1
|
Galimberti M, Nucera MR, Bocchi VD, Conforti P, Vezzoli E, Cereda M, Maffezzini C, Iennaco R, Scolz A, Falqui A, Cordiglieri C, Cremona M, Espuny-Camacho I, Faedo A, Felsenfeld DP, Vogt TF, Ranzani V, Zuccato C, Besusso D, Cattaneo E. Huntington's disease cellular phenotypes are rescued non-cell autonomously by healthy cells in mosaic telencephalic organoids. Nat Commun 2024; 15:6534. [PMID: 39095390 PMCID: PMC11297310 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-50877-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2024] [Accepted: 07/23/2024] [Indexed: 08/04/2024] Open
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD) causes selective degeneration of striatal and cortical neurons, resulting in cell mosaicism of coexisting still functional and dysfunctional cells. The impact of non-cell autonomous mechanisms between these cellular states is poorly understood. Here we generated telencephalic organoids with healthy or HD cells, grown separately or as mosaics of the two genotypes. Single-cell RNA sequencing revealed neurodevelopmental abnormalities in the ventral fate acquisition of HD organoids, confirmed by cytoarchitectural and transcriptional defects leading to fewer GABAergic neurons, while dorsal populations showed milder phenotypes mainly in maturation trajectory. Healthy cells in mosaic organoids restored HD cell identity, trajectories, synaptic density, and communication pathways upon cell-cell contact, while showing no significant alterations when grown with HD cells. These findings highlight cell-type-specific alterations in HD and beneficial non-cell autonomous effects of healthy cells, emphasizing the therapeutic potential of modulating cell-cell communication in disease progression and treatment.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Maura Galimberti
- Laboratory of Stem Cell Biology and Pharmacology of Neurodegenerative Diseases, Department of Biosciences, University of Milan, 20122, Milan, Italy
- INGM, Istituto Nazionale Genetica Molecolare "Romeo ed Enrica Invernizzi", Milan, Italy
| | - Maria R Nucera
- Laboratory of Stem Cell Biology and Pharmacology of Neurodegenerative Diseases, Department of Biosciences, University of Milan, 20122, Milan, Italy
- INGM, Istituto Nazionale Genetica Molecolare "Romeo ed Enrica Invernizzi", Milan, Italy
- Stem Cell Biology Department; Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Parkville, VIC, 3052, Australia
| | - Vittoria D Bocchi
- Laboratory of Stem Cell Biology and Pharmacology of Neurodegenerative Diseases, Department of Biosciences, University of Milan, 20122, Milan, Italy
- INGM, Istituto Nazionale Genetica Molecolare "Romeo ed Enrica Invernizzi", Milan, Italy
- Center for Stem Cell Biology and Developmental Biology Program, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, 10065, USA
| | - Paola Conforti
- Laboratory of Stem Cell Biology and Pharmacology of Neurodegenerative Diseases, Department of Biosciences, University of Milan, 20122, Milan, Italy
- INGM, Istituto Nazionale Genetica Molecolare "Romeo ed Enrica Invernizzi", Milan, Italy
| | - Elena Vezzoli
- Laboratory of Stem Cell Biology and Pharmacology of Neurodegenerative Diseases, Department of Biosciences, University of Milan, 20122, Milan, Italy
- INGM, Istituto Nazionale Genetica Molecolare "Romeo ed Enrica Invernizzi", Milan, Italy
- ALEMBIC Advanced Light and Electron Microscopy BioImaging Center, San Raffaele Scientific Institute, DIBIT 1, Via Olgettina 58, 20132, Milan, Italy
| | - Matteo Cereda
- Laboratory of Stem Cell Biology and Pharmacology of Neurodegenerative Diseases, Department of Biosciences, University of Milan, 20122, Milan, Italy
- INGM, Istituto Nazionale Genetica Molecolare "Romeo ed Enrica Invernizzi", Milan, Italy
| | - Camilla Maffezzini
- Laboratory of Stem Cell Biology and Pharmacology of Neurodegenerative Diseases, Department of Biosciences, University of Milan, 20122, Milan, Italy
- INGM, Istituto Nazionale Genetica Molecolare "Romeo ed Enrica Invernizzi", Milan, Italy
| | - Raffaele Iennaco
- Laboratory of Stem Cell Biology and Pharmacology of Neurodegenerative Diseases, Department of Biosciences, University of Milan, 20122, Milan, Italy
- INGM, Istituto Nazionale Genetica Molecolare "Romeo ed Enrica Invernizzi", Milan, Italy
| | - Andrea Scolz
- Laboratory of Stem Cell Biology and Pharmacology of Neurodegenerative Diseases, Department of Biosciences, University of Milan, 20122, Milan, Italy
- INGM, Istituto Nazionale Genetica Molecolare "Romeo ed Enrica Invernizzi", Milan, Italy
| | - Andrea Falqui
- Department of Physics "Aldo Pontremoli", University of Milan, Via Celoria 16, 20133, Milan, Italy
| | - Chiara Cordiglieri
- INGM, Istituto Nazionale Genetica Molecolare "Romeo ed Enrica Invernizzi", Milan, Italy
| | - Martina Cremona
- Laboratory of Stem Cell Biology and Pharmacology of Neurodegenerative Diseases, Department of Biosciences, University of Milan, 20122, Milan, Italy
- INGM, Istituto Nazionale Genetica Molecolare "Romeo ed Enrica Invernizzi", Milan, Italy
- Swiss Stem Cell Foundation, Via Petrini 2, 6900, Lugano, Switzerland
| | - Ira Espuny-Camacho
- Laboratory of Stem Cell Biology and Pharmacology of Neurodegenerative Diseases, Department of Biosciences, University of Milan, 20122, Milan, Italy
- INGM, Istituto Nazionale Genetica Molecolare "Romeo ed Enrica Invernizzi", Milan, Italy
- GIGA-Neuroscience, Interdisciplinary Cluster for Applied Genoproteomics (GIGA-R), University of Liège, C.H.U. Sart Tilman, 4000, Liège, Belgium
| | - Andrea Faedo
- Laboratory of Stem Cell Biology and Pharmacology of Neurodegenerative Diseases, Department of Biosciences, University of Milan, 20122, Milan, Italy
- INGM, Istituto Nazionale Genetica Molecolare "Romeo ed Enrica Invernizzi", Milan, Italy
- Axxam, OpenZone, Via Meucci 3, 20091, Bresso, Milan, Italy
| | | | | | - Valeria Ranzani
- INGM, Istituto Nazionale Genetica Molecolare "Romeo ed Enrica Invernizzi", Milan, Italy
| | - Chiara Zuccato
- Laboratory of Stem Cell Biology and Pharmacology of Neurodegenerative Diseases, Department of Biosciences, University of Milan, 20122, Milan, Italy
- INGM, Istituto Nazionale Genetica Molecolare "Romeo ed Enrica Invernizzi", Milan, Italy
| | - Dario Besusso
- Laboratory of Stem Cell Biology and Pharmacology of Neurodegenerative Diseases, Department of Biosciences, University of Milan, 20122, Milan, Italy
- INGM, Istituto Nazionale Genetica Molecolare "Romeo ed Enrica Invernizzi", Milan, Italy
| | - Elena Cattaneo
- Laboratory of Stem Cell Biology and Pharmacology of Neurodegenerative Diseases, Department of Biosciences, University of Milan, 20122, Milan, Italy.
- INGM, Istituto Nazionale Genetica Molecolare "Romeo ed Enrica Invernizzi", Milan, Italy.
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Wang Y, Ramandi D, Sepers MD, Mackay JP, Raymond LA. Age- and region-dependent cortical excitability in the zQ175 Huntington disease mouse model. Hum Mol Genet 2024; 33:387-399. [PMID: 37947186 PMCID: PMC10877458 DOI: 10.1093/hmg/ddad191] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2023] [Revised: 09/29/2023] [Accepted: 11/02/2023] [Indexed: 11/12/2023] Open
Abstract
The neurodegenerative disorder, Huntington disease (HD), manifests as disorders of movement, cognition and mood. Although studies report abnormal corticostriatal synaptic function early in HD mouse models, less is known about cortical-cortical activity across brain regions and disease stages. Recently, we reported enhanced mesoscale spread of cortical responses to sensory stimulation in vivo at early-manifest stages of two HD mouse models. Here, we investigated cortical excitability of zQ175 HD-model mice compared to their wild-type littermates across different cell types, ages and/or cortical regions using ex vivo electrophysiology. Cortical pyramidal neurons (CPNs) in somatosensory cortex of zQ175 mice showed intrinsic hyper-excitability at 3-4 months, but hypo-excitability at early-manifest stage (8-9 months); reduced frequency of spontaneous excitatory postsynaptic currents (sEPSCs) was seen at both ages. In contrast, motor cortex CPNs in early-manifest zQ175 mice showed increased intrinsic excitability and sEPSC frequency. Large-amplitude excitatory discharges recorded from CPNs in early-manifest zQ175 mice showed increased frequency only in somatosensory cortex, suggesting the intrinsic hypo-excitability of these CPNs may be compensatory against cortical network hyper-excitability. Similarly, in early-manifest zQ175 mice, region-dependent differences were seen in fast-spiking interneurons (FSIs): somatosensory but not motor FSIs from early-manifest zQ175 mice had reduced intrinsic excitability. Moreover, CPNs showed decreased frequency of spontaneous inhibitory postsynaptic currents and increased excitatory-inhibitory (E-I) balance of evoked synaptic currents in somatosensory cortex. Aberrant large-amplitude discharges and reduced inhibitory drive may therefore underlie E-I imbalances that result in circuit changes and synaptic dysfunction in early-manifest HD.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yundi Wang
- Department of Psychiatry and Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, 2215 Wesbrook Mall, Vancouver, V6T 1Z3, Canada
| | - Daniel Ramandi
- Department of Psychiatry and Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, 2215 Wesbrook Mall, Vancouver, V6T 1Z3, Canada
- Graduate Program in Cell and Developmental Biology, University of British Columbia, 2350 Health Sciences Mall, Vancouver, V6T 2A1, Canada
| | - Marja D Sepers
- Department of Psychiatry and Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, 2215 Wesbrook Mall, Vancouver, V6T 1Z3, Canada
| | - James P Mackay
- Department of Psychiatry and Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, 2215 Wesbrook Mall, Vancouver, V6T 1Z3, Canada
| | - Lynn A Raymond
- Department of Psychiatry and Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, 2215 Wesbrook Mall, Vancouver, V6T 1Z3, Canada
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Wilton DK, Mastro K, Heller MD, Gergits FW, Willing CR, Fahey JB, Frouin A, Daggett A, Gu X, Kim YA, Faull RLM, Jayadev S, Yednock T, Yang XW, Stevens B. Microglia and complement mediate early corticostriatal synapse loss and cognitive dysfunction in Huntington's disease. Nat Med 2023; 29:2866-2884. [PMID: 37814059 PMCID: PMC10667107 DOI: 10.1038/s41591-023-02566-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 16.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/24/2021] [Accepted: 08/24/2023] [Indexed: 10/11/2023]
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD) is a devastating monogenic neurodegenerative disease characterized by early, selective pathology in the basal ganglia despite the ubiquitous expression of mutant huntingtin. The molecular mechanisms underlying this region-specific neuronal degeneration and how these relate to the development of early cognitive phenotypes are poorly understood. Here we show that there is selective loss of synaptic connections between the cortex and striatum in postmortem tissue from patients with HD that is associated with the increased activation and localization of complement proteins, innate immune molecules, to these synaptic elements. We also found that levels of these secreted innate immune molecules are elevated in the cerebrospinal fluid of premanifest HD patients and correlate with established measures of disease burden.In preclinical genetic models of HD, we show that complement proteins mediate the selective elimination of corticostriatal synapses at an early stage in disease pathogenesis, marking them for removal by microglia, the brain's resident macrophage population. This process requires mutant huntingtin to be expressed in both cortical and striatal neurons. Inhibition of this complement-dependent elimination mechanism through administration of a therapeutically relevant C1q function-blocking antibody or genetic ablation of a complement receptor on microglia prevented synapse loss, increased excitatory input to the striatum and rescued the early development of visual discrimination learning and cognitive flexibility deficits in these models. Together, our findings implicate microglia and the complement cascade in the selective, early degeneration of corticostriatal synapses and the development of cognitive deficits in presymptomatic HD; they also provide new preclinical data to support complement as a therapeutic target for early intervention.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Daniel K Wilton
- F. M. Kirby Neurobiology Center, Department of Neurology, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, US.
| | - Kevin Mastro
- F. M. Kirby Neurobiology Center, Department of Neurology, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, US
| | - Molly D Heller
- F. M. Kirby Neurobiology Center, Department of Neurology, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, US
| | - Frederick W Gergits
- F. M. Kirby Neurobiology Center, Department of Neurology, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, US
| | - Carly Rose Willing
- F. M. Kirby Neurobiology Center, Department of Neurology, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, US
| | - Jaclyn B Fahey
- F. M. Kirby Neurobiology Center, Department of Neurology, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, US
| | - Arnaud Frouin
- F. M. Kirby Neurobiology Center, Department of Neurology, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, US
| | - Anthony Daggett
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine at University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Xiaofeng Gu
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine at University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Yejin A Kim
- F. M. Kirby Neurobiology Center, Department of Neurology, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, US
| | - Richard L M Faull
- Department of Anatomy with Radiology, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Suman Jayadev
- Department of Neurology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
- Division of Medical Genetics, Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Ted Yednock
- Annexon Biosciences, South San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - X William Yang
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine at University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Beth Stevens
- F. M. Kirby Neurobiology Center, Department of Neurology, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, US.
- Stanley Center, Broad Institute, Cambridge, MA, USA.
