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Mehanna R, Jankovic J. Systemic Symptoms in Huntington's Disease: A Comprehensive Review. Mov Disord Clin Pract 2024; 11:453-464. [PMID: 38529740 PMCID: PMC11078495 DOI: 10.1002/mdc3.14029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2023] [Revised: 02/26/2024] [Accepted: 03/12/2024] [Indexed: 03/27/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Although Huntington's disease (HD) is usually thought of as a triad of motor, cognitive, and psychiatric symptoms, there is growing appreciation of HD as a systemic illness affecting the entire body. OBJECTIVES This review aims to draw attention to these systemic non-motor symptoms in HD. METHODS We identified relevant studies published in English by searching MEDLINE (from 1966 to September 2023), using the following subject headings: Huntington disease, autonomic, systemic, cardiovascular, respiratory, gastrointestinal, urinary, sexual and cutaneous, and additional specific symptoms. RESULTS Data from 123 articles were critically reviewed with focus on systemic features associated with HD, such as cardiovascular, respiratory, gastrointestinal, urinary, sexual and sweating. CONCLUSION This systematic review draws attention to a variety of systemic and autonomic co-morbidities in patients with HD. Not all of them correlate with the severity of the primary HD symptoms or CAG repeats. More research is needed to better understand the pathophysiology and treatment of systemic and autonomic dysfunction in HD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Raja Mehanna
- Department of Neurology, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, McGovern Medical School, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Joseph Jankovic
- Parkinson's Disease Center and Movement Disorders Clinic, Department of Neurology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
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2
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Burtscher J, Strasser B, Pepe G, Burtscher M, Kopp M, Di Pardo A, Maglione V, Khamoui AV. Brain-Periphery Interactions in Huntington's Disease: Mediators and Lifestyle Interventions. Int J Mol Sci 2024; 25:4696. [PMID: 38731912 PMCID: PMC11083237 DOI: 10.3390/ijms25094696] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/28/2024] [Revised: 04/22/2024] [Accepted: 04/23/2024] [Indexed: 05/13/2024] Open
Abstract
Prominent pathological features of Huntington's disease (HD) are aggregations of mutated Huntingtin protein (mHtt) in the brain and neurodegeneration, which causes characteristic motor (such as chorea and dystonia) and non-motor symptoms. However, the numerous systemic and peripheral deficits in HD have gained increasing attention recently, since those factors likely modulate disease progression, including brain pathology. While whole-body metabolic abnormalities and organ-specific pathologies in HD have been relatively well described, the potential mediators of compromised inter-organ communication in HD have been insufficiently characterized. Therefore, we applied an exploratory literature search to identify such mediators. Unsurprisingly, dysregulation of inflammatory factors, circulating mHtt, and many other messenger molecules (hormones, lipids, RNAs) were found that suggest impaired inter-organ communication, including of the gut-brain and muscle-brain axis. Based on these findings, we aimed to assess the risks and potentials of lifestyle interventions that are thought to improve communication across these axes: dietary strategies and exercise. We conclude that appropriate lifestyle interventions have great potential to reduce symptoms and potentially modify disease progression (possibly via improving inter-organ signaling) in HD. However, impaired systemic metabolism and peripheral symptoms warrant particular care in the design of dietary and exercise programs for people with HD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Johannes Burtscher
- Institute of Sport Sciences, University of Lausanne, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Barbara Strasser
- Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for Rehabilitation Research, 1100 Vienna, Austria;
- Faculty of Medicine, Sigmund Freud Private University, 1020 Vienna, Austria
| | - Giuseppe Pepe
- IRCCS Neuromed, 86077 Pozzilli, Italy; (G.P.); (A.D.P.); (V.M.)
| | - Martin Burtscher
- Department of Sport Science, University of Innsbruck, 6020 Innsbruck, Austria; (M.B.); (M.K.)
| | - Martin Kopp
- Department of Sport Science, University of Innsbruck, 6020 Innsbruck, Austria; (M.B.); (M.K.)
| | - Alba Di Pardo
- IRCCS Neuromed, 86077 Pozzilli, Italy; (G.P.); (A.D.P.); (V.M.)
| | | | - Andy V. Khamoui
- Department of Exercise Science and Health Promotion, Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, FL 33458, USA;
- Institute for Human Health and Disease Intervention, Florida Atlantic University, Jupiter, FL 33458, USA
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3
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Yu-Taeger L, El-Ayoubi A, Qi P, Danielyan L, Nguyen HHP. Intravenous MSC-Treatment Improves Impaired Brain Functions in the R6/2 Mouse Model of Huntington's Disease via Recovered Hepatic Pathological Changes. Cells 2024; 13:469. [PMID: 38534313 DOI: 10.3390/cells13060469] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2024] [Revised: 03/02/2024] [Accepted: 03/06/2024] [Indexed: 03/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD), a congenital neurodegenerative disorder, extends its pathological damages beyond the nervous system. The systematic manifestation of HD has been extensively described in numerous studies, including dysfunction in peripheral organs and peripheral inflammation. Gut dysbiosis and the gut-liver-brain axis have garnered greater emphasis in neurodegenerative research, and increased plasma levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines have been identified in HD patients and various in vivo models, correlating with disease progression. In the present study, we investigated hepatic pathological markers in the liver of R6/2 mice which convey exon 1 of the human mutant huntingtin gene. Furthermore, we evaluated the impact of intravenously administered Mesenchymal Stromal Cells (MSCs) on the liver enzymes, changes in hepatic inflammatory markers, as well as brain pathology and behavioral deficits in R6/2 mice. Our results revealed altered enzyme expression and increased levels of inflammatory mediators in the liver of R6/2 mice, which were significantly attenuated in the MSC-treated R6/2 mice. Remarkably, neuronal pathology and altered motor activities in the MSC-treated R6/2 mice were significantly ameliorated, despite the absence of MSCs in the postmortem brain. Our data highlight the importance of hepatic pathological changes in HD, providing a potential therapeutic approach. Moreover, the data open new perspectives for the search in blood biomarkers correlating with liver pathology in HD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Libo Yu-Taeger
- Department of Human Genetics, Ruhr University of Bochum, D-44801 Bochum, Germany
- Institute of Medical Genetics and Applied Genomics, University of Tuebingen, D-72076 Tuebingen, Germany
| | - Ali El-Ayoubi
- Department of Human Genetics, Ruhr University of Bochum, D-44801 Bochum, Germany
- Institute of Medical Genetics and Applied Genomics, University of Tuebingen, D-72076 Tuebingen, Germany
| | - Pengfei Qi
- Department of Human Genetics, Ruhr University of Bochum, D-44801 Bochum, Germany
- Institute of Medical Genetics and Applied Genomics, University of Tuebingen, D-72076 Tuebingen, Germany
| | - Lusine Danielyan
- Department of Clinical Pharmacology, University Hospital of Tuebingen, D-72076 Tuebingen, Germany
- Departments of Biochemistry and Clinical Pharmacology, and Neuroscience Laboratory, Yerevan State Medical University, Yerevan 0025, Armenia
| | - Hoa Huu Phuc Nguyen
- Department of Human Genetics, Ruhr University of Bochum, D-44801 Bochum, Germany
- Department of Medical Chemistry, Yerevan State Medical University, Yerevan 0025, Armenia
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4
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Bartl S, Xie Y, Potluri N, Kesineni R, Hencak K, Cengio LD, Balazs K, Oueslati A, Parth M, Salhat N, Siddu A, Smrzka O, Cicchetti F, Straffler G, Hayden MR, Southwell AL. Reducing huntingtin by immunotherapy delays disease progression in a mouse model of Huntington disease. Neurobiol Dis 2024; 190:106376. [PMID: 38092268 DOI: 10.1016/j.nbd.2023.106376] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/02/2023] [Revised: 12/08/2023] [Accepted: 12/10/2023] [Indexed: 12/22/2023] Open
Abstract
In Huntington disease (HD), the mutant huntingtin (mtHTT) protein is the principal cause of pathological changes that initiate primarily along the cortico-striatal axis. mtHTT is ubiquitously expressed and there is, accordingly, growing recognition that HD is a systemic disorder with functional interplay between the brain and the periphery. We have developed a monoclonal antibody, C6-17, targeting an exposed region of HTT near the aa586 Caspase 6 cleavage site. As recently published, mAB C6-17 can block cell-to-cell propagation of mtHTT in vitro. In order to reduce the burden of the mutant protein in vivo, we queried whether extracellular mtHTT could be therapeutically targeted in YAC128 HD mice. In a series of proof of concept experiments, we found that systemic mAB C6-17 treatment resulted in the distribution of the mAB C6-17 to peripheral and CNS tissues and led to the reduction of HTT protein levels. Compared to CTRL mAB or vehicle treated mice, the mAB C6-17 treated YAC128 animals showed improved body weight and motor behaviors, a delayed progression in motor deficits and reduced striatal EM48 immunoreactivity. These results provide the first proof of concept for the feasibility and therapeutic efficacy of an antibody-based anti-HTT passive immunization approach and suggest this modality as a potential new HD treatment strategy.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Yuanyun Xie
- University of Central Florida, Burnett School of Biomedical Sciences, Orlando, FL, United States of America; University of British Columbia, Centre for Molecular Medicine and Therapeutics, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Nalini Potluri
- University of Central Florida, Burnett School of Biomedical Sciences, Orlando, FL, United States of America
| | - Ratnesh Kesineni
- University of Central Florida, Burnett School of Biomedical Sciences, Orlando, FL, United States of America
| | - Katlin Hencak
- University of Central Florida, Burnett School of Biomedical Sciences, Orlando, FL, United States of America
| | - Louisa Dal Cengio
- University of British Columbia, Centre for Molecular Medicine and Therapeutics, Vancouver, Canada
| | | | - Abid Oueslati
- Centre de recherche du CHU - Université Laval, Québec, Canada
| | | | | | - Alberto Siddu
- Centre de recherche du CHU - Université Laval, Québec, Canada
| | | | | | | | - Michael R Hayden
- University of British Columbia, Centre for Molecular Medicine and Therapeutics, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Amber L Southwell
- University of Central Florida, Burnett School of Biomedical Sciences, Orlando, FL, United States of America.
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5
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Barwell T, Seroude L. Polyglutamine disease in peripheral tissues. Hum Mol Genet 2023; 32:3303-3311. [PMID: 37642359 DOI: 10.1093/hmg/ddad138] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/07/2023] [Revised: 08/21/2023] [Accepted: 08/24/2023] [Indexed: 08/31/2023] Open
Abstract
This year is a milestone anniversary of the discovery that Huntington's disease is caused by the presence of expanded polyglutamine repeats in the huntingtin gene leading to the formation of huntingtin aggregates. 30 years have elapsed and there is still no cure and the only FDA-approved treatment to alleviate the debilitating locomotor impairments presents several adverse effects. It has long been neglected that the huntingtin gene is almost ubiquitously expressed in many tissues outside of the nervous system. Growing evidence indicates that these peripheral tissues can contribute to the symptoms of the disease. New findings in Drosophila have shown that the selective expression of mutant huntingtin in muscle or fat is sufficient to cause detrimental effects in the absence of any neurodegeneration. In addition, it was discovered that a completely different tissue distribution of Htt aggregates in Drosophila muscles is responsible for a drastic aggravation of the detrimental effects. This review examines the peripheral tissues that express huntingtin with an added focus on the nature and distribution of the aggregates, if any.
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Affiliation(s)
- Taylor Barwell
- Department of Biology, Queen's University, 116 Barrie St, Kingston, ON K7L 3N6, Canada
| | - Laurent Seroude
- Department of Biology, Queen's University, 116 Barrie St, Kingston, ON K7L 3N6, Canada
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6
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Björkqvist M. Centrally and peripherally altered glucose transporters: is it time to revisit energy deficiency as a potential treatment strategy in Huntington's disease? EBioMedicine 2023; 98:104882. [PMID: 37979315 PMCID: PMC10694065 DOI: 10.1016/j.ebiom.2023.104882] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2023] [Accepted: 11/06/2023] [Indexed: 11/20/2023] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Maria Björkqvist
- Wallenberg Neuroscience Center, Brain Disease Biomarker Unit, Department of Experimental Medical Science, Medical Faculty, Lund University, Lund, Sweden.
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7
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Jiang A, Handley RR, Lehnert K, Snell RG. From Pathogenesis to Therapeutics: A Review of 150 Years of Huntington's Disease Research. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:13021. [PMID: 37629202 PMCID: PMC10455900 DOI: 10.3390/ijms241613021] [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: 07/28/2023] [Revised: 08/15/2023] [Accepted: 08/18/2023] [Indexed: 08/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD) is a debilitating neurodegenerative genetic disorder caused by an expanded polyglutamine-coding (CAG) trinucleotide repeat in the huntingtin (HTT) gene. HD behaves as a highly penetrant dominant disorder likely acting through a toxic gain of function by the mutant huntingtin protein. Widespread cellular degeneration of the medium spiny neurons of the caudate nucleus and putamen are responsible for the onset of symptomology that encompasses motor, cognitive, and behavioural abnormalities. Over the past 150 years of HD research since George Huntington published his description, a plethora of pathogenic mechanisms have been proposed with key themes including excitotoxicity, dopaminergic imbalance, mitochondrial dysfunction, metabolic defects, disruption of proteostasis, transcriptional dysregulation, and neuroinflammation. Despite the identification and characterisation of the causative gene and mutation and significant advances in our understanding of the cellular pathology in recent years, a disease-modifying intervention has not yet been clinically approved. This review includes an overview of Huntington's disease, from its genetic aetiology to clinical presentation and its pathogenic manifestation. An updated view of molecular mechanisms and the latest therapeutic developments will also be discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew Jiang
- Applied Translational Genetics Group, Centre for Brain Research, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Auckland, Auckland 1010, New Zealand; (R.R.H.); (K.L.); (R.G.S.)
