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Yang X, Wang Y, Wu C, Ling EA. Animal Venom Peptides as a Treasure Trove for New Therapeutics Against Neurodegenerative Disorders. Curr Med Chem 2019; 26:4749-4774. [PMID: 30378475 DOI: 10.2174/0929867325666181031122438] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/07/2018] [Revised: 10/08/2018] [Accepted: 10/24/2018] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, and cerebral ischemic stroke, impose enormous socio-economic burdens on both patients and health-care systems. However, drugs targeting these diseases remain unsatisfactory, and hence there is an urgent need for the development of novel and potent drug candidates. METHODS Animal toxins exhibit rich diversity in both proteins and peptides, which play vital roles in biomedical drug development. As a molecular tool, animal toxin peptides have not only helped clarify many critical physiological processes but also led to the discovery of novel drugs and clinical therapeutics. RESULTS Recently, toxin peptides identified from venomous animals, e.g. exenatide, ziconotide, Hi1a, and PcTx1 from spider venom, have been shown to block specific ion channels, alleviate inflammation, decrease protein aggregates, regulate glutamate and neurotransmitter levels, and increase neuroprotective factors. CONCLUSION Thus, components of venom hold considerable capacity as drug candidates for the alleviation or reduction of neurodegeneration. This review highlights studies evaluating different animal toxins, especially peptides, as promising therapeutic tools for the treatment of different neurodegenerative diseases and disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xinwang Yang
- Department of Anatomy and Histology & Embryology, Faculty of Basic Medical Science, Kunming Medical University, Kunming 650500, Yunnan, China
| | - Ying Wang
- Key Laboratory of Chemistry in Ethnic Medicine Resource, State Ethnic Affairs Commission & Ministry of Education, School of Ethnomedicine and Ethnopharmacy, Yunnan Minzu University, Kunming 650500, Yunnan, China
| | - Chunyun Wu
- Department of Anatomy and Histology & Embryology, Faculty of Basic Medical Science, Kunming Medical University, Kunming 650500, Yunnan, China
| | - Eng-Ang Ling
- Department of Anatomy, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117597, Singapore
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Lee JH, Park JH, Eltohamy M, Perez R, Lee EJ, Kim HW. Collagen gel combined with mesoporous nanoparticles loading nerve growth factor as a feasible therapeutic three-dimensional depot for neural tissue engineering. RSC Adv 2013. [DOI: 10.1039/c3ra43534b] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
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Everse J, Liu CJJ, Coates PW. Physical and catalytic properties of a peroxidase derived from cytochrome c. Biochim Biophys Acta Mol Basis Dis 2011; 1812:1138-45. [PMID: 21620967 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbadis.2011.05.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/27/2011] [Revised: 04/18/2011] [Accepted: 05/06/2011] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
Abstract
Except for its redox properties, cytochrome c is an inert protein. However, dissociation of the bond between methionine-80 and the heme iron converts the cytochrome into a peroxidase. Dissociation is accomplished by subjecting the cytochrome to various conditions, including proteolysis and hydrogen peroxide (H(2)O(2))-mediated oxidation. In affected cells of various neurological diseases, including Parkinson's disease, cytochrome c is released from the mitochondrial membrane and enters the cytosol. In the cytosol cytochrome c is exposed to cellular proteases and to H(2)O(2) produced by dysfunctional mitochondria and activated microglial cells. These could promote the formation of the peroxidase form of cytochrome c. In this study we investigated the catalytic and cytolytic properties of the peroxidase form of cytochrome c. These properties are qualitatively similar to those of other heme-containing peroxidases. Dopamine as well as sulfhydryl group-containing metabolites, including reduced glutathione and coenzyme A, are readily oxidized in the presence of H(2)O(2). This peroxidase also has cytolytic properties similar to myeloperoxidase, lactoperoxidase, and horseradish peroxidase. Cytolysis is inhibited by various reducing agents, including dopamine. Our data show that the peroxidase form of cytochrome c has catalytic and cytolytic properties that could account for at least some of the damage that leads to neuronal death in the parkinsonian brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Johannes Everse
- Cell Biology and Biochemistry, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX 79430, USA.
