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Liu Y, Andreucci A, Iwamoto N, Yin Y, Yang H, Liu F, Bulychev A, Hu XS, Lin X, Lamore S, Patil S, Mohapatra S, Purcell-Estabrook E, Taborn K, Dale E, Vargeese C. Preclinical evaluation of WVE-004, aninvestigational stereopure oligonucleotide forthe treatment of C9orf72-associated ALS or FTD. Mol Ther Nucleic Acids 2022; 28:558-570. [PMID: 35592494 PMCID: PMC9092894 DOI: 10.1016/j.omtn.2022.04.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/12/2021] [Accepted: 04/15/2022] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
A large hexanucleotide (G4C2) repeat expansion in the first intronic region of C9orf72 is the most common genetic cause of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD). Several mechanisms have been proposed to explain how the repeat expansion drives disease, and we hypothesize that a variant-selective approach, in which transcripts affected by the repeat expansion are preferentially decreased, has the potential to address most of them. We report a stereopure antisense oligonucleotide, WVE-004, that executes this variant-selective mechanism of action. WVE-004 dose-dependently and selectively reduces repeat-containing transcripts in patient-derived motor neurons carrying a C9orf72-repeat expansion, as well as in the spinal cord and cortex of C9 BAC transgenic mice. In mice, selective transcript knockdown was accompanied by substantial decreases in dipeptide-repeat proteins, which are pathological biomarkers associated with the repeat expansion, and by preservation of healthy C9orf72 protein expression. These in vivo effects were durable, persisting for at least 6 months. These data support the advancement of WVE-004 as an investigational stereopure antisense oligonucleotide targeting C9orf72 for the treatment of C9orf72-associated ALS or FTD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuanjing Liu
- Wave Life Sciences, 733 Concord Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
| | - Amy Andreucci
- Wave Life Sciences, 733 Concord Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
| | - Naoki Iwamoto
- Wave Life Sciences, 733 Concord Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
| | - Yuan Yin
- Wave Life Sciences, 733 Concord Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
| | - Hailin Yang
- Wave Life Sciences, 733 Concord Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
| | - Fangjun Liu
- Wave Life Sciences, 733 Concord Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
| | - Alexey Bulychev
- Wave Life Sciences, 733 Concord Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
| | - Xiao Shelley Hu
- Wave Life Sciences, 733 Concord Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
| | - Xuena Lin
- Wave Life Sciences, 733 Concord Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
| | - Sarah Lamore
- Wave Life Sciences, 733 Concord Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
| | - Saurabh Patil
- Wave Life Sciences, 733 Concord Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
| | | | | | - Kristin Taborn
- Wave Life Sciences, 733 Concord Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
| | - Elena Dale
- Wave Life Sciences, 733 Concord Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
| | - Chandra Vargeese
- Wave Life Sciences, 733 Concord Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
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Odeh HM, Shorter J. Arginine-rich dipeptide-repeat proteins as phase disruptors in C9-ALS/FTD. Emerg Top Life Sci 2020; 4:293-305. [PMID: 32639008 DOI: 10.1042/ETLS20190167] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2020] [Revised: 06/15/2020] [Accepted: 06/17/2020] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
A hexanucleotide repeat expansion GGGGCC (G4C2) within chromosome 9 open reading frame 72 (C9orf72) is the most common genetic cause of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and frontotemporal dementia (C9-ALS/FTD). This seminal realization has rapidly focused our attention to the non-canonical translation (RAN translation) of the repeat expansion, which yields dipeptide-repeat protein products (DPRs). The mechanisms by which DPRs might contribute to C9-ALS/FTD are widely studied. Arginine-rich DPRs (R-DPRs) are the most toxic of the five different DPRs produced in neurons, but how do R-DPRs promote C9-ALS/FTD pathogenesis? Proteomic analyses have uncovered potential pathways to explore. For example, the vast majority of the R-DPR interactome is comprised of disease-linked RNA-binding proteins (RBPs) with low-complexity domains (LCDs), strongly suggesting a link between R-DPRs and aberrations in liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS). In this review, we showcase several potential mechanisms by which R-DPRs disrupt various phase-separated compartments to elicit deleterious neurodegeneration. We also discuss potential therapeutic strategies to counter R-DPR toxicity in C9-ALS/FTD.
