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Hruska-Plochan M, Wiersma VI, Betz KM, Mallona I, Ronchi S, Maniecka Z, Hock EM, Tantardini E, Laferriere F, Sahadevan S, Hoop V, Delvendahl I, Pérez-Berlanga M, Gatta B, Panatta M, van der Bourg A, Bohaciakova D, Sharma P, De Vos L, Frontzek K, Aguzzi A, Lashley T, Robinson MD, Karayannis T, Mueller M, Hierlemann A, Polymenidou M. A model of human neural networks reveals NPTX2 pathology in ALS and FTLD. Nature 2024; 626:1073-1083. [PMID: 38355792 PMCID: PMC10901740 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-024-07042-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2021] [Accepted: 01/08/2024] [Indexed: 02/16/2024]
Abstract
Human cellular models of neurodegeneration require reproducibility and longevity, which is necessary for simulating age-dependent diseases. Such systems are particularly needed for TDP-43 proteinopathies1, which involve human-specific mechanisms2-5 that cannot be directly studied in animal models. Here, to explore the emergence and consequences of TDP-43 pathologies, we generated induced pluripotent stem cell-derived, colony morphology neural stem cells (iCoMoNSCs) via manual selection of neural precursors6. Single-cell transcriptomics and comparison to independent neural stem cells7 showed that iCoMoNSCs are uniquely homogenous and self-renewing. Differentiated iCoMoNSCs formed a self-organized multicellular system consisting of synaptically connected and electrophysiologically active neurons, which matured into long-lived functional networks (which we designate iNets). Neuronal and glial maturation in iNets was similar to that of cortical organoids8. Overexpression of wild-type TDP-43 in a minority of neurons within iNets led to progressive fragmentation and aggregation of the protein, resulting in a partial loss of function and neurotoxicity. Single-cell transcriptomics revealed a novel set of misregulated RNA targets in TDP-43-overexpressing neurons and in patients with TDP-43 proteinopathies exhibiting a loss of nuclear TDP-43. The strongest misregulated target encoded the synaptic protein NPTX2, the levels of which are controlled by TDP-43 binding on its 3' untranslated region. When NPTX2 was overexpressed in iNets, it exhibited neurotoxicity, whereas correcting NPTX2 misregulation partially rescued neurons from TDP-43-induced neurodegeneration. Notably, NPTX2 was consistently misaccumulated in neurons from patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and frontotemporal lobar degeneration with TDP-43 pathology. Our work directly links TDP-43 misregulation and NPTX2 accumulation, thereby revealing a TDP-43-dependent pathway of neurotoxicity.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Vera I Wiersma
- Department of Quantitative Biomedicine, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Katharina M Betz
- Department of Quantitative Biomedicine, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
- Department of Molecular Life Sciences, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
- SIB Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Izaskun Mallona
- Department of Quantitative Biomedicine, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
- Department of Molecular Life Sciences, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
- SIB Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Silvia Ronchi
- Department of Biosystems Science and Engineering, ETH Zürich, Basel, Switzerland
- MaxWell Biosystems AG, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Zuzanna Maniecka
- Department of Quantitative Biomedicine, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Eva-Maria Hock
- Department of Quantitative Biomedicine, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Elena Tantardini
- Department of Quantitative Biomedicine, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Florent Laferriere
- Department of Quantitative Biomedicine, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Sonu Sahadevan
- Department of Quantitative Biomedicine, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Vanessa Hoop
- Department of Molecular Life Sciences, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Igor Delvendahl
- Department of Molecular Life Sciences, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | | | - Beatrice Gatta
- Department of Quantitative Biomedicine, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Martina Panatta
- Department of Quantitative Biomedicine, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | | | - Dasa Bohaciakova
- Department of Histology and Embryology, Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University Brno, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Puneet Sharma
- Department of Chemistry, Biochemistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
- NCCR RNA and Disease Technology Platform, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Laura De Vos
- Department of Quantitative Biomedicine, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Karl Frontzek
- Institute of Neuropathology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Adriano Aguzzi
- Institute of Neuropathology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Tammaryn Lashley
- Queen Square Brain Bank for Neurological diseases, Department of Movement Disorders, UCL Institute of Neurology, London, UK
- Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, UCL Institute of Neurology, London, UK
| | - Mark D Robinson
- Department of Molecular Life Sciences, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
- SIB Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | | | - Martin Mueller
- Department of Molecular Life Sciences, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Andreas Hierlemann
- Department of Biosystems Science and Engineering, ETH Zürich, Basel, Switzerland
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Teil M, Arotcarena ML, Faggiani E, Laferriere F, Bezard E, Dehay B. Targeting α-synuclein for PD Therapeutics: A Pursuit on All Fronts. Biomolecules 2020; 10:biom10030391. [PMID: 32138193 PMCID: PMC7175302 DOI: 10.3390/biom10030391] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2020] [Revised: 02/26/2020] [Accepted: 02/29/2020] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Parkinson's Disease (PD) is characterized both by the loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra and the presence of cytoplasmic inclusions called Lewy Bodies. These Lewy Bodies contain the aggregated α-synuclein (α-syn) protein, which has been shown to be able to propagate from cell to cell and throughout different regions in the brain. Due to its central role in the pathology and the lack of a curative treatment for PD, an increasing number of studies have aimed at targeting this protein for therapeutics. Here, we reviewed and discussed the many different approaches that have been studied to inhibit α-syn accumulation via direct and indirect targeting. These analyses have led to the generation of multiple clinical trials that are either completed or currently active. These clinical trials and the current preclinical studies must still face obstacles ahead, but give hope of finding a therapy for PD with time.
