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Abstract
Deposits of the microtubule-associated protein Tau (MAPT) serve as a hallmark of neurodegenerative diseases known as tauopathies. Numerous studies have demonstrated that in diseases such as Alzheimer's disease (AD), Tau undergoes extensive remodeling. The attachment of post-translational modifications distributed throughout the entire sequence of the protein correlates with clinical presentation. A systematic examination of these protein alterations can shed light on their roles in both healthy and diseased states. However, the ability to access these modifications in the entire protein chain is limited as Tau can only be produced recombinantly or through semisynthesis. In this article, we describe the first chemical synthesis of the longest 2N4R isoform of Tau, consisting of 441 amino acids. The 2N4R Tau was divided into 3 major segments and a total of 11 fragments, all of which were prepared via solid-phase peptide synthesis. The successful chemical strategy has relied on the strategic use of two cysteine sites (C291 and C322) for the native chemical ligations (NCLs). This was combined with modern preparative protein chemistries, such as mercaptothreonine ligation (T205), diselenide-selenoester ligation (D358), and mutations of mercaptoamino acids into native residues via homogeneous radical desulfurization (A40, A77, A119, A157, A246, and A390). The successful completion of the synthesis has established a robust and scalable route to the native protein in multimilligram quantities and high purity. In broader terms, the presented strategy can be applied to the preparation of other shorter isoforms of Tau as well as to introduce all post-translational modifications that are characteristic of tauopathies such as AD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wyatt C Powell
- Department of Chemistry, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309, United States
| | - Ruiheng Jing
- Department of Chemistry, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309, United States
| | - Maciej A Walczak
- Department of Chemistry, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309, United States
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2
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Cariulo C, Martufi P, Verani M, Toledo-Sherman L, Lee R, Dominguez C, Petricca L, Caricasole A. IKBKB reduces huntingtin aggregation by phosphorylating serine 13 via a non-canonical IKK pathway. Life Sci Alliance 2023; 6:e202302006. [PMID: 37553253 PMCID: PMC10410066 DOI: 10.26508/lsa.202302006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2023] [Revised: 07/27/2023] [Accepted: 07/31/2023] [Indexed: 08/10/2023] Open
Abstract
N-terminal phosphorylation at residues T3 and S13 is believed to have important beneficial implications for the biological and pathological properties of mutant huntingtin, where inhibitor of nuclear factor kappa B kinase subunit beta (IKBKB) was identified as a candidate regulator of huntingtin N-terminal phosphorylation. The paucity of mechanistic information on IKK pathways, together with the lack of sensitive methods to quantify endogenous huntingtin phosphorylation, prevented detailed study of the role of IKBKB in Huntington's disease. Using novel ultrasensitive assays, we demonstrate that IKBKB can regulate endogenous S13 huntingtin phosphorylation in a manner, dependent on its kinase activity and known regulators. We found that the ability of IKBKB to phosphorylate endogenous huntingtin S13 is mediated through a non-canonical interferon regulatory factor3-mediated IKK pathway, distinct from the established involvement of IKBKB in mutant huntingtin's pathological mechanisms mediated via the canonical pathway. Furthermore, increased huntingtin S13 phosphorylation by IKBKB resulted in decreased aggregation of mutant huntingtin in cells, again dependent on its kinase activity. These findings point to a non-canonical IKK pathway linking S13 huntingtin phosphorylation to the pathological properties of mutant huntingtin aggregation, thought to be significant to Huntington's disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cristina Cariulo
- Neuroscience Unit, Translational and Discovery Research Department, IRBM S.p.A., Rome, Italy
| | - Paola Martufi
- Neuroscience Unit, Translational and Discovery Research Department, IRBM S.p.A., Rome, Italy
| | - Margherita Verani
- Neuroscience Unit, Translational and Discovery Research Department, IRBM S.p.A., Rome, Italy
| | - Leticia Toledo-Sherman
- Rainwatercf.org Tau Consortium, Rainwater Charitable Foundation, Fort Worth, TX, USA
- UCLA, Department of Neurology, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Ramee Lee
- CHDI Management/CHDI Foundation, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | | | - Lara Petricca
- Neuroscience Unit, Translational and Discovery Research Department, IRBM S.p.A., Rome, Italy
| | - Andrea Caricasole
- Neuroscience Unit, Translational and Discovery Research Department, IRBM S.p.A., Rome, Italy
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3
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Bilbrough T, Piemontese E, Seitz O. Dissecting the role of protein phosphorylation: a chemical biology toolbox. Chem Soc Rev 2022; 51:5691-5730. [PMID: 35726784 DOI: 10.1039/d1cs00991e] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 27.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Protein phosphorylation is a crucial regulator of protein and cellular function, yet, despite identifying an enormous number of phosphorylation sites, the role of most is still unclear. Each phosphoform, the particular combination of phosphorylations, of a protein has distinct and diverse biological consequences. Aberrant phosphorylation is implicated in the development of many diseases. To investigate their function, access to defined protein phosphoforms is essential. Materials obtained from cells often are complex mixtures. Recombinant methods can provide access to defined phosphoforms if site-specifically acting kinases are known, but the methods fail to provide homogenous material when several amino acid side chains compete for phosphorylation. Chemical and chemoenzymatic synthesis has provided an invaluable toolbox to enable access to previously unreachable phosphoforms of proteins. In this review, we selected important tools that enable access to homogeneously phosphorylated protein and discuss examples that demonstrate how they can be applied. Firstly, we discuss the synthesis of phosphopeptides and proteins through chemical and enzymatic means and their advantages and limitations. Secondly, we showcase illustrative examples that applied these tools to answer biological questions pertaining to proteins involved in signal transduction, control of transcription, neurodegenerative diseases and aggregation, apoptosis and autophagy, and transmembrane proteins. We discuss the opportunities and challenges in the field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tim Bilbrough
- Department of Chemistry, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Brook-Taylor-Str. 2, 12489 Berlin, Germany.
| | - Emanuele Piemontese
- Department of Chemistry, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Brook-Taylor-Str. 2, 12489 Berlin, Germany.
| | - Oliver Seitz
- Department of Chemistry, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Brook-Taylor-Str. 2, 12489 Berlin, Germany.