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Vasilkovska T, Adhikari M, Van Audekerke J, Salajeghe S, Pustina D, Cachope R, Tang H, Liu L, Munoz-Sanjuan I, Van der Linden A, Verhoye M. Resting-state fMRI reveals longitudinal alterations in brain network connectivity in the zQ175DN mouse model of Huntington's disease. Neurobiol Dis 2023; 181:106095. [PMID: 36963694 DOI: 10.1016/j.nbd.2023.106095] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/19/2023] [Revised: 03/13/2023] [Accepted: 03/20/2023] [Indexed: 03/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Huntington's disease is an autosomal, dominantly inherited neurodegenerative disease caused by an expansion of the CAG repeats in exon 1 of the huntingtin gene. Neuronal degeneration and dysfunction that precedes regional atrophy result in the impairment of striatal and cortical circuits that affect the brain's large-scale network functionality. However, the evolution of these disease-driven, large-scale connectivity alterations is still poorly understood. Here we used resting-state fMRI to investigate functional connectivity changes in a mouse model of Huntington's disease in several relevant brain networks and how they are affected at different ages that follow a disease-like phenotypic progression. Towards this, we used the heterozygous (HET) form of the zQ175DN Huntington's disease mouse model that recapitulates aspects of human disease pathology. Seed- and Region-based analyses were performed at different ages, on 3-, 6-, 10-, and 12-month-old HET and age-matched wild-type mice. Our results demonstrate decreased connectivity starting at 6 months of age, most prominently in regions such as the retrosplenial and cingulate cortices, pertaining to the default mode-like network and auditory and visual cortices, part of the associative cortical network. At 12 months, we observe a shift towards decreased connectivity in regions such as the somatosensory cortices, pertaining to the lateral cortical network, and the caudate putamen, a constituent of the subcortical network. Moreover, we assessed the impact of distinct Huntington's Disease-like pathology of the zQ175DN HET mice on age-dependent connectivity between different brain regions and networks where we demonstrate that connectivity strength follows a nonlinear, inverted U-shape pattern, a well-known phenomenon of development and normal aging. Conversely, the neuropathologically driven alteration of connectivity, especially in the default mode and associative cortical networks, showed diminished age-dependent evolution of functional connectivity. These findings reveal that in this Huntington's disease model, altered connectivity starts with cortical network aberrations which precede striatal connectivity changes, that appear only at a later age. Taken together, these results suggest that the age-dependent cortical network dysfunction seen in rodents could represent a relevant pathological process in Huntington's disease progression.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Tamara Vasilkovska
- Bio-Imaging Lab, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610 Wilrijk, Antwerp, Belgium; μNEURO Research Centre of Excellence, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium.
| | - Mohit Adhikari
- Bio-Imaging Lab, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610 Wilrijk, Antwerp, Belgium; μNEURO Research Centre of Excellence, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Johan Van Audekerke
- Bio-Imaging Lab, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610 Wilrijk, Antwerp, Belgium; μNEURO Research Centre of Excellence, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Somaie Salajeghe
- Bio-Imaging Lab, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610 Wilrijk, Antwerp, Belgium
| | | | | | - Haiying Tang
- CHDI Management/CHDI Foundation, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Longbin Liu
- CHDI Management/CHDI Foundation, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | | | - Annemie Van der Linden
- Bio-Imaging Lab, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610 Wilrijk, Antwerp, Belgium; μNEURO Research Centre of Excellence, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Marleen Verhoye
- Bio-Imaging Lab, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610 Wilrijk, Antwerp, Belgium; μNEURO Research Centre of Excellence, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Bustos LM, Sattler R. The Fault in Our Astrocytes - cause or casualties of proteinopathies of ALS/FTD and other neurodegenerative diseases? FRONTIERS IN MOLECULAR MEDICINE 2023; 3:1075805. [PMID: 39165755 PMCID: PMC11334001 DOI: 10.3389/fmmed.2023.1075805] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2022] [Accepted: 02/08/2023] [Indexed: 08/22/2024]
Abstract
Many neurodegenerative diseases fall under the class of diseases known as proteinopathies, whereby the structure and localization of specific proteins become abnormal. These aberrant proteins often aggregate within cells which disrupts vital homeostatic and physiological cellular functions, ultimately contributing to cell death. Although neurodegenerative disease research is typically neurocentric, there is evidence supporting the role of non-neuronal cells in the pathogenesis of these diseases. Specifically, the role of astrocytes in neurodegenerative diseases has been an ever-growing area of research. Astrocytes are one of the most abundant cell types in the central nervous system (CNS) and provide an array of essential homeostatic functions that are disrupted in neurodegenerative diseases. Astrocytes can exhibit a reactive phenotype that is characterized by molecular changes, as well as changes in morphology and function. In neurodegenerative diseases, there is potential for reactive astrocytes to assume a loss-of-function phenotype in homeostatic operations such as synapse maintenance, neuronal metabolic support, and facilitating cell-cell communication between glia and neurons. They are also able to concurrently exhibit gain-of-function phenotypes that can be destructive to neural networks and the astrocytes themselves. Additionally, astrocytes have been shown to internalize disease related proteins and reflect similar or exacerbated pathology that has been observed in neurons. Here, we review several major neurodegenerative disease-specific proteinopathies and what is known about their presence in astrocytes and the potential consequences regarding cell and non-cell autonomous neurodegeneration.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Lynette M. Bustos
- School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, United States
- Barrow Neurological Institute, Phoenix, AZ, United States
| | - Rita Sattler
- Barrow Neurological Institute, Phoenix, AZ, United States
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Cvetanovic M, Gray M. Contribution of Glial Cells to Polyglutamine Diseases: Observations from Patients and Mouse Models. Neurotherapeutics 2023; 20:48-66. [PMID: 37020152 PMCID: PMC10119372 DOI: 10.1007/s13311-023-01357-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 02/17/2023] [Indexed: 04/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Neurodegenerative diseases are broadly characterized neuropathologically by the degeneration of vulnerable neuronal cell types in a specific brain region. The degeneration of specific cell types has informed on the various phenotypes/clinical presentations in someone suffering from these diseases. Prominent neurodegeneration of specific neurons is seen in polyglutamine expansion diseases including Huntington's disease (HD) and spinocerebellar ataxias (SCA). The clinical manifestations observed in these diseases could be as varied as the abnormalities in motor function observed in those who have Huntington's disease (HD) as demonstrated by a chorea with substantial degeneration of striatal medium spiny neurons (MSNs) or those with various forms of spinocerebellar ataxia (SCA) with an ataxic motor presentation primarily due to degeneration of cerebellar Purkinje cells. Due to the very significant nature of the degeneration of MSNs in HD and Purkinje cells in SCAs, much of the research has centered around understanding the cell autonomous mechanisms dysregulated in these neuronal cell types. However, an increasing number of studies have revealed that dysfunction in non-neuronal glial cell types contributes to the pathogenesis of these diseases. Here we explore these non-neuronal glial cell types with a focus on how each may contribute to the pathogenesis of HD and SCA and the tools used to evaluate glial cells in the context of these diseases. Understanding the regulation of supportive and harmful phenotypes of glia in disease could lead to development of novel glia-focused neurotherapeutics.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Marija Cvetanovic
- Department of Neuroscience, Institute for Translational Neuroscience, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, USA
| | - Michelle Gray
- Department of Neurology, Center for Neurodegeneration and Experimental Therapeutics, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Voelkl K, Schulz-Trieglaff EK, Klein R, Dudanova I. Distinct histological alterations of cortical interneuron types in mouse models of Huntington’s disease. Front Neurosci 2022; 16:1022251. [PMID: 36225731 PMCID: PMC9549412 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2022.1022251] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2022] [Accepted: 09/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Huntington’s disease (HD) is a debilitating hereditary motor disorder caused by an expansion of the CAG triplet repeat in the Huntingtin gene. HD causes neurodegeneration particularly in the basal ganglia and neocortex. In the cortex, glutamatergic pyramidal neurons are known to be severely affected by the disease, but the involvement of GABAergic interneurons remains unclear. Here, we use a combination of immunostaining and genetic tracing to investigate histological changes in three major cortical interneuron types — parvalbumin (PV), somatostatin (SST), and vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) interneurons — in the R6/2 and zQ175DN mouse models of HD. In R6/2 mice, we find a selective reduction in SST and VIP, but not PV-positive cells. However, genetic labeling reveals unchanged cell numbers for all the interneuron types, pointing to molecular marker loss in the absence of cell death. We also observe a reduction in cell body size for all three interneuron populations. Furthermore, we demonstrate progressive accumulation of mutant Huntingtin (mHTT) inclusion bodies in interneurons, which occurs faster in SST and VIP compared to PV cells. In contrast to the R6/2 model, heterozygous zQ175DN knock-in HD mice do not show any significant histological changes in cortical cell types at the age of 12 months, apart from the presence of mHTT inclusions, which are abundant in pyramidal neurons and rare in interneurons. Taken together, our findings point to differential molecular changes in cortical interneuron types of HD mice.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Kerstin Voelkl
- Department of Molecules–Signaling–Development, Max Planck Institute for Biological Intelligence, Martinsried, Germany
- Molecular Neurodegeneration Group, Max Planck Institute for Biological Intelligence, Martinsried, Germany
| | | | - Rüdiger Klein
- Department of Molecules–Signaling–Development, Max Planck Institute for Biological Intelligence, Martinsried, Germany
| | - Irina Dudanova
- Department of Molecules–Signaling–Development, Max Planck Institute for Biological Intelligence, Martinsried, Germany
- Molecular Neurodegeneration Group, Max Planck Institute for Biological Intelligence, Martinsried, Germany
- Center for Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany
- *Correspondence: Irina Dudanova,
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Molecular Pathophysiological Mechanisms in Huntington's Disease. Biomedicines 2022; 10:biomedicines10061432. [PMID: 35740453 PMCID: PMC9219859 DOI: 10.3390/biomedicines10061432] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2022] [Revised: 06/12/2022] [Accepted: 06/14/2022] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Huntington’s disease is an inherited neurodegenerative disease described 150 years ago by George Huntington. The genetic defect was identified in 1993 to be an expanded CAG repeat on exon 1 of the huntingtin gene located on chromosome 4. In the following almost 30 years, a considerable amount of research, using mainly animal models or in vitro experiments, has tried to unravel the complex molecular cascades through which the transcription of the mutant protein leads to neuronal loss, especially in the medium spiny neurons of the striatum, and identified excitotoxicity, transcriptional dysregulation, mitochondrial dysfunction, oxidative stress, impaired proteostasis, altered axonal trafficking and reduced availability of trophic factors to be crucial contributors. This review discusses the pathogenic cascades described in the literature through which mutant huntingtin leads to neuronal demise. However, due to the ubiquitous presence of huntingtin, astrocytes are also dysfunctional, and neuroinflammation may additionally contribute to Huntington’s disease pathology. The quest for therapies to delay the onset and reduce the rate of Huntington’s disease progression is ongoing, but is based on findings from basic research.
Collapse
|
9
|
St-Cyr S, Smith AR, Davidson BL. Temporal Phenotypic Changes in Huntington's Disease Models for Preclinical Studies. J Huntingtons Dis 2022; 11:35-57. [PMID: 35213386 PMCID: PMC9028736 DOI: 10.3233/jhd-210515] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Background: Mouse models bearing genetic disease mutations are instrumental in the development of therapies for genetic disorders. Huntington’s disease (HD) is a late-onset lethal dominant genetic disorder due to a CAG repeat within exon 1 of the Huntingtin (Htt) gene. Several mice were developed to model HD through the expression of a transgenic fragment (exon 1 of the human HTT), the knock-in mutation of the CAG repeat in the context of the mouse Htt gene, or the full-length HTT human gene. The different mouse models present distinct onset, symptoms, and progression of the disease. Objective: The objective of this study is to advise on the best behavioral tests to assess disease progression in three HD mouse models. Methods: We tested N171-82Q transgenic mice, zQ175 knock-in mice, and BACHD full-length mice in a comprehensive behavior test battery in early, mid-, and late disease stages. Results: We contrast and compare the models and the emerging phenotypes with the available literature. These results suggest the most effective behavioral tests and appropriate sample sizes to detect treatment efficacy in each model at the different ages. We provide options for early detection of motor deficits while minimizing testing time and training. Conclusion: This information will inform researchers in the HD field as to which mouse model, tests and sample sizes can accurately and sensitively detect treatment efficacy in preclinical HD research.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sophie St-Cyr
- The Raymond G. Perelman Center for Cellular and Molecular Therapeutics, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Alicia R Smith
- The Raymond G. Perelman Center for Cellular and Molecular Therapeutics, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Beverly L Davidson
- The Raymond G. Perelman Center for Cellular and Molecular Therapeutics, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, USA.,The Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine, The Perelman School of Medicine, The University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| |
Collapse
|
10
|
Sepers MD, Mackay JP, Koch E, Xiao D, Mohajerani MH, Chan AW, Smith-Dijak AI, Ramandi D, Murphy TH, Raymond LA. Altered cortical processing of sensory input in Huntington disease mouse models. Neurobiol Dis 2022; 169:105740. [PMID: 35460870 DOI: 10.1016/j.nbd.2022.105740] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2021] [Revised: 04/10/2022] [Accepted: 04/16/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Huntington disease (HD), a hereditary neurodegenerative disorder, manifests as progressively impaired movement and cognition. Although early abnormalities of neuronal activity in striatum are well established in HD models, there are fewer in vivo studies of the cortex. Here, we record local field potentials (LFPs) in YAC128 HD model mice versus wild-type mice. In multiple cortical areas, limb sensory stimulation evokes a greater change in LFP power in YAC128 mice. Mesoscopic imaging using voltage-sensitive dyes reveals more extensive spread of evoked sensory signals across the cortical surface in YAC128 mice. YAC128 layer 2/3 sensory cortical neurons ex vivo show increased excitatory events, which could contribute to enhanced sensory responses in vivo. Cortical LFP responses to limb stimulation, visual and auditory input are also significantly increased in zQ175 HD mice. Results presented here extend knowledge of HD beyond ex vivo studies of individual neurons to the intact cortical network.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Marja D Sepers
- Department of Psychiatry and Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T1Z3, Canada
| | - James P Mackay
- Department of Psychiatry and Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T1Z3, Canada
| | - Ellen Koch
- Department of Psychiatry and Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T1Z3, Canada
| | - Dongsheng Xiao
- Department of Psychiatry and Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T1Z3, Canada
| | - Majid H Mohajerani
- Canadian Center for Behavioural Neuroscience, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge T1K 3M4, Canada
| | - Allan W Chan
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Amy I Smith-Dijak
- Department of Psychiatry and Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T1Z3, Canada
| | - Daniel Ramandi
- Department of Psychiatry and Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T1Z3, Canada
| | - Timothy H Murphy
- Department of Psychiatry and Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T1Z3, Canada
| | - Lynn A Raymond
- Department of Psychiatry and Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T1Z3, Canada.