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Affiliation(s)
- Margaux Teil
- Univ. de Bordeaux, Institut des Maladies Neurodégénératives, UMR 5293, F-33000 Bordeaux, France; (M.T.); (M.-L.A.); (E.F.); (F.L.); (E.B.)
- CNRS, Institut des Maladies Neurodégénératives, UMR 5293, F-33000 Bordeaux, France
| | - Marie-Laure Arotcarena
- Univ. de Bordeaux, Institut des Maladies Neurodégénératives, UMR 5293, F-33000 Bordeaux, France; (M.T.); (M.-L.A.); (E.F.); (F.L.); (E.B.)
- CNRS, Institut des Maladies Neurodégénératives, UMR 5293, F-33000 Bordeaux, France
| | - Emilie Faggiani
- Univ. de Bordeaux, Institut des Maladies Neurodégénératives, UMR 5293, F-33000 Bordeaux, France; (M.T.); (M.-L.A.); (E.F.); (F.L.); (E.B.)
- CNRS, Institut des Maladies Neurodégénératives, UMR 5293, F-33000 Bordeaux, France
| | - Florent Laferriere
- Univ. de Bordeaux, Institut des Maladies Neurodégénératives, UMR 5293, F-33000 Bordeaux, France; (M.T.); (M.-L.A.); (E.F.); (F.L.); (E.B.)
- CNRS, Institut des Maladies Neurodégénératives, UMR 5293, F-33000 Bordeaux, France
| | - Erwan Bezard
- Univ. de Bordeaux, Institut des Maladies Neurodégénératives, UMR 5293, F-33000 Bordeaux, France; (M.T.); (M.-L.A.); (E.F.); (F.L.); (E.B.)
- CNRS, Institut des Maladies Neurodégénératives, UMR 5293, F-33000 Bordeaux, France
| | - Benjamin Dehay
- Univ. de Bordeaux, Institut des Maladies Neurodégénératives, UMR 5293, F-33000 Bordeaux, France; (M.T.); (M.-L.A.); (E.F.); (F.L.); (E.B.)
- CNRS, Institut des Maladies Neurodégénératives, UMR 5293, F-33000 Bordeaux, France
- Correspondence:
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Jawaid A, Woldemichael BT, Kremer EA, Laferriere F, Gaur N, Afroz T, Polymenidou M, Mansuy IM. Memory Decline and Its Reversal in Aging and Neurodegeneration Involve miR-183/96/182 Biogenesis. Mol Neurobiol 2018; 56:3451-3462. [PMID: 30128653 DOI: 10.1007/s12035-018-1314-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [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: 05/11/2018] [Accepted: 08/09/2018] [Indexed: 01/31/2023]
Abstract
Aging is characterized by progressive memory decline that can lead to dementia when associated with neurodegeneration. Here, we show in mice that aging-related memory decline involves defective biogenesis of microRNAs (miRNAs), in particular miR-183/96/182 cluster, resulting from increased protein phosphatase 1 (PP1) and altered receptor SMAD (R-SMAD) signaling. Correction of the defect by miR-183/96/182 overexpression in hippocampus or by environmental enrichment that normalizes PP1 activity restores memory in aged animals. Regulation of miR-183/96/182 biogenesis is shown to involve the neurodegeneration-related RNA-binding proteins TDP-43 and FUS. Similar alterations in miR-183/96/182, PP1, and R-SMADs are observed in the brains of patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) or frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD), two neurodegenerative diseases with pathological aggregation of TDP-43. Overall, these results identify new mechanistic links between miR-183/96/182, PP1, TDP-43, and FUS in age-related memory deficits and their reversal.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ali Jawaid
- Laboratory of Neuroepigenetics, Neuroscience Center Zürich, University of Zurich (UZH) and Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH), Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Bisrat T Woldemichael
- Laboratory of Neuroepigenetics, Neuroscience Center Zürich, University of Zurich (UZH) and Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH), Zurich, Switzerland.,Icahn school of medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, USA
| | - Eloïse A Kremer
- Laboratory of Neuroepigenetics, Neuroscience Center Zürich, University of Zurich (UZH) and Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH), Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Florent Laferriere
- Institute of Molecular Life Sciences, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Niharika Gaur
- Laboratory of Neuroepigenetics, Neuroscience Center Zürich, University of Zurich (UZH) and Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH), Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Tariq Afroz
- Institute of Molecular Life Sciences, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | | | - Isabelle M Mansuy
- Laboratory of Neuroepigenetics, Neuroscience Center Zürich, University of Zurich (UZH) and Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH), Zurich, Switzerland.
