molecular Biology, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
| | | | | | - Ruth H. Palmer
- Department of Molecular Biology, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Cell Biology, University of Gothenburg, Göteborg, Sweden
- * E-mail:
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van Doormaal PTC, Ticozzi N, Gellera C, Ratti A, Taroni F, Chiò A, Calvo A, Mora G, Restagno G, Traynor BJ, Birve A, Lemmens R, van Es MA, Saris CGJ, Blauw HM, van Vught PWJ, Groen EJN, Corrado L, Mazzini L, Del Bo R, Corti S, Waibel S, Meyer T, Ludolph AC, Goris A, van Damme P, Robberecht W, Shatunov A, Fogh I, Andersen PM, D'Alfonso S, Hardiman O, Cronin S, Rujescu D, Al-Chalabi A, Landers JE, Silani V, van den Berg LH, Veldink JH. Analysis of the KIFAP3 gene in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a multicenter survival study. Neurobiol Aging 2014; 35:2420.e13-4. [PMID: 24838185 DOI: 10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2014.04.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2014] [Accepted: 04/13/2014] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis is a multifactorial disease of environmental and genetic origin. In a previous large multicenter genome wide study, common genetic variation in the Kinesin-Associated Protein 3 (KIFAP3) gene (rs1541160) was reported to have a significant effect on survival in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis patients. However, this could not be replicated in 3 smaller independent cohorts. We conducted a large multicenter multivariate survival analysis (n = 2362) on the effect of genetic variation in rs1541160. The previously reported beneficial genotype did not show a significant improvement in survival in this patient group.
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Affiliation(s)
- Perry T C van Doormaal
- Department of Neurology, University Medical Center Utrecht, Rudolf Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Nicola Ticozzi
- Unit of Neurology and Laboratory of Neuroscience, IRCCS Istituto Auxologico Italiano, Milan, Italy; Department of Pathophysiology and Transplantation, "Dino Ferrari" Center, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy
| | - Cinzia Gellera
- Unit of Genetics of Neurodegenerative and Metabolic Diseases, IRCCS Carlo Besta Neurological Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Antonia Ratti
- Unit of Neurology and Laboratory of Neuroscience, IRCCS Istituto Auxologico Italiano, Milan, Italy; Department of Pathophysiology and Transplantation, "Dino Ferrari" Center, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy
| | - Franco Taroni
- Unit of Genetics of Neurodegenerative and Metabolic Diseases, IRCCS Carlo Besta Neurological Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Adriano Chiò
- 'Rita Levi Montalcini' Department of Neuroscience, University of Turin, Turin, Italy
| | - Andrea Calvo
- 'Rita Levi Montalcini' Department of Neuroscience, University of Turin, Turin, Italy
| | - Gabriele Mora
- ALS Center, Salvatore Maugeri Foundation, IRCSS, Milan, Italy
| | - Gabriella Restagno
- Laboratory of Molecular Genetics, Città della Salute e della Scienza Hospital, Turin, Italy
| | - Bryan J Traynor
- Neuromuscular Diseases Research Group, Laboratory of Neurogenetics, National Institute on Aging, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Anna Birve
- The Institute of Pharmacology and Clinical Neuroscience, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
| | - Robin Lemmens
- Leuven Institute for Neurodegenerative Disorders (LIND), University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium; Vesalius Research Center Center (VRC), Flanders Institute for Biotechnology (VIB), Leuven, Belgium; Department of Clinical and Experimental Neurology, University Hospital Leuven, University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Michael A van Es
- Department of Neurology, University Medical Center Utrecht, Rudolf Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Christiaan G J Saris
- Department of Neurology, University Medical Center Utrecht, Rudolf Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Hylke M Blauw
- Department of Neurology, University Medical Center Utrecht, Rudolf Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Paul W J van Vught
- Department of Neurology, University Medical Center Utrecht, Rudolf Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Ewout J N Groen
- Department of Neurology, University Medical Center Utrecht, Rudolf Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Lucia Corrado
- Department of Health Sciences and Interdisciplinary Research Center of Autoimmune Diseases (IRCAD), University of Eastern Piedmont, Novara, Italy
| | - Letizia Mazzini
- Department of Neurology, A. Avogadro University and Maggiore della Carità Hospital, Novara, Italy
| | - Roberto Del Bo
- Department of Pathophysiology and Transplantation, "Dino Ferrari" Center, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy; Neurologic Unit, IRCCS Foundation Ca' Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Milan, Italy
| | - Stefania Corti
- Department of Pathophysiology and Transplantation, "Dino Ferrari" Center, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy; Neurologic Unit, IRCCS Foundation Ca' Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Milan, Italy
| | - Stefan Waibel
- Department of Neurology, University of Ulm, Ulm, Germany
| | - Thomas Meyer
- Department of Neurology, Charité University Hospital, Humboldt-University, Berlin, Germany
| | | | - An Goris
- Leuven Institute for Neurodegenerative Disorders (LIND), University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium; Laboratory for Neuroimmunology, Section for Experimental Neurology, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Philip van Damme
- Leuven Institute for Neurodegenerative Disorders (LIND), University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium; Vesalius Research Center Center (VRC), Flanders Institute for Biotechnology (VIB), Leuven, Belgium; Department of Clinical and Experimental Neurology, University Hospital Leuven, University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Wim Robberecht
- Leuven Institute for Neurodegenerative Disorders (LIND), University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium; Vesalius Research Center Center (VRC), Flanders Institute for Biotechnology (VIB), Leuven, Belgium; Department of Clinical and Experimental Neurology, University Hospital Leuven, University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Aleksey Shatunov
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, King's College London, Institute of Psychiatry, London, UK
| | - Isabella Fogh
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, King's College London, Institute of Psychiatry, London, UK
| | - Peter M Andersen
- The Institute of Pharmacology and Clinical Neuroscience, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
| | - Sandra D'Alfonso
- Department of Health Sciences and Interdisciplinary Research Center of Autoimmune Diseases (IRCAD), University of Eastern Piedmont, Novara, Italy
| | - Orla Hardiman
- Trinity College Institute of Neurosciences, Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland; Department of Neurology, Beaumont Hospital, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Simon Cronin
- Department of Neurology, Beaumont Hospital, Dublin, Ireland; Department of Clinical Neurological Sciences, Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Dan Rujescu
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Halle, Halle, Germany
| | - Ammar Al-Chalabi
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, King's College London, Institute of Psychiatry, London, UK
| | - John E Landers
- Department of Neurology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA, USA
| | - Vincenzo Silani
- Unit of Neurology and Laboratory of Neuroscience, IRCCS Istituto Auxologico Italiano, Milan, Italy; Department of Pathophysiology and Transplantation, "Dino Ferrari" Center, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy
| | - Leonard H van den Berg
- Department of Neurology, University Medical Center Utrecht, Rudolf Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Jan H Veldink
- Department of Neurology, University Medical Center Utrecht, Rudolf Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, Utrecht, the Netherlands.