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4
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Landrieu I, Dupré E, Sinnaeve D, El Hajjar L, Smet-Nocca C. Deciphering the Structure and Formation of Amyloids in Neurodegenerative Diseases With Chemical Biology Tools. Front Chem 2022; 10:886382. [PMID: 35646824 PMCID: PMC9133342 DOI: 10.3389/fchem.2022.886382] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2022] [Accepted: 04/20/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Protein aggregation into highly ordered, regularly repeated cross-β sheet structures called amyloid fibrils is closely associated to human disorders such as neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases, or systemic diseases like type II diabetes. Yet, in some cases, such as the HET-s prion, amyloids have biological functions. High-resolution structures of amyloids fibrils from cryo-electron microscopy have very recently highlighted their ultrastructural organization and polymorphisms. However, the molecular mechanisms and the role of co-factors (posttranslational modifications, non-proteinaceous components and other proteins) acting on the fibril formation are still poorly understood. Whether amyloid fibrils play a toxic or protective role in the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative diseases remains to be elucidated. Furthermore, such aberrant protein-protein interactions challenge the search of small-molecule drugs or immunotherapy approaches targeting amyloid formation. In this review, we describe how chemical biology tools contribute to new insights on the mode of action of amyloidogenic proteins and peptides, defining their structural signature and aggregation pathways by capturing their molecular details and conformational heterogeneity. Challenging the imagination of scientists, this constantly expanding field provides crucial tools to unravel mechanistic detail of amyloid formation such as semisynthetic proteins and small-molecule sensors of conformational changes and/or aggregation. Protein engineering methods and bioorthogonal chemistry for the introduction of protein chemical modifications are additional fruitful strategies to tackle the challenge of understanding amyloid formation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Isabelle Landrieu
- University Lille, Inserm, CHU Lille, Institut Pasteur de Lille, U1167 - RID-AGE - Risk Factors and Molecular Determinants of Aging-Related Diseases, Lille, France
- CNRS EMR9002 Integrative Structural Biology, Lille, France
| | - Elian Dupré
- University Lille, Inserm, CHU Lille, Institut Pasteur de Lille, U1167 - RID-AGE - Risk Factors and Molecular Determinants of Aging-Related Diseases, Lille, France
- CNRS EMR9002 Integrative Structural Biology, Lille, France
| | - Davy Sinnaeve
- University Lille, Inserm, CHU Lille, Institut Pasteur de Lille, U1167 - RID-AGE - Risk Factors and Molecular Determinants of Aging-Related Diseases, Lille, France
- CNRS EMR9002 Integrative Structural Biology, Lille, France
| | - Léa El Hajjar
- University Lille, Inserm, CHU Lille, Institut Pasteur de Lille, U1167 - RID-AGE - Risk Factors and Molecular Determinants of Aging-Related Diseases, Lille, France
- CNRS EMR9002 Integrative Structural Biology, Lille, France
| | - Caroline Smet-Nocca
- University Lille, Inserm, CHU Lille, Institut Pasteur de Lille, U1167 - RID-AGE - Risk Factors and Molecular Determinants of Aging-Related Diseases, Lille, France
- CNRS EMR9002 Integrative Structural Biology, Lille, France
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Nuclear and cytoplasmic huntingtin inclusions exhibit distinct biochemical composition, interactome and ultrastructural properties. Nat Commun 2021; 12:6579. [PMID: 34772920 PMCID: PMC8589980 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-26684-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2020] [Accepted: 10/11/2021] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Despite the strong evidence linking the aggregation of the Huntingtin protein (Htt) to the pathogenesis of Huntington's disease (HD), the mechanisms underlying Htt aggregation and neurodegeneration remain poorly understood. Herein, we investigated the ultrastructural properties and protein composition of Htt cytoplasmic and nuclear inclusions in mammalian cells and primary neurons overexpressing mutant exon1 of the Htt protein. Our findings provide unique insight into the ultrastructural properties of cytoplasmic and nuclear Htt inclusions and their mechanisms of formation. We show that Htt inclusion formation and maturation are complex processes that, although initially driven by polyQ-dependent Htt aggregation, also involve the polyQ and PRD domain-dependent sequestration of lipids and cytoplasmic and cytoskeletal proteins related to HD dysregulated pathways; the recruitment and accumulation of remodeled or dysfunctional membranous organelles, and the impairment of the protein quality control and degradation machinery. We also show that nuclear and cytoplasmic Htt inclusions exhibit distinct biochemical compositions and ultrastructural properties, suggesting different mechanisms of aggregation and toxicity.
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Vieweg S, Mahul-Mellier AL, Ruggeri FS, Riguet N, DeGuire SM, Chiki A, Cendrowska U, Dietler G, Lashuel HA. The Nt17 Domain and its Helical Conformation Regulate the Aggregation, Cellular Properties and Neurotoxicity of Mutant Huntingtin Exon 1. J Mol Biol 2021; 433:167222. [PMID: 34492254 DOI: 10.1016/j.jmb.2021.167222] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2021] [Revised: 08/25/2021] [Accepted: 08/26/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Converging evidence points to the N-terminal domain comprising the first 17 amino acids of the Huntingtin protein (Nt17) as a key regulator of its aggregation, cellular properties and toxicity. In this study, we further investigated the interplay between Nt17 and the polyQ domain repeat length in regulating the aggregation and inclusion formation of exon 1 of the Huntingtin protein (Httex1). In addition, we investigated the effect of removing Nt17 or modulating its local structure on the membrane interactions, neuronal uptake, and toxicity of monomeric or fibrillar Httex1. Our results show that the polyQ and Nt17 domains synergistically modulate the aggregation propensity of Httex1 and that the Nt17 domain plays important roles in shaping the surface properties of mutant Httex1 fibrils and regulating their poly-Q-dependent growth, lateral association and neuronal uptake. Removal of Nt17 or disruption of its transient helical conformations slowed the aggregation of monomeric Httex1 in vitro, reduced inclusion formation in cells, enhanced the neuronal uptake and nuclear accumulation of monomeric Httex1 proteins, and was sufficient to prevent cell death induced by Httex1 72Q overexpression. Finally, we demonstrate that the uptake of Httex1 fibrils into primary neurons and the resulting toxicity are strongly influenced by mutations and phosphorylation events that influence the local helical propensity of Nt17. Altogether, our results demonstrate that the Nt17 domain serves as one of the key master regulators of Htt aggregation, internalization, and toxicity and represents an attractive target for inhibiting Htt aggregate formation, inclusion formation, and neuronal toxicity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sophie Vieweg
- Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration, Brain Mind Institute, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Anne-Laure Mahul-Mellier
- Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration, Brain Mind Institute, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Francesco S Ruggeri
- Laboratory of the Physics of Living Matter, EPFL, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Nathan Riguet
- Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration, Brain Mind Institute, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Sean M DeGuire
- Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration, Brain Mind Institute, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Anass Chiki
- Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration, Brain Mind Institute, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Urszula Cendrowska
- Laboratory of the Physics of Living Matter, EPFL, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Giovanni Dietler
- Laboratory of the Physics of Living Matter, EPFL, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Hilal A Lashuel
- Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration, Brain Mind Institute, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland.
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Kolla R, Gopinath P, Ricci J, Reif A, Rostami I, Lashuel HA. A New Chemoenzymatic Semisynthetic Approach Provides Insight into the Role of Phosphorylation beyond Exon1 of Huntingtin and Reveals N-Terminal Fragment Length-Dependent Distinct Mechanisms of Aggregation. J Am Chem Soc 2021; 143:9798-9812. [PMID: 34161085 DOI: 10.1021/jacs.1c03108] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Huntington's disease is a neurodegenerative disorder caused by the expansion of a polyglutamine repeat (>36Q) in the N-terminal domain of the huntingtin protein (Htt), which renders the protein or fragments thereof more prone to aggregate and form inclusions. Although several Htt N-terminal fragments of different lengths have been identified within Htt inclusions, most studies on the mechanisms, sequence, and structural determinants of Htt aggregation have focused on the Httexon1 (Httex1). Herein, we investigated the aggregation properties of mutant N-terminal Htt fragments of various lengths (Htt171, Htt140, and Htt104) in comparison to mutant Httex1 (mHttex1). We also present a new chemoenzymatic semisynthetic strategy that enables site-specific phosphorylation of Htt beyond Httex1. These advances yielded insights into how post-translational modifications (PTMs) and structured domains beyond Httex1 influence aggregation mechanisms, kinetics, and fibril morphology of longer N-terminal Htt fragments. We demonstrate that phosphorylation at T107 significantly slows the aggregation of mHtt171, whereas phosphorylation at T107 and S116 accelerates the aggregation, underscoring the importance of crosstalk between different PTMs. The mHtt171 proteins aggregate via a different mechanism and form oligomers and fibrillar aggregates with morphological properties that are distinct from that of mHttex1. These observations suggest that different N-terminal fragments could have distinct aggregation mechanisms and that a single polyQ-targeting antiaggregation strategy may not effectively inhibit the aggregation of all N-terminal Htt fragments. Finally, our results underscore the need for further studies to investigate the aggregation mechanisms of Htt fragments and how the various fragments interact with each other and influence Htt toxicity and disease progression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rajasekhar Kolla
- Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration, School of Life Sciences, Brain Mind Institute, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Pushparathinam Gopinath
- Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration, School of Life Sciences, Brain Mind Institute, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Jonathan Ricci
- Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration, School of Life Sciences, Brain Mind Institute, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Andreas Reif
- Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration, School of Life Sciences, Brain Mind Institute, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Iman Rostami
- Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration, School of Life Sciences, Brain Mind Institute, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Hilal A Lashuel
- Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration, School of Life Sciences, Brain Mind Institute, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
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8
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Lashuel HA. Rethinking protein aggregation and drug discovery in neurodegenerative diseases: Why we need to embrace complexity? Curr Opin Chem Biol 2021; 64:67-75. [PMID: 34174698 DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2021.05.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2021] [Revised: 04/30/2021] [Accepted: 05/09/2021] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
More than a century has passed since pathological protein aggregates were first identified in the brains of patients with neurodegenerative diseases (NDDs). Yet, we still do not have effective therapies to treat or slow the progression of these devastating diseases or diagnostics for early detection and monitoring disease progression. Herein, I reflect on recent findings that are challenging traditional views about the composition, ultrastructural properties, and diversity of protein pathologies in the brain, their mechanisms of formation and how we investigate and model pathological aggregation processes in the laboratory today. This article is an invitation to embrace the complexity of proteinopathies as an essential step to understanding the molecular mechanisms underpinning NDDs and to advance translational research and drug discovery in NDDs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hilal A Lashuel
- Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration, Brain Mind Institute, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, 1015, Lausanne, Switzerland.