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Li J, Wang Y, Yang R, Ma W, Yan J, Li Y, Chen G, Pan J. Pain in Huntington's disease and its potential mechanisms. Front Aging Neurosci 2023; 15:1190563. [PMID: 37484692 PMCID: PMC10357841 DOI: 10.3389/fnagi.2023.1190563] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2023] [Accepted: 06/19/2023] [Indexed: 07/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Pain is common and frequent in many neurodegenerative diseases, although it has not received much attention. In Huntington's disease (HD), pain is often ignored and under-researched because attention is more focused on motor and cognitive decline than psychiatric symptoms. In HD progression, pain symptoms are complex and involved in multiple etiologies, particularly mental issues such as apathy, anxiety and irritability. Because of psychiatric issues, HD patients rarely complain of pain, although their bodies show severe pain symptoms, ultimately resulting in insufficient awareness and lack of research. In HD, few studies have focused on pain and pain-related features. A detailed and systemic pain history is crucial to assess and explore pain pathophysiology in HD. This review provides an overview concentrating on pain-related factors in HD, including neuropathology, frequency, features, affecting factors and mechanisms. More attention and studies are still needed in this interesting field in the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiajie Li
- Department of Histology and Embryology, Medical School of Nantong University, Nantong, China
| | - Yan Wang
- Department of Histology and Embryology, Medical School of Nantong University, Nantong, China
| | - Riyun Yang
- Department of Histology and Embryology, Medical School of Nantong University, Nantong, China
| | - Wenjun Ma
- Department of Histology and Embryology, Medical School of Nantong University, Nantong, China
| | - JunGuo Yan
- Department of Histology and Embryology, Medical School of Nantong University, Nantong, China
| | - Yi Li
- Department of Histology and Embryology, Medical School of Nantong University, Nantong, China
| | - Gang Chen
- Center for Basic Medical Research, Medical School of Nantong University, Co-innovation Center of Neuroregeneration, Nantong, Jiangsu, China
- Department of Anesthesiology, Affiliated Hospital of Nantong University, Nantong, Jiangsu, China
| | - Jingying Pan
- Department of Histology and Embryology, Medical School of Nantong University, Nantong, China
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9
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Sun XY, Yu XL, Zhu J, Li LJ, Zhang L, Huang YR, Liu DQ, Ji M, Sun X, Zhang LX, Zhou WW, Zhang D, Jiao J, Liu RT. Fc effector of anti-Aβ antibody induces synapse loss and cognitive deficits in Alzheimer's disease-like mouse model. Signal Transduct Target Ther 2023; 8:30. [PMID: 36693826 PMCID: PMC9873795 DOI: 10.1038/s41392-022-01273-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2022] [Revised: 11/10/2022] [Accepted: 11/16/2022] [Indexed: 01/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Passive immunotherapy is one of the most promising interventions for Alzheimer's disease (AD). However, almost all immune-modulating strategies fail in clinical trials with unclear causes although they attenuate neuropathology and cognitive deficits in AD animal models. Here, we showed that Aβ-targeting antibodies including their lgG1 and lgG4 subtypes induced microglial engulfment of neuronal synapses by activating CR3 or FcγRIIb via the complex of Aβ, antibody, and complement. Notably, anti-Aβ antibodies without Fc fragment, or with blockage of CR3 or FcγRIIb, did not exert these adverse effects. Consistently, Aβ-targeting antibodies, but not their Fab fragments, significantly induced acute microglial synapse removal and rapidly exacerbated cognitive deficits and neuroinflammation in APP/PS1 mice post-treatment, whereas the memory impairments in mice were gradually rescued thereafter. Since the recovery rate of synapses in humans is much lower than that in mice, our findings may clarify the variances in the preclinical and clinical studies assessing AD immunotherapies. Therefore, Aβ-targeting antibodies lack of Fc fragment, or with reduced Fc effector function, may not induce microglial synaptic pruning, providing a safer and more efficient therapeutic alternative for passive immunotherapy for AD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiao-ying Sun
- grid.9227.e0000000119573309State Key Laboratory of Biochemical Engineering, Institute of Process Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190 China ,grid.410726.60000 0004 1797 8419School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Science, Beijing, 100049 China
| | - Xiao-lin Yu
- grid.9227.e0000000119573309State Key Laboratory of Biochemical Engineering, Institute of Process Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190 China ,grid.9227.e0000000119573309Innovation Academy for Green Manufacture Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190 China
| | - Jie Zhu
- grid.9227.e0000000119573309State Key Laboratory of Biochemical Engineering, Institute of Process Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190 China ,grid.410726.60000 0004 1797 8419School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Science, Beijing, 100049 China
| | - Ling-jie Li
- grid.9227.e0000000119573309State Key Laboratory of Biochemical Engineering, Institute of Process Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190 China ,grid.410726.60000 0004 1797 8419School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Science, Beijing, 100049 China
| | - Lun Zhang
- grid.9227.e0000000119573309State Key Laboratory of Biochemical Engineering, Institute of Process Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190 China ,grid.9227.e0000000119573309Innovation Academy for Green Manufacture Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190 China
| | - Ya-ru Huang
- grid.9227.e0000000119573309State Key Laboratory of Biochemical Engineering, Institute of Process Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190 China ,grid.410726.60000 0004 1797 8419School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Science, Beijing, 100049 China
| | - Dong-qun Liu
- grid.9227.e0000000119573309State Key Laboratory of Biochemical Engineering, Institute of Process Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190 China
| | - Mei Ji
- grid.9227.e0000000119573309State Key Laboratory of Biochemical Engineering, Institute of Process Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190 China
| | - Xun Sun
- grid.9227.e0000000119573309State Key Laboratory of Biochemical Engineering, Institute of Process Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190 China
| | - Ling-xiao Zhang
- grid.9227.e0000000119573309State Key Laboratory of Biochemical Engineering, Institute of Process Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190 China
| | - Wei-wei Zhou
- grid.9227.e0000000119573309State Key Laboratory of Biochemical Engineering, Institute of Process Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190 China ,grid.9227.e0000000119573309Innovation Academy for Green Manufacture Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190 China
| | - Dongming Zhang
- grid.9227.e0000000119573309State Key Laboratory of Stem Cell and Reproductive Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101 China
| | - Jianwei Jiao
- grid.9227.e0000000119573309State Key Laboratory of Stem Cell and Reproductive Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101 China
| | - Rui-tian Liu
- grid.9227.e0000000119573309State Key Laboratory of Biochemical Engineering, Institute of Process Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190 China ,grid.9227.e0000000119573309Innovation Academy for Green Manufacture Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190 China
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10
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Dickson E, Fryklund C, Soylu-Kucharz R, Sjögren M, Stenkula KG, Björkqvist M. Altered Adipocyte Cell Size Distribution Prior to Weight Loss in the R6/2 Model of Huntington's Disease. J Huntingtons Dis 2023; 12:253-266. [PMID: 37718850 DOI: 10.3233/jhd-230587] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 09/19/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Metabolic alterations contribute to disease onset and prognosis of Huntington's disease (HD). Weight loss in the R6/2 mouse model of HD is a consistent feature, with onset in mid-to-late stage of disease. OBJECTIVE In the present study, we aimed to investigate molecular and functional changes in white adipose tissue (WAT) that occur at weight loss in R6/2 mice. We further elaborated on the effect of leptin-deficiency and early obesity in R6/2 mice. METHODS We performed analyses at 12 weeks of age; a time point that coincides with the start of weight loss in our R6/2 mouse colony. Gonadal (visceral) and inguinal (subcutaneous) WAT depot weights were monitored, as well as adipocyte size distribution. Response to isoprenaline-stimulated glycerol release and insulin-stimulated glucose uptake in adipocytes from gonadal WAT was assessed. RESULTS In R6/2 mice, WAT depot weights were comparable to wildtype (WT) mice, and the response to insulin and isoprenaline in gonadal adipocytes was unaltered. Leptin-deficient R6/2 mice exhibited distinct changes compared to leptin-deficient WT mice. At 12 weeks, female leptin-deficient R6/2 mice had reduced body weight accompanied by an increased proportion of smaller adipocytes, while in contrast; male mice displayed a shift towards larger adipocyte sizes without a significant body weight reduction at this timepoint. CONCLUSIONS We here show that there are early sex-specific changes in adipocyte cell size distribution in WAT of R6/2 mice and leptin-deficient R6/2 mice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elna Dickson
- Brain Disease Biomarker Unit, Wallenberg Neuroscience Center, Department of Experimental Medical Science, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
| | - Claes Fryklund
- Glucose Transport and Protein Trafficking, Department of Experimental Medical Science, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
| | - Rana Soylu-Kucharz
- Brain Disease Biomarker Unit, Wallenberg Neuroscience Center, Department of Experimental Medical Science, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
| | - Marie Sjögren
- Brain Disease Biomarker Unit, Wallenberg Neuroscience Center, Department of Experimental Medical Science, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
| | - Karin G Stenkula
- Glucose Transport and Protein Trafficking, Department of Experimental Medical Science, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
| | - Maria Björkqvist
- Brain Disease Biomarker Unit, Wallenberg Neuroscience Center, Department of Experimental Medical Science, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
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11
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Evidences for Mutant Huntingtin Inducing Musculoskeletal and Brain Growth Impairments via Disturbing Testosterone Biosynthesis in Male Huntington Disease Animals. Cells 2022; 11:cells11233779. [PMID: 36497038 PMCID: PMC9737670 DOI: 10.3390/cells11233779] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2022] [Revised: 11/11/2022] [Accepted: 11/20/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Body weight (BW) loss and reduced body mass index (BMI) are the most common peripheral alterations in Huntington disease (HD) and have been found in HD mutation carriers and HD animal models before the manifestation of neurological symptoms. This suggests that, at least in the early disease stage, these changes could be due to abnormal tissue growth rather than tissue atrophy. Moreover, BW and BMI are reported to be more affected in males than females in HD animal models and patients. Here, we confirmed sex-dependent growth alterations in the BACHD rat model for HD and investigated the associated contributing factors. Our results showed growth abnormalities along with decreased plasma testosterone and insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) levels only in males. Moreover, we demonstrated correlations between growth parameters, IGF-1, and testosterone. Our analyses further revealed an aberrant transcription of testosterone biosynthesis-related genes in the testes of BACHD rats with undisturbed luteinizing hormone (LH)/cAMP/PKA signaling, which plays a key role in regulating the transcription process of some of these genes. In line with the findings in BACHD rats, analyses in the R6/2 mouse model of HD showed similar results. Our findings support the view that mutant huntingtin may induce abnormal growth in males via the dysregulation of gene transcription in the testis, which in turn can affect testosterone biosynthesis.
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12
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Whittaker DS, Tamai TK, Bains RS, Villanueva SAM, Luk SHC, Dell’Angelica D, Block GD, Ghiani CA, Colwell CS. Dietary ketosis improves circadian dysfunction as well as motor symptoms in the BACHD mouse model of Huntington's disease. Front Nutr 2022; 9:1034743. [PMID: 36407529 PMCID: PMC9669764 DOI: 10.3389/fnut.2022.1034743] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/02/2022] [Accepted: 10/03/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Disturbances in sleep/wake cycles are common among patients with neurodegenerative diseases including Huntington's disease (HD) and represent an appealing target for chrono-nutrition-based interventions. In the present work, we sought to determine whether a low-carbohydrate, high-fat diet would ameliorate the symptoms and delay disease progression in the BACHD mouse model of HD. Adult WT and BACHD male mice were fed a normal or a ketogenic diet (KD) for 3 months. The KD evoked a robust rhythm in serum levels of β-hydroxybutyrate and dramatic changes in the microbiome of male WT and BACHD mice. NanoString analysis revealed transcriptional changes driven by the KD in the striatum of both WT and BACHD mice. Disturbances in sleep/wake cycles have been reported in mouse models of HD and are common among HD patients. Having established that the KD had effects on both the WT and mutant mice, we examined its impact on sleep/wake cycles. KD increased daytime sleep and improved the timing of sleep onset, while other sleep parameters were not altered. In addition, KD improved activity rhythms, including rhythmic power, and reduced inappropriate daytime activity and onset variability. Importantly, KD improved motor performance on the rotarod and challenging beam tests. It is worth emphasizing that HD is a genetically caused disease with no known cure. Life-style changes that not only improve the quality of life but also delay disease progression for HD patients are greatly needed. Our study demonstrates the therapeutic potential of diet-based treatment strategies in a pre-clinical model of HD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel S. Whittaker
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States
| | - T. Katherine Tamai
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States
| | - Raj S. Bains
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States
| | - Sophia Anne Marie Villanueva
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States
| | - Shu Hon Christopher Luk
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States
| | - Derek Dell’Angelica
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States
| | - Gene D. Block
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States
| | - Cristina A. Ghiani
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States
| | - Christopher S. Colwell
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States
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13
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Protective role of IGF-1 and GLP-1 signaling activation in neurological dysfunctions. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2022; 142:104896. [PMID: 36191807 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2022.104896] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2022] [Revised: 09/09/2022] [Accepted: 09/26/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
Insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1), a pleiotropic polypeptide, plays an essential role in CNS development and maturation. Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) is an endogenous incretin hormone that regulates blood glucose levels and fatty acid oxidation in the brain. GLP-1 also exhibits similar functions and growth factor-like properties to IGF-1, which is likely how it exerts its neuroprotective effects. Recent preclinical and clinical evidence indicate that IGF-1 and GLP-1, apart from regulating growth and development, prevent neuronal death mediated by amyloidogenesis, cerebral glucose deprivation, neuroinflammation and apoptosis through modulation of PI3/Akt kinase, mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK/ERK). IGF-1 resistance and GLP-1 deficiency impair protective cellular signaling mechanisms, contributing to the progression of neurodegenerative diseases. Over the past decades, IGF-1 and GLP-1 have emerged as an essential component of the neuronal system and as potential therapeutic targets for several neurodegenerative and neuropsychiatric dysfunctions. There is substantial evidence that IGF-1 and GLP-1 analogues penetrate the blood-brain barrier (BBB) and exhibit neuroprotective functions, including synaptic formation, neuronal plasticity, protein synthesis, and autophagy. Conclusively, this review represents the therapeutic potential of IGF-1 and GLP-1 signaling target activators in ameliorating neurological disorders.