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Akimoto C, Volk AE, van Blitterswijk M, Van den Broeck M, Leblond CS, Lumbroso S, Camu W, Neitzel B, Onodera O, van Rheenen W, Pinto S, Weber M, Smith B, Proven M, Talbot K, Keagle P, Chesi A, Ratti A, van der Zee J, Alstermark H, Birve A, Calini D, Nordin A, Tradowsky DC, Just W, Daoud H, Angerbauer S, DeJesus-Hernandez M, Konno T, Lloyd-Jani A, de Carvalho M, Mouzat K, Landers JE, Veldink JH, Silani V, Gitler AD, Shaw CE, Rouleau GA, van den Berg LH, Van Broeckhoven C, Rademakers R, Andersen PM, Kubisch C. A blinded international study on the reliability of genetic testing for GGGGCC-repeat expansions in C9orf72 reveals marked differences in results among 14 laboratories. J Med Genet 2014; 51:419-24. [PMID: 24706941 PMCID: PMC4033024 DOI: 10.1136/jmedgenet-2014-102360] [Citation(s) in RCA: 101] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Background The GGGGCC-repeat expansion in C9orf72 is the most frequent mutation found in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD). Most of the studies on C9orf72 have relied on repeat-primed PCR (RP-PCR) methods for detection of the expansions. To investigate the inherent limitations of this technique, we compared methods and results of 14 laboratories. Methods The 14 laboratories genotyped DNA from 78 individuals (diagnosed with ALS or FTD) in a blinded fashion. Eleven laboratories used a combination of amplicon-length analysis and RP-PCR, whereas three laboratories used RP-PCR alone; Southern blotting techniques were used as a reference. Results Using PCR-based techniques, 5 of the 14 laboratories got results in full accordance with the Southern blotting results. Only 50 of the 78 DNA samples got the same genotype result in all 14 laboratories. There was a high degree of false positive and false negative results, and at least one sample could not be genotyped at all in 9 of the 14 laboratories. The mean sensitivity of a combination of amplicon-length analysis and RP-PCR was 95.0% (73.9–100%), and the mean specificity was 98.0% (87.5–100%). Overall, a sensitivity and specificity of more than 95% was observed in only seven laboratories. Conclusions Because of the wide range seen in genotyping results, we recommend using a combination of amplicon-length analysis and RP-PCR as a minimum in a research setting. We propose that Southern blotting techniques should be the gold standard, and be made obligatory in a clinical diagnostic setting.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chizuru Akimoto
- Department of Pharmacology and Clinical Neuroscience, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
| | | | | | - Marleen Van den Broeck
- Neurodegenerative Brain Diseases Group, Department of Molecular Genetics, VIB, University of Antwerp-CDE, Antwerp, Belgium Diagnostic Service Facility, Laboratory of neurogenetics, Institute Born-Bunge, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Claire S Leblond
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Serge Lumbroso
- Department of Biochemistry, Nimes University Hospital, Nimes Cedex 9, France
| | - William Camu
- Center SLA, Montpellier University Hospital, Hôpital Gui-de-Chauliac, Montpellier Cedex 5, France
| | | | - Osamu Onodera
- Department of Neurology, Brain Research Institute, Niigata University, Niigata, Japan
| | - Wouter van Rheenen
- Department of Neurology, Brain Center Rudolf Magnus, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Susana Pinto
- Faculty of Medicine-University of Lisbon, Instituto de Medicina Molecular, Hospital de Santa Maria, University of Lisbon, Alameda Universidade, Lisbon, Portugal
| | - Markus Weber
- Department of neurology, Kantonsspital St. Gallen and University Hospital, St. Gallen, Switzerland
| | - Bradley Smith
- Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London and King's Health Partners, London, UK
| | - Melanie Proven
- Oxford Medical Genetics Laboratories, Churchill Hospital, Oxford, England
| | - Kevin Talbot
- Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford, John Radcliffe hospital, Oxford, UK
| | - Pamela Keagle
- Department of Neurology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Alessandra Chesi
- Department of Genetics, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California, USA
| | - Antonia Ratti
- Department of Pathophysiology and Transplantation, "Dino Ferrari" Center, Universtà degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy Department of Neurology and Laboratory of Neuroscience, IRCCS Istituto Auxologico Italiano, , Milan, Italy
| | - Julie van der Zee
- Neurodegenerative Brain Diseases Group, Department of Molecular Genetics, VIB, University of Antwerp-CDE, Antwerp, Belgium Diagnostic Service Facility, Laboratory of neurogenetics, Institute Born-Bunge, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Helena Alstermark
- Department of Pharmacology and Clinical Neuroscience, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
| | - Anna Birve
- Department of Pharmacology and Clinical Neuroscience, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
| | - Daniela Calini
- Department of Pathophysiology and Transplantation, "Dino Ferrari" Center, Universtà degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy Department of Neurology and Laboratory of Neuroscience, IRCCS Istituto Auxologico Italiano, , Milan, Italy
| | - Angelica Nordin
- Department of Pharmacology and Clinical Neuroscience, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
| | | | - Walter Just
- Institute of Human Genetics, Ulm University, Ulm, Germany
| | - Hussein Daoud
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | | | | | - Takuya Konno
- Department of Neurology, Brain Research Institute, Niigata University, Niigata, Japan
| | - Anjali Lloyd-Jani
- Oxford Medical Genetics Laboratories, Churchill Hospital, Oxford, England
| | - Mamede de Carvalho
- Faculty of Medicine-University of Lisbon, Instituto de Medicina Molecular, Hospital de Santa Maria, University of Lisbon, Alameda Universidade, Lisbon, Portugal
| | - Kevin Mouzat
- Department of Biochemistry, Nimes University Hospital, Nimes Cedex 9, France
| | - John E Landers
- Department of Neurology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Jan H Veldink
- Department of Neurology, Brain Center Rudolf Magnus, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Vincenzo Silani
- Department of Pathophysiology and Transplantation, "Dino Ferrari" Center, Universtà degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy Department of Neurology and Laboratory of Neuroscience, IRCCS Istituto Auxologico Italiano, , Milan, Italy
| | - Aaron D Gitler
- Department of Genetics, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California, USA
| | - Christopher E Shaw
- Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London and King's Health Partners, London, UK
| | - Guy A Rouleau
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Leonard H van den Berg
- Department of Neurology, Brain Center Rudolf Magnus, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Christine Van Broeckhoven
- Neurodegenerative Brain Diseases Group, Department of Molecular Genetics, VIB, University of Antwerp-CDE, Antwerp, Belgium Diagnostic Service Facility, Laboratory of neurogenetics, Institute Born-Bunge, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Rosa Rademakers
- Department of Pharmacology and Clinical Neuroscience, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden Institute of Human Genetics, Ulm University, Ulm, Germany Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, Florida, USA Neurodegenerative Brain Diseases Group, Department of Molecular Genetics, VIB, University of Antwerp-CDE, Antwerp, Belgium Diagnostic Service Facility, Laboratory of neurogenetics, Institute Born-Bunge, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada Department of Biochemistry, Nimes University Hospital, Nimes Cedex 9, France Center SLA, Montpellier University Hospital, Hôpital Gui-de-Chauliac, Montpellier Cedex 5, France Medizinisch Genetisches Zentrum, München, Germany Department of Neurology, Brain Research Institute, Niigata University, Niigata, Japan Department of Neurology, Brain Center Rudolf Magnus, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands Faculty of Medicine-University of Lisbon, Instituto de Medicina Molecular, Hospital de Santa Maria, University of Lisbon, Alameda Universidade, Lisbon, Portugal Department of neurology, Kantonsspital St. Gallen and University Hospital, St. Gallen, Switzerland Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London and King's Health Partners, London, UK Oxford Medical Genetics Laboratories, Churchill Hospital, Oxford, England Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford, John Radcliffe hospital, Oxford, UK Department of Neurology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA Department of Genetics, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California, USA Department of Pathophysiology and Transplantation, "Dino Ferrari" Center, Universtà degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy Department of Neurology and Laboratory of Neuroscience, IRCCS Istituto Auxologico Italiano, , Milan, Italy Department of Neurology, University of Ulm
