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Parihar R, Rai A, Ganesh S. Lafora disease: from genotype to phenotype. J Genet 2018; 97:611-624. [PMID: 30027899] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
The progressive myoclonic epilepsy of Lafora or Lafora disease (LD) is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by recurrent seizures and cognitive deficits. With typical onset in the late childhood or early adolescence, the patients show progressive worsening of the disease symptoms, leading to death in about 10 years. It is an autosomal recessive disorder caused by the loss-of-function mutations in the EPM2A gene, coding for a protein phosphatase (laforin) or the NHLRC1 gene coding for an E3 ubiquitin ligase (malin). LD is characterized by the presence of abnormally branched water insoluble glycogen inclusions known as Lafora bodies in the neurons and other tissues, suggesting a role for laforin and malin in glycogen metabolic pathways. Mouse models of LD, developed by targeted disruption of the Epm2a or Nhlrc1 gene, recapitulated most of the symptoms and pathological features as seen in humans, and have offered insight into the pathomechanisms. Besides the formation of Lafora bodies in the neurons in the presymptomatic stage, the animal models have also demonstrated perturbations in the proteolytic pathways, such as ubiquitin proteasome system and autophagy, and inflammatory response. This review attempts to provide a comprehensive coverage on the genetic defects leading to the LD in humans, on the functional properties of the laforin and malin proteins, and on how defects in any one of these two proteins result in a clinically similar phenotype. We also discuss the disease pathologies as revealed by the studies on the animal models and, finally, on the progress with therapeutic attempts albeit in the animal models.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rashmi Parihar
- Department of Biological Sciences and Bioengineering, Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, Kanpur 208 016, India.
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Abstract
The key regulatory enzymes of glycogenolysis are phosphorylase kinase, a hetero-oligomer with four different types of subunits, and glycogen phosphorylase, a homodimer. Both enzymes are activated by phosphorylation and small ligands, and both enzymes have distinct isoforms that are predominantly expressed in muscle, liver, or brain; however, whole-transcriptome high-throughput sequencing analyses show that in brain both of these enzymes are likely composed of subunit isoforms representing all three tissues. This Minireview examines the regulatory properties of the isoforms of these two enzymes expressed in the three tissues, focusing on their potential regulatory similarities and differences. Additionally, the activity, structure, and regulation of the remaining enzyme necessary for glycogenolysis, glycogen-debranching enzyme, are also reviewed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Owen W Nadeau
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, Kansas 66160-7421
| | - Joseph D Fontes
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, Kansas 66160-7421
| | - Gerald M Carlson
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, Kansas 66160-7421.
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Kakhlon O. Pharmacological approaches for treating glycogen storage disorders involving polyglucosan body accumulation. Expert Opin Orphan Drugs 2017. [DOI: 10.1080/21678707.2017.1405804] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Or Kakhlon
- Department of Neurology, Hadassah Medical Association, Ein Kerem, Jerusalem, Israel
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A novel image-based high-throughput screening assay discovers therapeutic candidates for adult polyglucosan body disease. Biochem J 2017; 474:3403-3420. [PMID: 28827282 DOI: 10.1042/bcj20170469] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2017] [Revised: 07/20/2017] [Accepted: 08/17/2017] [Indexed: 01/26/2023]
Abstract
Glycogen storage disorders (GSDs) are caused by excessive accumulation of glycogen. Some GSDs [adult polyglucosan (PG) body disease (APBD), and Tarui and Lafora diseases] are caused by intracellular accumulation of insoluble inclusions, called PG bodies (PBs), which are chiefly composed of malconstructed glycogen. We developed an APBD patient skin fibroblast cell-based assay for PB identification, where the bodies are identified as amylase-resistant periodic acid-Schiff's-stained structures, and quantified. We screened the DIVERSet CL 10 084 compound library using this assay in high-throughput format and discovered 11 dose-dependent and 8 non-dose-dependent PB-reducing hits. Approximately 70% of the hits appear to act through reducing glycogen synthase (GS) activity, which can elongate glycogen chains and presumably promote PB generation. Some of these GS inhibiting hits were also computationally predicted to be similar to drugs interacting with the GS activator protein phosphatase 1. Our work paves the way to discovering medications for the treatment of PB-involving GSD, which are extremely severe or fatal disorders.