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14
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Neueder A, Kojer K, Hering T, Lavery DJ, Chen J, Birth N, Hallitsch J, Trautmann S, Parker J, Flower M, Sethi H, Haider S, Lee JM, Tabrizi SJ, Orth M. Abnormal molecular signatures of inflammation, energy metabolism, and vesicle biology in human Huntington disease peripheral tissues. Genome Biol 2022; 23:189. [PMID: 36071529 PMCID: PMC9450392 DOI: 10.1186/s13059-022-02752-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2022] [Accepted: 08/18/2022] [Indexed: 01/15/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND A major challenge in neurodegenerative diseases concerns identifying biological disease signatures that track with disease progression or respond to an intervention. Several clinical trials in Huntington disease (HD), an inherited, progressive neurodegenerative disease, are currently ongoing. Therefore, we examine whether peripheral tissues can serve as a source of readily accessible biological signatures at the RNA and protein level in HD patients. RESULTS We generate large, high-quality human datasets from skeletal muscle, skin and adipose tissue to probe molecular changes in human premanifest and early manifest HD patients-those most likely involved in clinical trials. The analysis of the transcriptomics and proteomics data shows robust, stage-dependent dysregulation. Gene ontology analysis confirms the involvement of inflammation and energy metabolism in peripheral HD pathogenesis. Furthermore, we observe changes in the homeostasis of extracellular vesicles, where we find consistent changes of genes and proteins involved in this process. In-depth single nucleotide polymorphism data across the HTT gene are derived from the generated primary cell lines. CONCLUSIONS Our 'omics data document the involvement of inflammation, energy metabolism, and extracellular vesicle homeostasis. This demonstrates the potential to identify biological signatures from peripheral tissues in HD suitable as biomarkers in clinical trials. The generated data, complemented by the primary cell lines established from peripheral tissues, and a large panel of iPSC lines that can serve as human models of HD are a valuable and unique resource to advance the current understanding of molecular mechanisms driving HD pathogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andreas Neueder
- Department of Neurology, Ulm University, 89081, Ulm, Germany
| | - Kerstin Kojer
- Department of Neurology, Ulm University, 89081, Ulm, Germany
| | - Tanja Hering
- Department of Neurology, Ulm University, 89081, Ulm, Germany
| | - Daniel J Lavery
- CHDI Foundation, Princeton, NJ, 08540, USA
- Loulou Foundation, Orphan Disease Center, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Jian Chen
- CHDI Foundation, Princeton, NJ, 08540, USA
| | - Nathalie Birth
- Department of Neurology, Ulm University, 89081, Ulm, Germany
| | | | - Sonja Trautmann
- Department of Neurology, Ulm University, 89081, Ulm, Germany
| | - Jennifer Parker
- UCL Huntington's Disease Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology and National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Michael Flower
- UCL Huntington's Disease Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology and National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Huma Sethi
- UCL Huntington's Disease Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology and National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Salman Haider
- UCL Huntington's Disease Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology and National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Jong-Min Lee
- Center for Genomic Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, 02114, USA
- Department of Neurology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
| | - Sarah J Tabrizi
- UCL Huntington's Disease Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology and National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Michael Orth
- Department of Neurology, Ulm University, 89081, Ulm, Germany.
- Swiss Huntington Centre, Neurozentrum, Siloah AG, Worbstr. 312, 3073, Gümligen, Switzerland.
- University Hospital of Old Age Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Bern University, Bern, Switzerland.
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15
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Chemical interference with DSIF complex formation lowers synthesis of mutant huntingtin gene products and curtails mutant phenotypes. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2022; 119:e2204779119. [PMID: 35914128 PMCID: PMC9371670 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2204779119] [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: 02/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Earlier work has shown that siRNA-mediated reduction of the SUPT4H or SUPT5H proteins, which interact to form the DSIF complex and facilitate transcript elongation by RNA polymerase II (RNAPII), can decrease expression of mutant gene alleles containing nucleotide repeat expansions differentially. Using luminescence and fluorescence assays, we identified chemical compounds that interfere with the SUPT4H-SUPT5H interaction and then investigated their effects on synthesis of mRNA and protein encoded by mutant alleles containing repeat expansions in the huntingtin gene (HTT), which causes the inherited neurodegenerative disorder, Huntington's Disease (HD). Here we report that such chemical interference can differentially affect expression of HTT mutant alleles, and that a prototypical chemical, 6-azauridine (6-AZA), that targets the SUPT4H-SUPT5H interaction can modify the biological response to mutant HTT gene expression. Selective and dose-dependent effects of 6-AZA on expression of HTT alleles containing nucleotide repeat expansions were seen in multiple types of cells cultured in vitro, and in a Drosophila melanogaster animal model for HD. Lowering of mutant HD protein and mitigation of the Drosophila "rough eye" phenotype associated with degeneration of photoreceptor neurons in vivo were observed. Our findings indicate that chemical interference with DSIF complex formation can decrease biochemical and phenotypic effects of nucleotide repeat expansions.
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16
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Skeletal Muscle Pathogenesis in Polyglutamine Diseases. Cells 2022; 11:cells11132105. [PMID: 35805189 PMCID: PMC9265456 DOI: 10.3390/cells11132105] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/19/2022] [Revised: 06/24/2022] [Accepted: 06/28/2022] [Indexed: 01/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Polyglutamine diseases are characterized by selective dysfunction and degeneration of specific types of neurons in the central nervous system. In addition, nonneuronal cells can also be affected as a consequence of primary degeneration or due to neuronal dysfunction. Skeletal muscle is a primary site of toxicity of polyglutamine-expanded androgen receptor, but it is also affected in other polyglutamine diseases, more likely due to neuronal dysfunction and death. Nonetheless, pathological processes occurring in skeletal muscle atrophy impact the entire body metabolism, thus actively contributing to the inexorable progression towards the late and final stages of disease. Skeletal muscle atrophy is well recapitulated in animal models of polyglutamine disease. In this review, we discuss the impact and relevance of skeletal muscle in patients affected by polyglutamine diseases and we review evidence obtained in animal models and patient-derived cells modeling skeletal muscle.
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17
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Fanalli SL, da Silva BPM, Gomes JD, de Almeida VV, Freitas FAO, Moreira GCM, Silva-Vignato B, Afonso J, Reecy J, Koltes J, Koltes D, de Almeida Regitano LC, Garrick DJ, de Carvalho Balieiro JC, Meira AN, Freitas L, Coutinho LL, Fukumasu H, Mourão GB, de Alencar SM, Luchiari Filho A, Cesar ASM. Differential Gene Expression Associated with Soybean Oil Level in the Diet of Pigs. Animals (Basel) 2022; 12:ani12131632. [PMID: 35804531 PMCID: PMC9265114 DOI: 10.3390/ani12131632] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2022] [Revised: 06/15/2022] [Accepted: 06/20/2022] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Simple Summary Findings from the analysis of the pig transcriptome may help to better understand the biological mechanisms that can be modulated by the diet. Thus, the aim of this study was to identify the differentially expressed genes from the skeletal muscle and liver samples of pigs fed diets with two different levels of soybean oil (1.5 or 3%). The FA profile in the tissues was modified by the diet mainly related to monounsaturated (MUFA) and polyunsaturated (PUFA). This nutrigenomics study verified the effect of different levels of soybean oil in the pig diet on the transcriptome profile of skeletal muscle and liver, where the higher level of soybean oil added to the diet led to a higher expression of genes targeting biological processes related to lipid oxidation and consequently to metabolic diseases and inflammation. Abstract The aim of this study was to identify the differentially expressed genes (DEG) from the skeletal muscle and liver samples of animal models for metabolic diseases in humans. To perform the study, the fatty acid (FA) profile and RNA sequencing (RNA-Seq) data of 35 samples of liver tissue (SOY1.5, n = 17 and SOY3.0, n = 18) and 36 samples of skeletal muscle (SOY1.5, n = 18 and SOY3.0, n = 18) of Large White pigs were analyzed. The FA profile of the tissues was modified by the diet, mainly those related to monounsaturated (MUFA) and polyunsaturated (PUFA) FA. The skeletal muscle transcriptome analysis revealed 45 DEG (FDR 10%), and the functional enrichment analysis identified network maps related to inflammation, immune processes, and pathways associated with oxidative stress, type 2 diabetes, and metabolic dysfunction. For the liver tissue, the transcriptome profile analysis revealed 281 DEG, which participate in network maps related to neurodegenerative diseases. With this nutrigenomics study, we verified that different levels of soybean oil in the pig diet, an animal model for metabolic diseases in humans, affected the transcriptome profile of skeletal muscle and liver tissue. These findings may help to better understand the biological mechanisms that can be modulated by the diet.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simara Larissa Fanalli
- Faculty of Animal Science and Food Engineering, University of São Paulo, Pirassununga 13635-900, SP, Brazil; (S.L.F.); (B.P.M.d.S.); (H.F.)
| | - Bruna Pereira Martins da Silva
- Faculty of Animal Science and Food Engineering, University of São Paulo, Pirassununga 13635-900, SP, Brazil; (S.L.F.); (B.P.M.d.S.); (H.F.)
| | - Julia Dezen Gomes
- Luiz de Queiroz College of Agriculture, University of São Paulo, Piracicaba 13418-900, SP, Brazil; (J.D.G.); (F.A.O.F.); (B.S.-V.); (A.N.M.); (L.L.C.); (G.B.M.); (S.M.d.A.); (A.L.F.)
| | - Vivian Vezzoni de Almeida
- College of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science, Federal University of Goiás, Goiânia 74690-900, GO, Brazil;
| | - Felipe André Oliveira Freitas
- Luiz de Queiroz College of Agriculture, University of São Paulo, Piracicaba 13418-900, SP, Brazil; (J.D.G.); (F.A.O.F.); (B.S.-V.); (A.N.M.); (L.L.C.); (G.B.M.); (S.M.d.A.); (A.L.F.)
| | | | - Bárbara Silva-Vignato
- Luiz de Queiroz College of Agriculture, University of São Paulo, Piracicaba 13418-900, SP, Brazil; (J.D.G.); (F.A.O.F.); (B.S.-V.); (A.N.M.); (L.L.C.); (G.B.M.); (S.M.d.A.); (A.L.F.)
| | - Juliana Afonso
- Embrapa Pecuária Sudeste, São Carlos 70770-901, SP, Brazil; (J.A.); (L.C.d.A.R.)
| | - James Reecy
- College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Iowa State University, Ames, IA 50011, USA; (J.R.); (J.K.); (D.K.)
| | - James Koltes
- College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Iowa State University, Ames, IA 50011, USA; (J.R.); (J.K.); (D.K.)
| | - Dawn Koltes
- College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Iowa State University, Ames, IA 50011, USA; (J.R.); (J.K.); (D.K.)
| | | | - Dorian John Garrick
- AL Rae Centre for Genetics and Breeding, Massey University, Hamilton 3214, New Zealand;
| | | | - Ariana Nascimento Meira
- Luiz de Queiroz College of Agriculture, University of São Paulo, Piracicaba 13418-900, SP, Brazil; (J.D.G.); (F.A.O.F.); (B.S.-V.); (A.N.M.); (L.L.C.); (G.B.M.); (S.M.d.A.); (A.L.F.)
| | - Luciana Freitas
- DB Genética de Suínos, Patos de Minas 38706-000, MG, Brazil;
| | - Luiz Lehmann Coutinho
- Luiz de Queiroz College of Agriculture, University of São Paulo, Piracicaba 13418-900, SP, Brazil; (J.D.G.); (F.A.O.F.); (B.S.-V.); (A.N.M.); (L.L.C.); (G.B.M.); (S.M.d.A.); (A.L.F.)
| | - Heidge Fukumasu
- Faculty of Animal Science and Food Engineering, University of São Paulo, Pirassununga 13635-900, SP, Brazil; (S.L.F.); (B.P.M.d.S.); (H.F.)
| | - Gerson Barreto Mourão
- Luiz de Queiroz College of Agriculture, University of São Paulo, Piracicaba 13418-900, SP, Brazil; (J.D.G.); (F.A.O.F.); (B.S.-V.); (A.N.M.); (L.L.C.); (G.B.M.); (S.M.d.A.); (A.L.F.)
| | - Severino Matias de Alencar
- Luiz de Queiroz College of Agriculture, University of São Paulo, Piracicaba 13418-900, SP, Brazil; (J.D.G.); (F.A.O.F.); (B.S.-V.); (A.N.M.); (L.L.C.); (G.B.M.); (S.M.d.A.); (A.L.F.)
| | - Albino Luchiari Filho
- Luiz de Queiroz College of Agriculture, University of São Paulo, Piracicaba 13418-900, SP, Brazil; (J.D.G.); (F.A.O.F.); (B.S.-V.); (A.N.M.); (L.L.C.); (G.B.M.); (S.M.d.A.); (A.L.F.)
| | - Aline Silva Mello Cesar
- Faculty of Animal Science and Food Engineering, University of São Paulo, Pirassununga 13635-900, SP, Brazil; (S.L.F.); (B.P.M.d.S.); (H.F.)