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Afroz T, Hock EM, Ernst P, Foglieni C, Jambeau M, Gilhespy LAB, Laferriere F, Maniecka Z, Plückthun A, Mittl P, Paganetti P, Allain FHT, Polymenidou M. Functional and dynamic polymerization of the ALS-linked protein TDP-43 antagonizes its pathologic aggregation. Nat Commun 2017; 8:45. [PMID: 28663553 PMCID: PMC5491494 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-017-00062-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 199] [Impact Index Per Article: 28.4] [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: 12/16/2016] [Accepted: 05/02/2017] [Indexed: 01/28/2023] Open
Abstract
TDP-43 is a primarily nuclear RNA-binding protein, whose abnormal phosphorylation and cytoplasmic aggregation characterizes affected neurons in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and frontotemporal dementia. Here, we report that physiological nuclear TDP-43 in mouse and human brain forms homo-oligomers that are resistant to cellular stress. Physiological TDP-43 oligomerization is mediated by its N-terminal domain, which can adopt dynamic, solenoid-like structures, as revealed by a 2.1 Å crystal structure in combination with nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and electron microscopy. These head-to-tail TDP-43 oligomers are unique among known RNA-binding proteins and represent the functional form of the protein in vivo, since their destabilization results in loss of alternative splicing regulation of known neuronal RNA targets. Our findings indicate that N-terminal domain-driven oligomerization spatially separates the adjoining highly aggregation-prone, C-terminal low-complexity domains of consecutive TDP-43 monomers, thereby preventing low-complexity domain inter-molecular interactions and antagonizing the formation of pathologic aggregates.TDP-43 aggregation is observed in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Here the authors combine X-ray crystallography, nuclear magnetic resonance and electron microscopy studies and show that physiological oligomerization of TDP-43 is mediated through its N-terminal domain, which forms functional and dynamic oligomers antagonizing pathologic aggregation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tariq Afroz
- Institute of Molecular Life Sciences, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, CH-8057, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Eva-Maria Hock
- Institute of Molecular Life Sciences, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, CH-8057, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Patrick Ernst
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, CH-8057, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Chiara Foglieni
- Laboratory for Biomedical Neurosciences, Neurocenter of Southern Switzerland, Via Tesserete 46, CH-6900, Lugano, Switzerland
| | - Melanie Jambeau
- Institute of Molecular Life Sciences, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, CH-8057, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Larissa A B Gilhespy
- Institute of Molecular Life Sciences, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, CH-8057, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Florent Laferriere
- Institute of Molecular Life Sciences, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, CH-8057, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Zuzanna Maniecka
- Institute of Molecular Life Sciences, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, CH-8057, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Andreas Plückthun
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, CH-8057, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Peer Mittl
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, CH-8057, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Paolo Paganetti
- Laboratory for Biomedical Neurosciences, Neurocenter of Southern Switzerland, Via Tesserete 46, CH-6900, Lugano, Switzerland
| | - Frédéric H T Allain
- Institute of Molecular Biology and Biophysics, ETH Zurich, CH-8093, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Magdalini Polymenidou
- Institute of Molecular Life Sciences, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, CH-8057, Zurich, Switzerland.