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Mansour HM, Fawzy HM, El-Khatib AS, Khattab MM. Repurposed anti-cancer epidermal growth factor receptor inhibitors: mechanisms of neuroprotective effects in Alzheimer's disease. Neural Regen Res 2022; 17:1913-1918. [PMID: 35142667 PMCID: PMC8848623 DOI: 10.4103/1673-5374.332132] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Numerous molecular mechanisms are being examined in an attempt to discover disease-modifying drugs to slow down the underlying neurodegeneration in Alzheimer’s disease. Recent studies have shown the beneficial effects of epidermal growth factor receptor inhibitors on the enhancement of behavioral and pathological sequelae in Alzheimer’s disease. Despite the promising effects of epidermal growth factor receptor inhibitors in Alzheimer’s disease, there is no irrefutable neuroprotective evidence in well-established animal models using epidermal growth factor receptor inhibitors due to many un-explored downstream signaling pathways. This caused controversy about the potential involvement of epidermal growth factor receptor inhibitors in any prospective clinical trial. In this review, the mystery beyond the under-investigation of epidermal growth factor receptor in Alzheimer’s disease will be discussed. Furthermore, their molecular mechanisms in neurodegeneration will be explained. Also, we will shed light on SARS-COVID-19 induced neurological manifestations mediated by epidermal growth factor modulation. Finally, we will discuss future perspectives and under-examined epidermal growth factor receptor downstream signaling pathways that warrant more exploration. We conclude that epidermal growth factor receptor inhibitors are novel effective therapeutic approaches that require further research in attempts to be repositioned in the delay of Alzheimer’s disease progression.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Heba M Mansour
- Department of Pharmacology, Egyptian Drug Authority, EDA, formerly NODCAR, Giza, Egypt
| | - Hala M Fawzy
- Department of Pharmacology, Egyptian Drug Authority, EDA, formerly NODCAR, Giza, Egypt
| | - Aiman S El-Khatib
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt
| | - Mahmoud M Khattab
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt
| |
Collapse
|
12
|
Rebec GV, Koceja DM, Bunner KD. Measuring Movement in Health and Disease. Brain Res Bull 2022; 181:167-174. [PMID: 35122899 DOI: 10.1016/j.brainresbull.2022.01.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2021] [Revised: 01/15/2022] [Accepted: 01/29/2022] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
Evaluating and quantifying the many aspects of movement -- from open-field locomotion and stepping patterns in rodent models to stride trajectory and postural sway in human patients -- are key to understanding brain function. Various experimental approaches have been used in applying these lines of research to investigate the brain mechanisms underlying neurodegenerative disease. Although valuable, data on movement are often limited by the shortcomings inherent in the data collection process itself. Steve Fowler and his research group have been instrumental in pioneering a technology that both minimizes these pitfalls in studies of rodent behavior and has applications to research on human patients. At the center of this technology is the force-plate actometer, developed by the Fowler group to assess multiple aspects of movement in rodent models. Our review highlights how use of the actometer and related behavioral measurements provides valuable insight into Huntington's disease (HD), an autosomal dominant condition of progressively deteriorating behavioral control. HD typically emerges in mid-life and has been replicated in multiple genetically engineered mouse models. The actometer also can be a valuable addition to cutting-edge neuronal and synaptic technologies that are now increasingly applied to studies of behaving animals. In short, the impact of the Fowler contribution to the neuroscience of movement is both meaningful and ongoing.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- George V Rebec
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN 47405, United States; Program in Neuroscience, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN 47405, United States.
| | - David M Koceja
- Department of Kinesiology, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN 47405, United States; Program in Neuroscience, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN 47405, United States
| | - Kendra D Bunner
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN 47405, United States
| |
Collapse
|
13
|
Lee CYD, Wang N, Shen K, Stricos M, Langfelder P, Cheon KH, Cortés EP, Vinters HV, Vonsattel JP, Wexler NS, Damoiseaux R, Frydman J, Yang XW. Disease-related Huntingtin seeding activities in cerebrospinal fluids of Huntington's disease patients. Sci Rep 2020; 10:20295. [PMID: 33219289 PMCID: PMC7679413 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-77164-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2020] [Accepted: 10/28/2020] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
In Huntington's disease (HD), the mutant Huntingtin (mHTT) is postulated to mediate template-based aggregation that can propagate across cells. It has been difficult to quantitatively detect such pathological seeding activities in patient biosamples, e.g. cerebrospinal fluids (CSF), and study their correlation with the disease manifestation. Here we developed a cell line expressing a domain-engineered mHTT-exon 1 reporter, which showed remarkably high sensitivity and specificity in detecting mHTT seeding species in HD patient biosamples. We showed that the seeding-competent mHTT species in HD CSF are significantly elevated upon disease onset and with the progression of neuropathological grades. Mechanistically, we showed that mHTT seeding activities in patient CSF could be ameliorated by the overexpression of chaperone DNAJB6 and by antibodies against the polyproline domain of mHTT. Together, our study developed a selective and scalable cell-based tool to investigate mHTT seeding activities in HD CSF, and demonstrated that the CSF mHTT seeding species are significantly associated with certain disease states. This seeding activity can be ameliorated by targeting specific domain or proteostatic pathway of mHTT, providing novel insights into such pathological activities.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- C Y Daniel Lee
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, The Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience & Human Behavior, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, USA
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Nan Wang
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, The Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience & Human Behavior, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, USA
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Koning Shen
- Department of Biology and BioX Program, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Matthew Stricos
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, The Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience & Human Behavior, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, USA
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Peter Langfelder
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, The Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience & Human Behavior, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, USA
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Kristina H Cheon
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, The Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience & Human Behavior, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, USA
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Etty P Cortés
- Division of Aging and Dementia, Department of Neurology, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Harry V Vinters
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Neurology, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Jean Paul Vonsattel
- Division of Aging and Dementia, Department of Neurology, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Nancy S Wexler
- Departments of Neurology and Psychiatry, College of Physicians and Surgeons, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
- Hereditary Disease Foundation, New York, NY, USA
| | - Robert Damoiseaux
- California NanoSystems Institute, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Department of Molecular and Medical Pharmacology, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Judith Frydman
- Department of Biology and BioX Program, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - X William Yang
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, The Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience & Human Behavior, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, USA.
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
14
|
Attili D, Schill DJ, DeLong CJ, Lim KC, Jiang G, Campbell KF, Walker K, Laszczyk A, McInnis MG, O'Shea KS. Astrocyte-Derived Exosomes in an iPSC Model of Bipolar Disorder. ADVANCES IN NEUROBIOLOGY 2020; 25:219-235. [PMID: 32578149 DOI: 10.1007/978-3-030-45493-7_8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
Bipolar I Disorder (BP) is a serious, recurrent mood disorder that is characterized by alternating episodes of mania and depression. To begin to identify novel approaches and pathways involved in BP, we have obtained skin samples from BP patients and undiagnosed control (C) individuals, reprogrammed them to form induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC), and then differentiated the stem cells into astrocytes. RNAs from BP and C astrocytes were extracted and RNAseq analysis carried out. 501 differentially expressed genes were identified, including genes for cytoskeletal elements, extracellular matrix, signaling pathways, neurodegeneration, and notably transcripts that identify exosomes. When we compared highly expressed genes using hierarchial cluster analysis, "Exosome" was the first and most highly significant cluster identified, p < 5 × 10-13, Benjamini correction. Exosomes are membrane-bound vesicles that package and remove toxic proteins from cells and also enable cell to cell communication. They carry genetic material, including DNA, mRNA and microRNAs, proteins, and lipids to target cells throughout the body. Exosomes are released by cortical neurons and astrocytes in culture and are present in BP vs C postmortem brain tissue. Little is known about what transcripts and proteins are targeted to neurons, how they regulate biological functions of the acceptor cell, or how that may be altered in mood disorders. Since astrocyte-derived exosomes have been suggested to promote neuronal plasticity, as well as to remove toxic proteins in the brain, alterations in their function or content may be involved in neurodevelopmental, neuropathological, and neuropsychiatric conditions. To examine exosome cargos and interactions with neural precursor cells, astrocytes were differentiated from four bipolar disorder (BP) and four control (C) iPSC lines. Culture supernatants from these astrocytes were collected, and exosomes isolated by ultra-centrifugation. Western blot analysis demonstrated the presence of the exosome markers CD9, CD81, and Hsp70. Nanosight technology was used to characterize exosomes from each astrocyte cell line, suggesting that exosomes were slightly more concentrated in culture supernatants derived from BP compared with C astrocytes but there was no difference in the mean sizes of the exosomes. Analysis of their function in neuronal differentiation is being carried out by labeling exosomes derived from bipolar patient and control astrocytes and adding them to control neural progenitor cells. Given the current interest in clearing toxic proteins from brains of patients with neurodegenerative disorders, exosomes may present similar opportunities in BP.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- D Attili
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - D J Schill
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - C J DeLong
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - K C Lim
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - G Jiang
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - K F Campbell
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - K Walker
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - A Laszczyk
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - M G McInnis
- Department of Psychiatry, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - K S O'Shea
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.