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Pathogenesis of Lafora Disease: Transition of Soluble Glycogen to Insoluble Polyglucosan. Int J Mol Sci 2017; 18:ijms18081743. [PMID: 28800070 PMCID: PMC5578133 DOI: 10.3390/ijms18081743] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2017] [Revised: 08/04/2017] [Accepted: 08/06/2017] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Lafora disease (LD, OMIM #254780) is a rare, recessively inherited neurodegenerative disease with adolescent onset, resulting in progressive myoclonus epilepsy which is fatal usually within ten years of symptom onset. The disease is caused by loss-of-function mutations in either of the two genes EPM2A (laforin) or EPM2B (malin). It characteristically involves the accumulation of insoluble glycogen-derived particles, named Lafora bodies (LBs), which are considered neurotoxic and causative of the disease. The pathogenesis of LD is therefore centred on the question of how insoluble LBs emerge from soluble glycogen. Recent data clearly show that an abnormal glycogen chain length distribution, but neither hyperphosphorylation nor impairment of general autophagy, strictly correlates with glycogen accumulation and the presence of LBs. This review summarizes results obtained with patients, mouse models, and cell lines and consolidates apparent paradoxes in the LD literature. Based on the growing body of evidence, it proposes that LD is predominantly caused by an impairment in chain-length regulation affecting only a small proportion of the cellular glycogen. A better grasp of LD pathogenesis will further develop our understanding of glycogen metabolism and structure. It will also facilitate the development of clinical interventions that appropriately target the underlying cause of LD.
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Alvarez R, Casas J, López DJ, Ibarguren M, Suari-Rivera A, Terés S, Guardiola-Serrano F, Lossos A, Busquets X, Kakhlon O, Escribá PV. Triacylglycerol mimetics regulate membrane interactions of glycogen branching enzyme: implications for therapy. J Lipid Res 2017. [PMID: 28630259 DOI: 10.1194/jlr.m075531] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Adult polyglucosan body disease (APBD) is a neurological disorder characterized by adult-onset neurogenic bladder, spasticity, weakness, and sensory loss. The disease is caused by aberrant glycogen branching enzyme (GBE) (GBE1Y329S) yielding less branched, globular, and soluble glycogen, which tends to aggregate. We explore here whether, despite being a soluble enzyme, GBE1 activity is regulated by protein-membrane interactions. Because soluble proteins can contact a wide variety of cell membranes, we investigated the interactions of purified WT and GBE1Y329S proteins with different types of model membranes (liposomes). Interestingly, both triheptanoin and some triacylglycerol mimetics (TGMs) we have designed (TGM0 and TGM5) markedly enhance GBE1Y329S activity, possibly enough for reversing APBD symptoms. We show that the GBE1Y329S mutation exposes a hydrophobic amino acid stretch, which can either stabilize and enhance or alternatively, reduce the enzyme activity via alteration of protein-membrane interactions. Additionally, we found that WT, but not Y329S, GBE1 activity is modulated by Ca2+ and phosphatidylserine, probably associated with GBE1-mediated regulation of energy consumption and storage. The thermal stabilization and increase in GBE1Y329S activity induced by TGM5 and its omega-3 oil structure suggest that this molecule has a considerable therapeutic potential for treating APBD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rafael Alvarez
- Laboratory of Molecular Cell Biomedicine, Department of Biology, University of the Balearic Islands, E-07122 Palma de Mallorca, Spain
| | - Jesús Casas
- Laboratory of Molecular Cell Biomedicine, Department of Biology, University of the Balearic Islands, E-07122 Palma de Mallorca, Spain
| | - David J López
- Laboratory of Molecular Cell Biomedicine, Department of Biology, University of the Balearic Islands, E-07122 Palma de Mallorca, Spain
| | - Maitane Ibarguren
- Laboratory of Molecular Cell Biomedicine, Department of Biology, University of the Balearic Islands, E-07122 Palma de Mallorca, Spain
| | - Ariadna Suari-Rivera
- Laboratory of Molecular Cell Biomedicine, Department of Biology, University of the Balearic Islands, E-07122 Palma de Mallorca, Spain
| | - Silvia Terés
- Laboratory of Molecular Cell Biomedicine, Department of Biology, University of the Balearic Islands, E-07122 Palma de Mallorca, Spain
| | - Francisca Guardiola-Serrano
- Laboratory of Molecular Cell Biomedicine, Department of Biology, University of the Balearic Islands, E-07122 Palma de Mallorca, Spain
| | - Alexander Lossos
- Department of Neurology, Hadassah-Hebrew University Medical Center, E-91120 Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Xavier Busquets
- Laboratory of Molecular Cell Biomedicine, Department of Biology, University of the Balearic Islands, E-07122 Palma de Mallorca, Spain
| | - Or Kakhlon
- Department of Neurology, Hadassah-Hebrew University Medical Center, E-91120 Jerusalem, Israel.
| | - Pablo V Escribá
- Laboratory of Molecular Cell Biomedicine, Department of Biology, University of the Balearic Islands, E-07122 Palma de Mallorca, Spain.