| | - Peter M Andersen
- Department of Pharmacology and Clinical Neuroscience, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden Department of Neurology, University of Ulm, Ulm, Germany
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Ingre C, Pinto S, Birve A, Press R, Danielsson O, de Carvalho M, Guđmundsson G, Andersen PM. No association between VAPB mutations and familial or sporadic ALS in Sweden, Portugal and Iceland. Amyotroph Lateral Scler Frontotemporal Degener 2013; 14:620-7. [PMID: 23971766 DOI: 10.3109/21678421.2013.822515] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Linkage analysis in Brazilian families with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) revealed that a missense mutation p.Pro56Ser in a conserved gene VAMP-associated protein type B and C (VAPB) cosegregates with disease. Blood samples were studied from 973 Swedish, 126 Portuguese and 19 Icelandic ALS patients, and from 644 control subjects. We identified five VAPB mutations, two of which are novel, in 14 Swedish ALS patients and in nine control individuals from Sweden and Portugal. The 14 patients with VAPB mutations all carried a diagnosis of sporadic ALS. Mutations were also found in healthy adult relatives. The p.Asp130Glu VAPB mutation was also found in two patients from an Icelandic ALS family, but the mutation did not cosegregate with disease. All patients were instead found to be heterozygous for a p.Gly93Ser SOD1 mutation. There were no clinical differences between them, suggesting that the p.Asp130Glu VAPB mutation is unrelated to the disease process. In conclusion, the VAPB mutations were as frequent in control individuals as in patients. This observation, in combination with the finding of several healthy relatives carrying the VAPB mutations and no ancestors with ALS disease, suggests that it is unlikely that these VAPB mutations are pathogenic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caroline Ingre
- Department of Pharmacology and Clinical Neuroscience, Umeå University , Umeå
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Ingre C, Landers JE, Rizik N, Volk AE, Akimoto C, Birve A, Hübers A, Keagle PJ, Piotrowska K, Press R, Andersen PM, Ludolph AC, Weishaupt JH. A novel phosphorylation site mutation in profilin 1 revealed in a large screen of US, Nordic, and German amyotrophic lateral sclerosis/frontotemporal dementia cohorts. Neurobiol Aging 2013; 34:1708.e1-6. [PMID: 23141414 PMCID: PMC6591725 DOI: 10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2012.10.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [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: 08/14/2012] [Revised: 10/05/2012] [Accepted: 10/15/2012] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Profilin 1 is a central regulator of actin dynamics. Mutations in the gene profilin 1 (PFN1) have very recently been shown to be the cause of a subgroup of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Here, we performed a large screen of US, Nordic, and German familial and sporadic ALS and frontotemporal dementia (FTLD) patients for PFN1 mutations to get further insight into the spectrum and pathogenic relevance of this gene for the complete ALS/FTLD continuum. Four hundred twelve familial and 260 sporadic ALS cases and 16 ALS/FTLD cases from Germany, the Nordic countries, and the United States were screened for PFN1 mutations. Phenotypes of patients carrying PFN1 mutations were studied. In a German ALS family we identified the novel heterozygous PFN1 mutation p.Thr109Met, which was absent in controls. This novel mutation abrogates a phosphorylation site in profilin 1. The recently described p.Gln117Gly sequence variant was found in another familial ALS patient from the United States. The ALS patients with mutations in PFN1 displayed spinal onset motor neuron disease without overt cognitive involvement. PFN1 mutations were absent in patients with motor neuron disease and dementia, and in patients with only FTLD. We provide further evidence that PFN1 mutations can cause ALS as a Mendelian dominant trait. Patients carrying PFN1 mutations reported so far represent the "classic" ALS end of the ALS-FTLD spectrum. The novel p.Thr109Met mutation provides additional proof-of-principle that mutant proteins involved in the regulation of cytoskeletal dynamics can cause motor neuron degeneration. Moreover, this new mutation suggests that fine-tuning of actin polymerization by phosphorylation of profilin 1 might be necessary for motor neuron survival.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caroline Ingre
- Institute of Pharmacology and Clinical Neuroscience, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
- Department of Neurology, The Karolinske University Hospital Huddinge, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - John E. Landers
- Department of Neurology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA, USA
| | - Naji Rizik
- Department of Neurology Ulm University Ulm, Germany
| | | | - Chizuru Akimoto
- Institute of Pharmacology and Clinical Neuroscience, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
| | - Anna Birve
- Institute of Pharmacology and Clinical Neuroscience, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
| | | | - Pamela J. Keagle
- Department of Neurology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA, USA
| | - Katarzyna Piotrowska
- Department of Neurology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA, USA
| | - Rayomand Press
- Department of Neurology, The Karolinske University Hospital Huddinge, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Peter Munch Andersen
- Institute of Pharmacology and Clinical Neuroscience, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
- Department of Neurology Ulm University Ulm, Germany
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10
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Eschbach J, Schwalenstöcker B, Soyal SM, Bayer H, Wiesner D, Akimoto C, Nilsson AC, Birve A, Meyer T, Dupuis L, Danzer KM, Andersen PM, Witting A, Ludolph AC, Patsch W, Weydt P. PGC-1α is a male-specific disease modifier of human and experimental amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Hum Mol Genet 2013; 22:3477-84. [PMID: 23669350 DOI: 10.1093/hmg/ddt202] [Citation(s) in RCA: 68] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a devastating, adult-onset neurodegenerative disorder of the upper and lower motor systems. It leads to paresis, muscle wasting and inevitably to death, typically within 3-5 years. However, disease onset and survival vary considerably ranging in extreme cases from a few months to several decades. The genetic and environmental factors underlying this variability are of great interest as potential therapeutic targets. In ALS, men are affected more often and have an earlier age of onset than women. This gender difference is recapitulated in transgenic rodent models, but no underlying mechanism has been elucidated. Here we report that SNPs in the brain-specific promoter region of the transcriptional co-activator PGC-1α, a master regulator of metabolism, modulate age of onset and survival in two large and independent ALS populations and this occurs in a strictly male-specific manner. In complementary animal studies, we show that deficiency of full-length (FL) Pgc-1α leads to a significantly earlier age of onset and a borderline shortened survival in male, but not in female ALS-transgenic mice. In the animal model, FL Pgc-1α-loss is associated with reduced mRNA levels of the trophic factor Vegf-A in males, but not in females. In summary, we indentify PGC-1α as a novel and clinically relevant disease modifier of human and experimental ALS and report a sex-dependent effect of PGC-1α in this neurodegenerative disorder.