- Department of Psychiatry, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
15
|
Tittelmeier J, Nachman E, Nussbaum-Krammer C. Molecular Chaperones: A Double-Edged Sword in Neurodegenerative Diseases. Front Aging Neurosci 2020; 12:581374. [PMID: 33132902 PMCID: PMC7572858 DOI: 10.3389/fnagi.2020.581374] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2020] [Accepted: 09/09/2020] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Aberrant accumulation of misfolded proteins into amyloid deposits is a hallmark in many age-related neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer’s disease (AD), Parkinson’s disease (PD), Huntington’s disease (HD), and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Pathological inclusions and the associated toxicity appear to spread through the nervous system in a characteristic pattern during the disease. This has been attributed to a prion-like behavior of amyloid-type aggregates, which involves self-replication of the pathological conformation, intercellular transfer, and the subsequent seeding of native forms of the same protein in the neighboring cell. Molecular chaperones play a major role in maintaining cellular proteostasis by assisting the (re)-folding of cellular proteins to ensure their function or by promoting the degradation of terminally misfolded proteins to prevent damage. With increasing age, however, the capacity of this proteostasis network tends to decrease, which enables the manifestation of neurodegenerative diseases. Recently, there has been a plethora of studies investigating how and when chaperones interact with disease-related proteins, which have advanced our understanding of the role of chaperones in protein misfolding diseases. This review article focuses on the steps of prion-like propagation from initial misfolding and self-templated replication to intercellular spreading and discusses the influence that chaperones have on these various steps, highlighting both the positive and adverse consequences chaperone action can have. Understanding how chaperones alleviate and aggravate disease progression is vital for the development of therapeutic strategies to combat these debilitating diseases.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jessica Tittelmeier
- German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Center for Molecular Biology of Heidelberg University (ZMBH), DKFZ-ZMBH Alliance, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Eliana Nachman
- German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Center for Molecular Biology of Heidelberg University (ZMBH), DKFZ-ZMBH Alliance, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Carmen Nussbaum-Krammer
- German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Center for Molecular Biology of Heidelberg University (ZMBH), DKFZ-ZMBH Alliance, Heidelberg, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
16
|
Fernández-García S, Conde-Berriozabal S, García-García E, Gort-Paniello C, Bernal-Casas D, García-Díaz Barriga G, López-Gil J, Muñoz-Moreno E, Soria G, Campa L, Artigas F, Rodríguez MJ, Alberch J, Masana M. M2 cortex-dorsolateral striatum stimulation reverses motor symptoms and synaptic deficits in Huntington's disease. eLife 2020; 9:57017. [PMID: 33016873 PMCID: PMC7535932 DOI: 10.7554/elife.57017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2020] [Accepted: 09/16/2020] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Huntington’s disease (HD) is a neurological disorder characterized by motor disturbances. HD pathology is most prominent in the striatum, the central hub of the basal ganglia. The cerebral cortex is the main striatal afferent, and progressive cortico-striatal disconnection characterizes HD. We mapped striatal network dysfunction in HD mice to ultimately modulate the activity of a specific cortico-striatal circuit to ameliorate motor symptoms and recover synaptic plasticity. Multimodal MRI in vivo indicates cortico-striatal and thalamo-striatal functional network deficits and reduced glutamate/glutamine ratio in the striatum of HD mice. Moreover, optogenetically-induced glutamate release from M2 cortex terminals in the dorsolateral striatum (DLS) was undetectable in HD mice and striatal neurons show blunted electrophysiological responses. Remarkably, repeated M2-DLS optogenetic stimulation normalized motor behavior in HD mice and evoked a sustained increase of synaptic plasticity. Overall, these results reveal that selective stimulation of the M2-DLS pathway can become an effective therapeutic strategy in HD.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sara Fernández-García
- Departament de Biomedicina, Institut de Neurociències, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Madrid, Spain
| | - Sara Conde-Berriozabal
- Departament de Biomedicina, Institut de Neurociències, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Madrid, Spain
| | - Esther García-García
- Departament de Biomedicina, Institut de Neurociències, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Madrid, Spain
| | - Clara Gort-Paniello
- Departament de Biomedicina, Institut de Neurociències, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Madrid, Spain
| | - David Bernal-Casas
- Departament de Estadística, Facultat de Biologia, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Gerardo García-Díaz Barriga
- Departament de Biomedicina, Institut de Neurociències, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Madrid, Spain
| | - Javier López-Gil
- Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Emma Muñoz-Moreno
- Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Guadalupe Soria
- Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Leticia Campa
- Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain.,Institut d'Investigacions biomèdiques de Barcelona (IIBB), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Mentales (CIBERSAM), Madrid, Spain
| | - Francesc Artigas
- Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain.,Institut d'Investigacions biomèdiques de Barcelona (IIBB), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Mentales (CIBERSAM), Madrid, Spain
| | - Manuel José Rodríguez
- Departament de Biomedicina, Institut de Neurociències, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Madrid, Spain
| | - Jordi Alberch
- Departament de Biomedicina, Institut de Neurociències, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Madrid, Spain.,Production and Validation Center of Advanced Therapies (Creatio), Faculty of Medicine and Health Science, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Mercè Masana
- Departament de Biomedicina, Institut de Neurociències, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Madrid, Spain
| |
Collapse
|
17
|
Wilton DK, Stevens B. The contribution of glial cells to Huntington's disease pathogenesis. Neurobiol Dis 2020; 143:104963. [PMID: 32593752 DOI: 10.1016/j.nbd.2020.104963] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2020] [Revised: 05/07/2020] [Accepted: 06/10/2020] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Glial cells play critical roles in the normal development and function of neural circuits, but in many neurodegenerative diseases, they become dysregulated and may contribute to the development of brain pathology. In Huntington's disease (HD), glial cells both lose normal functions and gain neuropathic phenotypes. In addition, cell-autonomous dysfunction elicited by mutant huntingtin (mHTT) expression in specific glial cell types is sufficient to induce both pathology and Huntington's disease-related impairments in motor and cognitive performance, suggesting that these cells may drive the development of certain aspects of Huntington's disease pathogenesis. In support of this imaging studies in pre-symptomatic HD patients and work on mouse models have suggested that glial cell dysfunction occurs at a very early stage of the disease, prior to the onset of motor and cognitive deficits. Furthermore, selectively ablating mHTT from specific glial cells or correcting for HD-induced changes in their transcriptional profile rescues some HD-related phenotypes, demonstrating the potential of targeting these cells for therapeutic intervention. Here we review emerging research focused on understanding the involvement of different glial cell types in specific aspects of HD pathogenesis. This work is providing new insight into how HD impacts biological functions of glial cells in the healthy brain as well as how HD induced dysfunction in these cells might change the way they integrate into biological circuits.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Daniel K Wilton
- Department of Neurology, F.M. Kirby Neurobiology Center, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Beth Stevens
- Department of Neurology, F.M. Kirby Neurobiology Center, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA; Stanley Center, Broad Institute, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA; Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
18
|
Zhou Y, Chen Q, Wang Y, Wu H, Xu W, Pan Y, Gao S, Dong X, Zhang JH, Shao A. Persistent Neurovascular Unit Dysfunction: Pathophysiological Substrate and Trigger for Late-Onset Neurodegeneration After Traumatic Brain Injury. Front Neurosci 2020; 14:581. [PMID: 32581697 PMCID: PMC7296179 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2020.00581] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2020] [Accepted: 05/12/2020] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) represents one of the major causes of death worldwide and leads to persisting neurological deficits in many of the survivors. One of the most significant long-term sequelae deriving from TBI is neurodegenerative disease, which is a group of incurable diseases that impose a heavy socio-economic burden. However, mechanisms underlying the increased susceptibility of TBI to neurodegenerative disease remain elusive. The neurovascular unit (NVU) is a functional unit composed of neurons, neuroglia, vascular cells, and the basal lamina matrix. The key role of NVU dysfunction in many central nervous system diseases has been revealed. Studies have proved the presence of prolonged structural and functional abnormalities of the NVU after TBI. Moreover, growing evidence suggests impaired NVU function is also implicated in neurodegenerative diseases. Therefore, we propose the Neurovascular Unit Dysfunction (NVUD) Hypothesis, in which the persistent NVU dysfunction is thought to underlie the development of post-TBI neurodegeneration. We deduce NVUD Hypothesis through relational inference and supporting evidence, and suggest continued NVU abnormalities following TBI serve as the pathophysiological substrate and trigger yielding chronic neuroinflammation, proteinopathies and oxidative stress, consequently leading to the progression of neurodegenerative diseases. The NVUD Hypothesis may provide potential treatment and prevention strategies for TBI and late-onset neurodegenerative diseases.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yunxiang Zhou
- Department of Surgical Oncology, The Second Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Qiang Chen
- Department of Surgical Oncology, The Second Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Yali Wang
- Department of Surgical Oncology, The Second Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Haijian Wu
- Department of Neurosurgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Weilin Xu
- Department of Neurosurgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Yuanbo Pan
- Department of Neurosurgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Shiqi Gao
- Department of Neurosurgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Xiao Dong
- Department of Neurosurgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - John H. Zhang
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Basic Sciences, School of Medicine, Loma Linda University, Loma Linda, CA, United States
- Department of Anesthesiology, Neurosurgery and Neurology, School of Medicine, Loma Linda University, Loma Linda, CA, United States
| | - Anwen Shao
- Department of Neurosurgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| |
Collapse
|
19
|
Tavassoly O, Sato T, Tavassoly I. Inhibition of Brain Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor Activation: A Novel Target in Neurodegenerative Diseases and Brain Injuries. Mol Pharmacol 2020; 98:13-22. [DOI: 10.1124/mol.120.119909] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2020] [Accepted: 04/10/2020] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
|
20
|
Blumenstock S, Dudanova I. Cortical and Striatal Circuits in Huntington's Disease. Front Neurosci 2020; 14:82. [PMID: 32116525 PMCID: PMC7025546 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2020.00082] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2019] [Accepted: 01/21/2020] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD) is a hereditary neurodegenerative disorder that typically manifests in midlife with motor, cognitive, and/or psychiatric symptoms. The disease is caused by a CAG triplet expansion in exon 1 of the huntingtin gene and leads to a severe neurodegeneration in the striatum and cortex. Classical electrophysiological studies in genetic HD mouse models provided important insights into the disbalance of excitatory, inhibitory and neuromodulatory inputs, as well as progressive disconnection between the cortex and striatum. However, the involvement of local cortical and striatal microcircuits still remains largely unexplored. Here we review the progress in understanding HD-related impairments in the cortical and basal ganglia circuits, and outline new opportunities that have opened with the development of modern circuit analysis methods. In particular, in vivo imaging studies in mouse HD models have demonstrated early structural and functional disturbances within the cortical network, and optogenetic manipulations of striatal cell types have started uncovering the causal roles of certain neuronal populations in disease pathogenesis. In addition, the important contribution of astrocytes to HD-related circuit defects has recently been recognized. In parallel, unbiased systems biology studies are providing insights into the possible molecular underpinnings of these functional defects at the level of synaptic signaling and neurotransmitter metabolism. With these approaches, we can now reach a deeper understanding of circuit-based HD mechanisms, which will be crucial for the development of effective and targeted therapeutic strategies.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sonja Blumenstock
- Department of Molecules – Signaling – Development, Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology, Martinsried, Germany
- Molecular Neurodegeneration Group, Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology, Martinsried, Germany
| | - Irina Dudanova
- Molecular Neurodegeneration Group, Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology, Martinsried, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
21
|
Fox LM, Kim K, Johnson CW, Chen S, Croce KR, Victor MB, Eenjes E, Bosco JR, Randolph LK, Dragatsis I, Dragich JM, Yoo AS, Yamamoto A. Huntington's Disease Pathogenesis Is Modified In Vivo by Alfy/Wdfy3 and Selective Macroautophagy. Neuron 2019; 105:813-821.e6. [PMID: 31899071 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2019.12.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2019] [Revised: 11/07/2019] [Accepted: 12/04/2019] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Despite being an autosomal dominant disorder caused by a known coding mutation in the gene HTT, Huntington's disease (HD) patients with similar trinucleotide repeat mutations can have an age of onset that varies by decades. One likely contributing factor is the genetic heterogeneity of patients that might modify their vulnerability to disease. We report that although the heterozygous depletion of the autophagy adaptor protein Alfy/Wdfy3 has no consequence in control mice, it significantly accelerates age of onset and progression of HD pathogenesis. Alfy is required in the adult brain for the autophagy-dependent clearance of proteinaceous deposits, and its depletion in mice and neurons derived from patient fibroblasts accelerates the aberrant accumulation of this pathological hallmark shared across adult-onset neurodegenerative diseases. These findings indicate that selectively compromising the ability to eliminate aggregated proteins is a pathogenic driver, and the selective elimination of aggregates may confer disease resistance.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Leora M Fox
- Doctoral Program in Neurobiology and Behavior, Department of Neuroscience, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA; Department of Neurology, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Kiryung Kim
- Department of Neurology, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
| | | | - Shawei Chen
- Department of Developmental Biology, Center for Regenerative Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Katherine R Croce
- Graduate Program in Pathobiology and Molecular Medicine, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Matheus B Victor
- Department of Developmental Biology, Center for Regenerative Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Evelien Eenjes
- Department of Neurology, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Joan R Bosco
- Department of Neurology, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Lisa K Randolph
- Doctoral Program in Neurobiology and Behavior, Department of Neuroscience, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
| | | | | | - Andrew S Yoo
- Department of Developmental Biology, Center for Regenerative Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Ai Yamamoto
- Doctoral Program in Neurobiology and Behavior, Department of Neuroscience, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA; Department of Neurology, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA; Department of Pathology and Cell Biology, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
22
|
Cepeda C, Oikonomou KD, Cummings D, Barry J, Yazon VW, Chen DT, Asai J, Williams CK, Vinters HV. Developmental origins of cortical hyperexcitability in Huntington's disease: Review and new observations. J Neurosci Res 2019; 97:1624-1635. [PMID: 31353533 PMCID: PMC6801077 DOI: 10.1002/jnr.24503] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2019] [Revised: 07/12/2019] [Accepted: 07/15/2019] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD), an inherited neurodegenerative disorder that principally affects striatum and cerebral cortex, is generally thought to have an adult onset. However, a small percentage of cases develop symptoms before 20 years of age. This juvenile variant suggests that brain development may be altered in HD. Indeed, recent evidence supports an important role of normal huntingtin during embryonic brain development and mutations in this protein cause cortical abnormalities. Functional studies also demonstrated that the cerebral cortex becomes hyperexcitable with disease progression. In this review, we examine clinical and experimental evidence that cortical development is altered in HD. We also provide preliminary evidence that cortical pyramidal neurons from R6/2 mice, a model of juvenile HD, are hyperexcitable and display dysmorphic processes as early as postnatal day 7. Further, some symptomatic mice present with anatomical abnormalities reminiscent of human focal cortical dysplasia, which could explain the occurrence of epileptic seizures in this genetic mouse model and in children with juvenile HD. Finally, we discuss recent treatments aimed at correcting abnormal brain development.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Carlos Cepeda