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Guo Q, Lehmer C, Martínez-Sánchez A, Rudack T, Beck F, Hartmann H, Pérez-Berlanga M, Frottin F, Hipp MS, Hartl FU, Edbauer D, Baumeister W, Fernández-Busnadiego R. In Situ Structure of Neuronal C9orf72 Poly-GA Aggregates Reveals Proteasome Recruitment. Cell 2018; 172:696-705.e12. [PMID: 29398115 PMCID: PMC6035389 DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2017.12.030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 246] [Impact Index Per Article: 41.0] [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: 08/09/2017] [Revised: 11/07/2017] [Accepted: 12/20/2017] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Protein aggregation and dysfunction of the ubiquitin-proteasome system are hallmarks of many neurodegenerative diseases. Here, we address the elusive link between these phenomena by employing cryo-electron tomography to dissect the molecular architecture of protein aggregates within intact neurons at high resolution. We focus on the poly-Gly-Ala (poly-GA) aggregates resulting from aberrant translation of an expanded GGGGCC repeat in C9orf72, the most common genetic cause of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and frontotemporal dementia. We find that poly-GA aggregates consist of densely packed twisted ribbons that recruit numerous 26S proteasome complexes, while other macromolecules are largely excluded. Proximity to poly-GA ribbons stabilizes a transient substrate-processing conformation of the 26S proteasome, suggesting stalled degradation. Thus, poly-GA aggregates may compromise neuronal proteostasis by driving the accumulation and functional impairment of a large fraction of cellular proteasomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qiang Guo
- Department of Molecular Structural Biology, Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry, 82152 Martinsried, Germany
| | - Carina Lehmer
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), 81377 Munich, Germany; Munich Cluster for Systems Neurology (SyNergy), 80336 Munich, Germany
| | - Antonio Martínez-Sánchez
- Department of Molecular Structural Biology, Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry, 82152 Martinsried, Germany
| | - Till Rudack
- Department of Biophysics, Ruhr University Bochum, 44780 Bochum, Germany; NIH Center for Macromolecular Modeling and Bioinformatics, Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Champaign, IL 61801, USA
| | - Florian Beck
- Department of Molecular Structural Biology, Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry, 82152 Martinsried, Germany
| | - Hannelore Hartmann
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), 81377 Munich, Germany; Munich Cluster for Systems Neurology (SyNergy), 80336 Munich, Germany
| | - Manuela Pérez-Berlanga
- Department of Cellular Biochemistry, Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry, 82152 Martinsried, Germany
| | - Frédéric Frottin
- Department of Cellular Biochemistry, Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry, 82152 Martinsried, Germany
| | - Mark S Hipp
- Munich Cluster for Systems Neurology (SyNergy), 80336 Munich, Germany; Department of Cellular Biochemistry, Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry, 82152 Martinsried, Germany
| | - F Ulrich Hartl
- Munich Cluster for Systems Neurology (SyNergy), 80336 Munich, Germany; Department of Cellular Biochemistry, Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry, 82152 Martinsried, Germany
| | - Dieter Edbauer
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), 81377 Munich, Germany; Munich Cluster for Systems Neurology (SyNergy), 80336 Munich, Germany; Ludwig-Maximilians University Munich, 81377 Munich, Germany.
| | - Wolfgang Baumeister
- Department of Molecular Structural Biology, Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry, 82152 Martinsried, Germany.
| | - Rubén Fernández-Busnadiego
- Department of Molecular Structural Biology, Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry, 82152 Martinsried, Germany.
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