- Luiz de Queiroz College of Agriculture, University of São Paulo, Piracicaba 13418-900, SP, Brazil; (J.D.G.); (F.A.O.F.); (B.S.-V.); (A.N.M.); (L.L.C.); (G.B.M.); (S.M.d.A.); (A.L.F.)
- Correspondence:
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18
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Ferguson MW, Kennedy CJ, Palpagama TH, Waldvogel HJ, Faull RLM, Kwakowsky A. Current and Possible Future Therapeutic Options for Huntington’s Disease. J Cent Nerv Syst Dis 2022; 14:11795735221092517. [PMID: 35615642 PMCID: PMC9125092 DOI: 10.1177/11795735221092517] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2021] [Accepted: 03/21/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Huntington’s disease (HD) is an autosomal neurodegenerative disease that is characterized by an excessive number of CAG trinucleotide repeats within the huntingtin gene ( HTT). HD patients can present with a variety of symptoms including chorea, behavioural and psychiatric abnormalities and cognitive decline. Each patient has a unique combination of symptoms, and although these can be managed using a range of medications and non-drug treatments there is currently no cure for the disease. Current therapies prescribed for HD can be categorized by the symptom they treat. These categories include chorea medication, antipsychotic medication, antidepressants, mood stabilizing medication as well as non-drug therapies. Fortunately, there are also many new HD therapeutics currently undergoing clinical trials that target the disease at its origin; lowering the levels of mutant huntingtin protein (mHTT). Currently, much attention is being directed to antisense oligonucleotide (ASO) therapies, which bind to pre-RNA or mRNA and can alter protein expression via RNA degradation, blocking translation or splice modulation. Other potential therapies in clinical development include RNA interference (RNAi) therapies, RNA targeting small molecule therapies, stem cell therapies, antibody therapies, non-RNA targeting small molecule therapies and neuroinflammation targeted therapies. Potential therapies in pre-clinical development include Zinc-Finger Protein (ZFP) therapies, transcription activator-like effector nuclease (TALEN) therapies and clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/CRISPR-associated system (Cas) therapies. This comprehensive review aims to discuss the efficacy of current HD treatments and explore the clinical trial progress of emerging potential HD therapeutics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mackenzie W. Ferguson
- Centre for Brain Research, Department of Anatomy and Medical Imaging, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Connor J. Kennedy
- Centre for Brain Research, Department of Anatomy and Medical Imaging, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - 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
- Pharmacology and Therapeutics, School of Medicine, Galway Neuroscience Centre, National University of Ireland Galway, Galway, Ireland
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19
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Mollasalehi N, Francois-Moutal L, Porciani D, Burke DH, Khanna M. Aptamers Targeting Hallmark Proteins of Neurodegeneration. Nucleic Acid Ther 2022; 32:235-250. [PMID: 35452303 DOI: 10.1089/nat.2021.0091] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Neurodegeneration is a progressive deterioration of neural structures leading to cognitive or motor impairment of the affected patient. There is still no effective therapy for any of the most common neurodegenerative diseases (NDs) such as Alzheimer's or Parkinson's disease. Although NDs exhibit distinct clinical characteristics, many are characterized by the accumulation of misfolded proteins or peptide fragments in the brain and/or spinal cord. The presence of similar inclusion bodies in patients with diverse NDs provides a rationale for developing therapies directed at overlapping disease mechanisms. A novel targeting strategy involves the use of aptamers for therapeutic development. Aptamers are short nucleic acid ligands able to recognize molecular targets with high specificity and high affinity. Despite the fact that several academic groups have shown that aptamers have the potential to be used in therapeutic and diagnostic applications, their clinical translation is still limited. In this study, we describe aptamers that have been developed against proteins relevant to NDs, including prion protein and amyloid beta (Aβ), cell surface receptors and other cytoplasmic proteins. This review also describes advances in the application of these aptamers in imaging, protein detection, and protein quantification, and it provides insights about their accelerated clinical use for disease diagnosis and therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Niloufar Mollasalehi
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, USA.,Center for Innovation in Brain Science, Tucson, Arizona, USA
| | - Liberty Francois-Moutal
- Center for Innovation in Brain Science, Tucson, Arizona, USA.,Department of Pharmacology, College of Medicine, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, USA
| | - David Porciani
- Department of Molecular Microbiology & Immunology, School of Medicine, University of Missouri-Columbia, Columbia, Missouri, USA.,MU Bond Life Sciences Center, University of Missouri-Columbia, Columbia, Missouri, USA
| | - Donald H Burke
- Department of Molecular Microbiology & Immunology, School of Medicine, University of Missouri-Columbia, Columbia, Missouri, USA.,MU Bond Life Sciences Center, University of Missouri-Columbia, Columbia, Missouri, USA
| | - May Khanna
- Center for Innovation in Brain Science, Tucson, Arizona, USA.,Department of Pharmacology, College of Medicine, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, USA
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20
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Environmental stimulation in Huntington disease patients and animal models. Neurobiol Dis 2022; 171:105725. [DOI: 10.1016/j.nbd.2022.105725] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2021] [Revised: 04/03/2022] [Accepted: 04/08/2022] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
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21
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Greco TM, Secker C, Ramos ES, Federspiel JD, Liu JP, Perez AM, Al-Ramahi I, Cantle JP, Carroll JB, Botas J, Zeitlin SO, Wanker EE, Cristea IM. Dynamics of huntingtin protein interactions in the striatum identifies candidate modifiers of Huntington disease. Cell Syst 2022; 13:304-320.e5. [PMID: 35148841 PMCID: PMC9317655 DOI: 10.1016/j.cels.2022.01.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2021] [Revised: 11/18/2021] [Accepted: 01/24/2022] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Huntington disease (HD) is a monogenic neurodegenerative disorder with one causative gene, huntingtin (HTT). Yet, HD pathobiology is multifactorial, suggesting that cellular factors influence disease progression. Here, we define HTT protein-protein interactions (PPIs) perturbed by the mutant protein with expanded polyglutamine in the mouse striatum, a brain region with selective HD vulnerability. Using metabolically labeled tissues and immunoaffinity purification-mass spectrometry, we establish that polyglutamine-dependent modulation of HTT PPI abundances and relative stability starts at an early stage of pathogenesis in a Q140 HD mouse model. We identify direct and indirect PPIs that are also genetic disease modifiers using in-cell two-hybrid and behavioral assays in HD human cell and Drosophila models, respectively. Validated, disease-relevant mHTT-dependent interactions encompass mediators of synaptic neurotransmission (SNAREs and glutamate receptors) and lysosomal acidification (V-ATPase). Our study provides a resource for understanding mHTT-dependent dysfunction in cortico-striatal cellular networks, partly through impaired synaptic communication and endosomal-lysosomal system. A record of this paper's Transparent Peer Review process is included in the supplemental information.
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Affiliation(s)
- Todd M Greco
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Washington Road, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Christopher Secker
- Neuroproteomics, Max Delbrück Centre for Molecular Medicine, Berlin, Germany
| | - Eduardo Silva Ramos
- Neuroproteomics, Max Delbrück Centre for Molecular Medicine, Berlin, Germany
| | - Joel D Federspiel
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Washington Road, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Jeh-Ping Liu
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Virginia School of Medicine, Charlottesville, VA, USA
| | - Alma M Perez
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Houston, TX, USA; Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Ismael Al-Ramahi
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Houston, TX, USA; Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Jeffrey P Cantle
- Department of Psychology, Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA, USA
| | - Jeffrey B Carroll
- Department of Psychology, Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA, USA
| | - Juan Botas
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Houston, TX, USA; Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Scott O Zeitlin
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Virginia School of Medicine, Charlottesville, VA, USA
| | - Erich E Wanker
- Neuroproteomics, Max Delbrück Centre for Molecular Medicine, Berlin, Germany
| | - Ileana M Cristea
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Washington Road, Princeton, NJ, USA.
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22
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Ciancia M, Rataj-Baniowska M, Zinter N, Baldassarro VA, Fraulob V, Charles AL, Alvarez R, Muramatsu SI, de Lera AR, Geny B, Dollé P, Niewiadomska-Cimicka A, Krezel W. Retinoic acid receptor beta protects striatopallidal medium spiny neurons from mitochondrial dysfunction and neurodegeneration. Prog Neurobiol 2022; 212:102246. [DOI: 10.1016/j.pneurobio.2022.102246] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2021] [Revised: 12/07/2021] [Accepted: 02/04/2022] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
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23
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Kuijper EC, Toonen LJA, Overzier M, Tsonaka R, Hettne K, Roos M, van Roon-Mom WMC, Mina E. Huntington Disease Gene Expression Signatures in Blood Compared to Brain of YAC128 Mice as Candidates for Monitoring of Pathology. Mol Neurobiol 2022; 59:2532-2551. [PMID: 35091961 DOI: 10.1007/s12035-021-02680-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2021] [Accepted: 12/03/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
While the genetic cause of Huntington disease (HD) is known since 1993, still no cure exists. Therapeutic development would benefit from a method to monitor disease progression and treatment efficacy, ideally using blood biomarkers. Previously, HD-specific signatures were identified in human blood representing signatures in human brain, showing biomarker potential. Since drug candidates are generally first screened in rodent models, we aimed to identify HD signatures in blood and brain of YAC128 HD mice and compare these with previously identified human signatures. RNA sequencing was performed on blood withdrawn at two time points and four brain regions from YAC128 and control mice. Weighted gene co-expression network analysis was used to identify clusters of co-expressed genes (modules) associated with the HD genotype. These HD-associated modules were annotated via text-mining to determine the biological processes they represented. Subsequently, the processes from mouse blood were compared with mouse brain, showing substantial overlap, including protein modification, cell cycle, RNA splicing, nuclear transport, and vesicle-mediated transport. Moreover, the disease-associated processes shared between mouse blood and brain were highly comparable to those previously identified in human blood and brain. In addition, we identified HD blood-specific pathology, confirming previous findings for peripheral pathology in blood. Finally, we identified hub genes for HD-associated blood modules and proposed a strategy for gene selection for development of a disease progression monitoring panel.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elsa C Kuijper
- Department of Human Genetics, Leiden University Medical Center, 2333, ZC, Leiden, The Netherlands.
| | - Lodewijk J A Toonen
- Department of Human Genetics, Leiden University Medical Center, 2333, ZC, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Maurice Overzier
- Department of Human Genetics, Leiden University Medical Center, 2333, ZC, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Roula Tsonaka
- Department of Biomedical Data Sciences, Leiden University Medical Center, 2333, ZC, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Kristina Hettne
- Department of Human Genetics, Leiden University Medical Center, 2333, ZC, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Marco Roos
- Department of Human Genetics, Leiden University Medical Center, 2333, ZC, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Willeke M C van Roon-Mom
- Department of Human Genetics, Leiden University Medical Center, 2333, ZC, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Eleni Mina
- Department of Human Genetics, Leiden University Medical Center, 2333, ZC, Leiden, The Netherlands
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24
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Hypothalamic expression of huntingtin causes distinct metabolic changes in Huntington's disease mice. Mol Metab 2022; 57:101439. [PMID: 35007790 PMCID: PMC8814380 DOI: 10.1016/j.molmet.2022.101439] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2021] [Accepted: 01/05/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Objective In Huntington's disease (HD), the disease-causing huntingtin (HTT) protein is ubiquitously expressed and causes both central and peripheral pathology. In clinical HD, a higher body mass index has been associated with slower disease progression, indicating the role of metabolic changes in disease pathogenesis. Underlying mechanisms of metabolic changes in HD remain poorly understood, but recent studies suggest the involvement of hypothalamic dysfunction. The present study aimed to investigate whether modulation of hypothalamic HTT levels would affect metabolic phenotype and disease features in HD using mouse models. Methods We used the R6/2 and BACHD mouse models that express different lengths of mutant HTT to develop lean- and obese phenotypes, respectively. We utilized adeno-associated viral vectors to overexpress either mutant or wild-type HTT in the hypothalamus of R6/2, BACHD, and their wild-type littermates. The metabolic phenotype was assessed by body weight measurements over time and body composition analysis using dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry at the endpoint. R6/2 mice were further characterized using behavioral analyses, including rotarod, nesting-, and hindlimb clasping tests during early- and late-time points of disease progression. Finally, gene expression analysis was performed in R6/2 mice and wild-type littermates in order to assess transcriptional changes in the hypothalamus and adipose tissue. Results Hypothalamic overexpression of mutant HTT induced significant gender-affected body weight gain in all models, including wild-type mice. In R6/2 females, early weight gain shifted to weight loss during the corresponding late stage of disease despite increased fat accumulation. Body weight changes were accompanied by behavioral alterations. During the period of early weight gain, R6/2 mice displayed a comparable locomotor capacity to wild-type mice. When assessing behavior just prior to weight loss onset in R6/2 mice, decreased locomotor performance was observed in R6/2 females with hypothalamic overexpression of mutant HTT. Transcriptional downregulation of beta-3 adrenergic receptor (B3AR), adipose triglyceride lipase (ATGL), and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma (PPARγ) in gonadal white adipose tissue was accompanied by distinct alterations in hypothalamic gene expression profiles in R6/2 females after mutant HTT overexpression. No significant effect on metabolic phenotype in R6/2 was seen in response to wild-type HTT overexpression. Conclusions Taken together, our findings provide further support for the role of HTT in metabolic control via hypothalamic neurocircuits. Understanding the specific central neurocircuits and their peripheral link underlying metabolic imbalance in HD may open up avenues for novel therapeutic interventions. Overexpression of hypothalamic huntingtin affects weight in Huntington's disease mice. Hypothalamic huntingtin expression results in gene expression changes in white fat and the hypothalamus. Hypothalamic huntingtin cannot prevent late-stage weight loss in R6/2 mice.