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Chongtham A, Bornemann DJ, Barbaro BA, Lukacsovich T, Agrawal N, Syed A, Worthge S, Purcell J, Burke J, Chin TM, Marsh JL. Effects of flanking sequences and cellular context on subcellular behavior and pathology of mutant HTT. Hum Mol Genet 2021; 29:674-688. [PMID: 31943010 DOI: 10.1093/hmg/ddaa001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2019] [Revised: 12/06/2019] [Accepted: 01/07/2020] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD) is caused by an expansion of a poly glutamine (polyQ) stretch in the huntingtin protein (HTT) that is necessary to cause pathology and formation of HTT aggregates. Here we ask whether expanded polyQ is sufficient to cause pathology and aggregate formation. By addressing the sufficiency question, one can identify cellular processes and structural parameters that influence HD pathology and HTT subcellular behavior (i.e. aggregation state and subcellular location). Using Drosophila, we compare the effects of expressing mutant full-length human HTT (fl-mHTT) to the effects of mutant human HTTexon1 and to two commonly used synthetic fragments, HTT171 and shortstop (HTT118). Expanded polyQ alone is not sufficient to cause inclusion formation since full-length HTT and HTTex1 with expanded polyQ are both toxic although full-length HTT remains diffuse while HTTex1 forms inclusions. Further, inclusions are not sufficient to cause pathology since HTT171-120Q forms inclusions but is benign and co-expression of HTT171-120Q with non-aggregating pathogenic fl-mHTT recruits fl-mHTT to aggregates and rescues its pathogenicity. Additionally, the influence of sequences outside the expanded polyQ domain is revealed by finding that small modifications to the HTT118 or HTT171 fragments can dramatically alter their subcellular behavior and pathogenicity. Finally, mutant HTT subcellular behavior is strongly modified by different cell and tissue environments (e.g. fl-mHTT appears as diffuse nuclear in one tissue and diffuse cytoplasmic in another but toxic in both). These observations underscore the importance of cellular and structural context for the interpretation and comparison of experiments using different fragments and tissues to report the effects of expanded polyQ.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anjalika Chongtham
- Department of Developmental and Cell Biology, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA, 92697-2300, USA.,Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, 91125
| | - Douglas J Bornemann
- Department of Developmental and Cell Biology, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA, 92697-2300, USA
| | - Brett A Barbaro
- Department of Developmental and Cell Biology, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA, 92697-2300, USA
| | - Tamas Lukacsovich
- Department of Developmental and Cell Biology, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA, 92697-2300, USA
| | - Namita Agrawal
- Department of Developmental and Cell Biology, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA, 92697-2300, USA
| | - Adeela Syed
- Department of Developmental and Cell Biology, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA, 92697-2300, USA
| | - Shane Worthge
- Department of Developmental and Cell Biology, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA, 92697-2300, USA
| | - Judith Purcell
- Department of Developmental and Cell Biology, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA, 92697-2300, USA
| | - John Burke
- Department of Developmental and Cell Biology, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA, 92697-2300, USA
| | - Theodore M Chin
- Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, 91125
| | - J Lawrence Marsh
- Department of Developmental and Cell Biology, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA, 92697-2300, USA
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Bai Y, Wan W, Huang Y, Jin W, Lyu H, Xia Q, Dong X, Gao Z, Liu Y. Quantitative interrogation of protein co-aggregation using multi-color fluorogenic protein aggregation sensors. Chem Sci 2021; 12:8468-8476. [PMID: 34221329 PMCID: PMC8221170 DOI: 10.1039/d1sc01122g] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/25/2021] [Accepted: 05/19/2021] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Co-aggregation of multiple pathogenic proteins is common in neurodegenerative diseases but deconvolution of such biochemical process is challenging. Herein, we developed a dual-color fluorogenic thermal shift assay to simultaneously report on the aggregation of two different proteins and quantitatively study their thermodynamic stability during co-aggregation. Expansion of spectral coverage was first achieved by developing multi-color fluorogenic protein aggregation sensors. Orthogonal detection was enabled by conjugating sensors of minimal fluorescence crosstalk to two different proteins via sortase-tag technology. Using this assay, we quantified shifts in melting temperatures in a heterozygous model protein system, revealing that the thermodynamic stability of wild-type proteins was significantly compromised by the mutant ones but not vice versa. We also examined how small molecule ligands selectively and differentially interfere with such interplay. Finally, we demonstrated these sensors are suited to visualize how different proteins exert influence on each other upon their co-aggregation in live cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yulong Bai
- CAS Key Laboratory of Separation Science for Analytical Chemistry, Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences 457 Zhongshan Road Dalian 116023 China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences Beijing 100049 China
| | - Wang Wan
- CAS Key Laboratory of Separation Science for Analytical Chemistry, Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences 457 Zhongshan Road Dalian 116023 China
| | - Yanan Huang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Separation Science for Analytical Chemistry, Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences 457 Zhongshan Road Dalian 116023 China
| | - Wenhan Jin
- CAS Key Laboratory of Separation Science for Analytical Chemistry, Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences 457 Zhongshan Road Dalian 116023 China
| | - Haochen Lyu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Separation Science for Analytical Chemistry, Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences 457 Zhongshan Road Dalian 116023 China
| | - Qiuxuan Xia
- CAS Key Laboratory of Separation Science for Analytical Chemistry, Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences 457 Zhongshan Road Dalian 116023 China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences Beijing 100049 China
| | - Xuepeng Dong
- The Second Hospital of Dalian Medical University 467 Zhongshan Road Dalian 116044 China
| | - Zhenming Gao
- The Second Hospital of Dalian Medical University 467 Zhongshan Road Dalian 116044 China
| | - Yu Liu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Separation Science for Analytical Chemistry, Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences 457 Zhongshan Road Dalian 116023 China
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11
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Groover SE, Beasley M, Ramamurthy V, Legleiter J. Phosphomimetic Mutations Impact Huntingtin Aggregation in the Presence of a Variety of Lipid Systems. Biochemistry 2020; 59:4681-4693. [PMID: 33256402 DOI: 10.1021/acs.biochem.0c00788] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD) is a neurodegenerative disorder caused by the abnormal expansion of a polyglutamine (polyQ) tract in the first exon of the htt protein (htt). PolyQ expansion triggers the aggregation of htt into a variety of structures, including oligomers and fibrils. This aggregation is impacted by the first 17 N-terminal amino acids (Nt17) of htt that directly precedes the polyQ domain. Beyond impacting aggregation, Nt17 associates with lipid membranes by forming an amphipathic α-helix. Post-translational modifications within Nt17 are known to modify HD pathology, and in particular, phosphorylation at T3, S13, and/or S16 retards fibrillization and ameliorates the phenotype in HD models. Due to Nt17's propensity to interact with lipid membranes, the impact of introducing phosphomimetic mutations (T3D, S13D, and S16D) into htt-exon1 on aggregation in the presence of a variety of model lipid membranes (total brain lipid extract, 1-palmitoyl-2-oleoyl-glycero-3-phosphatidylcholine, and 1-palmitoyl-2-oleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phospho-1'-rac-glycerol) was investigated. Phosphomimetic mutations altered htt's interaction with and aggregation in the presence of lipids; however, this was dependent on the lipid system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sharon E Groover
- The C. Eugene Bennett Department of Chemistry, West Virginia University, 217 Clark Hall, Morgantown, West Virginia 26506, United States
| | - Maryssa Beasley
- The C. Eugene Bennett Department of Chemistry, West Virginia University, 217 Clark Hall, Morgantown, West Virginia 26506, United States
| | - Visvanathan Ramamurthy
- Department of Ophthalmology, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia 26506, United States.,Department of Biochemistry, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia 26506, United States.,Rockefeller Neurosciences Institutes, West Virginia University, 1 Medical Center Drive, P.O. Box 9303, Morgantown, West Virginia 26505, United States
| | - Justin Legleiter
- The C. Eugene Bennett Department of Chemistry, West Virginia University, 217 Clark Hall, Morgantown, West Virginia 26506, United States.,Rockefeller Neurosciences Institutes, West Virginia University, 1 Medical Center Drive, P.O. Box 9303, Morgantown, West Virginia 26505, United States.,Department of Neuroscience, West Virginia University, 1 Medical Center Drive, P.O. Box 9303, Morgantown, West Virginia 26505, United States
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12
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13
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Urbanek A, Popovic M, Morató A, Estaña A, Elena-Real CA, Mier P, Fournet A, Allemand F, Delbecq S, Andrade-Navarro MA, Cortés J, Sibille N, Bernadó P. Flanking Regions Determine the Structure of the Poly-Glutamine in Huntingtin through Mechanisms Common among Glutamine-Rich Human Proteins. Structure 2020; 28:733-746.e5. [PMID: 32402249 DOI: 10.1016/j.str.2020.04.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/07/2020] [Revised: 02/18/2020] [Accepted: 04/11/2020] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
Abstract
The causative agent of Huntington's disease, the poly-Q homo-repeat in the N-terminal region of huntingtin (httex1), is flanked by a 17-residue-long fragment (N17) and a proline-rich region (PRR), which promote and inhibit the aggregation propensity of the protein, respectively, by poorly understood mechanisms. Based on experimental data obtained from site-specifically labeled NMR samples, we derived an ensemble model of httex1 that identified both flanking regions as opposing poly-Q secondary structure promoters. While N17 triggers helicity through a promiscuous hydrogen bond network involving the side chains of the first glutamines in the poly-Q tract, the PRR promotes extended conformations in neighboring glutamines. Furthermore, a bioinformatics analysis of the human proteome showed that these structural traits are present in many human glutamine-rich proteins and that they are more prevalent in proteins with longer poly-Q tracts. Taken together, these observations provide the structural bases to understand previous biophysical and functional data on httex1.