- IDDRC, Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior and Department of Neurology, David Geffen School of Medicine at University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Katerina D. Oikonomou
- IDDRC, Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior and Department of Neurology, David Geffen School of Medicine at University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Damian Cummings
- IDDRC, Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior and Department of Neurology, David Geffen School of Medicine at University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Joshua Barry
- IDDRC, Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior and Department of Neurology, David Geffen School of Medicine at University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Vannah-Wila Yazon
- IDDRC, Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior and Department of Neurology, David Geffen School of Medicine at University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Dickson T. Chen
- IDDRC, Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior and Department of Neurology, David Geffen School of Medicine at University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Janelle Asai
- IDDRC, Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior and Department of Neurology, David Geffen School of Medicine at University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Christopher K. Williams
- Section of Neuropathology, Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine and Department of Neurology, David Geffen School of Medicine at University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Harry V. Vinters
- Section of Neuropathology, Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine and Department of Neurology, David Geffen School of Medicine at University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| |
Collapse
|
23
|
Palpagama TH, Waldvogel HJ, Faull RLM, Kwakowsky A. The Role of Microglia and Astrocytes in Huntington's Disease. Front Mol Neurosci 2019; 12:258. [PMID: 31708741 PMCID: PMC6824292 DOI: 10.3389/fnmol.2019.00258] [Citation(s) in RCA: 109] [Impact Index Per Article: 21.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2019] [Accepted: 10/10/2019] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD) is an autosomal dominant neurodegenerative disease. HD patients present with movement disorders, behavioral and psychiatric symptoms and cognitive decline. This review summarizes the contribution of microglia and astrocytes to HD pathophysiology. Neuroinflammation in the HD brain is characterized by a reactive morphology in these glial cells. Microglia and astrocytes are critical in regulating neuronal activity and maintaining an optimal milieu for neuronal function. Previous studies provide evidence that activated microglia and reactive astrocytes contribute to HD pathology through transcriptional activation of pro-inflammatory genes to perpetuate a chronic inflammatory state. Reactive astrocytes also display functional changes in glutamate and ion homeostasis and energy metabolism. Astrocytic and microglial changes may further contribute to the neuronal death observed with the progression of HD. Importantly, the degree to which these neuroinflammatory changes are detrimental to neurons and contribute to the progression of HD pathology is not well understood. Furthermore, recent observations provide compelling evidence that activated microglia and astrocytes exert a variety of beneficial functions that are essential for limiting tissue damage and preserving neuronal function in the HD brain. Therefore, a better understanding of the neuroinflammatory environment in the brain in HD may lead to the development of targeted and innovative therapeutic opportunities.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Thulani H Palpagama
- Centre for Brain Research, Department of Anatomy and Medical Imaging, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Henry J Waldvogel
- Centre for Brain Research, Department of Anatomy and Medical Imaging, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Richard L M Faull
- Centre for Brain Research, Department of Anatomy and Medical Imaging, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Andrea Kwakowsky
- Centre for Brain Research, Department of Anatomy and Medical Imaging, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| |
Collapse
|
24
|
Creus-Muncunill J, Ehrlich ME. Cell-Autonomous and Non-cell-Autonomous Pathogenic Mechanisms in Huntington's Disease: Insights from In Vitro and In Vivo Models. Neurotherapeutics 2019; 16:957-978. [PMID: 31529216 PMCID: PMC6985401 DOI: 10.1007/s13311-019-00782-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD) is an autosomal dominant disorder caused by an expansion in the trinucleotide CAG repeat in exon-1 in the huntingtin gene, located on chromosome 4. When the number of trinucleotide CAG exceeds 40 repeats, disease invariably is manifested, characterized by motor, cognitive, and psychiatric symptoms. The huntingtin (Htt) protein and its mutant form (mutant huntingtin, mHtt) are ubiquitously expressed but although multiple brain regions are affected, the most vulnerable brain region is the striatum. Striatal medium-sized spiny neurons (MSNs) preferentially degenerate, followed by the cortical pyramidal neurons located in layers V and VI. Proposed HD pathogenic mechanisms include, but are not restricted to, excitotoxicity, neurotrophic support deficits, collapse of the protein degradation mechanisms, mitochondrial dysfunction, transcriptional alterations, and disorders of myelin. Studies performed in cell type-specific and regionally selective HD mouse models implicate both MSN cell-autonomous properties and cell-cell interactions, particularly corticostriatal but also with non-neuronal cell types. Here, we review the intrinsic properties of MSNs that contribute to their selective vulnerability and in addition, we discuss how astrocytes, microglia, and oligodendrocytes, together with aberrant corticostriatal connectivity, contribute to HD pathophysiology. In addition, mHtt causes cell-autonomous dysfunction in cell types other than MSNs. These findings have implications in terms of therapeutic strategies aimed at preventing neuronal dysfunction and degeneration.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jordi Creus-Muncunill
- Department of Neurology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, 1468 Madison Avenue, New York, NY, 10029, USA
| | - Michelle E Ehrlich
- Department of Neurology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, 1468 Madison Avenue, New York, NY, 10029, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
25
|
Wood TE, Barry J, Yang Z, Cepeda C, Levine MS, Gray M. Mutant huntingtin reduction in astrocytes slows disease progression in the BACHD conditional Huntington's disease mouse model. Hum Mol Genet 2019; 28:487-500. [PMID: 30312396 DOI: 10.1093/hmg/ddy363] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2018] [Accepted: 10/09/2018] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Neuronal and non-neuronal cells express the huntingtin (HTT) protein, yet neurodegeneration in Huntington's disease (HD) is largely selective, affecting most prominently striatal medium spiny neurons and cortical pyramidal neurons. Selective toxicity of full-length human mutant HTT (fl-mHTT) may be due in part to its expression in non-neuronal cells. While studies suggest neuronal-glial interactions are important in HD and fl-mHTT is expressed in astrocytes, it has not been determined whether the expression of fl-mHTT in astrocytes is necessary for HD pathogenesis. To directly assess the necessity of fl-mHTT in astrocytes for HD pathogenesis, we used a mouse genetic approach and bred the conditional mHTT-expressing BACHD mouse model with GFAP-CreERT2 mice. We show that GFAP-CreERT2 expression in these mice is highly selective for astrocytes, and we are able to significantly reduce the expression of fl-mHTT protein in the striatum and cortex of BACHD/GFAP-CreERT2-tam mice. We performed behavioral, electrophysiological and neuropathological analyses of BACHD and BACHD/GFAP-CreERT2-tam mice. Behavioral analyses of BACHD/GFAP-CreERT2-tam mice demonstrate significant improvements in motor and psychiatric-like phenotypes. We observe improvements in neuropathological and electrophysiological phenotypes in BACHD/GFAP-CreERT2-tam mice compared to BACHD mice. We observed a restoration of the normal level αB-crystallin in the striatum of the BACHD/GFAP-CreERT2 mice, indicating a cell autonomous effect of mHTT on its expression. Taken together, this work indicates that astrocytes are important contributors to the progression of the behavioral and neuropathological phenotypes observed in HD.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Tara E Wood
- Center for Neurodegeneration and Experimental Therapeutics, Department of Neurology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA
| | - Joshua Barry
- Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Zhenquin Yang
- Center for Neurodegeneration and Experimental Therapeutics, Department of Neurology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA
| | - Carlos Cepeda
- Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Michael S Levine
- Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Michelle Gray
- Center for Neurodegeneration and Experimental Therapeutics, Department of Neurology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA
| |
Collapse
|
26
|
Marottoli FM, Priego M, Flores-Barrera E, Pisharody R, Zaldua S, Fan KD, Ekkurthi GK, Brady ST, Morfini GA, Tseng KY, Tai LM. EGF Treatment Improves Motor Behavior and Cortical GABAergic Function in the R6/2 Mouse Model of Huntington's Disease. Mol Neurobiol 2019; 56:7708-7718. [PMID: 31104296 DOI: 10.1007/s12035-019-1634-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2019] [Accepted: 04/24/2019] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
Abstract
Recent evidence indicates that disruption of epidermal growth factor (EGF) signaling by mutant huntingtin (polyQ-htt) may contribute to the onset of behavioral deficits observed in Huntington's disease (HD) through a variety of mechanisms, including cerebrovascular dysfunction. Yet, whether EGF signaling modulates the development of HD pathology and the associated behavioral impairments remain unclear. To gain insight on this issue, we used the R6/2 mouse model of HD to assess the impact of chronic EGF treatment on behavior, and cerebrovascular and cortical neuronal functions. We found that bi-weekly treatment with a low dose of EGF (300 µg/kg, i.p.) for 6 weeks was sufficient to effectively improve motor behavior in R6/2 mice and diminish mortality, compared to vehicle-treated littermates. These beneficial effects of EGF treatment were dissociated from changes in cerebrovascular leakiness, a result that was surprising given that EGF ameliorates this deficit in other neurodegenerative diseases. Rather, the beneficial effect of EGF on R6/2 mice behavior was concomitant with a marked amelioration of cortical GABAergic function. As GABAergic transmission in cortical circuits is disrupted in HD, these novel data suggest a potential mechanistic link between deficits in EGF signaling and GABAergic dysfunction in the progression of HD.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Felecia M Marottoli
- Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, College of Medicine, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, 60612, USA
| | - Mercedes Priego
- Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, College of Medicine, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, 60612, USA
| | - Eden Flores-Barrera
- Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, College of Medicine, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, 60612, USA
| | - Rohan Pisharody
- Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, College of Medicine, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, 60612, USA
| | - Steve Zaldua
- Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, College of Medicine, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, 60612, USA
| | - Kelly D Fan
- Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, College of Medicine, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, 60612, USA
| | - Giri K Ekkurthi
- Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, College of Medicine, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, 60612, USA
| | - Scott T Brady
- Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, College of Medicine, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, 60612, USA
| | - Gerardo A Morfini
- Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, College of Medicine, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, 60612, USA
| | - Kuei Y Tseng
- Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, College of Medicine, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, 60612, USA
| | - Leon M Tai
- Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, College of Medicine, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, 60612, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
27
|
Burgold J, Schulz-Trieglaff EK, Voelkl K, Gutiérrez-Ángel S, Bader JM, Hosp F, Mann M, Arzberger T, Klein R, Liebscher S, Dudanova I. Cortical circuit alterations precede motor impairments in Huntington's disease mice. Sci Rep 2019; 9:6634. [PMID: 31036840 PMCID: PMC6488584 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-43024-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2019] [Accepted: 04/12/2019] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD) is a devastating hereditary movement disorder, characterized by degeneration of neurons in the striatum and cortex. Studies in human patients and mouse HD models suggest that disturbances of neuronal function in the neocortex play an important role in disease onset and progression. However, the precise nature and time course of cortical alterations in HD have remained elusive. Here, we use chronic in vivo two-photon calcium imaging to longitudinally monitor the activity of identified single neurons in layer 2/3 of the primary motor cortex in awake, behaving R6/2 transgenic HD mice and wildtype littermates. R6/2 mice show age-dependent changes in cortical network function, with an increase in activity that affects a large fraction of cells and occurs rather abruptly within one week, preceeding the onset of motor defects. Furthermore, quantitative proteomics demonstrate a pronounced downregulation of synaptic proteins in the cortex, and histological analyses in R6/2 mice and human HD autopsy cases reveal a reduction in perisomatic inhibitory synaptic contacts on layer 2/3 pyramidal cells. Taken together, our study provides a time-resolved description of cortical network dysfunction in behaving HD mice and points to disturbed excitation/inhibition balance as an important pathomechanism in HD.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Johanna Burgold
- Department of Molecules - Signaling - Development, Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology, 82152, Martinsried, Germany
| | | | - Kerstin Voelkl
- Department of Molecules - Signaling - Development, Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology, 82152, Martinsried, Germany
| | - Sara Gutiérrez-Ángel
- Department of Molecules - Signaling - Development, Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology, 82152, Martinsried, Germany
| | - Jakob Maximilian Bader
- Department of Proteomics and Signal Transduction, Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry, 82152, Martinsried, Germany
| | - Fabian Hosp
- Department of Proteomics and Signal Transduction, Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry, 82152, Martinsried, Germany
| | - Matthias Mann
- Department of Proteomics and Signal Transduction, Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry, 82152, Martinsried, Germany
| | - Thomas Arzberger
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), 81377, Munich, Germany
- Center for Neuropathology and Prion Research, Ludwig-Maximilians University Munich, 81377, Munich, Germany
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Ludwig-Maximilians University Munich, 81377, Munich, Germany
| | - Rüdiger Klein
- Department of Molecules - Signaling - Development, Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology, 82152, Martinsried, Germany.
- Munich Cluster for Systems Neurology (SyNergy), 81377, Munich, Germany.
| | - Sabine Liebscher
- Munich Cluster for Systems Neurology (SyNergy), 81377, Munich, Germany.
- Institute of Clinical Neuroimmunology, Klinikum der Universität München, Ludwig-Maximilians University Munich, 82152, Martinsried, Germany.
- Biomedical Center, Medical Faculty, Ludwig-Maximilians University Munich, 82152, Martinsried, Germany.
| | - Irina Dudanova
- Department of Molecules - Signaling - Development, Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology, 82152, Martinsried, Germany.
| |
Collapse
|
28
|
Dargaei Z, Liang X, Serranilla M, Santos J, Woodin MA. Alterations in Hippocampal Inhibitory Synaptic Transmission in the R6/2 Mouse Model of Huntington's Disease. Neuroscience 2019; 404:130-140. [PMID: 30797895 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2019.02.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2018] [Revised: 02/05/2019] [Accepted: 02/06/2019] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD) is a genetic neurodegenerative disorder of the central nervous system characterized by choreatic movements, behavioral and psychiatric disturbances and cognitive impairments. Deficits in learning and memory are often the first signs of disease onset in both HD patients and mouse models of HD and are in part regulated by the hippocampus. In the R6/2 mouse model of HD, GABAergic transmission can be excitatory in the hippocampus and restoring inhibition can rescue the associated memory deficits. In the present study we determine that hippocampal GABAergic neurotransmission in the R6/2 mouse is disrupted as early as 4 weeks of age and is accompanied by alterations in the expression of key inhibitory proteins. Specifically, spontaneous inhibitory postsynaptic currents were initially increased in frequency at 4 postnatal weeks and subsequently decreased after the mice displayed the typical R6/2 behavioral phenotype at 10 weeks of age. Symptomatic mice also exhibited a change in the probability of GABA release and changes in the basic membrane properties including neuronal excitability and input resistance. These electrophysiological changes in presymptomatic and symptomatic R6/2 mice were further accompanied by alterations in the protein expression level of pre- and postsynaptic inhibitory markers. Taken together, the present findings demonstrate profound alterations in the inhibitory neurotransmission in the hippocampus across the lifespan of the disease, including prior to neuronal degeneration, which suggests that the inhibitory hippocampal synapses may prove useful as a target for future therapeutic design.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Zahra Dargaei
- Department of Cell and Systems Biology, University of Toronto, 25 Harbord Street, Toronto, Ontario, M5S 3G5, Canada
| | - Xinyi Liang
- Department of Cell and Systems Biology, University of Toronto, 25 Harbord Street, Toronto, Ontario, M5S 3G5, Canada
| | - Melissa Serranilla
- Department of Cell and Systems Biology, University of Toronto, 25 Harbord Street, Toronto, Ontario, M5S 3G5, Canada
| | - Janeane Santos
- Department of Cell and Systems Biology, University of Toronto, 25 Harbord Street, Toronto, Ontario, M5S 3G5, Canada
| | - Melanie A Woodin
- Department of Cell and Systems Biology, University of Toronto, 25 Harbord Street, Toronto, Ontario, M5S 3G5, Canada.