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Singh P, Williams DJ. Cell therapies: realizing the potential of this new dimension to medical therapeutics. J Tissue Eng Regen Med 2008; 2:307-19. [DOI: 10.1002/term.108] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
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Bouchez G, Sensebé L, Vourc'h P, Garreau L, Bodard S, Rico A, Guilloteau D, Charbord P, Besnard JC, Chalon S. Partial recovery of dopaminergic pathway after graft of adult mesenchymal stem cells in a rat model of Parkinson's disease. Neurochem Int 2008; 52:1332-42. [PMID: 18372079 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuint.2008.02.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 113] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2008] [Accepted: 02/06/2008] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Cellular therapy with adult stem cells appears as an opportunity for treatment of Parkinson's disease. To validate this approach, we studied the effects of transplantation of rat adult bone-marrow mesenchymal stem cells in a rat model of Parkinson's disease. Animals were unilaterally lesioned in the striatum with 6-hydroxydopamine. Two weeks later, group I did not undergo grafting, group II underwent sham grafting, group III was intra-striatal grafted with cells cultured in an enriched medium and group IV was intra-striatal grafted with cells cultured in a standard medium. Rotational amphetamine-induced behavior was measured weekly until animals were killed 6 weeks later. One week after graft, the number of rotations/min was stably decreased by 50% in groups III and IV as compared with groups I and II. At 8 weeks post-lesion, the density of dopaminergic markers in the nerve terminals and cell bodies, i.e. immunoreactive tyrosine hydroxylase, membrane dopamine transporter and vesicular monoamine transporter-2 was significantly higher in group III as compared with group I. Moreover, using microdialysis studies, we observed that while the rate of pharmacologically induced release of dopamine was significantly reduced in lesioned versus intact striatum in no grafted rats, it was similar in both sides in animals transplanted with mesemchymal stem cells. These data demonstrate that graft of adult mesemchymal stem cells reduces behavioral effects induced by 6-hydroxydopamine lesion and partially restores the dopaminergic markers and vesicular striatal pool of dopamine. This cellular approach might be a restorative therapy in Parkinson's disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gaëlle Bouchez
- INSERM U930, Laboratory Biophysique médicale & pharmaceutique, UFR Pharmacie, 31 avenue Monge, Tours, France
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Tansey MG, McCoy MK, Frank-Cannon TC. Neuroinflammatory mechanisms in Parkinson's disease: potential environmental triggers, pathways, and targets for early therapeutic intervention. Exp Neurol 2007; 208:1-25. [PMID: 17720159 PMCID: PMC3707134 DOI: 10.1016/j.expneurol.2007.07.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 412] [Impact Index Per Article: 24.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2006] [Revised: 07/02/2007] [Accepted: 07/05/2007] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Most acute and chronic neurodegenerative conditions are accompanied by neuroinflammation; yet the exact nature of the inflammatory processes and whether they modify disease progression is not well understood. In this review, we discuss the key epidemiological, clinical, and experimental evidence implicating inflammatory processes in the progressive degeneration of the dopaminergic (DA) nigrostriatal pathway and their potential contribution to the pathophysiology of Parkinson's disease (PD). Given that interplay between genetics and environment are likely to contribute to risk for development of idiopathic PD, recent data showing interactions between products of genes linked to heritable PD that function to protect DA neurons against oxidative or proteolytic stress and inflammation pathways will be discussed. Cellular mechanisms activated or enhanced by inflammatory processes that may contribute to mitochondrial dysfunction, oxidative stress, or apoptosis of dopaminergic (DA) neurons will be reviewed, with special emphasis on tumor necrosis factor (TNF) and interleukin-1-beta (IL-1beta) signaling pathways. Epigenetic factors which have the potential to trigger neuroinflammation, including environmental exposures and age-associated chronic inflammatory conditions, will be discussed as possible 'second-hit' triggers that may affect disease onset or progression of idiopathic PD. If inflammatory processes have an active role in nigrostriatal pathway degeneration, then evidence should exist to indicate that such processes begin in the early stages of disease and that they contribute to neuronal dysfunction and/or hasten neurodegeneration of the nigrostriatal pathway. Therapeutically, if anti-inflammatory interventions can be shown to rescue nigral DA neurons from degeneration and lower PD risk, then timely use of anti-inflammatory therapies should be investigated further in well-designed clinical trials for their ability to prevent or delay the progressive loss of nigral DA neurons in genetically susceptible populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Malú G Tansey
- Department of Physiology, The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, 5323 Harry Hines Blvd., Dallas, TX 75390, USA.