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25
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Hastings N, Kuan WL, Osborne A, Kotter MRN. Therapeutic Potential of Astrocyte Transplantation. Cell Transplant 2022; 31:9636897221105499. [PMID: 35770772 PMCID: PMC9251977 DOI: 10.1177/09636897221105499] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Cell transplantation is an attractive treatment strategy for a variety of brain disorders, as it promises to replenish lost functions and rejuvenate the brain. In particular, transplantation of astrocytes has come into light recently as a therapy for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS); moreover, grafting of astrocytes also showed positive results in models of other conditions ranging from neurodegenerative diseases of older age to traumatic injury and stroke. Despite clear differences in etiology, disorders such as ALS, Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, and Huntington's diseases, as well as traumatic injury and stroke, converge on a number of underlying astrocytic abnormalities, which include inflammatory changes, mitochondrial damage, calcium signaling disturbance, hemichannel opening, and loss of glutamate transporters. In this review, we examine these convergent pathways leading to astrocyte dysfunction, and explore the existing evidence for a therapeutic potential of transplantation of healthy astrocytes in various models. Existing literature presents a wide variety of methods to generate astrocytes, or relevant precursor cells, for subsequent transplantation, while described outcomes of this type of treatment also differ between studies. We take technical differences between methodologies into account to understand the variability of therapeutic benefits, or lack thereof, at a deeper level. We conclude by discussing some key requirements of an astrocyte graft that would be most suitable for clinical applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nataly Hastings
- Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.,Wellcome-MRC Cambridge Stem Cell Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Wei-Li Kuan
- Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Andrew Osborne
- Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Mark R N Kotter
- Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.,Wellcome-MRC Cambridge Stem Cell Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
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26
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Small molecule splicing modifiers with systemic HTT-lowering activity. Nat Commun 2021; 12:7299. [PMID: 34911927 PMCID: PMC8674292 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-27157-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2021] [Accepted: 10/28/2021] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD) is a hereditary neurodegenerative disorder caused by expansion of cytosine-adenine-guanine (CAG) trinucleotide repeats in the huntingtin (HTT) gene. Consequently, the mutant protein is ubiquitously expressed and drives pathogenesis of HD through a toxic gain-of-function mechanism. Animal models of HD have demonstrated that reducing huntingtin (HTT) protein levels alleviates motor and neuropathological abnormalities. Investigational drugs aim to reduce HTT levels by repressing HTT transcription, stability or translation. These drugs require invasive procedures to reach the central nervous system (CNS) and do not achieve broad CNS distribution. Here, we describe the identification of orally bioavailable small molecules with broad distribution throughout the CNS, which lower HTT expression consistently throughout the CNS and periphery through selective modulation of pre-messenger RNA splicing. These compounds act by promoting the inclusion of a pseudoexon containing a premature termination codon (stop-codon psiExon), leading to HTT mRNA degradation and reduction of HTT levels.
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27
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Picó S, Parras A, Santos-Galindo M, Pose-Utrilla J, Castro M, Fraga E, Hernández IH, Elorza A, Anta H, Wang N, Martí-Sánchez L, Belloc E, Garcia-Esparcia P, Garrido JJ, Ferrer I, Macías-García D, Mir P, Artuch R, Pérez B, Hernández F, Navarro P, López-Sendón JL, Iglesias T, Yang XW, Méndez R, Lucas JJ. CPEB alteration and aberrant transcriptome-polyadenylation lead to a treatable SLC19A3 deficiency in Huntington's disease. Sci Transl Med 2021; 13:eabe7104. [PMID: 34586830 DOI: 10.1126/scitranslmed.abe7104] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
[Figure: see text].
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara Picó
- Center for Molecular Biology "Severo Ochoa" (CBMSO) CSIC/UAM, Madrid, 28049, Spain.,Networking Research Center on Neurodegenerative Diseases (CIBERNED), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, 28031, Spain
| | - Alberto Parras
- Center for Molecular Biology "Severo Ochoa" (CBMSO) CSIC/UAM, Madrid, 28049, Spain.,Networking Research Center on Neurodegenerative Diseases (CIBERNED), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, 28031, Spain
| | - María Santos-Galindo
- Center for Molecular Biology "Severo Ochoa" (CBMSO) CSIC/UAM, Madrid, 28049, Spain.,Networking Research Center on Neurodegenerative Diseases (CIBERNED), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, 28031, Spain
| | - Julia Pose-Utrilla
- Networking Research Center on Neurodegenerative Diseases (CIBERNED), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, 28031, Spain.,Instituto de Investigaciones Biomédicas "Alberto Sols," Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas-Universidad Autónoma de Madrid (CSIC-UAM), Madrid 28029, Spain
| | - Margarita Castro
- Center for Molecular Biology "Severo Ochoa" (CBMSO) CSIC/UAM, Madrid, 28049, Spain.,Centro de Diagnóstico de Enfermedades Moleculares (CEDEM), Madrid 28049, Spain.,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Enfermedades Raras (CIBERER), ISCIII, Madrid,28029, Spain
| | - Enrique Fraga
- Center for Molecular Biology "Severo Ochoa" (CBMSO) CSIC/UAM, Madrid, 28049, Spain.,Networking Research Center on Neurodegenerative Diseases (CIBERNED), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, 28031, Spain
| | - Ivó H Hernández
- Center for Molecular Biology "Severo Ochoa" (CBMSO) CSIC/UAM, Madrid, 28049, Spain.,Networking Research Center on Neurodegenerative Diseases (CIBERNED), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, 28031, Spain.,Facultad de Ciencias, Departamento de Biología (Unidad Docente Fisiología Animal), Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid 28049, Spain
| | - Ainara Elorza
- Center for Molecular Biology "Severo Ochoa" (CBMSO) CSIC/UAM, Madrid, 28049, Spain.,Networking Research Center on Neurodegenerative Diseases (CIBERNED), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, 28031, Spain
| | - Héctor Anta
- Cancer Research Program, Hospital del Mar Medical Research Institute (IMIM), Unidad Asociada I+D+i IMIM-IIBB (CSIC), Barcelona 08003, Spain.,Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB), Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology, Barcelona 08028, Spain
| | - Nan Wang
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Laura Martí-Sánchez
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Enfermedades Raras (CIBERER), ISCIII, Madrid,28029, Spain.,Department of Clinical Biochemistry, Institut de Recerca Sant Joan de Déu, Barcelona 08950, Spain
| | - Eulàlia Belloc
- Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB), Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology, Barcelona 08028, Spain
| | - Paula Garcia-Esparcia
- Networking Research Center on Neurodegenerative Diseases (CIBERNED), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, 28031, Spain.,Institute of Neuropathology, IDIBELL-University Hospital Bellvitge, University of Barcelona, Hospitalet de Llobregat, Barcelona 08908, Spain
| | - Juan J Garrido
- Networking Research Center on Neurodegenerative Diseases (CIBERNED), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, 28031, Spain.,Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Neurobiology, Instituto Cajal (CSIC), Madrid 28002, Spain
| | - Isidro Ferrer
- Networking Research Center on Neurodegenerative Diseases (CIBERNED), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, 28031, Spain.,Institute of Neuropathology, IDIBELL-University Hospital Bellvitge, University of Barcelona, Hospitalet de Llobregat, Barcelona 08908, Spain
| | - Daniel Macías-García
- Networking Research Center on Neurodegenerative Diseases (CIBERNED), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, 28031, Spain.,Unidad de Trastornos del Movimiento, Servicio de Neurología y Neurofisiología Clínica, Instituto de Biomedicina de Sevilla (IBiS), Hospital Universitario Virgen del Rocío/CSIC/Universidad de Sevilla, Sevilla 41013, Spain
| | - Pablo Mir
- Networking Research Center on Neurodegenerative Diseases (CIBERNED), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, 28031, Spain.,Unidad de Trastornos del Movimiento, Servicio de Neurología y Neurofisiología Clínica, Instituto de Biomedicina de Sevilla (IBiS), Hospital Universitario Virgen del Rocío/CSIC/Universidad de Sevilla, Sevilla 41013, Spain
| | - Rafael Artuch
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Enfermedades Raras (CIBERER), ISCIII, Madrid,28029, Spain.,Department of Clinical Biochemistry, Institut de Recerca Sant Joan de Déu, Barcelona 08950, Spain
| | - Belén Pérez
- Center for Molecular Biology "Severo Ochoa" (CBMSO) CSIC/UAM, Madrid, 28049, Spain.,Centro de Diagnóstico de Enfermedades Moleculares (CEDEM), Madrid 28049, Spain.,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Enfermedades Raras (CIBERER), ISCIII, Madrid,28029, Spain
| | - Félix Hernández
- Center for Molecular Biology "Severo Ochoa" (CBMSO) CSIC/UAM, Madrid, 28049, Spain.,Networking Research Center on Neurodegenerative Diseases (CIBERNED), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, 28031, Spain
| | - Pilar Navarro
- Cancer Research Program, Hospital del Mar Medical Research Institute (IMIM), Unidad Asociada I+D+i IMIM-IIBB (CSIC), Barcelona 08003, Spain.,Institute of Biomedical Research of Barcelona (IIBB-CSIC), Barcelona 08036, Spain.,Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona 08036, Spain
| | - José Luis López-Sendón
- Department of Neurology, Hospital Ramón y Cajal, Instituto Ramón y Cajal de Investigación Sanitaria (IRYCIS), Madrid 28034, Spain
| | - Teresa Iglesias
- Networking Research Center on Neurodegenerative Diseases (CIBERNED), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, 28031, Spain.,Instituto de Investigaciones Biomédicas "Alberto Sols," Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas-Universidad Autónoma de Madrid (CSIC-UAM), Madrid 28029, Spain
| | - X William Yang
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Raúl Méndez
- Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB), Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology, Barcelona 08028, Spain.,Institució Catalana de Recerca i Estudis Avançats (ICREA), Barcelona 08010, Spain
| | - José J Lucas
- Center for Molecular Biology "Severo Ochoa" (CBMSO) CSIC/UAM, Madrid, 28049, Spain.,Networking Research Center on Neurodegenerative Diseases (CIBERNED), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, 28031, Spain
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28
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Mouro Pinto R, Arning L, Giordano JV, Razghandi P, Andrew MA, Gillis T, Correia K, Mysore JS, Grote Urtubey DM, Parwez CR, von Hein SM, Clark HB, Nguyen HP, Förster E, Beller A, Jayadaev S, Keene CD, Bird TD, Lucente D, Vonsattel JP, Orr H, Saft C, Petrasch-Parwez E, Wheeler VC. Patterns of CAG repeat instability in the central nervous system and periphery in Huntington's disease and in spinocerebellar ataxia type 1. Hum Mol Genet 2021; 29:2551-2567. [PMID: 32761094 PMCID: PMC7471505 DOI: 10.1093/hmg/ddaa139] [Citation(s) in RCA: 66] [Impact Index Per Article: 22.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2020] [Revised: 06/24/2020] [Accepted: 07/01/2020] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
The expanded HTT CAG repeat causing Huntington’s disease (HD) exhibits somatic expansion proposed to drive the rate of disease onset by eliciting a pathological process that ultimately claims vulnerable cells. To gain insight into somatic expansion in humans, we performed comprehensive quantitative analyses of CAG expansion in ~50 central nervous system (CNS) and peripheral postmortem tissues from seven adult-onset and one juvenile-onset HD individual. We also assessed ATXN1 CAG repeat expansion in brain regions of an individual with a neurologically and pathologically distinct repeat expansion disorder, spinocerebellar ataxia type 1 (SCA1). Our findings reveal similar profiles of tissue instability in all HD individuals, which, notably, were also apparent in the SCA1 individual. CAG expansion was observed in all tissues, but to different degrees, with multiple cortical regions and neostriatum tending to have the greatest instability in the CNS, and liver in the periphery. These patterns indicate different propensities for CAG expansion contributed by disease locus-independent trans-factors and demonstrate that expansion per se is not sufficient to cause cell type or disease-specific pathology. Rather, pathology may reflect distinct toxic processes triggered by different repeat lengths across cell types and diseases. We also find that the HTT CAG length-dependent expansion propensity of an individual is reflected in all tissues and in cerebrospinal fluid. Our data indicate that peripheral cells may be a useful source to measure CAG expansion in biomarker assays for therapeutic efforts, prompting efforts to dissect underlying mechanisms of expansion that may differ between the brain and periphery.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ricardo Mouro Pinto