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11
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Waibel S, Neumann M, Rosenbohm A, Birve A, Volk AE, Weishaupt JH, Meyer T, Müller U, Andersen PM, Ludolph AC. Truncating mutations in FUS/TLS give rise to a more aggressive ALS-phenotype than missense mutations: a clinico-genetic study in Germany. Eur J Neurol 2012; 20:540-546. [PMID: 23217123 DOI: 10.1111/ene.12031] [Citation(s) in RCA: 54] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2012] [Accepted: 10/10/2012] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Mutations in the FUS/TLS have been associated with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) in a few percent of patients. METHODS We screened 184 familial (FALS) and 200 sporadic German patients with ALS for FUS/TLS mutations by sequence analysis of exons 5, 6 and 13-15. We compared the phenotypes of patients with different FUS/TLS mutations. RESULTS We identified three missense mutations p.K510R, p.R514G, p.R521H, and the two truncating mutations p.R495X and p.G478LfsX23 in samples from eight pedigrees. Both truncating mutations were associated with young onset and very aggressive disease courses, whereas the p.R521H, p.R514G and in particular the p.K510R mutation showed a milder phenotype with disease durations ranging from 3 years to more than 26 years, the longest reported for a patient with a FUS/TLS mutation. Also, in a pair of monozygous twins with the p.K510R mutation, a remarkable similar disease course was observed. CONCLUSIONS Mutations in FUS/TLS account for 8.7% (16 of 184) of FALS in Germany. This is a higher prevalence than reported from other countries. Truncating FUS/TLS mutations result in a more severe phenotype than most missense mutations. The wide phenotypic differences have implications for genetic counselling.
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Affiliation(s)
- S Waibel
- Department of Neurology, University of Ulm, Ulm, Germany
| | - M Neumann
- Institute of Neuropathology, University Hospital of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - A Rosenbohm
- Department of Neurology, University of Ulm, Ulm, Germany
| | - A Birve
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
| | - A E Volk
- Institute of Human Genetics, University of Ulm, Ulm, Germany
| | - J H Weishaupt
- Department of Neurology, University of Ulm, Ulm, Germany
| | - T Meyer
- Department of Neurology, Humboldt University Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - U Müller
- Department of Human Genetics, University of Giessen, Giessen, Germany
| | - P M Andersen
- Department of Neurology, University of Ulm, Ulm, Germany.,Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
| | - A C Ludolph
- Department of Neurology, University of Ulm, Ulm, Germany
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12
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Graffmo KS, Forsberg K, Bergh J, Birve A, Zetterström P, Andersen PM, Marklund SL, Brännström T. Expression of wild-type human superoxide dismutase-1 in mice causes amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Hum Mol Genet 2012; 22:51-60. [PMID: 23026746 DOI: 10.1093/hmg/dds399] [Citation(s) in RCA: 113] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
A common cause of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is mutations in the gene encoding superoxide dismutase-1. There is evolving circumstantial evidence that the wild-type protein can also be neurotoxic and that it may more generally be involved in the pathogenesis of ALS. To test this proposition more directly, we generated mice that express wild-type human superoxide dismutase-1 at a rate close to that of mutant superoxide dismutase-1 in the commonly studied G93A transgenic model. These mice developed an ALS-like syndrome and became terminally ill after around 370 days. The loss of spinal ventral neurons was similar to that in the G93A and other mutant superoxide dismutase-1 models, and large amounts of aggregated superoxide dismutase-1 were found in spinal cords, but also in the brain. The findings show that wild-type human superoxide dismutase-1 has the ability to cause ALS in mice, and they support the hypothesis of a more general involvement of the protein in the disease in humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karin S Graffmo
- Department of Medical Biosciences, Umeå University, SE-901 85 Umeå, Sweden
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13
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Akimoto C, Forsgren L, Linder J, Birve A, Backlund I, Andersson J, Nilsson AC, Alstermark H, Andersen PM. No GGGGCC-hexanucleotide repeat expansion in C9ORF72 in parkinsonism patients in Sweden. Amyotroph Lateral Scler Frontotemporal Degener 2012; 14:26-9. [PMID: 22985429 DOI: 10.3109/17482968.2012.725415] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022]
Abstract
An intronic GGGGCC-hexanucleotide repeat expansion in C9ORF72 was recently identified as a major cause of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and frontotemporal dementia. Some amyotrophic lateral sclerosis patients have signs of parkinsonism, and many parkinsonism patients develop dementia. In this study we examined if the hexanucleotide repeat expansion was present in parkinsonism patients, to clarify if there could be a relationship between the repeat expansion and disease. We studied the size of the hexanucleotide repeat expansion in a well defined population-based cohort of 135 Parkinson's disease patients and 39 patients with atypical parkinsonism and compared with 645 Swedish control subjects. We found no correlation between Parkinson's disease or atypical parkinsonism and the size of the GGGGCC repeat expansion in C9ORF72. In conclusion, this GGGGCC-repeat expansion in C9ORF72 is not a cause of parkinsonism in the Swedish population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chizuru Akimoto
- Department of Pharmacology and Clinical Neuroscience, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden.
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Synofzik M, Ronchi D, Keskin I, Basak AN, Wilhelm C, Gobbi C, Birve A, Biskup S, Zecca C, Fernández-Santiago R, Kaugesaar T, Schöls L, Marklund SL, Andersen PM. Mutant superoxide dismutase-1 indistinguishable from wild-type causes ALS. Hum Mol Genet 2012; 21:3568-74. [PMID: 22595972 DOI: 10.1093/hmg/dds188] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
A reason for screening amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) patients for mutations in the superoxide dismutase-1 (SOD1) gene is the opportunity to find novel mutations with properties that can give information on pathogenesis. A novel c.352C>G (L117V) SOD1 mutation was found in two Syrian ALS families living in Europe. The disease showed unusually low penetrance and slow progression. In erythrocytes, the total SOD1 activity, as well as specific activity of the mutant protein, was equal in carriers of the mutation and family controls lacking SOD1 mutations. The structural stabilities of the L117V mutant and wild-type SOD1 under denaturing conditions were likewise equal, but considerably lower than that of murine SOD1. As analyzed with an ELISA specific for misfolded SOD1 species, no differences were found in the content of misfolded SOD1 protein between extracts of fibroblasts from wild-type controls and from an L117V patient. In contrast, elevated levels of misfolded SOD1 protein were found in fibroblasts from ALS patients carrying seven other mutations in the SOD1 gene. We conclude that mutations in SOD1 that result in a fully stable protein are associated with low disease penetrance for ALS and may be found in cases of apparently sporadic ALS. Wild-type human SOD1 is moderately stable, and was found here to be within the stability range of ALS-causing SOD1 variants, lending support to the hypothesis that wild-type SOD1 could be more generally involved in ALS pathogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthis Synofzik
- Department of Neurodegenerative Diseases, Hertie Institute for Clinical Brain Research, Tübingen 72076, Germany
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15
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Weber M, Neuwirth C, Thierbach J, Schweikert K, Czaplinski A, Petersen J, Jung HH, Birve A, Marklund SL, Andersen PM. ALS patients with SOD1 mutations in Switzerland show very diverse phenotypes and extremely long survival. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 2012; 83:351-3. [PMID: 21700728 DOI: 10.1136/jnnp.2011.241349] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