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Gilbertson JA, Sen A, Behie LA, Kallos MS. Scaled-up production of mammalian neural precursor cell aggregates in computer-controlled suspension bioreactors. Biotechnol Bioeng 2006; 94:783-92. [PMID: 16489624 DOI: 10.1002/bit.20900] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
The clinical use of neural precursor cells (NPCs) for the treatment of neurological diseases, such as Parkinson's disease and Huntington's disease, requires overcoming the scarcity of these cells through controlled expansion. The main objective of the present study was to develop a large-scale computer-controlled bioprocess for the expansion of mammalian NPCs in suspension culture by scaling up existing reactor protocols. In order to support the oxygen demands of the maximum cell densities achieved, the volumetric mass transfer coefficient was kept above 1.10/h while scaling-up from small-scale 125 mL vessels to large-scale 500 mL bioreactors. In addition, the maximum shear stress at the impeller tip was maintained between 0.30 and 0.75 Pa to reduce damage to the cells. The resulting large-scale bioprocess achieved maximum viable cell densities of 1.2 x 10(6) cells/mL and a batch multiplication ratio of 9.1. Moreover, the process successfully maintained the NPC characteristics observed in small-scale studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jane A Gilbertson
- Pharmaceutical Production Research Facility (PPRF), Schulich School of Engineering, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
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Savitt JM, Jang SS, Mu W, Dawson VL, Dawson TM. Bcl-x is required for proper development of the mouse substantia nigra. J Neurosci 2005; 25:6721-8. [PMID: 16033881 PMCID: PMC6725345 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.0760-05.2005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 118] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/24/2005] [Revised: 05/31/2005] [Accepted: 05/31/2005] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Recent findings have uncovered a role for the Bcl-x gene in the survival of dopaminergic neurons. The exact nature of this role has been difficult to examine because of the embryonic lethality of Bcl-x gene disruption in mouse models. Here we report the generation catecholaminergic cell-specific conditional Bcl-x gene knock-out mice using Cre-lox recombination technology. First we produced transgenic mice that express Cre recombinase from an exogenous rat tyrosine hydroxylase promoter (TH-Cre mice). These mice were crossed to Z/AP and Z/EG reporter mouse strains to verify catecholaminergic (TH-positive) cell-specific Cre expression. The TH-Cre mice then were mated to mice possessing the Bcl-x gene flanked by loxP sites, thereby producing offspring with Bcl-x deletion limited to catecholaminergic cells. The resulting mice are viable but have one-third fewer catecholaminergic neurons than do control animals. They demonstrate a deficiency in striatal dopamine and also tend to be smaller and have decreased brain mass when compared with controls. Surprisingly, surviving neurons were found that lacked Bcl-x immunoreactivity, thereby demonstrating that this gene is dispensable for the ongoing survival of a subpopulation of catecholaminergic cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joseph M Savitt
- Institute for Cell Engineering, Division of Gastroenterology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland 21205, USA
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Current and potential treatments of Parkinson's disease. NEURODEGENER DIS 2005. [DOI: 10.1017/cbo9780511544873.043] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
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Bottai D, Fiocco R, Gelain F, Defilippis L, Galli R, Gritti A, Vescovi LA. Neural stem cells in the adult nervous system. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2004; 12:655-70. [PMID: 14977475 DOI: 10.1089/15258160360732687] [Citation(s) in RCA: 60] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
The concept of the immutability of the nervous tissue has recently been replaced with the new idea that a continuous neurogenic turnover does occur in some limited areas of the central nervous system (CNS). At least two neurogenic regions of the adult mammalian CNS are involved in this process: the subventricular zone of the forebrain and the dentate gyrus of the hippocampus, which are considered to be a reservoir of new neural cells. Neural stem cells (NSCs) are multipotential progenitors that have self-renewal capability. While in vivo endogenous NSCs seem able to produce almost exclusively neurons, a single NSC in vitro is competent to generate neurons, astrocytes, and oligodendrocytes. NSCs lack a specific morphology and unambiguous surface markers that could allow their identification. For this reason, one of the major difficulties in identifying stem cells is that they are defined in terms of their functional capabilities, the determination of which might alter the cells' nature. The purpose of this review is to describe the characteristics of the NSCs of the adult mammalian CNS, their potentiality in terms of proliferation and differentiation capabilities, as well as their stability in long-term culture, all attributes that make them a good tool for tissue replacement therapies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniele Bottai
- Stem Cell Research Institute, DIBIT, Fondazione Centro San Raffaele del Monte Tabor, 20132 Milan, Italy.