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Affiliation(s)
- Annika Urbanek
- Centre de Biochimie Structurale (CBS), INSERM, CNRS, Université de Montpellier, 34090 Montpellier, France
| | - Matija Popovic
- Centre de Biochimie Structurale (CBS), INSERM, CNRS, Université de Montpellier, 34090 Montpellier, France
| | - Anna Morató
- Centre de Biochimie Structurale (CBS), INSERM, CNRS, Université de Montpellier, 34090 Montpellier, France
| | - Alejandro Estaña
- Centre de Biochimie Structurale (CBS), INSERM, CNRS, Université de Montpellier, 34090 Montpellier, France; LAAS-CNRS, Université de Toulouse, CNRS, 31400 Toulouse, France
| | - Carlos A Elena-Real
- Centre de Biochimie Structurale (CBS), INSERM, CNRS, Université de Montpellier, 34090 Montpellier, France
| | - Pablo Mier
- Institute of Organismic and Molecular Evolution, Faculty of Biology, Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz, 55128 Mainz, Germany
| | - Aurélie Fournet
- Centre de Biochimie Structurale (CBS), INSERM, CNRS, Université de Montpellier, 34090 Montpellier, France
| | - Frédéric Allemand
- Centre de Biochimie Structurale (CBS), INSERM, CNRS, Université de Montpellier, 34090 Montpellier, France
| | - Stephane Delbecq
- Laboratoire de Biologie Cellulaire et Moléculaire (LBCM-EA4558 Vaccination Antiparasitaire), UFR Pharmacie, Université de Montpellier, 34090 Montpellier, France
| | - Miguel A Andrade-Navarro
- Institute of Organismic and Molecular Evolution, Faculty of Biology, Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz, 55128 Mainz, Germany
| | - Juan Cortés
- LAAS-CNRS, Université de Toulouse, CNRS, 31400 Toulouse, France
| | - Nathalie Sibille
- Centre de Biochimie Structurale (CBS), INSERM, CNRS, Université de Montpellier, 34090 Montpellier, France
| | - Pau Bernadó
- Centre de Biochimie Structurale (CBS), INSERM, CNRS, Université de Montpellier, 34090 Montpellier, France.
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14
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Do Post-Translational Modifications Influence Protein Aggregation in Neurodegenerative Diseases: A Systematic Review. Brain Sci 2020; 10:brainsci10040232. [PMID: 32290481 PMCID: PMC7226274 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci10040232] [Citation(s) in RCA: 80] [Impact Index Per Article: 20.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2020] [Revised: 04/05/2020] [Accepted: 04/07/2020] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
The accumulation of abnormal protein aggregates represents a universal hallmark of neurodegenerative diseases (NDDs). Post-translational modifications (PTMs) regulate protein structure and function. Dysregulated PTMs may influence the propensity for protein aggregation in NDD-proteinopathies. To investigate this, we systematically reviewed the literature to evaluate effects of PTMs on aggregation propensity for major proteins linked to the pathogenesis and/or progression of NDDs. A search of PubMed, MEDLINE, EMBASE, and Web of Science Core Collection was conducted to retrieve studies that investigated an association between PTMs and protein aggregation in seven NDDs: Alzheimer’s disease (AD), Parkinson’s disease (PD), Huntington’s disease (HD), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), spinocerebellar ataxias, transmissible spongiform encephalopathy, and multiple sclerosis. Together, 1222 studies were identified, of which 69 met eligibility criteria. We identified that the following PTMs, in isolation or combination, potentially act as modulators of proteinopathy in NDDs: isoaspartate formation in Aβ, phosphorylation of Aβ or tau in AD; acetylation, 4-hydroxy-2-neonal modification, O-GlcNAcylation or phosphorylation of α-synuclein in PD; acetylation or phosphorylation of TAR DNA-binding protein-43 in ALS, and SUMOylation of superoxide dismutase-1 in ALS; and phosphorylation of huntingtin in HD. The potential pharmacological manipulation of these aggregation-modulating PTMs represents an as-yet untapped source of therapy to treat NDDs.
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15
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Abstract
Protein semisynthesis-defined herein as the assembly of a protein from a combination of synthetic and recombinant fragments-is a burgeoning field of chemical biology that has impacted many areas in the life sciences. In this review, we provide a comprehensive survey of this area. We begin by discussing the various chemical and enzymatic methods now available for the manufacture of custom proteins containing noncoded elements. This section begins with a discussion of methods that are more chemical in origin and ends with those that employ biocatalysts. We also illustrate the commonalities that exist between these seemingly disparate methods and show how this is allowing for the development of integrated chemoenzymatic methods. This methodology discussion provides the technical foundation for the second part of the review where we cover the great many biological problems that have now been addressed using these tools. Finally, we end the piece with a short discussion on the frontiers of the field and the opportunities available for the future.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Tom W. Muir
- Department of Chemistry, Princeton University, Frick Laboratory, Princeton, New Jersey 08544, United States
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16
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Site-Specific Phosphorylation of PDZ Domains. Methods Mol Biol 2020. [PMID: 32144671 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-0716-0434-2_12] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register]
Abstract
Classical approaches for probing protein phosphorylation events rely on phosphomimicking amino acids or enzymatic phosphorylation of proteins. In many cases, phosphomimicking amino acids inadequately imitate actual protein phosphorylation, whereas the latter method suffers from an inability to control site specificity and stoichiometry. To circumvent these shortcomings, chemical biological approaches have been developed to enable introduction of phosphorylated amino acids into proteins in a reliable and controlled way. Here, we describe methods to make semisynthetic, phosphorylated PDZ domains, covering expressed protein ligation (EPL) strategies involving modifications within the N-terminal or C-terminal regions. We also enclose protocols for the biophysical characterization of the semisynthetic phosphorylated PDZ domains to establish whether the introduced phosphorylation affects protein structure, stability, and function.