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16
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van Es MA, Schelhaas HJ, van Vught PWJ, Ticozzi N, Andersen PM, Groen EJN, Schulte C, Blauw HM, Koppers M, Diekstra FP, Fumoto K, LeClerc AL, Keagle P, Bloem BR, Scheffer H, van Nuenen BFL, van Blitterswijk M, van Rheenen W, Wills AM, Lowe PP, Hu GF, Yu W, Kishikawa H, Wu D, Folkerth RD, Mariani C, Goldwurm S, Pezzoli G, Van Damme P, Lemmens R, Dahlberg C, Birve A, Fernández-Santiago R, Waibel S, Klein C, Weber M, van der Kooi AJ, de Visser M, Verbaan D, van Hilten JJ, Heutink P, Hennekam EAM, Cuppen E, Berg D, Brown RH, Silani V, Gasser T, Ludolph AC, Robberecht W, Ophoff RA, Veldink JH, Pasterkamp RJ, de Bakker PIW, Landers JE, van de Warrenburg BP, van den Berg LH. Angiogenin variants in Parkinson disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Ann Neurol 2012; 70:964-73. [PMID: 22190368 DOI: 10.1002/ana.22611] [Citation(s) in RCA: 145] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Several studies have suggested an increased frequency of variants in the gene encoding angiogenin (ANG) in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Interestingly, a few ALS patients carrying ANG variants also showed signs of Parkinson disease (PD). Furthermore, relatives of ALS patients have an increased risk to develop PD, and the prevalence of concomitant motor neuron disease in PD is higher than expected based on chance occurrence. We therefore investigated whether ANG variants could predispose to both ALS and PD. METHODS We reviewed all previous studies on ANG in ALS and performed sequence experiments on additional samples, which allowed us to analyze data from 6,471 ALS patients and 7,668 controls from 15 centers (13 from Europe and 2 from the USA). We sequenced DNA samples from 3,146 PD patients from 6 centers (5 from Europe and 1 from the USA). Statistical analysis was performed using the variable threshold test, and the Mantel-Haenszel procedure was used to estimate odds ratios. RESULTS Analysis of sequence data from 17,258 individuals demonstrated a significantly higher frequency of ANG variants in both ALS and PD patients compared to control subjects (p = 9.3 × 10(-6) for ALS and p = 4.3 × 10(-5) for PD). The odds ratio for any ANG variant in patients versus controls was 9.2 for ALS and 6.7 for PD. INTERPRETATION The data from this multicenter study demonstrate that there is a strong association between PD, ALS, and ANG variants. ANG is a genetic link between ALS and PD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael A van Es
- Department of Neurology, Rudolf Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, University Medical Center Utrecht, The Netherlands
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17
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Brotherton T, Polak M, Kelly C, Birve A, Andersen P, Marklund SL, Glass JD. A novel ALS SOD1 C6S mutation with implications for aggregation related toxicity and genetic counseling. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2010; 12:215-9. [PMID: 21073275 DOI: 10.3109/17482968.2010.531279] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022]
Abstract
In this report we describe an ALS family with a novel missense SOD1 mutation with substitution of serine for cysteine at the sixth amino acid (C6S). This mutation has interesting implications for the role of disulfides in causing disease. After identification of the ALS proband, we examined 17 members of an extended family and performed DNA mutation analysis on 21 family members. The level and activity of SOD1 in C6S carriers and wild-type family members was analyzed in erythrocytes. We found that the C6S mutation results in disease with an autosomal dominant mode of inheritance and markedly reduced penetrance. The S6 mutated protein demonstrates high stability relative to the C6 wild-type protein. The specific dismutation activity of S6 SOD1 is normal. In conclusion, C6S is a novel FALS associated mutation with reduced disease penetrance, long survival time and a phenotype very different from the other SOD1 mutations reported in codon C6. This mutation may provide insight into the role of SOD1 structural changes in disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Terrell Brotherton
- Department of Neurology, Center for Neurodegenerative Disease, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia, USA
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18
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Birve A, Neuwirth C, Weber M, Marklund SL, Nilsson AC, Jonsson PA, Andersen PM. A novel SOD1 splice site mutation associated with familial ALS revealed by SOD activity analysis. Hum Mol Genet 2010; 19:4201-6. [PMID: 20709807 DOI: 10.1093/hmg/ddq338] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
More than 145 mutations have been found in the gene CuZn-Superoxide dismutase (SOD1) in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). The vast majority are easily detected nucleotide mutations in the coding region. In a patient from a Swiss ALS family with half-normal erythrocyte SOD1 activity, exon flanking sequence analysis revealed a novel thymine to guanine mutation 7 bp upstream of exon 4 (c.240-7T>G). The results of splicing algorithm analyses were ambiguous, but five out of seven analysis tools suggested a potential novel splice site that would add six new base pairs to the mRNA. If translated, this mRNA would insert Ser and Ile between Glu78 and Arg79 in the SOD1 protein. In fibroblasts from the patient, the predicted mutant transcript and the mutant protein were both highly expressed, and despite the location of the insertion into the metal ion-binding loop IV, the SOD1 activity appeared high. In erythrocytes, which lack protein synthesis and are old compared with cultured fibroblasts, both SOD1 protein and enzymic activity was 50% of controls. Thus, the usage of the novel splice site is near 100%, and the mutant SOD1 shows the reduced stability typical of ALS-associated mutant SOD1s. The findings suggests that this novel intronic mutation is causing the disease and highlights the importance of wide exon-flanking sequencing and transcript analysis combined with erythrocyte SOD1 activity analysis in comprehensive search for SOD1 mutations in ALS. We find that there are potentially more SOD1 mutations than previously reported.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Birve
- Department of Pharmacology and Clinical Neuroscience, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
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Blauw HM, Al-Chalabi A, Andersen PM, van Vught PWJ, Diekstra FP, van Es MA, Saris CGJ, Groen EJN, van Rheenen W, Koppers M, Van't Slot R, Strengman E, Estrada K, Rivadeneira F, Hofman A, Uitterlinden AG, Kiemeney LA, Vermeulen SHM, Birve A, Waibel S, Meyer T, Cronin S, McLaughlin RL, Hardiman O, Sapp PC, Tobin MD, Wain LV, Tomik B, Slowik A, Lemmens R, Rujescu D, Schulte C, Gasser T, Brown RH, Landers JE, Robberecht W, Ludolph AC, Ophoff RA, Veldink JH, van den Berg LH. A large genome scan for rare CNVs in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Hum Mol Genet 2010; 19:4091-9. [PMID: 20685689 DOI: 10.1093/hmg/ddq323] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a fatal neurodegenerative disease selectively affecting motor neurons in the brain and spinal cord. Recent genome-wide association studies (GWASs) have identified several common variants which increase disease susceptibility. In contrast, rare copy-number variants (CNVs), which have been associated with several neuropsychiatric traits, have not been studied for ALS in well-powered study populations. To examine the role of rare CNVs in ALS susceptibility, we conducted a CNV association study including over 19,000 individuals. In a genome-wide screen of 1875 cases and 8731 controls, we did not find evidence for a difference in global CNV burden between cases and controls. In our association analyses, we identified two loci that met our criteria for follow-up: the DPP6 locus (OR = 3.59, P = 6.6 × 10(-3)), which has already been implicated in ALS pathogenesis, and the 15q11.2 locus, containing NIPA1 (OR = 12.46, P = 9.3 × 10(-5)), the gene causing hereditary spastic paraparesis type 6 (HSP 6). We tested these loci in a replication cohort of 2559 cases and 5887 controls. Again, results were suggestive of association, but did not meet our criteria for independent replication: DPP6 locus: OR = 1.92, P = 0.097, pooled results: OR = 2.64, P = 1.4 × 10(-3); NIPA1: OR = 3.23, P = 0.041, pooled results: OR = 6.20, P = 2.2 × 10(-5)). Our results highlight DPP6 and NIPA1 as candidates for more in-depth studies. Unlike other complex neurological and psychiatric traits, rare CNVs with high effect size do not play a major role in ALS pathogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hylke M Blauw