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Liste I, Navarro B, Johansen J, Bueno C, Villa A, Johansen TE, Martínez-Serrano A. Low-level tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) expression allows for the generation of stable TH+ cell lines of human neural stem cells. Hum Gene Ther 2004; 15:13-20. [PMID: 14965374 DOI: 10.1089/10430340460732427] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Genetic engineering of neurotransmitter metabolic routes is important for the development of neurotransmitter-producing cells for the ex vivo gene therapy of many CNS diseases. Human neural stem cells (hNSCs) are excellent candidates to serve this role, but, for the case of Parkinson's disease, the cells do not normally express the rate-limiting dopamine (DA) synthesis enzyme tyrosine hydroxylase (TH), and are not equipped with the detoxifying mechanisms needed to prevent the neurotoxicity associated with the DA phenotype. In this study we have examined the capacity of hNSCs for ectopic expression of human TH. High-level TH expression (from viral promoters) leads to growth arrest and hNSC death (associated with an increase in p53 expression and nuclear fragmentation), which can be counteracted by treatment with a pan-caspase inhibitor. As a consequence, stable TH-expressing hNSC sublines could not be derived using viral promoters. In contrast, moderate TH expression (from a human housekeeping promoter, polyubiquitin gene), allows for stable TH+ subclone derivation, seemingly originating from low-expressing cells. Our results are thus compatible with the view that stable TH-expressing hNSC lines can be generated if TH expression levels are kept at a moderate level, and that the goal normally set of aiming at high-level TH expression may need to be reconsidered. These results may be relevant for the generation of TH/DA-producing human neural cells for in vitro and neurotransplantation research in Parkinson's disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Isabel Liste
- Center of Molecular Biology Severo Ochoa, Department of Molecular Biology, Autonomous University of Madrid, Campus Cantoblanco, 28049 Madrid, Spain
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Chiocca EA. Gene therapy: a primer for neurosurgeons. Neurosurgery 2003; 53:364-73; discussion 373. [PMID: 12925253 DOI: 10.1227/01.neu.0000073532.05714.2b] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/05/2003] [Accepted: 04/11/2003] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Gene therapy involves the transfer of genes into cells with therapeutic intent. Although several methods can accomplish this, vectors based on viruses still provide the most efficient approach. For neurosurgical purposes, preclinical and clinical applications in the areas of glioma therapy, spinal neurosurgery, and neuroprotection for treatment of Parkinson's disease and cerebral ischemia are reviewed. In general, therapies applied in the neurosurgical realm have proven relatively safe, despite occasional, well-publicized cases of morbidity and death in non-neurosurgical trials. However, continued clinical and preclinical research in this area is critical, to fully elucidate potential toxicities and to generate truly effective treatments that can be applied in neurological diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- E Antonio Chiocca
- Molecular Neuro-oncology Laboratory, Neurosurgery Service, Massachusetts General Hospital, Brain Tumor Center, Boston, Massachusetts 02114, USA.
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Pong K. Oxidative stress in neurodegenerative diseases: therapeutic implications for superoxide dismutase mimetics. Expert Opin Biol Ther 2003; 3:127-39. [PMID: 12718737 DOI: 10.1517/14712598.3.1.127] [Citation(s) in RCA: 83] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Evidence of oxidative stress is apparent in both acute and chronic neurodegenerative diseases, such as stroke, Parkinson's disease (PD) and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Increased generation of reactive oxygen species simply overwhelm endogenous antioxidant defences, leading to subsequent oxidative damage and cell death. Tissue culture and animal models have been developed to mimic some of the biochemical changes and neuropathology found in these diseases. In doing so, it has been experimentally demonstrated that oxidative stress plays a critical role in neuronal cell death. Antioxidant enzymes, such as superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) have demonstrated therapeutic efficacy in models of neurodegeneration. However, delivery and stability issues have reduced the enthusiasm to clinically develop these proteins. Most recently, SOD mimetics, small molecules which mimic the activity of endogenous superoxide dismutase, have come to the forefront of antioxidant therapeutics. This review will examine the experimental evidence supporting the use of scavengers of superoxide anions in treating some neurodegenerative diseases, such as stroke, PD and ALS, but also the pitfalls that have met antioxidant molecules in clinical trials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kevin Pong
- Department of Neuroscience, Wyeth Research, Princeton, NJ 08543, USA.
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