- Molecular Neurogenetics Unit, Center for Genomic Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA.,Department of Neurology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Larissa Arning
- Department of Human Genetics, Ruhr-University Bochum, Bochum 44780, Germany
| | - James V Giordano
- Molecular Neurogenetics Unit, Center for Genomic Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA
| | - Pedram Razghandi
- Molecular Neurogenetics Unit, Center for Genomic Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA
| | - Marissa A Andrew
- Molecular Neurogenetics Unit, Center for Genomic Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA
| | - Tammy Gillis
- Molecular Neurogenetics Unit, Center for Genomic Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA
| | - Kevin Correia
- Molecular Neurogenetics Unit, Center for Genomic Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA
| | - Jayalakshmi S Mysore
- Molecular Neurogenetics Unit, Center for Genomic Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA
| | | | - Constanze R Parwez
- Department of Neuroanatomy and Molecular Brain Research, Institute of Anatomy, Ruhr-University Bochum, Bochum 44780, Germany
| | - Sarah M von Hein
- Department of Neurology, Huntington Centre NRW, St. Josef-Hospital, Ruhr-University Bochum, Bochum 44791, Germany
| | - H Brent Clark
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, Institute of Translational Neuroscience, University of Minnesota Medical School, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
| | - Huu Phuc Nguyen
- Department of Human Genetics, Ruhr-University Bochum, Bochum 44780, Germany
| | - Eckart Förster
- Department of Neuroanatomy and Molecular Brain Research, Institute of Anatomy, Ruhr-University Bochum, Bochum 44780, Germany
| | - Allison Beller
- Department of Pathology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
| | - Suman Jayadaev
- Department of Neurology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
| | - C Dirk Keene
- Department of Pathology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
| | - Thomas D Bird
- Department of Neurology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA.,Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA.,Geriatrics Research Education and Clinical Center, VA Puget Sound Medical Center, Seattle, WA 98108, USA
| | - Diane Lucente
- Molecular Neurogenetics Unit, Center for Genomic Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA
| | - Jean-Paul Vonsattel
- Department of Pathology and Cell Biology, Columbia University Medical Center and the New York Presbyterian Hospital, New York, NY 10032, USA
| | - Harry Orr
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, Institute of Translational Neuroscience, University of Minnesota Medical School, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
| | - Carsten Saft
- Department of Neurology, Huntington Centre NRW, St. Josef-Hospital, Ruhr-University Bochum, Bochum 44791, Germany
| | - Elisabeth Petrasch-Parwez
- Department of Neuroanatomy and Molecular Brain Research, Institute of Anatomy, Ruhr-University Bochum, Bochum 44780, Germany
| | - Vanessa C Wheeler
- Molecular Neurogenetics Unit, Center for Genomic Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA.,Department of Neurology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
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29
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Mitroshina EV, Savyuk MO, Ponimaskin E, Vedunova MV. Hypoxia-Inducible Factor (HIF) in Ischemic Stroke and Neurodegenerative Disease. Front Cell Dev Biol 2021; 9:703084. [PMID: 34395432 PMCID: PMC8355741 DOI: 10.3389/fcell.2021.703084] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2021] [Accepted: 07/05/2021] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Hypoxia is one of the most common pathological conditions, which can be induced by multiple events, including ischemic injury, trauma, inflammation, tumors, etc. The body's adaptation to hypoxia is a highly important phenomenon in both health and disease. Most cellular responses to hypoxia are associated with a family of transcription factors called hypoxia-inducible factors (HIFs), which induce the expression of a wide range of genes that help cells adapt to a hypoxic environment. Basic mechanisms of adaptation to hypoxia, and particularly HIF functions, have being extensively studied over recent decades, leading to the 2019 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. Based on their pivotal physiological importance, HIFs are attracting increasing attention as a new potential target for treating a large number of hypoxia-associated diseases. Most of the experimental work related to HIFs has focused on roles in the liver and kidney. However, increasing evidence clearly demonstrates that HIF-based responses represent an universal adaptation mechanism in all tissue types, including the central nervous system (CNS). In the CNS, HIFs are critically involved in the regulation of neurogenesis, nerve cell differentiation, and neuronal apoptosis. In this mini-review, we provide an overview of the complex role of HIF-1 in the adaptation of neurons and glia cells to hypoxia, with a focus on its potential involvement into various neuronal pathologies and on its possible role as a novel therapeutic target.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elena V. Mitroshina
- Department of Neurotechnologe, Institute of Biology and Biomedicine, National Research Lobachevsky State University of Nizhni Novgorod, Nizhny Novgorod, Russia
| | - Maria O. Savyuk
- Department of Neurotechnologe, Institute of Biology and Biomedicine, National Research Lobachevsky State University of Nizhni Novgorod, Nizhny Novgorod, Russia
| | - Evgeni Ponimaskin
- Department of Neurotechnologe, Institute of Biology and Biomedicine, National Research Lobachevsky State University of Nizhni Novgorod, Nizhny Novgorod, Russia
- Department of Cellular Neurophysiology, Hannover Medical School, Hanover, Germany
| | - Maria V. Vedunova
- Department of Neurotechnologe, Institute of Biology and Biomedicine, National Research Lobachevsky State University of Nizhni Novgorod, Nizhny Novgorod, Russia
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30
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Bizot F, Vulin A, Goyenvalle A. Current Status of Antisense Oligonucleotide-Based Therapy in Neuromuscular Disorders. Drugs 2021; 80:1397-1415. [PMID: 32696107 DOI: 10.1007/s40265-020-01363-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Neuromuscular disorders include a wide range of diseases affecting the peripheral nervous system, which are primarily characterized by progressive muscle weakness and wasting. While there were no effective therapies until recently, several therapeutic approaches have advanced to clinical trials in the past few years. Among these, the antisense technology aiming at modifying RNA processing and function has remarkably progressed and a few antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs) have now been approved. Despite these recent clinical successes, several ASOs have also failed and clinical programs have been suspended, in most cases when the route of administration was systemic, highlighting the existing challenges notably with respect to effective ASO delivery. In this review we summarize the recent advances and current status of antisense based-therapies for neuromuscular disorders, using successful as well as unsuccessful examples to highlight the variability of outcomes depending on the target tissue and route of administration. We describe the different ASO-mediated therapeutic approaches, including splice-switching applications, steric-blocking strategies and targeted gene knock-down mediated by ribonuclease H recruitment. In this overview, we discuss the merits and challenges of the current ASO technology, and discuss the future of ASO development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Flavien Bizot
- Université Paris-Saclay, UVSQ, Inserm, END-ICAP, 78000, Versailles, France
| | - Adeline Vulin
- Université Paris-Saclay, UVSQ, Inserm, END-ICAP, 78000, Versailles, France.,SQY Therapeutics, Université de Versailles St-Quentin, Montigny le Bretonneux, France
| | - Aurélie Goyenvalle
- Université Paris-Saclay, UVSQ, Inserm, END-ICAP, 78000, Versailles, France. .,LIA BAHN, Centre scientifique de Monaco, Monaco, Monaco.
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31
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Rodrigues FB, Byrne LM, Lowe AJ, Tortelli R, Heins M, Flik G, Johnson EB, De Vita E, Scahill RI, Giorgini F, Wild EJ. Kynurenine pathway metabolites in cerebrospinal fluid and blood as potential biomarkers in Huntington's disease. J Neurochem 2021; 158:539-553. [PMID: 33797782 PMCID: PMC8375100 DOI: 10.1111/jnc.15360] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2020] [Revised: 01/18/2021] [Accepted: 03/26/2021] [Indexed: 01/31/2023]
Abstract
Converging lines of evidence from several models, and post-mortem human brain tissue studies, support the involvement of the kynurenine pathway (KP) in Huntington's disease (HD) pathogenesis. Quantifying KP metabolites in HD biofluids is desirable, both to study pathobiology and as a potential source of biomarkers to quantify pathway dysfunction and evaluate the biochemical impact of therapeutic interventions targeting its components. In a prospective single-site controlled cohort study with standardised collection of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), blood, phenotypic and imaging data, we used high-performance liquid-chromatography to measure the levels of KP metabolites-tryptophan, kynurenine, kynurenic acid, 3-hydroxykynurenine, anthranilic acid and quinolinic acid-in CSF and plasma of 80 participants (20 healthy controls, 20 premanifest HD and 40 manifest HD). We investigated short-term stability, intergroup differences, associations with clinical and imaging measures and derived sample-size calculation for future studies. Overall, KP metabolites in CSF and plasma were stable over 6 weeks, displayed no significant group differences and were not associated with clinical or imaging measures. We conclude that the studied metabolites are readily and reliably quantifiable in both biofluids in controls and HD gene expansion carriers. However, we found little evidence to support a substantial derangement of the KP in HD, at least to the extent that it is reflected by the levels of the metabolites in patient-derived biofluids.
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Affiliation(s)
- Filipe B. Rodrigues
- UCL Huntington's Disease CentreUCL Queen Square Institute of NeurologyUniversity College LondonLondonUK
| | - Lauren M. Byrne
- UCL Huntington's Disease CentreUCL Queen Square Institute of NeurologyUniversity College LondonLondonUK
| | - Alexander J. Lowe
- UCL Huntington's Disease CentreUCL Queen Square Institute of NeurologyUniversity College LondonLondonUK
| | - Rosanna Tortelli
- UCL Huntington's Disease CentreUCL Queen Square Institute of NeurologyUniversity College LondonLondonUK
| | | | - Gunnar Flik
- Charles River LaboratoriesGroningenThe Netherlands
| | - Eileanoir B. Johnson
- UCL Huntington's Disease CentreUCL Queen Square Institute of NeurologyUniversity College LondonLondonUK
| | - Enrico De Vita
- Lysholm Department of NeuroradiologyNational Hospital for Neurology & NeurosurgeryLondonUK
- Department of Biomedical EngineeringSchool of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging SciencesKing's College LondonLondonUK
| | - Rachael I. Scahill
- UCL Huntington's Disease CentreUCL Queen Square Institute of NeurologyUniversity College LondonLondonUK
| | - Flaviano Giorgini
- Department of Genetics and Genome BiologyUniversity of LeicesterLeicesterUK
| | - Edward J. Wild
- UCL Huntington's Disease CentreUCL Queen Square Institute of NeurologyUniversity College LondonLondonUK
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Sprenger GP, Roos RAC, van Zwet E, Reijntjes RH, Achterberg WP, de Bot ST. The prevalence of pain in Huntington's disease in a large worldwide cohort. Parkinsonism Relat Disord 2021; 89:73-78. [PMID: 34243026 DOI: 10.1016/j.parkreldis.2021.06.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2020] [Revised: 06/05/2021] [Accepted: 06/17/2021] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Pain could be an unknown non-motor symptom in Huntington's Disease (HD). The aim is therefore, to study the prevalence of pain interference, painful conditions and analgesic use across the different stages of HD and compare these levels to non-HD gene mutation carriers. METHODS A cross-sectional analysis of the Enroll-HD study was conducted in premanifest, manifest HD gene mutation carriers (n = 3989 and n = 7,485, respectively) and in non-HD gene mutation carriers (n = 3719). To investigate group differences, multivariable logistic regression analysis was performed with pairwise comparisons. RESULTS In the HD mutation carriers, the overall prevalence of pain interference was 34% (95% CI 31%-35%), of painful conditions 17% (95% CI 15%-19%) and analgesic use 13% (95% CI 11%-15%). Compared to non-mutation carriers, the prevalence of pain interference was significantly higher in the middle stage of HD (33% [95% CI 31%-35%] vs 42% [95% CI 39%-45%], P = 0,02), whereas the prevalence of painful conditions was significant lower in the late and middle stage of HD (17% [95% CI 16%-18%] vs 12% [95% CI 10%-14%], 15% [95% CI 13%-17%], P < 0,01]. No significant group difference was present in analgesic use. CONCLUSIONS The prevalence of pain interference increases as HD progresses, however, the prevalence of painful conditions and analgesics do not increase accordingly. Further studies are necessary to investigate the aetiology of pain in HD and the risk for undertreatment of pain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gregory P Sprenger
- Department of Neurology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, the Netherlands; Amstelring, Huntington Center, Amsterdam, the Netherlands.