| |
Collapse
|
29
|
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD) is a dominantly inherited neurodegenerative disease that results in motor, cognitive and psychiatric dysfunction. It is caused by a polyglutamine repeat expansion mutation in the widely expressed HTT protein. The clinical manifestations of HD have been largely attributed to the neurodegeneration of specific neuronal cell types in the brain. However, it has become clear that other cell types, including astrocytes, play important roles in the pathogenesis of HD. The mutant HTT (mHTT) protein is present in neuronal and non-neuronal cell types throughout the nervous system. Studies designed to understand the contribution of mHTT expression in non-neuronal cell types to HD pathogenesis has lagged considerably behind those focused on neurons. However, the role of astrocytes in HD has received more attention over the last 5-10 years. In this chapter we present an overview of HD and our current understanding of astrocytic involvement in this disease. We describe the neuropathological features of HD and provide evidence of morphological and molecular changes in mHTT expressing astrocytes. We review data from animal models and HD patients that implicate mHTT expressing astrocytes to the progression of HD.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Michelle Gray
- Department of Neurology and Center for Neurodegeneration and Experimental Therapeutics, University of Alabama at Birmingham, 1720 2nd Ave S, CIRC 425B, Birmingham, AL 35294, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
30
|
Hsu YT, Chang YG, Chern Y. Insights into GABA Aergic system alteration in Huntington's disease. Open Biol 2018; 8:rsob.180165. [PMID: 30518638 PMCID: PMC6303784 DOI: 10.1098/rsob.180165] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/12/2018] [Accepted: 10/30/2018] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD) is an autosomal dominant progressive neurodegenerative disease that is characterized by a triad of motor, psychiatric and cognitive impairments. There is still no effective therapy to delay or halt the disease progress. The striatum and cortex are two particularly affected brain regions that exhibit dense reciprocal excitatory glutamate and inhibitory gamma-amino butyric acid (GABA) connections. Imbalance between excitatory and inhibitory signalling is known to greatly affect motor and cognitive processes. Emerging evidence supports the hypothesis that disrupted GABAergic circuits underlie HD pathogenesis. In the present review, we focused on the multiple defects recently found in the GABAergic inhibitory system, including altered GABA level and synthesis, abnormal subunit composition and distribution of GABAA receptors and aberrant GABAA receptor-mediated signalling. In particular, the important role of cation–chloride cotransporters (i.e. NKCC1 and KCC2) is discussed. Recent studies also suggest that neuroinflammation contributes significantly to the abnormal GABAergic inhibition in HD. Thus, GABAA receptors and cation–chloride cotransporters are potential therapeutic targets for HD. Given the limited availability of therapeutic treatments for HD, a better understanding of GABAergic dysfunction in HD could provide novel therapeutic opportunities.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yi-Ting Hsu
- PhD Program for Translational Medicine, China Medical University and Academia Sinica, Taiwan, Republic of China.,Department of Neurology, China Medical University Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan, Republic of China
| | - Ya-Gin Chang
- Institute of Neuroscience, National Yang-Ming University, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China.,Taiwan International Graduate Program in Interdisciplinary Neuroscience, National Yang-Ming University and Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China
| | - Yijuang Chern
- PhD Program for Translational Medicine, China Medical University and Academia Sinica, Taiwan, Republic of China .,Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China
| |
Collapse
|
31
|
Ruiz-Calvo A, Maroto IB, Bajo-Grañeras R, Chiarlone A, Gaudioso Á, Ferrero JJ, Resel E, Sánchez-Prieto J, Rodríguez-Navarro JA, Marsicano G, Galve-Roperh I, Bellocchio L, Guzmán M. Pathway-Specific Control of Striatal Neuron Vulnerability by Corticostriatal Cannabinoid CB1 Receptors. Cereb Cortex 2018; 28:307-322. [PMID: 29121220 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhx285] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2017] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
The vast majority of neurons within the striatum are GABAergic medium spiny neurons (MSNs), which receive glutamatergic input from the cortex and thalamus, and form two major efferent pathways: the direct pathway, expressing dopamine D1 receptor (D1R-MSNs), and the indirect pathway, expressing dopamine D2 receptor (D2R-MSNs). While molecular mechanisms of MSN degeneration have been identified in animal models of striatal damage, the molecular factors that dictate a selective vulnerability of D1R-MSNs or D2R-MSNs remain unknown. Here, we combined genetic, chemogenetic, and pharmacological strategies with behavioral and neurochemical analyses, and show that the pool of cannabinoid CB1 receptor (CB1R) located on corticostriatal terminals efficiently safeguards D1R-MSNs, but not D2R-MSNs, from different insults. This cell-specific response relies on the regulation of glutamatergic signaling, and is independent from the CB1R-dependent control of astroglial activity in the striatum. These findings define cortical CB1R as a pivotal synaptic player in dictating a differential vulnerability of D1R-MSNs versus D2R-MSNs, and increase our understanding of the role of coordinated cannabinergic-glutamatergic signaling in establishing corticostriatal circuits and its dysregulation in neurodegenerative diseases.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Andrea Ruiz-Calvo
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Instituto Universitario de Investigación Neuroquímica (IUIN) and Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology I, Complutense University, 28040 Madrid, Spain.,Instituto Ramón y Cajal de Investigación Sanitaria (IRYCIS), 28034 Madrid, Spain
| | - Irene B Maroto
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Instituto Universitario de Investigación Neuroquímica (IUIN) and Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology I, Complutense University, 28040 Madrid, Spain.,Instituto Ramón y Cajal de Investigación Sanitaria (IRYCIS), 28034 Madrid, Spain
| | - Raquel Bajo-Grañeras
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Instituto Universitario de Investigación Neuroquímica (IUIN) and Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology I, Complutense University, 28040 Madrid, Spain.,Instituto Ramón y Cajal de Investigación Sanitaria (IRYCIS), 28034 Madrid, Spain
| | - Anna Chiarlone
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Instituto Universitario de Investigación Neuroquímica (IUIN) and Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology I, Complutense University, 28040 Madrid, Spain.,Instituto Ramón y Cajal de Investigación Sanitaria (IRYCIS), 28034 Madrid, Spain
| | - Ángel Gaudioso
- Instituto Ramón y Cajal de Investigación Sanitaria (IRYCIS), 28034 Madrid, Spain
| | - José J Ferrero
- Instituto Universitario de Investigación Neuroquímica (IUIN) and Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology IV, Complutense University, 28040 Madrid, Spain
| | - Eva Resel
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Instituto Universitario de Investigación Neuroquímica (IUIN) and Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology I, Complutense University, 28040 Madrid, Spain.,Instituto Ramón y Cajal de Investigación Sanitaria (IRYCIS), 28034 Madrid, Spain
| | - José Sánchez-Prieto
- Instituto Universitario de Investigación Neuroquímica (IUIN) and Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology IV, Complutense University, 28040 Madrid, Spain
| | | | - Giovanni Marsicano
- INSERM and University of Bordeaux, NeuroCentre Magendie, Physiopathologie de la Plasticité Neuronale, U1215, 33077 Bordeaux, France
| | - Ismael Galve-Roperh
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Instituto Universitario de Investigación Neuroquímica (IUIN) and Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology I, Complutense University, 28040 Madrid, Spain.,Instituto Ramón y Cajal de Investigación Sanitaria (IRYCIS), 28034 Madrid, Spain
| | - Luigi Bellocchio
- INSERM and University of Bordeaux, NeuroCentre Magendie, Physiopathologie de la Plasticité Neuronale, U1215, 33077 Bordeaux, France
| | - Manuel Guzmán
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Instituto Universitario de Investigación Neuroquímica (IUIN) and Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology I, Complutense University, 28040 Madrid, Spain.,Instituto Ramón y Cajal de Investigación Sanitaria (IRYCIS), 28034 Madrid, Spain
| |
Collapse
|
32
|
Alpaugh M, Galleguillos D, Forero J, Morales LC, Lackey SW, Kar P, Di Pardo A, Holt A, Kerr BJ, Todd KG, Baker GB, Fouad K, Sipione S. Disease-modifying effects of ganglioside GM1 in Huntington's disease models. EMBO Mol Med 2018; 9:1537-1557. [PMID: 28993428 PMCID: PMC5666311 DOI: 10.15252/emmm.201707763] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder characterized by motor, cognitive and psychiatric problems. Previous studies indicated that levels of brain gangliosides are lower than normal in HD models and that administration of exogenous ganglioside GM1 corrects motor dysfunction in the YAC128 mouse model of HD In this study, we provide evidence that intraventricular administration of GM1 has profound disease-modifying effects across HD mouse models with different genetic background. GM1 administration results in decreased levels of mutant huntingtin, the protein that causes HD, and in a wide array of beneficial effects that include changes in levels of DARPP32, ferritin, Iba1 and GFAP, modulation of dopamine and serotonin metabolism, and restoration of normal levels of glutamate, GABA, L-Ser and D-Ser. Treatment with GM1 slows down neurodegeneration, white matter atrophy and body weight loss in R6/2 mice. Motor functions are significantly improved in R6/2 mice and restored to normal in Q140 mice, including gait abnormalities that are often resistant to treatments. Psychiatric-like and cognitive dysfunctions are also ameliorated by GM1 administration in Q140 and YAC128 mice. The widespread benefits of GM1 administration, at molecular, cellular and behavioural levels, indicate that this ganglioside has strong therapeutic and disease-modifying potential in HD.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Melanie Alpaugh
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada.,Neuroscience and Mental Health Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Danny Galleguillos
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada.,Neuroscience and Mental Health Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Juan Forero
- Neuroscience and Mental Health Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada.,Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | | | | | - Preeti Kar
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Alba Di Pardo
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Andrew Holt
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Bradley J Kerr
- Neuroscience and Mental Health Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada.,Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Kathryn G Todd
- Neuroscience and Mental Health Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada.,Department of Psychiatry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Glen B Baker
- Neuroscience and Mental Health Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada.,Department of Psychiatry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Karim Fouad
- Neuroscience and Mental Health Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada.,Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Simonetta Sipione
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada .,Neuroscience and Mental Health Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| |
Collapse
|
33
|
Verma MK, Goel R, Nandakumar K, Nemmani KV. Bilateral quinolinic acid-induced lipid peroxidation, decreased striatal monoamine levels and neurobehavioral deficits are ameliorated by GIP receptor agonist D-Ala 2 GIP in rat model of Huntington's disease. Eur J Pharmacol 2018; 828:31-41. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ejphar.2018.03.034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2017] [Revised: 02/04/2018] [Accepted: 03/21/2018] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
|
34
|
Rebec GV. Corticostriatal network dysfunction in Huntington's disease: Deficits in neural processing, glutamate transport, and ascorbate release. CNS Neurosci Ther 2018; 24:281-291. [PMID: 29464896 PMCID: PMC6489880 DOI: 10.1111/cns.12828] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2017] [Revised: 01/10/2018] [Accepted: 01/27/2018] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
AIMS This review summarizes evidence for dysfunctional connectivity between cortical and striatal neurons in Huntington's disease (HD), a fatal neurodegenerative condition caused by a single gene mutation. The focus is on data derived from recording of electrophysiological signals in behaving transgenic mouse models. DISCUSSIONS Firing patterns of individual neurons and the frequency oscillations of local field potentials indicate a disruption in corticostriatal processing driven, in large part, by interactions between cells that contain the mutant gene rather than the mutant gene alone. Dysregulation of glutamate, an excitatory amino acid released by cortical afferents, plays a key role in the breakdown of corticostriatal communication, a process modulated by ascorbate, an antioxidant vitamin found in high concentration in striatum. Up-regulation of glutamate transport by drug administration or viral-vector delivery improves ascorbate homeostasis and neurobehavioral processing in HD mice. Further analysis of electrophysiological data, including the use of sophisticated computational strategies, is required to discern how behavioral demands modulate the flow of corticostriatal information and its disruption by HD. CONCLUSIONS Long before massive cell loss occurs, HD impairs the mechanisms by which cortical and striatal neurons communicate. A key problem identified in transgenic animal models is dysregulation of the dynamic changes in extracellular glutamate and ascorbate. Improved understanding of how these neurochemical systems impact corticostriatal communication is necessary before an effective therapeutic strategy can emerge.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- George V. Rebec
- Program in NeuroscienceDepartment of Psychological and Brain SciencesIndiana UniversityBloomingtonINUSA
| |
Collapse
|
35
|
Puigdellívol M, Saavedra A, Pérez-Navarro E. Cognitive dysfunction in Huntington's disease: mechanisms and therapeutic strategies beyond BDNF. Brain Pathol 2018; 26:752-771. [PMID: 27529673 DOI: 10.1111/bpa.12432] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2016] [Accepted: 07/08/2016] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
One of the main focuses in Huntington's disease (HD) research, as well as in most neurodegenerative diseases, is the development of new therapeutic strategies, as currently there is no treatment to delay or prevent the progression of the disease. Neuronal dysfunction and neuronal death in HD are caused by a combination of interrelated pathogenic processes that lead to motor, cognitive and psychiatric symptoms. Understanding how mutant huntingtin impacts on a plethora of cellular functions could help to identify new molecular targets. Although HD has been classically classified as a neurodegenerative disease affecting voluntary movement, lately cognitive dysfunction is receiving increased attention as it is very invalidating for patients. Thus, an ambitious goal in HD research is to find altered molecular mechanisms that contribute to cognitive decline. In this review, we have focused on those findings related to corticostriatal and hippocampal cognitive dysfunction in HD, as well as on the underlying molecular mechanisms, which constitute potential therapeutic targets. These include alterations in synaptic plasticity, transcriptional machinery and neurotrophic and neurotransmitter signaling.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Mar Puigdellívol
- Departament de Biomedicina, Facultat de Medicina, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain.,Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain.,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red (CIBER) sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Spain
| | - Ana Saavedra
- Departament de Biomedicina, Facultat de Medicina, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain.,Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain.,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red (CIBER) sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Spain.,Institut de Neurociències, Universitat de Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
| | - Esther Pérez-Navarro
- Departament de Biomedicina, Facultat de Medicina, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain.,Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain.,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red (CIBER) sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Spain.,Institut de Neurociències, Universitat de Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
| |
Collapse
|
36
|
Abstract
The identification of the mutation causing Huntington's disease (HD) has led to the generation of a large number of mouse models. These models are used to further enhance our understanding of the mechanisms underlying the disease, as well as investigating and identifying therapeutic targets for this disorder. Here we review the transgenic, knock-in mice commonly used to model HD, as well those that have been generated to study specific disease mechanisms. We then provide a brief overview of the importance of standardizing the use of HD mice and describe brief protocols used for genotyping the mouse models used within the Bates Laboratory.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Pamela P Farshim
- Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Huntington's Disease Centre and Dementia Research Institute, University College London Institute of Neurology, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Gillian P Bates
- Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Huntington's Disease Centre and Dementia Research Institute, University College London Institute of Neurology, London, WC1N 3BG, UK.