- Department of Neurology, Rudolf Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, Genetics, University Medical Centre Utrecht, 3584 CX Utrecht, The Netherlands
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20
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Taes I, Goris A, Lemmens R, van Es MA, van den Berg LH, Chio A, Traynor BJ, Birve A, Andersen P, Slowik A, Tomik B, Brown RH, Shaw CE, Al-Chalabi A, Boonen S, Van Den Bosch L, Dubois B, Van Damme P, Robberecht W. Tau levels do not influence human ALS or motor neuron degeneration in the SOD1G93A mouse. Neurology 2010; 74:1687-93. [PMID: 20498436 DOI: 10.1212/wnl.0b013e3181e042f7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The microtubule-associated protein tau is thought to play a pivotal role in neurodegeneration. Mutations in the tau coding gene MAPT are a cause of frontotemporal dementia, and the H1/H1 genotype of MAPT, giving rise to higher tau expression levels, is associated with progressive supranuclear palsy, corticobasal degeneration, and Parkinson disease (PD). Furthermore, tau hyperphosphorylation and aggregation is a hallmark of Alzheimer disease (AD), and reducing endogenous tau has been reported to ameliorate cognitive impairment in a mouse model for AD. Tau hyperphosphorylation and aggregation have also been described in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), both in human patients and in the mutant SOD1 mouse model for this disease. However, the precise role of tau in motor neuron degeneration remains uncertain. METHODS The possible association between ALS and the MAPT H1/H2 polymorphism was studied in 3,540 patients with ALS and 8,753 controls. Furthermore, the role of tau in the SOD1(G93A) mouse model for ALS was studied by deleting Mapt in this model. RESULTS The MAPT genotype of the H1/H2 polymorphism did not influence ALS susceptibility (odds ratio = 1.08 [95% confidence interval 0.99-1.18], p = 0.08) and did not affect the clinical phenotype. Lowering tau levels in the SOD1(G93A) mouse failed to delay disease onset (p = 0.302) or to increase survival (p = 0.557). CONCLUSION These findings suggest that the H1/H2 polymorphism in MAPT is not associated with human amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and that lowering tau levels in the mutant SOD1 mouse does not affect the motor neuron degeneration in these animals.
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Affiliation(s)
- I Taes
- Laboratory of Neurobiology and Department of Neurology, University Hospital Gasthuisberg, K.U. Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
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van Es MA, Dahlberg C, Birve A, Veldink JH, van den Berg LH, Andersen PM. Large-scale SOD1 mutation screening provides evidence for genetic heterogeneity in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 2010; 81:562-6. [PMID: 19965850 DOI: 10.1136/jnnp.2009.181453] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To estimate the frequency of SOD1 mutations in a large referral cohort of familial amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (FALS) and sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (SALS) patients from The Netherlands and to compare this frequency with that of other developed countries. METHODS A total of 451 sporadic and 55 FALS patients were screened for SOD1 mutations. The authors performed PCR amplification of all five coding exons of SOD1 followed by direct DNA sequencing using forward and reverse primers. RESULTS One novel mutation (p.I99V) and a homozygous p.D90A mutation were identified in SALS patients. In a pedigree with Mendelian dominant FALS, one patient was found to be heterozygous for the p.D90A mutation. SOD1 mutation frequency was found to be significantly lower in The Netherlands compared with other countries with p=0.0004 for FALS (21.9% vs 2.5%) and p=0.005 for SALS (2.5% vs 0.44%). CONCLUSIONS The authors demonstrate that SOD1 mutations are rare in The Netherlands in familial and SALS. This observation suggests that the genetic background of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis differs between different populations, countries and regions. This may have consequences for the interpretation of association studies and explain why replication of association studies has proven difficult in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael A van Es
- Department of Neurology, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands
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Bogaert E, Goris A, Van Damme P, Geelen V, Lemmens R, van Es MA, van den Berg LH, Sleegers K, Verpoorten N, Timmerman V, De Jonghe P, Van Broeckhoven C, Traynor BJ, Landers JE, Brown RH, Glass JD, Al-Chalabi A, Shaw CE, Birve A, Andersen PM, Slowik A, Tomik B, Melki J, Robberecht W, Van Den Bosch L. Polymorphisms in the GluR2 gene are not associated with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Neurobiol Aging 2010; 33:418-20. [PMID: 20409611 DOI: 10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2010.03.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2009] [Revised: 02/12/2010] [Accepted: 03/11/2010] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Excitotoxicity is thought to play a pathogenic role in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Excitotoxic motor neuron death is mediated through the Ca(2+)-permeable α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazole propionic acid (AMPA)-type of glutamate receptors and Ca(2+) permeability is determined by the GluR2 subunit. We investigated whether polymorphisms or mutations in the GluR2 gene (GRIA2) predispose patients to ALS. Upon sequencing 24 patients and 24 controls no nonsynonymous coding variants were observed but 24 polymorphisms were identified, 9 of which were novel. In a screening set of 310 Belgian ALS cases and 794 healthy controls and a replication set of 3157 cases and 5397 controls from 6 additional populations no association with susceptibility, age at onset, or disease duration was observed. We conclude that polymorphisms in the GluR2 gene (GRIA2) are not a major contributory factor in the pathogenesis of ALS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elke Bogaert
- Laboratory for Neurobiology, Experimental Neurology, University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
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23
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Van Es MA, Van Vught PWJ, Veldink JH, Andersen PM, Birve A, Lemmens R, Cronin S, Van Der Kooi AJ, De Visser M, Schelhaas HJ, Hardiman O, Ragoussis I, Lambrechts D, Robberecht W, Wokke JHJ, Ophoff RA, Van Den Berg LH. Analysis of FGGY as a risk factor for sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2010; 10:441-7. [PMID: 19922138 DOI: 10.3109/17482960802673042] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
A genome-wide association study (GWAS) using pooled DNA samples from 386 sporadic ALS patients and 542 controls from the USA, identified genetic variation in FGGY (FLJ10986) as a risk factor, as well as 66 additional candidate SNPs. Considering the large number of hypotheses that are tested in GWAS, independent replication of associations is crucial for identifying true-positive genetic risk factors for disease. The primary aim of this study was to study the association between FGGY and sporadic ALS in large, homogeneous populations from northern Europe. Genotyping experiments were performed using Illumina Beadchips, Sequenom iPLEX assays and Taqman technology on large case-control series from The Netherlands, Belgium, Sweden and Ireland (total: 1883 sporadic ALS patients and 2063 controls). No significant association between sporadic ALS and the six previously reported associated SNPs in FGGY was observed: rs6700125 (p =0.56), rs6690993 (p =0.30), rs10493256 (p =0.68), rs6587852 (p =0.64), rs1470407 (p =0.28) and rs333662 (p =0.44). Screening of the additional candidate loci did not yield significant associations either, with the lowest p-value in joint analysis for rs7772593 (p =0.14). We concluded that common genetic variation in FGGY is not associated with susceptibility to sporadic ALS in genetically homogeneous populations from northern Europe.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael A Van Es