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17
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Ultrasensitive quantitative measurement of huntingtin phosphorylation at residue S13. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 2020; 521:549-554. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bbrc.2019.09.097] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/18/2019] [Accepted: 09/22/2019] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
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18
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Herrera F, Branco-Santos J, Outeiro T. Threonine 3 regulates Serine 13/16 phosphorylation in the huntingtin exon 1. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2019. [DOI: 10.19185/matters.201905000005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
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19
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Ruggeri FS, Šneideris T, Vendruscolo M, Knowles TPJ. Atomic force microscopy for single molecule characterisation of protein aggregation. Arch Biochem Biophys 2019; 664:134-148. [PMID: 30742801 PMCID: PMC6420408 DOI: 10.1016/j.abb.2019.02.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 80] [Impact Index Per Article: 16.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2018] [Revised: 02/03/2019] [Accepted: 02/05/2019] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
The development of atomic force microscopy (AFM) has opened up a wide range of novel opportunities in nanoscience and new modalities of observation in complex biological systems. AFM imaging has been widely employed to resolve the complex and heterogeneous conformational states involved in protein aggregation at the single molecule scale and shed light onto the molecular basis of a variety of human pathologies, including neurodegenerative disorders. The study of individual macromolecules at nanoscale, however, remains challenging, especially when fully quantitative information is required. In this review, we first discuss the principles of AFM with a special emphasis on the fundamental factors defining its sensitivity and accuracy. We then review the fundamental parameters and approaches to work at the limit of AFM resolution in order to perform single molecule statistical analysis of biomolecules and nanoscale protein aggregates. This single molecule statistical approach has proved to be powerful to unravel the molecular and hierarchical assembly of the misfolded species present transiently during protein aggregation, to visualise their dynamics at the nanoscale, as well to study the structural properties of amyloid-inspired functional nanomaterials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Francesco Simone Ruggeri
- Centre for Misfolding Disease, Department of Chemistry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 1EW, United Kingdom.
| | - Tomas Šneideris
- Centre for Misfolding Disease, Department of Chemistry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 1EW, United Kingdom; Institute of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, Vilnius, Lithuania
| | - Michele Vendruscolo
- Centre for Misfolding Disease, Department of Chemistry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 1EW, United Kingdom
| | - Tuomas P J Knowles
- Centre for Misfolding Disease, Department of Chemistry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 1EW, United Kingdom; Cavendish Laboratory, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB3 0HE, United Kingdom.
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20
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DeGuire SM, Ruggeri FS, Fares MB, Chiki A, Cendrowska U, Dietler G, Lashuel HA. N-terminal Huntingtin (Htt) phosphorylation is a molecular switch regulating Htt aggregation, helical conformation, internalization, and nuclear targeting. J Biol Chem 2018; 293:18540-18558. [PMID: 30185623 PMCID: PMC6290154 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.ra118.004621] [Citation(s) in RCA: 48] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/28/2018] [Revised: 07/25/2018] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Huntington's disease is a fatal neurodegenerative disorder resulting from a CAG repeat expansion in the first exon of the gene encoding the Huntingtin protein (Htt). Phosphorylation of this protein region (Httex1) has been shown to play important roles in regulating the structure, toxicity, and cellular properties of N-terminal fragments and full-length Htt. However, increasing evidence suggests that phosphomimetic substitutions in Htt result in inconsistent findings and do not reproduce all aspects of true phosphorylation. Here, we investigated the effects of bona fide phosphorylation at Ser-13 or Ser-16 on the structure, aggregation, membrane binding, and subcellular properties of the Httex1-Q18A variant and compared these effects with those of phosphomimetic substitutions. We show that phosphorylation at either Ser-13 and/or Ser-16 or phosphomimetic substitutions at both these residues inhibit the aggregation of mutant Httex1, but that only phosphorylation strongly disrupts the amphipathic α-helix of the N terminus and prompts the internalization and nuclear targeting of preformed Httex1 aggregates. In synthetic peptides, phosphorylation at Ser-13, Ser-16, or both residues strongly disrupted the amphipathic α-helix of the N-terminal 17 residues (Nt17) of Httex1 and Nt17 membrane binding. Experiments with peptides bearing different combinations of phosphorylation sites within Nt17 revealed a phosphorylation-dependent switch that regulates the Httex1 structure, involving cross-talk between phosphorylation at Thr-3 and Ser-13 or Ser-16. Our results provide crucial insights into the role of phosphorylation in regulating Httex1 structure and function, and underscore the critical importance of identifying the enzymes responsible for regulating Htt phosphorylation, and their potential as therapeutic targets for managing Huntington's disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sean M DeGuire
- From the Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration, Brain Mind Institute, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland and
| | - Francesco S Ruggeri
- the Laboratory of the Physics of Living Matter, Institute of Physics of Biological Systems, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Mohamed-Bilal Fares
- From the Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration, Brain Mind Institute, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland and
| | - Anass Chiki
- From the Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration, Brain Mind Institute, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland and
| | - Urszula Cendrowska
- the Laboratory of the Physics of Living Matter, Institute of Physics of Biological Systems, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Giovanni Dietler
- the Laboratory of the Physics of Living Matter, Institute of Physics of Biological Systems, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Hilal A Lashuel
- From the Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration, Brain Mind Institute, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland and
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21
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Haj-Yahya M, Lashuel HA. Protein Semisynthesis Provides Access to Tau Disease-Associated Post-translational Modifications (PTMs) and Paves the Way to Deciphering the Tau PTM Code in Health and Diseased States. J Am Chem Soc 2018; 140:6611-6621. [DOI: 10.1021/jacs.8b02668] [Citation(s) in RCA: 62] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Mahmood Haj-Yahya
- Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration, Brain Mind Institute, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Hilal A. Lashuel
- Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration, Brain Mind Institute, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
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22
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Ruggeri FS, Habchi J, Cerreta A, Dietler G. AFM-Based Single Molecule Techniques: Unraveling the Amyloid Pathogenic Species. Curr Pharm Des 2017; 22:3950-70. [PMID: 27189600 PMCID: PMC5080865 DOI: 10.2174/1381612822666160518141911] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/19/2016] [Accepted: 05/17/2016] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Abstract
Background A wide class of human diseases and neurodegenerative disorders, such as Alzheimer’s disease, is due to the failure of a specific peptide or protein to keep its native functional conformational state and to undergo a conformational change into a misfolded state, triggering the formation of fibrillar cross-β sheet amyloid aggregates. During the fibrillization, several coexisting species are formed, giving rise to a highly heterogeneous mixture. Despite its fundamental role in biological function and malfunction, the mechanism of protein self-assembly and the fundamental origins of the connection between aggregation, cellular toxicity and the biochemistry of neurodegeneration remains challenging to elucidate in molecular detail. In particular, the nature of the specific state of proteins that is most prone to cause cytotoxicity is not established. Methods: In the present review, we present the latest advances obtained by Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) based techniques to unravel the biophysical properties of amyloid aggregates at the nanoscale. Unraveling amyloid single species biophysical properties still represents a formidable experimental challenge, mainly because of their nanoscale dimensions and heterogeneous nature. Bulk techniques, such as circular dichroism or infrared spectroscopy, are not able to characterize the heterogeneity and inner properties of amyloid aggregates at the single species level, preventing a profound investigation of the correlation between the biophysical properties and toxicity of the individual species. Conclusion: The information delivered by AFM based techniques could be central to study the aggregation pathway of proteins and to design molecules that could interfere with amyloid aggregation delaying the onset of misfolding diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Francesco Simone Ruggeri
- Department of Chemistry, University of Cambridge, Lensfield Road, CB2 1EW, Cambridge, United Kingdom.
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23
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Phosphorylation of huntingtin at residue T3 is decreased in Huntington's disease and modulates mutant huntingtin protein conformation. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2017; 114:E10809-E10818. [PMID: 29162692 PMCID: PMC5740681 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1705372114] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Posttranslational modifications can have profound effects on the biological and biophysical properties of proteins associated with misfolding and aggregation. However, their detection and quantification in clinical samples and an understanding of the mechanisms underlying the pathological properties of misfolding- and aggregation-prone proteins remain a challenge for diagnostics and therapeutics development. We have applied an ultrasensitive immunoassay platform to develop and validate a quantitative assay for detecting a posttranslational modification (phosphorylation at residue T3) of a protein associated with polyglutamine repeat expansion, namely Huntingtin, and characterized its presence in a variety of preclinical and clinical samples. We find that T3 phosphorylation is greatly reduced in samples from Huntington's disease models and in Huntington's disease patients, and we provide evidence that bona-fide T3 phosphorylation alters Huntingtin exon 1 protein conformation and aggregation properties. These findings have significant implications for both mechanisms of disease pathogenesis and the development of therapeutics and diagnostics for Huntington's disease.