| |
Collapse
|
37
|
Veldman MB, Yang XW. Molecular insights into cortico-striatal miscommunications in Huntington's disease. Curr Opin Neurobiol 2017; 48:79-89. [PMID: 29125980 DOI: 10.1016/j.conb.2017.10.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2017] [Accepted: 10/18/2017] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD), a dominantly inherited neurodegenerative disease, is defined by its genetic cause, a CAG-repeat expansion in the HTT gene, its motor and psychiatric symptomology and primary loss of striatal medium spiny neurons (MSNs). However, the molecular mechanisms from genetic lesion to disease phenotype remain largely unclear. Mouse models of HD have been created that exhibit phenotypes partially recapitulating those in the patient, and specifically, cortico-striatal disconnectivity appears to be a shared pathogenic event shared by HD mouse models and patients. Molecular studies have begun to unveil converging molecular and cellular pathogenic mechanisms that may account for cortico-striatal miscommunication in various HD mouse models. Systems biological approaches help to illuminate synaptic molecular networks as a nexus for HD cortio-striatal pathogenesis, and may offer new candidate targets to modify the disease.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Matthew B Veldman
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics and Semel Institute for Neuroscience & Human Behavior, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095, United States; Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095, United States
| | - X William Yang
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics and Semel Institute for Neuroscience & Human Behavior, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095, United States; Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095, United States.
| |
Collapse
|
38
|
Rangel-Barajas C, Rebec GV. Dysregulation of Corticostriatal Connectivity in Huntington's Disease: A Role for Dopamine Modulation. J Huntingtons Dis 2017; 5:303-331. [PMID: 27983564 PMCID: PMC5181679 DOI: 10.3233/jhd-160221] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
Aberrant communication between striatum, the main information processing unit of the basal ganglia, and cerebral cortex plays a critical role in the emergence of Huntington’s disease (HD), a fatal monogenetic condition that typically strikes in the prime of life. Although both striatum and cortex undergo substantial cell loss over the course of HD, corticostriatal circuits become dysfunctional long before neurons die. Understanding the dysfunction is key to developing effective strategies for treating a progressively worsening triad of motor, cognitive, and psychiatric symptoms. Cortical output neurons drive striatal activity through the release of glutamate, an excitatory amino acid. Striatal outputs, in turn, release γ-amino butyric acid (GABA) and exert inhibitory control over downstream basal ganglia targets. Ample evidence from transgenic rodent models points to dysregulation of corticostriatal glutamate transmission along with corresponding changes in striatal GABA release as underlying factors in the HD behavioral phenotype. Another contributor is dysregulation of dopamine (DA), a modulator of both glutamate and GABA transmission. In fact, pharmacological manipulation of DA is the only currently available treatment for HD symptoms. Here, we review data from animal models and human patients to evaluate the role of DA in HD, including DA interactions with glutamate and GABA within the context of dysfunctional corticostriatal circuitry.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - George V. Rebec
- Correspondence to: George V. Rebec, PhD, Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Program in
Neuroscience, Indiana University, 1101 E. 10th Street, Bloomington, IN 47405-7007, USA. Tel.: +1 812 855 4832;
Fax: +1 812 855 4520; E-mail:
| |
Collapse
|
39
|
San Gil R, Ooi L, Yerbury JJ, Ecroyd H. The heat shock response in neurons and astroglia and its role in neurodegenerative diseases. Mol Neurodegener 2017; 12:65. [PMID: 28923065 PMCID: PMC5604514 DOI: 10.1186/s13024-017-0208-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/25/2017] [Accepted: 09/01/2017] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Protein inclusions are a predominant molecular pathology found in numerous neurodegenerative diseases, including amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and Huntington's disease. Protein inclusions form in discrete areas of the brain characteristic to the type of neurodegenerative disease, and coincide with the death of neurons in that region (e.g. spinal cord motor neurons in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis). This suggests that the process of protein misfolding leading to inclusion formation is neurotoxic, and that cell-autonomous and non-cell autonomous mechanisms that maintain protein homeostasis (proteostasis) can, at times, be insufficient to prevent protein inclusion formation in the central nervous system. The heat shock response is a pro-survival pathway induced under conditions of cellular stress that acts to maintain proteostasis through the up-regulation of heat shock proteins, a superfamily of molecular chaperones, other co-chaperones and mitotic regulators. The kinetics and magnitude of the heat shock response varies in a stress- and cell-type dependent manner. It remains to be determined if and/or how the heat shock response is activated in the different cell-types that comprise the central nervous system (e.g. neurons and astroglia) in response to protein misfolding events that precede cellular dysfunctions in neurodegenerative diseases. This is particularly relevant considering emerging evidence demonstrating the non-cell autonomous nature of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and Huntington's disease (and other neurodegenerative diseases) and the destructive role of astroglia in disease progression. This review highlights the complexity of heat shock response activation and addresses whether neurons and glia sense and respond to protein misfolding and aggregation associated with neurodegenerative diseases, in particular Huntington's disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, by inducing a pro-survival heat shock response.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Rebecca San Gil
- Illawarra Health and Medical Research Institute and School of Biological Sciences, University of Wollongong, Northfields Ave, Wollongong, 2522 Australia
| | - Lezanne Ooi
- Illawarra Health and Medical Research Institute and School of Biological Sciences, University of Wollongong, Northfields Ave, Wollongong, 2522 Australia
| | - Justin J. Yerbury
- Illawarra Health and Medical Research Institute and School of Biological Sciences, University of Wollongong, Northfields Ave, Wollongong, 2522 Australia
| | - Heath Ecroyd
- Illawarra Health and Medical Research Institute and School of Biological Sciences, University of Wollongong, Northfields Ave, Wollongong, 2522 Australia
| |
Collapse
|
40
|
Ferrer I. Diversity of astroglial responses across human neurodegenerative disorders and brain aging. Brain Pathol 2017; 27:645-674. [PMID: 28804999 PMCID: PMC8029391 DOI: 10.1111/bpa.12538] [Citation(s) in RCA: 81] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/19/2017] [Accepted: 05/24/2017] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Astrogliopathy refers to alterations of astrocytes occurring in diseases of the nervous system, and it implies the involvement of astrocytes as key elements in the pathogenesis and pathology of diseases and injuries of the central nervous system. Reactive astrocytosis refers to the response of astrocytes to different insults to the nervous system, whereas astrocytopathy indicates hypertrophy, atrophy/degeneration and loss of function and pathological remodeling occurring as a primary cause of a disease or as a factor contributing to the development and progression of a particular disease. Reactive astrocytosis secondary to neuron loss and astrocytopathy due to intrinsic alterations of astrocytes occur in neurodegenerative diseases, overlap each other, and, together with astrocyte senescence, contribute to disease-specific astrogliopathy in aging and neurodegenerative diseases with abnormal protein aggregates in old age. In addition to the well-known increase in glial fibrillary acidic protein and other proteins in reactive astrocytes, astrocytopathy is evidenced by deposition of abnormal proteins such as β-amyloid, hyper-phosphorylated tau, abnormal α-synuclein, mutated huntingtin, phosphorylated TDP-43 and mutated SOD1, and PrPres , in Alzheimer's disease, tauopathies, Lewy body diseases, Huntington's disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, respectively. Astrocytopathy in these diseases can also be manifested by impaired glutamate transport; abnormal metabolism and release of neurotransmitters; altered potassium, calcium and water channels resulting in abnormal ion and water homeostasis; abnormal glucose metabolism; abnormal lipid and, particularly, cholesterol metabolism; increased oxidative damage and altered oxidative stress responses; increased production of cytokines and mediators of the inflammatory response; altered expression of connexins with deterioration of cell-to-cell networks and transfer of gliotransmitters; and worsening function of the blood brain barrier, among others. Increased knowledge of these aspects will permit a better understanding of brain aging and neurodegenerative diseases in old age as complex disorders in which neurons are not the only players.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Isidro Ferrer
- Department of Pathology and Experimental TherapeuticsUniversity of BarcelonaBarcelonaSpain
- Institute of NeuropathologyPathologic Anatomy Service, Bellvitge University Hospital, IDIBELL, Hospitalet de LlobregatBarcelonaSpain
- Institute of NeurosciencesUniversity of BarcelonaBarcelonaSpain
- Biomedical Network Research Center on Neurodegenerative Diseases (CIBERNED), Institute Carlos IIIMadridSpain
| |
Collapse
|
41
|
Liu B, Teschemacher AG, Kasparov S. Astroglia as a cellular target for neuroprotection and treatment of neuro-psychiatric disorders. Glia 2017; 65:1205-1226. [PMID: 28300322 PMCID: PMC5669250 DOI: 10.1002/glia.23136] [Citation(s) in RCA: 82] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2016] [Revised: 02/15/2017] [Accepted: 02/17/2017] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Astrocytes are key homeostatic cells of the central nervous system. They cooperate with neurons at several levels, including ion and water homeostasis, chemical signal transmission, blood flow regulation, immune and oxidative stress defense, supply of metabolites and neurogenesis. Astroglia is also important for viability and maturation of stem-cell derived neurons. Neurons critically depend on intrinsic protective and supportive properties of astrocytes. Conversely, all forms of pathogenic stimuli which disturb astrocytic functions compromise neuronal functionality and viability. Support of neuroprotective functions of astrocytes is thus an important strategy for enhancing neuronal survival and improving outcomes in disease states. In this review, we first briefly examine how astrocytic dysfunction contributes to major neurological disorders, which are traditionally associated with malfunctioning of processes residing in neurons. Possible molecular entities within astrocytes that could underpin the cause, initiation and/or progression of various disorders are outlined. In the second section, we explore opportunities enhancing neuroprotective function of astroglia. We consider targeting astrocyte-specific molecular pathways which are involved in neuroprotection or could be expected to have a therapeutic value. Examples of those are oxidative stress defense mechanisms, glutamate uptake, purinergic signaling, water and ion homeostasis, connexin gap junctions, neurotrophic factors and the Nrf2-ARE pathway. We propose that enhancing the neuroprotective capacity of astrocytes is a viable strategy for improving brain resilience and developing new therapeutic approaches.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Beihui Liu
- School of Physiology, Pharmacology and NeuroscienceUniversity of Bristol, University WalkBS8 1TDUnited Kingdom
| | - Anja G. Teschemacher
- School of Physiology, Pharmacology and NeuroscienceUniversity of Bristol, University WalkBS8 1TDUnited Kingdom
| | - Sergey Kasparov
- School of Physiology, Pharmacology and NeuroscienceUniversity of Bristol, University WalkBS8 1TDUnited Kingdom
- Institute for Chemistry and BiologyBaltic Federal UniversityKaliningradRussian Federation
| |
Collapse
|
42
|
Yang HM, Yang S, Huang SS, Tang BS, Guo JF. Microglial Activation in the Pathogenesis of Huntington's Disease. Front Aging Neurosci 2017; 9:193. [PMID: 28674491 PMCID: PMC5474461 DOI: 10.3389/fnagi.2017.00193] [Citation(s) in RCA: 83] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/05/2017] [Accepted: 05/30/2017] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Huntington’s disease (HD) is an autosomal dominantly inherited neurodegenerative disorder caused by expanded CAG trinucleotide repeats (>36) in exon 1 of HTT gene that encodes huntingtin protein. Although HD is characterized by a predominant loss of neurons in the striatum and cortex, previous studies point to a critical role of aberrant accumulation of mutant huntingtin in microglia that contributes to the progressive neurodegeneration in HD, through both cell-autonomous and non-cell-autonomous mechanisms. Microglia are resident immune cells in the central nervous system (CNS), which function to surveil the microenvironment at a quiescent state. In response to various pro-inflammatory stimuli, microglia become activated and undergo two separate phases (M1 and M2 phenotype), which release pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α), anti-inflammatory cytokines, and growth factors (TGF-β, CD206, and Arg1), respectively. Immunoregulation by microglial activation could be either neurotoxic or neuroprotective. In this review, we summarized current understanding about microglial activation in the pathogenesis and progression of HD, with a primary focus of M1 and M2 phenotype of activated microglia and their corresponding signaling pathways.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Hui-Ming Yang
- Department of Neurology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South UniversityChangsha, China
| | - Su Yang
- Department of Human Genetics, Emory University School of Medicine, AtlantaGA, United States
| | - Shan-Shan Huang
- Department of Neurology, Tongji Hospital, Huazhong University of Science and TechnologyWuhan, China
| | - Bei-Sha Tang
- Department of Neurology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South UniversityChangsha, China.,Key Laboratory of Hunan Province in Neurodegenerative Disorders, Central South UniversityChangsha, China.,State Key Laboratory of Medical GeneticsChangsha, China.,National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric DiseasesChangsha, China
| | - Ji-Feng Guo
- Department of Neurology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South UniversityChangsha, China.,Key Laboratory of Hunan Province in Neurodegenerative Disorders, Central South UniversityChangsha, China.,State Key Laboratory of Medical GeneticsChangsha, China.,National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric DiseasesChangsha, China
| |
Collapse
|
43
|
Tyebji S, Hannan AJ. Synaptopathic mechanisms of neurodegeneration and dementia: Insights from Huntington's disease. Prog Neurobiol 2017; 153:18-45. [PMID: 28377290 DOI: 10.1016/j.pneurobio.2017.03.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2016] [Revised: 03/19/2017] [Accepted: 03/30/2017] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
Dementia encapsulates a set of symptoms that include loss of mental abilities such as memory, problem solving or language, and reduces a person's ability to perform daily activities. Alzheimer's disease is the most common form of dementia, however dementia can also occur in other neurological disorders such as Huntington's disease (HD). Many studies have demonstrated that loss of neuronal cell function manifests pre-symptomatically and thus is a relevant therapeutic target to alleviate symptoms. Synaptopathy, the physiological dysfunction of synapses, is now being approached as the target for many neurological and psychiatric disorders, including HD. HD is an autosomal dominant and progressive degenerative disorder, with clinical manifestations that encompass movement, cognition, mood and behaviour. HD is one of the most common tandem repeat disorders and is caused by a trinucleotide (CAG) repeat expansion, encoding an extended polyglutamine tract in the huntingtin protein. Animal models as well as human studies have provided detailed, although not exhaustive, evidence of synaptic dysfunction in HD. In this review, we discuss the neuropathology of HD and how the changes in synaptic signalling in the diseased brain lead to its symptoms, which include dementia. Here, we review and discuss the mechanisms by which the 'molecular orchestras' and their 'synaptic symphonies' are disrupted in neurodegeneration and dementia, focusing on HD as a model disease. We also explore the therapeutic strategies currently in pre-clinical and clinical testing that are targeted towards improving synaptic function in HD.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Shiraz Tyebji
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
| | - Anthony J Hannan
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia; Department of Anatomy and Neuroscience, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia.