- Department of Neurology, Rudolf Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, University Medical Centre Utrecht, Heidelbergaan 100, Utrecht, The Netherlands
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24
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van Es MA, Veldink JH, Saris CGJ, Blauw HM, van Vught PWJ, Birve A, Lemmens R, Schelhaas HJ, Groen EJN, Huisman MHB, van der Kooi AJ, de Visser M, Dahlberg C, Estrada K, Rivadeneira F, Hofman A, Zwarts MJ, van Doormaal PTC, Rujescu D, Strengman E, Giegling I, Muglia P, Tomik B, Slowik A, Uitterlinden AG, Hendrich C, Waibel S, Meyer T, Ludolph AC, Glass JD, Purcell S, Cichon S, Nöthen MM, Wichmann HE, Schreiber S, Vermeulen SHHM, Kiemeney LA, Wokke JHJ, Cronin S, McLaughlin RL, Hardiman O, Fumoto K, Pasterkamp RJ, Meininger V, Melki J, Leigh PN, Shaw CE, Landers JE, Al-Chalabi A, Brown RH, Robberecht W, Andersen PM, Ophoff RA, van den Berg LH. Genome-wide association study identifies 19p13.3 (UNC13A) and 9p21.2 as susceptibility loci for sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Nat Genet 2009; 41:1083-7. [PMID: 19734901 DOI: 10.1038/ng.442] [Citation(s) in RCA: 278] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2009] [Accepted: 07/23/2009] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
We conducted a genome-wide association study among 2,323 individuals with sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and 9,013 control subjects and evaluated all SNPs with P < 1.0 x 10(-4) in a second, independent cohort of 2,532 affected individuals and 5,940 controls. Analysis of the genome-wide data revealed genome-wide significance for one SNP, rs12608932, with P = 1.30 x 10(-9). This SNP showed robust replication in the second cohort (P = 1.86 x 10(-6)), and a combined analysis over the two stages yielded P = 2.53 x 10(-14). The rs12608932 SNP is located at 19p13.3 and maps to a haplotype block within the boundaries of UNC13A, which regulates the release of neurotransmitters such as glutamate at neuromuscular synapses. Follow-up of additional SNPs showed genome-wide significance for two further SNPs (rs2814707, with P = 7.45 x 10(-9), and rs3849942, with P = 1.01 x 10(-8)) in the combined analysis of both stages. These SNPs are located at chromosome 9p21.2, in a linkage region for familial ALS with frontotemporal dementia found previously in several large pedigrees.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael A van Es
- Department of Neurology, Rudolf Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands
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25
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Van Es M, Van Vught P, Veldink J, Andersen P, Birve A, Lemmens R, Cronin S, Van Der Kooi A, Visser M, Schelhaas H, Hardiman O, Ragoussis I, Lambrechts D, Robberecht W, Wokke J, Ophoff R, Van Den Berg L. Analysis of FGGY as a risk factor for sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2009. [DOI: 10.1080/17482960802673042] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
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Chen S, Birve A, Rasmuson-Lestander A. In vivo analysis of Drosophila SU(Z)12 function. Mol Genet Genomics 2007; 279:159-70. [PMID: 18034266 DOI: 10.1007/s00438-007-0304-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2007] [Accepted: 10/24/2007] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
Abstract
Polycomb group (PcG) proteins are required to maintain a stable repression of the homeotic genes during Drosophila development. Mutants in the PcG gene Supressor of zeste 12 (Su(z)12) exhibit strong homeotic transformations caused by widespread misexpression of several homeotic genes in embryos and larvae. Su(z)12 has also been suggested to be involved in position effect variegation and in regulation of the white gene expression in combination with zeste. To elucidate whether SU(Z)12 has any such direct functions we investigated the binding pattern to polytene chromosomes and compared the localization to other proteins. We found that SU(Z)12 binds to about 90 specific eukaryotic sites, however, not the white locus. We also find staining at the chromocenter and the nucleolus. The binding along chromosome arms is mostly in interbands and these sites correlate precisely with those of Enhancer-of-zeste and other components of the PRC2 silencing complex. This implies that SU(Z)12 mainly exists in complex with PRC2. Comparisons with other PcG protein-binding patterns reveal extensive overlap. However, SU(Z)12 binding sites and histone 3 trimethylated lysine 27 residues (3meK27 H3) do not correlate that well. Still, we show that Su(z)12 is essential for tri-methylation of the lysine 27 residue of histone H3 in vivo, and that overexpression of SU(Z)12 in somatic clones results in higher levels of histone methylation, indicating that SU(Z)12 is rate limiting for the enzymatic activity of PRC2. In addition, we analyzed the binding pattern of Heterochromatin Protein 1 (HP1) and found that SU(Z)12 and HP1 do not co-localize.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sa Chen
- Department of Molecular Biology, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
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27
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van Es MA, Van Vught PW, Blauw HM, Franke L, Saris CG, Andersen PM, Van Den Bosch L, de Jong SW, van 't Slot R, Birve A, Lemmens R, de Jong V, Baas F, Schelhaas HJ, Sleegers K, Van Broeckhoven C, Wokke JHJ, Wijmenga C, Robberecht W, Veldink JH, Ophoff RA, van den Berg LH. ITPR2 as a susceptibility gene in sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a genome-wide association study. Lancet Neurol 2007; 6:869-77. [PMID: 17827064 DOI: 10.1016/s1474-4422(07)70222-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 169] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/01/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a devastating disease characterised by progressive degeneration of motor neurons in the brain and spinal cord. ALS is thought to be multifactorial, with both environmental and genetic causes. Our aim was to identify genetic variants that predispose for sporadic ALS. METHODS We did a three-stage genome-wide association study in 461 patients with ALS and 450 controls from The Netherlands, using Illumina 300K single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) chips. The SNPs that were most strongly associated with ALS were analysed in a further 876 patients and 906 controls in independent sample series from The Netherlands, Belgium, and Sweden. We also investigated the possible pathological functions of associated genes using expression data from whole blood of patients with sporadic ALS and of control individuals who were included in the genome-wide association study. FINDINGS A genetic variant in the inositol 1,4,5-triphosphate receptor 2 gene (ITPR2) was associated with ALS (p=0.012 after Bonferroni correction). Combined analysis of all samples (1337 patients and 1356 controls) confirmed this association (p=3.28x10(-6), odds ratio 1.58, 95% CI 1.30-1.91). ITPR2 expression was greater in the peripheral blood of 126 ALS patients than in that of 126 healthy controls (p=0.00016). INTERPRETATION Genetic variation in ITPR2 is a susceptibility factor for ALS. ITPR2 is a strong candidate susceptibility gene for ALS because it is involved in glutamate-mediated neurotransmission, is one of the main regulators of intracellular calcium concentrations, and has an important role in apoptosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael A van Es
- Department of Neurology, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands