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24
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Warner JB, Ruff KM, Tan PS, Lemke EA, Pappu RV, Lashuel HA. Monomeric Huntingtin Exon 1 Has Similar Overall Structural Features for Wild-Type and Pathological Polyglutamine Lengths. J Am Chem Soc 2017; 139:14456-14469. [PMID: 28937758 PMCID: PMC5677759 DOI: 10.1021/jacs.7b06659] [Citation(s) in RCA: 65] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2017] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Huntington's disease is caused by expansion of a polyglutamine (polyQ) domain within exon 1 of the huntingtin gene (Httex1). The prevailing hypothesis is that the monomeric Httex1 protein undergoes sharp conformational changes as the polyQ length exceeds a threshold of 36-37 residues. Here, we test this hypothesis by combining novel semi-synthesis strategies with state-of-the-art single-molecule Förster resonance energy transfer measurements on biologically relevant, monomeric Httex1 proteins of five different polyQ lengths. Our results, integrated with atomistic simulations, negate the hypothesis of a sharp, polyQ length-dependent change in the structure of monomeric Httex1. Instead, they support a continuous global compaction with increasing polyQ length that derives from increased prominence of the globular polyQ domain. Importantly, we show that monomeric Httex1 adopts tadpole-like architectures for polyQ lengths below and above the pathological threshold. Our results suggest that higher order homotypic and/or heterotypic interactions within distinct sub-populations of neurons, which are inevitable at finite cellular concentrations, are likely to be the main source of sharp polyQ length dependencies of HD.
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Affiliation(s)
- John B. Warner
- Laboratory
of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration, Brain Mind
Institute, Station 19, School of Life Sciences, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Kiersten M. Ruff
- Department
of Biomedical Engineering and Center for Biological Systems Engineering, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri 63130, United States
| | - Piau Siong Tan
- Structural
and Computational Biology Unit, Cell Biology and Biophysics Unit, European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), 69117 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Edward A. Lemke
- Structural
and Computational Biology Unit, Cell Biology and Biophysics Unit, European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), 69117 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Rohit V. Pappu
- Department
of Biomedical Engineering and Center for Biological Systems Engineering, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri 63130, United States
| | - Hilal A. Lashuel
- Laboratory
of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration, Brain Mind
Institute, Station 19, School of Life Sciences, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
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25
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Daldin M, Fodale V, Cariulo C, Azzollini L, Verani M, Martufi P, Spiezia MC, Deguire SM, Cherubini M, Macdonald D, Weiss A, Bresciani A, Vonsattel JPG, Petricca L, Marsh JL, Gines S, Santimone I, Marano M, Lashuel HA, Squitieri F, Caricasole A. Polyglutamine expansion affects huntingtin conformation in multiple Huntington's disease models. Sci Rep 2017; 7:5070. [PMID: 28698602 PMCID: PMC5505970 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-05336-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2017] [Accepted: 06/14/2017] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Conformational changes in disease-associated or mutant proteins represent a key pathological aspect of Huntington’s disease (HD) and other protein misfolding diseases. Using immunoassays and biophysical approaches, we and others have recently reported that polyglutamine expansion in purified or recombinantly expressed huntingtin (HTT) proteins affects their conformational properties in a manner dependent on both polyglutamine repeat length and temperature but independent of HTT protein fragment length. These findings are consistent with the HD mutation affecting structural aspects of the amino-terminal region of the protein, and support the concept that modulating mutant HTT conformation might provide novel therapeutic and diagnostic opportunities. We now report that the same conformational TR-FRET based immunoassay detects polyglutamine- and temperature-dependent changes on the endogenously expressed HTT protein in peripheral tissues and post-mortem HD brain tissue, as well as in tissues from HD animal models. We also find that these temperature- and polyglutamine-dependent conformational changes are sensitive to bona-fide phosphorylation on S13 and S16 within the N17 domain of HTT. These findings provide key clinical and preclinical relevance to the conformational immunoassay, and provide supportive evidence for its application in the development of therapeutics aimed at correcting the conformation of polyglutamine-expanded proteins as well as the pharmacodynamics readouts to monitor their efficacy in preclinical models and in HD patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Manuel Daldin
- IRBM Science Park, Via Pontina km 30.600, 00071, Pomezia, Rome, Italy
| | - Valentina Fodale
- IRBM Science Park, Via Pontina km 30.600, 00071, Pomezia, Rome, Italy.,IRBM Promidis, Via Pontina km 30.600, 00071, Pomezia, Rome, Italy
| | - Cristina Cariulo
- IRBM Science Park, Via Pontina km 30.600, 00071, Pomezia, Rome, Italy
| | - Lucia Azzollini
- IRBM Science Park, Via Pontina km 30.600, 00071, Pomezia, Rome, Italy.,IRBM Promidis, Via Pontina km 30.600, 00071, Pomezia, Rome, Italy
| | - Margherita Verani
- IRBM Science Park, Via Pontina km 30.600, 00071, Pomezia, Rome, Italy.,IRBM Promidis, Via Pontina km 30.600, 00071, Pomezia, Rome, Italy
| | - Paola Martufi
- IRBM Science Park, Via Pontina km 30.600, 00071, Pomezia, Rome, Italy
| | | | - Sean M Deguire
- Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration, Brain Mind Institute, Station 19, School of Life Sciences, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-1015, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Marta Cherubini
- Departamento de Ciencias Biomedicas, Facultat de Medicina, Instituto de Neurociencias, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | | | - Andreas Weiss
- IRBM Promidis, Via Pontina km 30.600, 00071, Pomezia, Rome, Italy.,Evotec AG, Manfred Eigen Campus, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Alberto Bresciani
- IRBM Science Park, Via Pontina km 30.600, 00071, Pomezia, Rome, Italy
| | - Jean-Paul Gerard Vonsattel
- Taub Institute for Research on Alzheimer's disease and the Aging Brain, Columbia University Medical Center, 710 West 168th Street, New York, NY, 10032, USA
| | - Lara Petricca
- IRBM Science Park, Via Pontina km 30.600, 00071, Pomezia, Rome, Italy.,IRBM Promidis, Via Pontina km 30.600, 00071, Pomezia, Rome, Italy
| | - J Lawrence Marsh
- Department of Developmental and Cell Biology, University of California, Irvine, 92697, USA
| | - Silvia Gines
- Departamento de Ciencias Biomedicas, Facultat de Medicina, Instituto de Neurociencias, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Iolanda Santimone
- Huntington and Rare Diseases Unit, IRCCS Casa Sollievo della Sofferenza, San Giovanni Rotondo, Italy
| | - Massimo Marano
- Huntington and Rare Diseases Unit, IRCCS Casa Sollievo della Sofferenza, San Giovanni Rotondo, Italy
| | - Hilal A Lashuel
- Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration, Brain Mind Institute, Station 19, School of Life Sciences, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-1015, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Ferdinando Squitieri
- Huntington and Rare Diseases Unit, IRCCS Casa Sollievo della Sofferenza, San Giovanni Rotondo, Italy
| | - Andrea Caricasole
- IRBM Science Park, Via Pontina km 30.600, 00071, Pomezia, Rome, Italy. .,IRBM Promidis, Via Pontina km 30.600, 00071, Pomezia, Rome, Italy.