| | - Raymund A C Roos
- Department of Neurology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, the Netherlands
| | - Erik van Zwet
- Department of Biomedical Data Sciences, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, the Netherlands
| | - Robert H Reijntjes
- Department of Neurology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, the Netherlands
| | - Wilco P Achterberg
- Department of Public Health and Primary Care, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, the Netherlands; Topaz Huntington Center Overduin, Katwijk, the Netherlands
| | - Susanne T de Bot
- Department of Neurology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, the Netherlands
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Zhu Y, Shamblin I, Rodriguez E, Salzer GE, Araysi L, Margolies KA, Halade GV, Litovsky SH, Pogwizd S, Gray M, Huke S. Progressive cardiac arrhythmias and ECG abnormalities in the Huntington's disease BACHD mouse model. Hum Mol Genet 2021; 29:369-381. [PMID: 31816043 DOI: 10.1093/hmg/ddz295] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/11/2019] [Revised: 11/11/2019] [Accepted: 12/05/2019] [Indexed: 02/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD) is a dominantly inherited neurodegenerative disease. There is accumulating evidence that HD patients have increased prevalence of conduction abnormalities and compromised sinoatrial node function which could lead to increased risk for arrhythmia. We used mutant Huntingtin (mHTT) expressing bacterial artificial chromosome Huntington's disease mice to determine if they exhibit electrocardiogram (ECG) abnormalities involving cardiac conduction that are known to increase risk of sudden arrhythmic death in humans. We obtained surface ECGs and analyzed arrhythmia susceptibility; we observed prolonged QRS duration, increases in PVCs as well as PACs. Abnormal histological and structural changes that could lead to cardiac conduction system dysfunction were seen. Finally, we observed decreases in desmosomal proteins, plakophilin-2 and desmoglein-2, which have been reported to cause cardiac arrhythmias and reduced conduction. Our study indicates that mHTT could cause progressive cardiac conduction system pathology that could increase the susceptibility to arrhythmias and sudden cardiac death in HD patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yujie Zhu
- Department of Medicine, Division of Cardiovascular Disease, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294, USA
| | - Isaac Shamblin
- Department of Medicine, Division of Cardiovascular Disease, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294, USA
| | - Efrain Rodriguez
- Department of Neurology, Center for Neurodegeneration and Experimental Therapeutics, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294, USA
| | - Grace E Salzer
- Department of Medicine, Division of Cardiovascular Disease, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294, USA
| | - Lita Araysi
- Department of Medicine, Division of Cardiovascular Disease, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294, USA
| | - Katherine A Margolies
- Department of Medicine, Division of Cardiovascular Disease, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294, USA
| | - Ganesh V Halade
- Department of Medicine, Division of Cardiovascular Disease, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294, USA
| | - Silvio H Litovsky
- Department of Pathology, Division of Anatomic Pathology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294, USA
| | - Steven Pogwizd
- Department of Medicine, Division of Cardiovascular Disease, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294, USA
| | - Michelle Gray
- Department of Neurology, Center for Neurodegeneration and Experimental Therapeutics, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294, USA
| | - Sabine Huke
- Department of Medicine, Division of Cardiovascular Disease, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294, USA
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Huang L, Fang L, Liu Q, Torshizi AD, Wang K. Integrated analysis on transcriptome and behaviors defines HTT repeat-dependent network modules in Huntington's disease. Genes Dis 2021; 9:479-493. [PMID: 35224162 PMCID: PMC8843892 DOI: 10.1016/j.gendis.2021.05.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2021] [Revised: 04/13/2021] [Accepted: 05/12/2021] [Indexed: 01/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD) is caused by a CAG repeat expansion in the huntingtin (HTT) gene. Knock-in mice carrying a CAG repeat-expanded Htt will develop HD phenotypes. Previous studies suggested dysregulated molecular networks in a CAG length genotype- and the age-dependent manner in brain tissues from knock-in mice carrying expanded Htt CAG repeats. Furthermore, a large-scale phenome analysis defined a behavioral signature for HD genotype in knock-in mice carrying expanded Htt CAG repeats. However, an integrated analysis correlating phenotype features with genotypes (CAG repeat expansions) was not conducted previously. In this study, we revealed the landscape of the behavioral features and gene expression correlations based on 445 mRNA samples and 445 microRNA samples, together with behavioral features (396 PhenoCube behaviors and 111 NeuroCube behaviors) in Htt CAG-knock-in mice. We identified 37 behavioral features that were significantly associated with CAG repeat length including the number of steps and hind limb stand duration. The behavioral features were associated with several gene coexpression groups involved in neuronal dysfunctions, which were also supported by the single-cell RNA sequencing data in the striatum and the spatial gene expression in the brain. We also identified 15 chemicals with significant responses for genes with enriched behavioral features, most of them are agonist or antagonist for dopamine receptors and serotonin receptors used for neurology/psychiatry. Our study provides further evidence that abnormal neuronal signal transduction in the striatum plays an important role in causing HD-related phenotypic behaviors and provided rich information for the further pharmacotherapeutic intervention possibility for HD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lulin Huang
- The Key Laboratory for Human Disease Gene Study of Sichuan Province, Department of Clinical Laboratory, Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital, School of Medicine, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, Sichuan 610054, PR China
- Raymond G. Perelman Center for Cellular and Molecular Therapeutics, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Corresponding author. The Key Laboratory for Human Disease Gene Study of Sichuan Province, Department of Clinical Laboratory, Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital, School of Medicine, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, Sichuan 610054, PR China.
| | - Li Fang
- Raymond G. Perelman Center for Cellular and Molecular Therapeutics, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Qian Liu
- Raymond G. Perelman Center for Cellular and Molecular Therapeutics, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Abolfazl Doostparast Torshizi
- Raymond G. Perelman Center for Cellular and Molecular Therapeutics, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Kai Wang
- Raymond G. Perelman Center for Cellular and Molecular Therapeutics, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Corresponding author.
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Cheong RY, Baldo B, Sajjad MU, Kirik D, Petersén Å. Effects of mutant huntingtin inactivation on Huntington disease-related behaviours in the BACHD mouse model. Neuropathol Appl Neurobiol 2021; 47:564-578. [PMID: 33330988 PMCID: PMC8247873 DOI: 10.1111/nan.12682] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2020] [Revised: 10/27/2020] [Accepted: 12/14/2020] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
AIMS Huntington disease (HD) is a fatal neurodegenerative disorder with no disease-modifying treatments approved so far. Ongoing clinical trials are attempting to reduce huntingtin (HTT) expression in the central nervous system (CNS) using different strategies. Yet, the distribution and timing of HTT-lowering therapies required for a beneficial clinical effect is less clear. Here, we investigated whether HD-related behaviours could be prevented by inactivating mutant HTT at different disease stages and to varying degrees in an experimental model. METHODS We generated mutant BACHD mice with either a widespread or circuit-specific inactivation of mutant HTT by using Cre recombinase (Cre) under the nestin promoter or the adenosine A2A receptor promoter respectively. We also simulated a clinical gene therapy scenario with allele-specific HTT targeting by injections of recombinant adeno-associated viral (rAAV) vectors expressing Cre into the striatum of adult BACHD mice. All mice were assessed using behavioural tests to investigate motor, metabolic and psychiatric outcome measures at 4-6 months of age. RESULTS While motor deficits, body weight changes, anxiety and depressive-like behaviours are present in BACHD mice, early widespread CNS inactivation during development significantly improves rotarod performance, body weight changes and depressive-like behaviour. However, conditional circuit-wide mutant HTT deletion from the indirect striatal pathway during development and focal striatal-specific deletion in adulthood failed to rescue any of the HD-related behaviours. CONCLUSIONS Our results indicate that widespread targeting and the timing of interventions aimed at reducing mutant HTT are important factors to consider when developing disease-modifying therapies for HD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rachel Y. Cheong
- Translational Neuroendocrine Research UnitDepartment of Experimental Medical ScienceLund UniversityLundSweden
| | - Barbara Baldo
- Translational Neuroendocrine Research UnitDepartment of Experimental Medical ScienceLund UniversityLundSweden
- Present address:
Evotec SEHD Research and Translational SciencesHamburgGermany
| | - Muhammad U. Sajjad
- Translational Neuroendocrine Research UnitDepartment of Experimental Medical ScienceLund UniversityLundSweden
| | - Deniz Kirik
- Brain Repair and Imaging in Neural Systems UnitDepartment of Experimental Medical ScienceLund UniversityLundSweden
| | - Åsa Petersén
- Translational Neuroendocrine Research UnitDepartment of Experimental Medical ScienceLund UniversityLundSweden
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O'Regan GC, Farag SH, Casey CS, Wood-Kaczmar A, Pocock JM, Tabrizi SJ, Andre R. Human Huntington's disease pluripotent stem cell-derived microglia develop normally but are abnormally hyper-reactive and release elevated levels of reactive oxygen species. J Neuroinflammation 2021; 18:94. [PMID: 33874957 PMCID: PMC8054367 DOI: 10.1186/s12974-021-02147-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2020] [Accepted: 04/01/2021] [Indexed: 01/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Neuroinflammation may contribute to the pathogenesis of Huntington’s disease, given evidence of activated microglia and elevated levels of inflammatory molecules in disease gene carriers, even those many years from symptom onset. We have shown previously that monocytes from Huntington’s disease patients are hyper-reactive to stimulation in a manner dependent on their autonomous expression of the disease-causing mutant HTT protein. To date, however, whether human microglia are similarly hyper-responsive in a cell-autonomous manner has not been determined. Methods Microglial-like cells were derived from human pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) expressing mutant HTT containing varying polyglutamine lengths. These included lines that are otherwise isogenic, such that any observed differences can be attributed with certainty to the disease mutation itself. Analyses by quantitative PCR and immunofluorescence microscopy respectively of key genes and protein markers were undertaken to determine whether Huntington’s disease PSCs differentiated normally to a microglial fate. The resultant cultures and their supernatants were then assessed by various biochemical assays and multiplex ELISAs for viability and responses to stimulation, including the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines and reactive oxygen species. Conditioned media were applied to PSC-derived striatal neurons, and vice versa, to determine the effects that the secretomes of each cell type might have on the other. Results Human PSCs generated microglia successfully irrespective of the expression of mutant HTT. These cells, however, were hyper-reactive to stimulation in the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines such as IL-6 and TNFα. They also released elevated levels of reactive oxygen species that have neurotoxic potential. Accompanying such phenotypes, human Huntington’s disease PSC-derived microglia showed increased levels of apoptosis and were more susceptible to exogenous stress. Such stress appeared to be induced by supernatants from human PSC-derived striatal neurons expressing mutant HTT with a long polyglutamine tract. Conclusions These studies show, for the first time, that human Huntington’s disease PSC-derived microglia are hyper-reactive due to their autonomous expression of mutant HTT. This provides a cellular basis for the contribution that neuroinflammation might make to Huntington’s disease pathogenesis. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12974-021-02147-6.
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Affiliation(s)
- Grace C O'Regan
- Huntington's Disease Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, WC1N 3BG, London, UK
| | - Sahar H Farag
- Huntington's Disease Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, WC1N 3BG, London, UK
| | - Caroline S Casey
- Huntington's Disease Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, WC1N 3BG, London, UK
| | - Alison Wood-Kaczmar
- Huntington's Disease Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, WC1N 3BG, London, UK
| | - Jennifer M Pocock
- Department of Neuroinflammation, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, WC1N 1PJ, London, UK
| | - Sarah J Tabrizi
- Huntington's Disease Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, WC1N 3BG, London, UK.
| | - Ralph Andre
- Huntington's Disease Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, WC1N 3BG, London, UK.
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Genetic Screen in Adult Drosophila Reveals That dCBP Depletion in Glial Cells Mitigates Huntington Disease Pathology through a Foxo-Dependent Pathway. Int J Mol Sci 2021; 22:ijms22083884. [PMID: 33918672 PMCID: PMC8069648 DOI: 10.3390/ijms22083884] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2021] [Revised: 03/23/2021] [Accepted: 04/06/2021] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Huntington’s disease (HD) is a progressive and fatal autosomal dominant neurodegenerative disease caused by a CAG repeat expansion in the first exon of the huntingtin gene (HTT). In spite of considerable efforts, there is currently no treatment to stop or delay the disease. Although HTT is expressed ubiquitously, most of our knowledge has been obtained on neurons. More recently, the impact of mutant huntingtin (mHTT) on other cell types, including glial cells, has received growing interest. It is currently unclear whether new pathological pathways could be identified in these cells compared to neurons. To address this question, we performed an in vivo screen for modifiers of mutant huntingtin (HTT-548-128Q) induced pathology in Drosophila adult glial cells and identified several putative therapeutic targets. Among them, we discovered that partial nej/dCBP depletion in these cells was protective, as revealed by strongly increased lifespan and restored locomotor activity. Thus, dCBP promotes the HD pathology in glial cells, in contrast to previous opposite findings in neurons. Further investigations implicated the transcriptional activator Foxo as a critical downstream player in this glial protective pathway. Our data suggest that combinatorial approaches combined to specific tissue targeting may be required to uncover efficient therapies in HD.