| |
Collapse
|
44
|
Polyzos AA, McMurray CT. The chicken or the egg: mitochondrial dysfunction as a cause or consequence of toxicity in Huntington's disease. Mech Ageing Dev 2017; 161:181-197. [PMID: 27634555 PMCID: PMC5543717 DOI: 10.1016/j.mad.2016.09.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2016] [Revised: 09/07/2016] [Accepted: 09/12/2016] [Indexed: 01/30/2023]
Abstract
Mitochondrial dysfunction and ensuing oxidative damage is typically thought to be a primary cause of Huntington's disease, Alzheimer's disease, and Parkinson disease. There is little doubt that mitochondria (MT) become defective as neurons die, yet whether MT defects are the primary cause or a detrimental consequence of toxicity remains unanswered. Oxygen consumption rate (OCR) and glycolysis provide sensitive and informative measures of the functional status MT and the cells metabolic regulation, yet these measures differ depending on the sample source; species, tissue type, age at measurement, and whether MT are measured in purified form or in a cell. The effects of these various parameters are difficult to quantify and not fully understood, but clearly have an impact on interpreting the bioenergetics of MT or their failure in disease states. A major goal of the review is to discuss issues and coalesce detailed information into a reference table to help in assessing mitochondrial dysfunction as a cause or consequence of Huntington's disease.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Aris A Polyzos
- Molecular Biophysics and Integrated Bioimaging Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, 1 Cyclotron Rd., Berkeley, CA 94720, USA.
| | - Cynthia T McMurray
- Molecular Biophysics and Integrated Bioimaging Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, 1 Cyclotron Rd., Berkeley, CA 94720, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
45
|
Vorisek I, Syka M, Vargova L. Brain Diffusivity and Structural Changes in the R6/2 Mouse Model of Huntington Disease. J Neurosci Res 2016; 95:1474-1484. [DOI: 10.1002/jnr.23965] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2016] [Revised: 09/08/2016] [Accepted: 09/21/2016] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Ivan Vorisek
- Department of Neuroscience; Institute of Experimental Medicine AS CR, v.v.i.; Prague Czech Republic
| | - Michael Syka
- Department of Neuroscience; Institute of Experimental Medicine AS CR, v.v.i.; Prague Czech Republic
- International Clinical Research Center, St. Anne's University Hospital; Brno Czech Republic
| | - Lydia Vargova
- Department of Neuroscience; Institute of Experimental Medicine AS CR, v.v.i.; Prague Czech Republic
- Department of Neuroscience; Charles University, 2nd Faculty of Medicine; Prague Czech Republic
| |
Collapse
|
46
|
TRiC subunits enhance BDNF axonal transport and rescue striatal atrophy in Huntington's disease. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2016; 113:E5655-64. [PMID: 27601642 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1603020113] [Citation(s) in RCA: 67] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Corticostriatal atrophy is a cardinal manifestation of Huntington's disease (HD). However, the mechanism(s) by which mutant huntingtin (mHTT) protein contributes to the degeneration of the corticostriatal circuit is not well understood. We recreated the corticostriatal circuit in microfluidic chambers, pairing cortical and striatal neurons from the BACHD model of HD and its WT control. There were reduced synaptic connectivity and atrophy of striatal neurons in cultures in which BACHD cortical and striatal neurons were paired. However, these changes were prevented if WT cortical neurons were paired with BACHD striatal neurons; synthesis and release of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) from WT cortical axons were responsible. Consistent with these findings, there was a marked reduction in anterograde transport of BDNF in BACHD cortical neurons. Subunits of the cytosolic chaperonin T-complex 1 (TCP-1) ring complex (TRiC or CCT for chaperonin containing TCP-1) have been shown to reduce mHTT levels. Both CCT3 and the apical domain of CCT1 (ApiCCT1) decreased the level of mHTT in BACHD cortical neurons. In cortical axons, they normalized anterograde BDNF transport, restored retrograde BDNF transport, and normalized lysosomal transport. Importantly, treating BACHD cortical neurons with ApiCCT1 prevented BACHD striatal neuronal atrophy by enhancing release of BDNF that subsequently acts through tyrosine receptor kinase B (TrkB) receptor on striatal neurons. Our findings are evidence that TRiC reagent-mediated reductions in mHTT enhanced BDNF delivery to restore the trophic status of BACHD striatal neurons.
Collapse
|
47
|
Verkhratsky A, Steardo L, Parpura V, Montana V. Translational potential of astrocytes in brain disorders. Prog Neurobiol 2016; 144:188-205. [PMID: 26386136 PMCID: PMC4794425 DOI: 10.1016/j.pneurobio.2015.09.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 76] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2015] [Revised: 09/03/2015] [Accepted: 09/08/2015] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Fundamentally, all brain disorders can be broadly defined as the homeostatic failure of this organ. As the brain is composed of many different cells types, including but not limited to neurons and glia, it is only logical that all the cell types/constituents could play a role in health and disease. Yet, for a long time the sole conceptualization of brain pathology was focused on the well-being of neurons. Here, we challenge this neuron-centric view and present neuroglia as a key element in neuropathology, a process that has a toll on astrocytes, which undergo complex morpho-functional changes that can in turn affect the course of the disorder. Such changes can be grossly identified as reactivity, atrophy with loss of function and pathological remodeling. We outline the pathogenic potential of astrocytes in variety of disorders, ranging from neurotrauma, infection, toxic damage, stroke, epilepsy, neurodevelopmental, neurodegenerative and psychiatric disorders, Alexander disease to neoplastic changes seen in gliomas. We hope that in near future we would witness glial-based translational medicine with generation of deliverables for the containment and cure of disorders. We point out that such as a task will require a holistic and multi-disciplinary approach that will take in consideration the concerted operation of all the cell types in the brain.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Alexei Verkhratsky
- Faculty of Life Science, The University of Manchester, Manchester, UK
- Achucarro Center for Neuroscience, IKERBASQUE, Basque Foundation for Science, Bilbao, Spain
- University of Nizhny Novgorod, Nizhny Novgorod, Russia
| | - Luca Steardo
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Naples, SUN, Largo Madonna delle Grazie, Naples, Italy
| | - Vladimir Parpura
- Department of Neurobiology, Center for Glial Biology in Medicine and Atomic Force Microscopy & Nanotechnology Laboratories, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA
| | - Vedrana Montana
- Department of Biotechnology, University of Rijeka, Rijeka, Croatia
| |
Collapse
|
48
|
Mehrabi NF, Waldvogel HJ, Tippett LJ, Hogg VM, Synek BJ, Faull RLM. Symptom heterogeneity in Huntington's disease correlates with neuronal degeneration in the cerebral cortex. Neurobiol Dis 2016; 96:67-74. [PMID: 27569581 DOI: 10.1016/j.nbd.2016.08.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2016] [Revised: 08/19/2016] [Accepted: 08/24/2016] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Huntington's disease (HD) is characterised by variable symptoms and neuropathology of the basal ganglia and cortex. Previously, we have shown that the pattern of pyramidal cell loss in 8 different cortical regions correlates with the phenotypic variability in HD. In the primary motor and anterior cingulate cortices, the pattern of interneuron degeneration correlates with pyramidal cell death and variable HD symptom profiles. OBJECTIVES This study aimed to examine the pattern of interneuron degeneration in 3 further regions of the HD cortex (primary sensory, superior frontal, superior parietal cortices) to determine whether HD neuropathogenesis was characterised by a general fundamental pattern of cortical interneuron loss, and explore the relationship between cortical interneuron loss with previously determined pyramidal cell loss and clinical heterogeneity. METHODS Stereological counting was used to quantify 3 sub-populations of calcium-binding protein containing interneurons in 3 cortical human brain regions of 14 HD and 13 control cases as used in our previous studies (Nana et al., 2014; Kim et al., 2014). The HD cases were grouped according to their predominant symptom profile ("motor", "mood", "mixed"). RESULTS The present results demonstrated a heterogeneous loss of interneurons across the 3 cortical regions which, when compared with our previous studies, mirrored the pattern of pyramidal cell loss in the same cortical areas. Most interestingly, the pattern of neuronal loss in these regions correlated with the variable HD symptom profiles. CONCLUSION The overall findings in our present and previous cortical studies establish a clear correlative pattern of variable cortical neuronal degeneration in HD pathogenesis, which mirrors the heterogeneity of HD symptom phenotypes.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Nasim F Mehrabi
- Centre for Brain Research, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand; Department of Anatomy and Medical Imaging, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Henry J Waldvogel
- Centre for Brain Research, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand; Department of Anatomy and Medical Imaging, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Lynette J Tippett
- Centre for Brain Research, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand; Department of Psychology, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Virginia M Hogg
- Centre for Brain Research, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand; Department of Psychology, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Beth J Synek
- Centre for Brain Research, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand; Forensic Pathology, Auckland City Hospital, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Richard L M Faull
- Centre for Brain Research, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand; Department of Anatomy and Medical Imaging, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.
| |
Collapse
|
49
|
Dunbar GL, Sandstrom MI, Rossignol J, Lescaudron L. Neurotrophic Enhancers as Therapy for Behavioral Deficits in Rodent Models of Huntington's Disease: Use of Gangliosides, Substituted Pyrimidines, and Mesenchymal Stem Cells. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2016; 5:63-79. [PMID: 16801683 DOI: 10.1177/1534582306289367] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
The interest in using neurotrophic factors as potential treatments for neurodegenerative disorders, such as Huntington's disease, has grown in the past decade. A major impediment for the clinical utility of neurotrophic factors is their inability to cross the blood-brain barrier in therapeutically significant amounts. Although several novel mechanisms for delivering exogenous neurotrophins to the brain have been developed, most of them involve invasive procedures or present significant risks. One approach to circumventing these problems is using therapeutic agents that can be administered systemically and have the ability to enhance the activity of neurotrophic factors. This review highlights the use of gangliosides, substituted pyrimidines, and mesenchymal stem cells as neurotrophic enhancers that have significant therapeutic potential while avoiding the pitfalls of delivering exogenous neurotrophic factors through the blood-brain barrier. The review focuses on the potential of these neurotrophic enhancers for treating the behavioral deficits in rodent models of Huntington's disease.
Collapse
|
50
|
Haussecker D. Stacking up CRISPR against RNAi for therapeutic gene inhibition. FEBS J 2016; 283:3249-60. [PMID: 27090508 DOI: 10.1111/febs.13742] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2016] [Revised: 04/10/2016] [Accepted: 04/18/2016] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Both RNA interference (RNAi) and clustered regularly-interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) technologies allow for the sequence-specific inhibition of gene function and therefore have the potential to be used as therapeutic modalities. By judging the current public and scientific journal interest, it would seem that CRISPR, by enabling clean, durable knockouts, will dominate therapeutic gene inhibition, also at the expense of RNAi. This review aims to look behind prevailing sentiments and to more clearly define the likely scope of the therapeutic applications of the more recently developed CRISPR technology and its relative strengths and weaknesses with regards to RNAi. It is found that largely because of their broadly overlapping delivery constraints, while CRISPR presents formidable competition for DNA-directed RNAi strategies, its impact on RNAi therapeutics triggered by synthetic oligonucleotides will likely be more moderate. Instead, RNAi and genome editing, and in particular CRISPR, are poised to jointly promote a further shift toward sequence-targeted precision medicines.
Collapse
|