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26
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Chiki A, DeGuire SM, Ruggeri FS, Sanfelice D, Ansaloni A, Wang ZM, Cendrowska U, Burai R, Vieweg S, Pastore A, Dietler G, Lashuel HA. Mutant Exon1 Huntingtin Aggregation is Regulated by T3 Phosphorylation-Induced Structural Changes and Crosstalk between T3 Phosphorylation and Acetylation at K6. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2017; 56:5202-5207. [DOI: 10.1002/anie.201611750] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2016] [Revised: 02/05/2017] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Anass Chiki
- Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration; Brain Mind Institute; Institute of Physics of Biological Systems; Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-; 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Sean M. DeGuire
- Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration; Brain Mind Institute; Institute of Physics of Biological Systems; Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-; 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Francesco S. Ruggeri
- The Laboratory of the Physics of Living Matter; Institute of Physics of Biological Systems; Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-; 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
- Current address: University of Cambridge; Department of Chemistry; Lensfield Road Cambridge CB2 1EW UK
| | - Domenico Sanfelice
- MRC National Institute for Medical Research; The Ridgeway, Mill Hill London NW71AA UK
| | - Annalisa Ansaloni
- Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration; Brain Mind Institute; Institute of Physics of Biological Systems; Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-; 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Zhe-Ming Wang
- Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration; Brain Mind Institute; Institute of Physics of Biological Systems; Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-; 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Urszula Cendrowska
- The Laboratory of the Physics of Living Matter; Institute of Physics of Biological Systems; Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-; 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Ritwik Burai
- Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration; Brain Mind Institute; Institute of Physics of Biological Systems; Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-; 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Sophie Vieweg
- Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration; Brain Mind Institute; Institute of Physics of Biological Systems; Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-; 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Annalisa Pastore
- MRC National Institute for Medical Research; The Ridgeway, Mill Hill London NW71AA UK
| | - Giovanni Dietler
- The Laboratory of the Physics of Living Matter; Institute of Physics of Biological Systems; Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-; 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Hilal A. Lashuel
- Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration; Brain Mind Institute; Institute of Physics of Biological Systems; Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-; 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
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27
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Chiki A, DeGuire SM, Ruggeri FS, Sanfelice D, Ansaloni A, Wang ZM, Cendrowska U, Burai R, Vieweg S, Pastore A, Dietler G, Lashuel HA. Mutant Exon1 Huntingtin Aggregation is Regulated by T3 Phosphorylation-Induced Structural Changes and Crosstalk between T3 Phosphorylation and Acetylation at K6. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2017. [DOI: 10.1002/ange.201611750] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Anass Chiki
- Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration; Brain Mind Institute; Institute of Physics of Biological Systems; Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-; 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Sean M. DeGuire
- Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration; Brain Mind Institute; Institute of Physics of Biological Systems; Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-; 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Francesco S. Ruggeri
- The Laboratory of the Physics of Living Matter; Institute of Physics of Biological Systems; Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-; 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
- Current address: University of Cambridge; Department of Chemistry; Lensfield Road Cambridge CB2 1EW UK
| | - Domenico Sanfelice
- MRC National Institute for Medical Research; The Ridgeway, Mill Hill London NW71AA UK
| | - Annalisa Ansaloni
- Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration; Brain Mind Institute; Institute of Physics of Biological Systems; Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-; 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Zhe-Ming Wang
- Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration; Brain Mind Institute; Institute of Physics of Biological Systems; Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-; 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Urszula Cendrowska
- The Laboratory of the Physics of Living Matter; Institute of Physics of Biological Systems; Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-; 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Ritwik Burai
- Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration; Brain Mind Institute; Institute of Physics of Biological Systems; Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-; 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Sophie Vieweg
- Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration; Brain Mind Institute; Institute of Physics of Biological Systems; Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-; 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Annalisa Pastore
- MRC National Institute for Medical Research; The Ridgeway, Mill Hill London NW71AA UK
| | - Giovanni Dietler
- The Laboratory of the Physics of Living Matter; Institute of Physics of Biological Systems; Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-; 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Hilal A. Lashuel
- Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration; Brain Mind Institute; Institute of Physics of Biological Systems; Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-; 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
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28
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Chuh KN, Batt AR, Pratt MR. Chemical Methods for Encoding and Decoding of Posttranslational Modifications. Cell Chem Biol 2016; 23:86-107. [PMID: 26933738 DOI: 10.1016/j.chembiol.2015.11.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 62] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/26/2015] [Revised: 11/25/2015] [Accepted: 11/25/2015] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
A large array of posttranslational modifications can dramatically change the properties of proteins and influence different aspects of their biological function such as enzymatic activity, binding interactions, and proteostasis. Despite the significant knowledge that has been gained about the function of posttranslational modifications using traditional biological techniques, the analysis of the site-specific effects of a particular modification, the identification of the full complement of modified proteins in the proteome, and the detection of new types of modifications remains challenging. Over the years, chemical methods have contributed significantly in both of these areas of research. This review highlights several posttranslational modifications where chemistry-based approaches have made significant contributions to our ability to both prepare homogeneously modified proteins and identify and characterize particular modifications in complex biological settings. As the number and chemical diversity of documented posttranslational modifications continues to rise, we believe that chemical strategies will be essential to advance the field in years to come.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kelly N Chuh
- Department of Chemistry, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089, USA
| | - Anna R Batt
- Department of Chemistry, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089, USA
| | - Matthew R Pratt
- Department of Chemistry, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089, USA; Department of Molecular and Computational Biology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089, USA.
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29
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Nanoscale studies link amyloid maturity with polyglutamine diseases onset. Sci Rep 2016; 6:31155. [PMID: 27499269 PMCID: PMC4976327 DOI: 10.1038/srep31155] [Citation(s) in RCA: 106] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/01/2016] [Accepted: 07/01/2016] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
The presence of expanded poly-glutamine (polyQ) repeats in proteins is directly linked to the pathogenesis of several neurodegenerative diseases, including Huntington’s disease. However, the molecular and structural basis underlying the increased toxicity of aggregates formed by proteins containing expanded polyQ repeats remain poorly understood, in part due to the size and morphological heterogeneity of the aggregates they form in vitro. To address this knowledge gap and technical limitations, we investigated the structural, mechanical and morphological properties of fibrillar aggregates at the single molecule and nanometer scale using the first exon of the Huntingtin protein as a model system (Exon1). Our findings demonstrate a direct correlation of the morphological and mechanical properties of Exon1 aggregates with their structural organization at the single aggregate and nanometric scale and provide novel insights into the molecular and structural basis of Huntingtin Exon1 aggregation and toxicity.
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30
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Vieweg S, Ansaloni A, Wang ZM, Warner JB, Lashuel HA. An Intein-based Strategy for the Production of Tag-free Huntingtin Exon 1 Proteins Enables New Insights into the Polyglutamine Dependence of Httex1 Aggregation and Fibril Formation. J Biol Chem 2016; 291:12074-86. [PMID: 27002149 PMCID: PMC4933259 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m116.713982] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2016] [Revised: 03/18/2016] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
The first exon of the Huntingtin protein (Httex1) is one of the most actively studied Htt fragments because its overexpression in R6/2 transgenic mice has been shown to recapitulate several key features of Huntington disease. However, the majority of biophysical studies of Httex1 are based on assessing the structure and aggregation of fusion constructs where Httex1 is fused to large proteins, such as glutathione S-transferase, maltose-binding protein, or thioredoxin, or released in solution upon in situ cleavage of these proteins. Herein, we report an intein-based strategy that allows, for the first time, the rapid and efficient production of native tag-free Httex1 with polyQ repeats ranging from 7Q to 49Q. Aggregation studies on these proteins enabled us to identify interesting polyQ-length-dependent effects on Httex1 oligomer and fibril formation that were previously not observed using Httex1 fusion proteins or Httex1 proteins produced by in situ cleavage of fusion proteins. Our studies revealed the inability of Httex1-7Q/15Q to undergo amyloid fibril formation and an inverse correlation between fibril length and polyQ repeat length, suggesting possible polyQ length-dependent differences in the structural properties of the Httex1 aggregates. Altogether, our findings underscore the importance of working with tag-free Httex1 proteins and indicate that model systems based on non-native Httex1 sequences may not accurately reproduce the effect of polyQ repeat length and solution conditions on Httex1 aggregation kinetics and structural properties.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sophie Vieweg