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Leske H, Hornemann S, Herrmann US, Zhu C, Dametto P, Li B, Laferriere F, Polymenidou M, Pelczar P, Reimann RR, Schwarz P, Rushing EJ, Wüthrich K, Aguzzi A. Protease resistance of infectious prions is suppressed by removal of a single atom in the cellular prion protein. PLoS One 2017; 12:e0170503. [PMID: 28207746 PMCID: PMC5313174 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0170503] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [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: 11/27/2016] [Accepted: 12/16/2016] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Resistance to proteolytic digestion has long been considered a defining trait of prions in tissues of organisms suffering from transmissible spongiform encephalopathies. Detection of proteinase K-resistant prion protein (PrPSc) still represents the diagnostic gold standard for prion diseases in humans, sheep and cattle. However, it has become increasingly apparent that the accumulation of PrPSc does not always accompany prion infections: high titers of prion infectivity can be reached also in the absence of protease resistant PrPSc. Here, we describe a structural basis for the phenomenon of protease-sensitive prion infectivity. We studied the effect on proteinase K (PK) resistance of the amino acid substitution Y169F, which removes a single oxygen atom from the β2–α2 loop of the cellular prion protein (PrPC). When infected with RML or the 263K strain of prions, transgenic mice lacking wild-type (wt) PrPC but expressing MoPrP169F generated prion infectivity at levels comparable to wt mice. The newly generated MoPrP169F prions were biologically indistinguishable from those recovered from prion-infected wt mice, and elicited similar pathologies in vivo. Surprisingly, MoPrP169F prions showed greatly reduced PK resistance and density gradient analyses showed a significant reduction in high-density aggregates. Passage of MoPrP169F prions into mice expressing wt MoPrP led to full recovery of protease resistance, indicating that no strain shift had taken place. We conclude that a subtle structural variation in the β2–α2 loop of PrPC affects the sensitivity of PrPSc to protease but does not impact prion replication and infectivity. With these findings a specific structural feature of PrPC can be linked to a physicochemical property of the corresponding PrPSc.
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Affiliation(s)
- Henning Leske
- Institute of Neuropathology, University Hospital of Zurich, University of Zurich, Schmelzbergstrasse 12, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Simone Hornemann
- Institute of Neuropathology, University Hospital of Zurich, University of Zurich, Schmelzbergstrasse 12, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Uli Simon Herrmann
- Institute of Neuropathology, University Hospital of Zurich, University of Zurich, Schmelzbergstrasse 12, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Caihong Zhu
- Institute of Neuropathology, University Hospital of Zurich, University of Zurich, Schmelzbergstrasse 12, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Paolo Dametto
- Institute of Neuropathology, University Hospital of Zurich, University of Zurich, Schmelzbergstrasse 12, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Bei Li
- Institute of Neuropathology, University Hospital of Zurich, University of Zurich, Schmelzbergstrasse 12, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Florent Laferriere
- Institute of Molecular Life Sciences, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Magdalini Polymenidou
- Institute of Molecular Life Sciences, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Pawel Pelczar
- Institute of Molecular Biology and Biophysics, ETH Zurich, Otto-Stern-Weg 5, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Regina Rose Reimann
- Institute of Neuropathology, University Hospital of Zurich, University of Zurich, Schmelzbergstrasse 12, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Petra Schwarz
- Institute of Neuropathology, University Hospital of Zurich, University of Zurich, Schmelzbergstrasse 12, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Elisabeth Jane Rushing
- Institute of Neuropathology, University Hospital of Zurich, University of Zurich, Schmelzbergstrasse 12, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Kurt Wüthrich
- Department of Integrative Structural and Computational Biology and Skaggs Institute for Chemical Biology, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA, United States of America
- * E-mail: (AA); , (KW)
| | - Adriano Aguzzi
- Institute of Neuropathology, University Hospital of Zurich, University of Zurich, Schmelzbergstrasse 12, Zurich, Switzerland
- * E-mail: (AA); , (KW)
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Laferriere F, Polymenidou M. Advances and challenges in understanding the multifaceted pathogenesis of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Swiss Med Wkly 2015; 145:w14054. [PMID: 25635517 DOI: 10.4414/smw.2015.14054] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is an adult-onset neurodegenerative disease, which primarily affects motor neurons leading to progressive paralysis and death within a few years from onset. The pathological hallmark of ALS is the presence of cytoplasmic ubiquitinated protein inclusions in motor neurons and glial cells primarily in the spinal cord. While the vast majority of ALS occurs sporadically (sALS), in ~10% of cases, called familial ALS (fALS), there is clear indication of genetic inheritance. In the last decade, enormous progress was made in unravelling the aetiology of the disease, with the identification of ALS-causing mutations in new genes, as well as key molecular players involved in the origin or progression of ALS. However, much more needs to be done, as the pathogenic mechanisms triggered by a genetic or sporadic event leading to cytotoxicity and neuronal cell death are still poorly understood. The recent discoveries offer new possibilities for devising experimental animal and cellular models, which will hopefully contribute to the development of new techniques for early diagnosis and the identification of therapeutic targets for ALS. Here we review the current understanding of the aetiology, genetics, and pathogenic factors and mechanisms of ALS. We also discuss the challenges in deciphering ALS pathogenesis that result from the high complexity and heterogeneity of the disease.
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