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Drobni M, Hallberg K, Öhman U, Birve A, Persson K, Johansson I, Strömberg N. Sequence analyses of fimbriae subunit FimA proteins on Actinomyces naeslundii genospecies 1 and 2 and Actinomyces odontolyticus with variant carbohydrate binding specificities. BMC Microbiol 2006; 6:43. [PMID: 16686953 PMCID: PMC1473193 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2180-6-43] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2006] [Accepted: 05/10/2006] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Actinomyces naeslundii genospecies 1 and 2 express type-2 fimbriae (FimA subunit polymers) with variant Galβ binding specificities and Actinomyces odontolyticus a sialic acid specificity to colonize different oral surfaces. However, the fimbrial nature of the sialic acid binding property and sequence information about FimA proteins from multiple strains are lacking. Results Here we have sequenced fimA genes from strains of A.naeslundii genospecies 1 (n = 4) and genospecies 2 (n = 4), both of which harboured variant Galβ-dependent hemagglutination (HA) types, and from A.odontolyticus PK984 with a sialic acid-dependent HA pattern. Three unique subtypes of FimA proteins with 63.8–66.4% sequence identity were present in strains of A. naeslundii genospecies 1 and 2 and A. odontolyticus. The generally high FimA sequence identity (>97.2%) within a genospecies revealed species specific sequences or segments that coincided with binding specificity. All three FimA protein variants contained a signal peptide, pilin motif, E box, proline-rich segment and an LPXTG sorting motif among other conserved segments for secretion, assembly and sorting of fimbrial proteins. The highly conserved pilin, E box and LPXTG motifs are present in fimbriae proteins from other Gram-positive bacteria. Moreover, only strains of genospecies 1 were agglutinated with type-2 fimbriae antisera derived from A. naeslundii genospecies 1 strain 12104, emphasizing that the overall folding of FimA may generate different functionalities. Western blot analyses with FimA antisera revealed monomers and oligomers of FimA in whole cell protein extracts and a purified recombinant FimA preparation, indicating a sortase-independent oligomerization of FimA. Conclusion The genus Actinomyces involves a diversity of unique FimA proteins with conserved pilin, E box and LPXTG motifs, depending on subspecies and associated binding specificity. In addition, a sortase independent oligomerization of FimA subunit proteins in solution was indicated.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mirva Drobni
- Department of Odontology/Cariology, Umeå University, SE-901 87 Umeå, Sweden
| | - Kristina Hallberg
- Department of Odontology/Cariology, Umeå University, SE-901 87 Umeå, Sweden
| | - Ulla Öhman
- Department of Odontology/Cariology, Umeå University, SE-901 87 Umeå, Sweden
| | - Anna Birve
- Department of Odontology/Cariology, Umeå University, SE-901 87 Umeå, Sweden
| | - Karina Persson
- Department of Odontology/Cariology, Umeå University, SE-901 87 Umeå, Sweden
| | - Ingegerd Johansson
- Department of Odontology/Cariology, Umeå University, SE-901 87 Umeå, Sweden
| | - Nicklas Strömberg
- Department of Odontology/Cariology, Umeå University, SE-901 87 Umeå, Sweden
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29
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Englund C, Birve A, Falileeva L, Grabbe C, Palmer RH. Miple1 and miple2 encode a family of MK/PTN homologues in Drosophila melanogaster. Dev Genes Evol 2005; 216:10-8. [PMID: 16220264 DOI: 10.1007/s00427-005-0025-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2005] [Accepted: 08/23/2005] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
Midkine (MK) and Pleiotrophin (PTN) are small heparin-binding cytokines with closely related structures. To date, this family of proteins has been implicated in multiple processes, such as growth, survival, and migration of various cells, and has roles in neurogenesis and epithelial-mesenchymal interaction during organogenesis. In this report, we have characterized two members of the MK/PTN family of proteins in Drosophila, named Miple1 and Miple2, from Midkine and Pleiotrophin. Drosophila miple1 and miple2 encode secreted proteins which are expressed in spatially restricted, nonoverlapping patterns during embryogenesis. Expression of miple1 can be found at high levels in the central nervous system, while miple2 is strongly expressed in the developing midgut endoderm. The identification of homologues of the MK/PTN family in this genetically tractable model organism should allow an analysis of their function during complex developmental processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Camilla Englund
- Umeå Center for Molecular Pathogenesis, Umeå University, Umeå, 901 87, Sweden
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30
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Tie F, Prasad-Sinha J, Birve A, Rasmuson-Lestander A, Harte PJ. A 1-megadalton ESC/E(Z) complex from Drosophila that contains polycomblike and RPD3. Mol Cell Biol 2003; 23:3352-62. [PMID: 12697833 PMCID: PMC153183 DOI: 10.1128/mcb.23.9.3352-3362.2003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 116] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2003] [Accepted: 02/04/2003] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Polycomb group (PcG) proteins are required to maintain stable repression of the homeotic genes and others throughout development. The PcG proteins ESC and E(Z) are present in a prominent 600-kDa complex as well as in a number of higher-molecular-mass complexes. Here we identify and characterize a 1-MDa ESC/E(Z) complex that is distinguished from the 600-kDa complex by the presence of the PcG protein Polycomblike (PCL) and the histone deacetylase RPD3. In addition, the 1-MDa complex shares with the 600-kDa complex the histone binding protein p55 and the PcG protein SU(Z)12. Coimmunoprecipitation assays performed on embryo extracts and gel filtration column fractions indicate that, during embryogenesis E(Z), SU(Z)12, and p55 are present in all ESC complexes, while PCL and RPD3 are associated with ESC, E(Z), SU(Z)12, and p55 only in the 1-MDa complex. Glutathione transferase pulldown assays demonstrate that RPD3 binds directly to PCL via the conserved PHD fingers of PCL and the N terminus of RPD3. PCL and E(Z) colocalize virtually completely on polytene chromosomes and are associated with a subset of RPD3 sites. As previously shown for E(Z) and RPD3, PCL and SU(Z)12 are also recruited to the insertion site of a minimal Ubx Polycomb response element transgene in vivo. Consistent with these biochemical and cytological results, Rpd3 mutations enhance the phenotypes of Pcl mutants, further indicating that RPD3 is required for PcG silencing and possibly for PCL function. These results suggest that there may be multiple ESC/E(Z) complexes with distinct functions in vivo.
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Affiliation(s)
- Feng Tie
- Department of Genetics, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio 44106, USA
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31
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Birve A, Sengupta AK, Beuchle D, Larsson J, Kennison JA, Müller J. Su(z)12, a novelDrosophilaPolycomb group gene that is conserved in vertebrates and plants. Development 2001; 128:3371-9. [PMID: 11546753 DOI: 10.1242/dev.128.17.3371] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
In both Drosophila and vertebrates, spatially restricted expression of HOX genes is controlled by the Polycomb group (PcG) repressors. Here we characterize a novel Drosophila PcG gene, Suppressor of zeste 12 (Su(z)12). Su(z)12 mutants exhibit very strong homeotic transformations and Su(z)12 function is required throughout development to maintain the repressed state of HOX genes. Unlike most other PcG mutations, Su(z)12 mutations are strong suppressors of position-effect variegation (PEV), suggesting that Su(z)12 also functions in heterochromatin-mediated repression. Furthermore, Su(z)12 function is required for germ cell development. The Su(z)12 protein is highly conserved in vertebrates and is related to the Arabidopsis proteins EMF2, FIS2 and VRN2. Notably, EMF2 is a repressor of floral homeotic genes. These results suggest that at least some of the regulatory machinery that controls homeotic gene expression is conserved between animals and plants.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Birve
- Department of Genetics, Umeå University, S-90187 Umeå, Sweden
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