- From the Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration, Brain Mind Institute, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland and
| | - Annalisa Ansaloni
- From the Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration, Brain Mind Institute, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland and
| | - Zhe-Ming Wang
- From the Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration, Brain Mind Institute, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland and
| | - John B Warner
- From the Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration, Brain Mind Institute, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland and
| | - Hilal A Lashuel
- From the Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration, Brain Mind Institute, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland and Qatar Biomedical Research Institute (QBRI), Hamad bin Khalifa University (HBKU), 5825 Doha, Qatar
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31
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Bustamante MB, Ansaloni A, Pedersen JF, Azzollini L, Cariulo C, Wang ZM, Petricca L, Verani M, Puglisi F, Park H, Lashuel H, Caricasole A. Detection of huntingtin exon 1 phosphorylation by Phos-Tag SDS-PAGE: Predominant phosphorylation on threonine 3 and regulation by IKKβ. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 2015; 463:1317-22. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bbrc.2015.06.116] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/05/2015] [Accepted: 06/17/2015] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
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32
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Wang JX, Fang GM, He Y, Qu DL, Yu M, Hong ZY, Liu L. Peptideo-Aminoanilides as Crypto-Thioesters for Protein Chemical Synthesis. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2014. [DOI: 10.1002/ange.201408078] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/05/2022]
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33
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Wang JX, Fang GM, He Y, Qu DL, Yu M, Hong ZY, Liu L. Peptideo-Aminoanilides as Crypto-Thioesters for Protein Chemical Synthesis. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2014; 54:2194-8. [DOI: 10.1002/anie.201408078] [Citation(s) in RCA: 106] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/08/2014] [Revised: 11/18/2014] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
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34
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Fodale V, Kegulian NC, Verani M, Cariulo C, Azzollini L, Petricca L, Daldin M, Boggio R, Padova A, Kuhn R, Pacifici R, Macdonald D, Schoenfeld RC, Park H, Isas JM, Langen R, Weiss A, Caricasole A. Polyglutamine- and temperature-dependent conformational rigidity in mutant huntingtin revealed by immunoassays and circular dichroism spectroscopy. PLoS One 2014; 9:e112262. [PMID: 25464275 PMCID: PMC4251833 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0112262] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/24/2014] [Accepted: 10/06/2014] [Indexed: 01/13/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND In Huntington's disease, expansion of a CAG triplet repeat occurs in exon 1 of the huntingtin gene (HTT), resulting in a protein bearing>35 polyglutamine residues whose N-terminal fragments display a high propensity to misfold and aggregate. Recent data demonstrate that polyglutamine expansion results in conformational changes in the huntingtin protein (HTT), which likely influence its biological and biophysical properties. Developing assays to characterize and measure these conformational changes in isolated proteins and biological samples would advance the testing of novel therapeutic approaches aimed at correcting mutant HTT misfolding. Time-resolved Förster energy transfer (TR-FRET)-based assays represent high-throughput, homogeneous, sensitive immunoassays widely employed for the quantification of proteins of interest. TR-FRET is extremely sensitive to small distances and can therefore provide conformational information based on detection of exposure and relative position of epitopes present on the target protein as recognized by selective antibodies. We have previously reported TR-FRET assays to quantify HTT proteins based on the use of antibodies specific for different amino-terminal HTT epitopes. Here, we investigate the possibility of interrogating HTT protein conformation using these assays. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS By performing TR-FRET measurements on the same samples (purified recombinant proteins or lysates from cells expressing HTT fragments or full length protein) at different temperatures, we have discovered a temperature-dependent, reversible, polyglutamine-dependent conformational change of wild type and expanded mutant HTT proteins. Circular dichroism spectroscopy confirms the temperature and polyglutamine-dependent change in HTT structure, revealing an effect of polyglutamine length and of temperature on the alpha-helical content of the protein. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE The temperature- and polyglutamine-dependent effects observed with TR-FRET on HTT proteins represent a simple, scalable, quantitative and sensitive assay to identify genetic and pharmacological modulators of mutant HTT conformation, and potentially to assess the relevance of conformational changes during onset and progression of Huntington's disease.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Natalie C. Kegulian
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Zilkha Neurogenetic Institute, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California, United States of America
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Robert Pacifici
- CHDI Management/CHDI Foundation, Los Angeles, California, United States of America
| | - Douglas Macdonald
- CHDI Management/CHDI Foundation, Los Angeles, California, United States of America
| | - Ryan C. Schoenfeld
- CHDI Management/CHDI Foundation, Los Angeles, California, United States of America
| | - Hyunsun Park
- CHDI Management/CHDI Foundation, Los Angeles, California, United States of America
| | - J. Mario Isas
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Zilkha Neurogenetic Institute, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California, United States of America
| | - Ralf Langen
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Zilkha Neurogenetic Institute, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California, United States of America
- * E-mail: (RL); (AW); (AC)
| | - Andreas Weiss
- IRBM Promidis, Pomezia, Rome, Italy
- * E-mail: (RL); (AW); (AC)
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35
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Theillet FX, Binolfi A, Frembgen-Kesner T, Hingorani K, Sarkar M, Kyne C, Li C, Crowley PB, Gierasch L, Pielak GJ, Elcock AH, Gershenson A, Selenko P. Physicochemical properties of cells and their effects on intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs). Chem Rev 2014; 114:6661-714. [PMID: 24901537 PMCID: PMC4095937 DOI: 10.1021/cr400695p] [Citation(s) in RCA: 326] [Impact Index Per Article: 32.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/09/2013] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Francois-Xavier Theillet
- Department
of NMR-supported Structural Biology, In-cell NMR Laboratory, Leibniz Institute of Molecular Pharmacology (FMP Berlin), Robert-Roessle Strasse 10, 13125 Berlin, Germany
| | - Andres Binolfi
- Department
of NMR-supported Structural Biology, In-cell NMR Laboratory, Leibniz Institute of Molecular Pharmacology (FMP Berlin), Robert-Roessle Strasse 10, 13125 Berlin, Germany
| | - Tamara Frembgen-Kesner
- Department
of Biochemistry, University of Iowa, Bowen Science Building, 51 Newton
Road, Iowa City, Iowa 52242, United States
| | - Karan Hingorani
- Departments
of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology and Chemistry, Program in
Molecular & Cellular Biology, University
of Massachusetts, Amherst, 240 Thatcher Way, Amherst, Massachusetts 01003, United States
| | - Mohona Sarkar
- Department
of Chemistry, Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics and Lineberger
Comprehensive Cancer Center, University
of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599-3290, United States
| | - Ciara Kyne
- School
of Chemistry, National University of Ireland,
Galway, University Road, Galway, Ireland
| | - Conggang Li
- Key Laboratory
of Magnetic Resonance in Biological Systems, State Key Laboratory
of Magnetic Resonance and Atomic and Molecular Physics, Wuhan Center
for Magnetic Resonance, Wuhan Institute of Physics and Mathematics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, 430071, P.R. China
| | - Peter B. Crowley
- School
of Chemistry, National University of Ireland,
Galway, University Road, Galway, Ireland
| | - Lila Gierasch
- Departments
of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology and Chemistry, Program in
Molecular & Cellular Biology, University
of Massachusetts, Amherst, 240 Thatcher Way, Amherst, Massachusetts 01003, United States
| | - Gary J. Pielak
- Department
of Chemistry, Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics and Lineberger
Comprehensive Cancer Center, University
of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599-3290, United States
| | - Adrian H. Elcock
- Department
of Biochemistry, University of Iowa, Bowen Science Building, 51 Newton
Road, Iowa City, Iowa 52242, United States
| | - Anne Gershenson
- Departments
of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology and Chemistry, Program in
Molecular & Cellular Biology, University
of Massachusetts, Amherst, 240 Thatcher Way, Amherst, Massachusetts 01003, United States
| | - Philipp Selenko
- Department
of NMR-supported Structural Biology, In-cell NMR Laboratory, Leibniz Institute of Molecular Pharmacology (FMP Berlin), Robert-Roessle Strasse 10, 13125 Berlin, Germany
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36
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Sahoo B, Singer D, Kodali R, Zuchner T, Wetzel R. Aggregation behavior of chemically synthesized, full-length huntingtin exon1. Biochemistry 2014; 53:3897-907. [PMID: 24921664 PMCID: PMC4075985 DOI: 10.1021/bi500300c] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
![]()
Repeat
length disease thresholds vary among the 10 expanded polyglutamine
(polyQ) repeat diseases, from about 20 to about 50 glutamine residues.
The unique amino acid sequences flanking the polyQ segment are thought
to contribute to these repeat length thresholds. The specific portions
of the flanking sequences that modulate polyQ properties are not always
clear, however. This ambiguity may be important in Huntington’s
disease (HD), for example, where in vitro studies
of aggregation mechanisms have led to distinctly different mechanistic
models. Most in vitro studies of the aggregation
of the huntingtin (HTT) exon1 fragment implicated in the HD mechanism
have been conducted on inexact molecules that are imprecise either
on the N-terminus (recombinantly produced peptides) or on the C-terminus
(chemically synthesized peptides). In this paper, we investigate the
aggregation properties of chemically synthesized HTT exon1 peptides
that are full-length and complete, containing both normal and expanded
polyQ repeat lengths, and compare the results directly to previously
investigated molecules containing truncated C-termini. The results
on the full-length peptides are consistent with a two-step aggregation
mechanism originally developed based on studies of the C-terminally
truncated analogues. Thus, we observe relatively rapid formation of
spherical oligomers containing from 100 to 600 HTT exon1 molecules
and intermediate formation of short protofibril-like structures containing
from 500 to 2600 molecules. In contrast to this relatively rapid assembly,
mature HTT exon1 amyloid requires about one month to dissociate in vitro, which is similar to the time required for neuronal
HTT exon1 aggregates to disappear in vivo after HTT
production is discontinued.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bankanidhi Sahoo
- Department of Structural Biology and Pittsburgh Institute for Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine , Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15260, United States
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