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Jain N, Mishra R, Ganesh S. FoxO3a-mediated autophagy is down-regulated in the laforin deficient mice, an animal model for Lafora progressive myoclonus epilepsy. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 2016; 474:321-327. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bbrc.2016.04.094] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2016] [Accepted: 04/17/2016] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
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Crystal structure of glycogen debranching enzyme and insights into its catalysis and disease-causing mutations. Nat Commun 2016; 7:11229. [PMID: 27088557 PMCID: PMC4837477 DOI: 10.1038/ncomms11229] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/15/2015] [Accepted: 02/24/2016] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Glycogen is a branched glucose polymer and serves as an important energy store. Its debranching is a critical step in its mobilization. In animals and fungi, the 170 kDa glycogen debranching enzyme (GDE) catalyses this reaction. GDE deficiencies in humans are associated with severe diseases collectively termed glycogen storage disease type III (GSDIII). We report crystal structures of GDE and its complex with oligosaccharides, and structure-guided mutagenesis and biochemical studies to assess the structural observations. These studies reveal that distinct domains in GDE catalyse sequential reactions in glycogen debranching, the mechanism of their catalysis and highly specific substrate recognition. The unique tertiary structure of GDE provides additional contacts to glycogen besides its active sites, and our biochemical experiments indicate that they mediate its recruitment to glycogen and regulate its activity. Combining the understanding of the GDE catalysis and functional characterizations of its disease-causing mutations provides molecular insights into GSDIII. Debranching of glycogen is an important step in its use as an energy source. Here, the authors describe the crystal structures of glycogen debranching enzyme alone and in complex with oligosaccharides and provide molecular insights into the function, and into associated diseases.
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Zois CE, Harris AL. Glycogen metabolism has a key role in the cancer microenvironment and provides new targets for cancer therapy. J Mol Med (Berl) 2016; 94:137-54. [PMID: 26882899 PMCID: PMC4762924 DOI: 10.1007/s00109-015-1377-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 160] [Impact Index Per Article: 20.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2015] [Revised: 12/21/2015] [Accepted: 12/28/2015] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Metabolic reprogramming is a hallmark of cancer cells and contributes to their adaption within the tumour microenvironment and resistance to anticancer therapies. Recently, glycogen metabolism has become a recognised feature of cancer cells since it is upregulated in many tumour types, suggesting that it is an important aspect of cancer cell pathophysiology. Here, we provide an overview of glycogen metabolism and its regulation, with a focus on its role in metabolic reprogramming of cancer cells under stress conditions such as hypoxia, glucose deprivation and anticancer treatment. The various methods to detect glycogen in tumours in vivo as well as pharmacological modulators of glycogen metabolism are also reviewed. Finally, we discuss the therapeutic value of targeting glycogen metabolism as a strategy for combinational approaches in cancer treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christos E Zois
- Molecular Oncology Laboratories, Department of Oncology, Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford University, Oxford, OX3 9DS, UK.
| | - Adrian L Harris
- Molecular Oncology Laboratories, Department of Oncology, Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford University, Oxford, OX3 9DS, UK.
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DiNuzzo M, Mangia S, Maraviglia B, Giove F. Does abnormal glycogen structure contribute to increased susceptibility to seizures in epilepsy? Metab Brain Dis 2015; 30:307-16. [PMID: 24643875 PMCID: PMC4169361 DOI: 10.1007/s11011-014-9524-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/06/2014] [Accepted: 03/05/2014] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Epilepsy is a family of brain disorders with a largely unknown etiology and high percentage of pharmacoresistance. The clinical manifestations of epilepsy are seizures, which originate from aberrant neuronal synchronization and hyperexcitability. Reactive astrocytosis, a hallmark of the epileptic tissue, develops into loss-of-function of glutamine synthetase, impairment of glutamate-glutamine cycle and increase in extracellular and astrocytic glutamate concentration. Here, we argue that chronically elevated intracellular glutamate level in astrocytes is instrumental to alterations in the metabolism of glycogen and leads to the synthesis of polyglucosans. Unaccessibility of glycogen-degrading enzymes to these insoluble molecules compromises the glycogenolysis-dependent reuptake of extracellular K(+) by astrocytes, thereby leading to increased extracellular K(+) and associated membrane depolarization. Based on current knowledge, we propose that the deterioration in structural homogeneity of glycogen particles is relevant to disruption of brain K(+) homeostasis and increased susceptibility to seizures in epilepsy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mauro DiNuzzo
- MARBILab, Museo storico della fisica e Centro di studi e ricerche "Enrico Fermi", Rome, Italy,
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