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Bondulich MK, Fan Y, Song Y, Giorgini F, Bates GP. Ablation of kynurenine 3-monooxygenase rescues plasma inflammatory cytokine levels in the R6/2 mouse model of Huntington's disease. Sci Rep 2021; 11:5484. [PMID: 33750843 PMCID: PMC7943810 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-84858-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2020] [Accepted: 02/18/2021] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Kynurenine 3-monooxygenase (KMO) regulates the levels of neuroactive metabolites in the kynurenine pathway (KP), dysregulation of which is associated with Huntington's disease (HD) pathogenesis. KMO inhibition leads to increased levels of neuroprotective relative to neurotoxic metabolites, and has been found to ameliorate disease-relevant phenotypes in several HD models. Here, we crossed KMO knockout mice to R6/2 HD mice to examine the effect of KMO depletion in the brain and periphery. KP genes were dysregulated in peripheral tissues from R6/2 mice and KMO ablation normalised levels of a subset of these. KP metabolites were also assessed, and KMO depletion led to increased levels of neuroprotective kynurenic acid in brain and periphery, and dramatically reduced neurotoxic 3-hydroxykunurenine levels in striatum and cortex. Notably, the increased levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines TNFa, IL1β, IL4 and IL6 found in R6/2 plasma were normalised upon KMO deletion. Despite these improvements in KP dysregulation and peripheral inflammation, KMO ablation had no effect upon several behavioural phenotypes. Therefore, although genetic inhibition of KMO in R6/2 mice modulates several metabolic and inflammatory parameters, these do not translate to improvements in primary disease indicators-observations which will likely be relevant for other interventions targeted at peripheral inflammation in HD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marie Katrin Bondulich
- Huntington's Disease Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease and UK Dementia Research Institute At UCL, Queen Square Institute of Neurology, UCL, Queen Square, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Yilan Fan
- Huntington's Disease Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease and UK Dementia Research Institute At UCL, Queen Square Institute of Neurology, UCL, Queen Square, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Yeojin Song
- Huntington's Disease Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease and UK Dementia Research Institute At UCL, Queen Square Institute of Neurology, UCL, Queen Square, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Flaviano Giorgini
- Department of Genetics and Genome Biology, University of Leicester, Leicester, LE1 7RH, UK.
| | - Gillian P Bates
- Huntington's Disease Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease and UK Dementia Research Institute At UCL, Queen Square Institute of Neurology, UCL, Queen Square, WC1N 3BG, UK
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Huntington's disease: lessons from prion disorders. J Neurol 2021; 268:3493-3504. [PMID: 33625583 DOI: 10.1007/s00415-021-10418-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2020] [Revised: 01/18/2021] [Accepted: 01/19/2021] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Decades of research on the prion protein and its associated diseases have caused a paradigm shift in our understanding of infectious agents. More recent years have been marked by a surge of studies supporting the application of these findings to a broad array of neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases. Here, we present evidence to suggest that Huntington's disease, a monogenic disorder of the central nervous system, shares features with prion disorders and that, it too, may be governed by similar mechanisms. We further posit that these similarities could suggest that, like other common neurodegenerative disorders, sporadic forms of Huntington's disease may exist.
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A Rationale for Hypoxic and Chemical Conditioning in Huntington's Disease. Int J Mol Sci 2021; 22:ijms22020582. [PMID: 33430140 PMCID: PMC7826574 DOI: 10.3390/ijms22020582] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/10/2020] [Revised: 12/23/2020] [Accepted: 01/05/2021] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Neurodegenerative diseases are characterized by adverse cellular environments and pathological alterations causing neurodegeneration in distinct brain regions. This development is triggered or facilitated by conditions such as hypoxia, ischemia or inflammation and is associated with disruptions of fundamental cellular functions, including metabolic and ion homeostasis. Targeting intracellular downstream consequences to specifically reverse these pathological changes proved difficult to translate to clinical settings. Here, we discuss the potential of more holistic approaches with the purpose to re-establish a healthy cellular environment and to promote cellular resilience. We review the involvement of important molecular pathways (e.g., the sphingosine, δ-opioid receptor or N-Methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor pathways) in neuroprotective hypoxic conditioning effects and how these pathways can be targeted for chemical conditioning. Despite the present scarcity of knowledge on the efficacy of such approaches in neurodegeneration, the specific characteristics of Huntington’s disease may make it particularly amenable for such conditioning techniques. Not only do classical features of neurodegenerative diseases like mitochondrial dysfunction, oxidative stress and inflammation support this assumption, but also specific Huntington’s disease characteristics: a relatively young age of neurodegeneration, molecular overlap of related pathologies with hypoxic adaptations and sensitivity to brain hypoxia. The aim of this review is to discuss several molecular pathways in relation to hypoxic adaptations that have potential as drug targets in neurodegenerative diseases. We will extract the relevance for Huntington’s disease from this knowledge base.
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Bozzi M, Sciandra F. Molecular Mechanisms Underlying Muscle Wasting in Huntington's Disease. Int J Mol Sci 2020; 21:ijms21218314. [PMID: 33167595 PMCID: PMC7664236 DOI: 10.3390/ijms21218314] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/24/2020] [Revised: 11/03/2020] [Accepted: 11/03/2020] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Huntington’s disease (HD) is an autosomal dominant neurodegenerative disorder caused by pathogenic expansions of the triplet cytosine-adenosine-guanosine (CAG) within the Huntingtin gene. These expansions lead to a prolongation of the poly-glutamine stretch at the N-terminus of Huntingtin causing protein misfolding and aggregation. Huntingtin and its pathological variants are widely expressed, but the central nervous system is mainly affected, as proved by the wide spectrum of neurological symptoms, including behavioral anomalies, cognitive decline and motor disorders. Other hallmarks of HD are loss of body weight and muscle atrophy. This review highlights some key elements that likely provide a major contribution to muscle atrophy, namely, alteration of the transcriptional processes, mitochondrial dysfunction, which is strictly correlated to loss of energy homeostasis, inflammation, apoptosis and defects in the processes responsible for the protein quality control. The improvement of muscular symptoms has proven to slow the disease progression and extend the life span of animal models of HD, underlining the importance of a deep comprehension of the molecular mechanisms driving deterioration of muscular tissue.
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Affiliation(s)
- Manuela Bozzi
- Dipartimento Universitario di Scienze Biotecnologiche di Base, Cliniche Intensivologiche e Perioperatorie, Sezione di Biochimica e Biochimica Clinica, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore di Roma, Largo F. Vito 1, 00168 Roma, Italy
- Istituto di Scienze e Tecnologie Chimiche “Giulio Natta”– SCITEC Sede di Roma, Largo F. Vito 1, 00168 Roma, Italy;
- Correspondence:
| | - Francesca Sciandra
- Istituto di Scienze e Tecnologie Chimiche “Giulio Natta”– SCITEC Sede di Roma, Largo F. Vito 1, 00168 Roma, Italy;
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Compromised IGF signaling causes caspase-6 activation in Huntington disease. Exp Neurol 2020; 332:113396. [DOI: 10.1016/j.expneurol.2020.113396] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2019] [Revised: 06/16/2020] [Accepted: 06/26/2020] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
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Bertrand M, Decoville M, Meudal H, Birman S, Landon C. Metabolomic Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Studies at Presymptomatic and Symptomatic Stages of Huntington’s Disease on a Drosophila Model. J Proteome Res 2020; 19:4034-4045. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.jproteome.0c00335] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Marylène Bertrand
- Center for Molecular Biophysics, CBM, UPR 4301, CNRS, Rue Charles SADRON, F-45071 Orléans Cedex 02, France
| | - Martine Decoville
- Center for Molecular Biophysics, CBM, UPR 4301, CNRS, Rue Charles SADRON, F-45071 Orléans Cedex 02, France
- University of Orléans, 6 Avenue du Parc Floral, F-45100 Orléans, France
| | - Hervé Meudal
- Center for Molecular Biophysics, CBM, UPR 4301, CNRS, Rue Charles SADRON, F-45071 Orléans Cedex 02, France
| | - Serge Birman
- GCRN Team, Brain Plasticity Unit, UMR 8249, CNRS, ESPCI Paris, PSL Research University, F-75005 Paris, France
| | - Céline Landon
- Center for Molecular Biophysics, CBM, UPR 4301, CNRS, Rue Charles SADRON, F-45071 Orléans Cedex 02, France
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45
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Autonomic Changes in Juvenile-Onset Huntington's Disease. Brain Sci 2020; 10:brainsci10090589. [PMID: 32858858 PMCID: PMC7563896 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci10090589] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/24/2020] [Revised: 08/19/2020] [Accepted: 08/24/2020] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Patients with adult-onset Huntington’s Disease (AOHD) have been found to have dysfunction of the autonomic nervous system that is thought to be secondary to neurodegeneration causing dysfunction of the brain–heart axis. However, this relationship has not been investigated in patients with juvenile-onset HD (JOHD). The aim of this study was to compare simple physiologic measures between patients with JOHD (n = 27 participants with 64 visits) and participants without the gene expansion that causes HD (GNE group; n = 259 participants with 395 visits). Using data from the Kids-JOHD study, we compared mean resting heart rate (rHR), systolic blood pressure (SBP), and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) between the JOHD and GNE groups. We also divided the JOHD group into those with childhood-onset JOHD (motor diagnosis received before the age of 13, [n = 16]) and those with adolescent-onset JOHD (motor diagnosis received at or after the age of 13 [n = 11]). We used linear mixed-effects models to compare the group means while controlling for age, sex, and parental socioeconomic status and including a random effect per participant and family. For the primary analysis, we found that the JOHD group had significant increases in their rHR compared to the GNE group. Conversely, the JOHD group had significantly lower SBP compared to the GNE group. The JOHD group also had lower DBP compared to the GNE group, but the results did not reach significance. SBP and DBP decreased as disease duration of JOHD increased, but rHR did not continue to increase. Resting heart rate is more sensitive to changes in autonomic function as compared to SBP. Therefore, these results seem to indicate that early neurodegenerative changes of the central autonomic network likely lead to an increase in rHR while later progression of JOHD leads to changes in blood pressure. We hypothesize that these later changes in blood pressure are secondary to neurodegeneration in brainstem regions such as the medulla.
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Mühlbäck A, Lindenberg KS, Saft C, Priller J, Landwehrmeyer GB. [Gene-selective treatment approaches for Huntington's disease]. DER NERVENARZT 2020; 91:303-311. [PMID: 32179957 DOI: 10.1007/s00115-020-00882-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
In Germany at least 8000 and probably up to ca. 14,000 people currently suffer from clinically manifest Huntington's disease (HD). In addition, an estimated 24,000 Germans carry the HD mutation in the huntingtin (HTT) gene and will develop HD during their lifetime. Although HD is a rare neurodegenerative disease, it is currently in the focus of general medical interest: clinical trials have begun that provide a rational basis for hope to slow down the so far relentless progression of the disease, ultimately resulting in patients becoming entirely dependent on nursing care. If treatment is started early enough it may be possible to mitigate the clinical manifestation of HD. These innovative therapeutic approaches aim at inhibiting the de novo production of mutant HTT gene products. A first clinical drug trial to demonstrate the efficacy (phase III) of intrathecal antisense oligonucleotides (ASO, active substance RG6042) was started in 2019. Additional clinical studies on alternative treatment approaches with allele-selective ASOs as well as gene therapeutic approaches using RNA molecules and zinc finger repressor complexes are imminent. This article gives an overview of the current gene-selective therapeutic approaches in HD under discussion.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Mühlbäck
- Abteilung Neurologie, Universitätsklinikum Ulm, Oberer Eselsberg 45/1, 89081, Ulm, Deutschland.,Klinik für Neurologie und Zentrum für klinische Neurowissenschaften, 1. Medizinische Fakultät, Karlsuniversität, Prag, Tschechien
| | - K S Lindenberg
- Abteilung Neurologie, Universitätsklinikum Ulm, Oberer Eselsberg 45/1, 89081, Ulm, Deutschland
| | - C Saft
- Huntington-Zentrum NRW, Neurologische Klinik der Ruhr-Universität Bochum, St. Josef-Hospital, Bochum, Deutschland
| | - J Priller
- Klinik für Psychiatrie und Psychotherapie, Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Deutschland
| | - G B Landwehrmeyer
- Abteilung Neurologie, Universitätsklinikum Ulm, Oberer Eselsberg 45/1, 89081, Ulm, Deutschland.
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Valadão PAC, de Aragão BC, Andrade JN, Magalhães-Gomes MPS, Foureaux G, Joviano-Santos JV, Nogueira JC, Machado TCG, de Jesus ICG, Nogueira JM, de Paula RS, Peixoto L, Ribeiro FM, Tapia JC, Jorge ÉC, Guatimosim S, Guatimosim C. Abnormalities in the Motor Unit of a Fast-Twitch Lower Limb Skeletal Muscle in Huntington's Disease. ASN Neuro 2020; 11:1759091419886212. [PMID: 31818120 PMCID: PMC6904785 DOI: 10.1177/1759091419886212] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Huntington’s disease (HD) is a disorder characterized by chronic
involuntary movements, dementia, and psychiatric symptoms. It is
caused by a mutation in the gene that encodes for huntingtin protein
(HTT), leading to the formation of mutant proteins expressed in
various tissues. Although brain pathology has become the hallmark for
HD, recent studies suggest that damage of peripheral structures also
contributes to HD progression. We previously identified severe
alterations in the motor units that innervate cervical muscles in
12-month-old BACHD (Bacterial Artificial Chromosome Huntington’s
Disease) mice, a well-established mouse model for HD. Here, we studied
lumbar motoneurons and their projections onto hind limb fast-twitch
skeletal muscles (tibialis anterior), which control balance and gait
in HD patients. We found that lumbar motoneurons were altered in the
HD mouse model; the number and size of lumbar motoneurons were reduced
in BACHD. Structural alterations were also present in the sciatic
nerve and neuromuscular junctions. Acetylcholine receptors were
organized in several small patches (acetylcholine receptor
fragmentation), many of which were partially innervated. In BACHD
mice, we observed atrophy of tibialis anterior muscles, decreased
expression of glycolytic fast Type IIB fibers, and at the
ultrastructural level, alterations of sarcomeres and mitochondria.
Corroborating all these findings, BACHD animals performed worse on
motor behavior tests. Our results provide additional evidences that
nerve–muscle communication is impaired in HD and that motoneurons from
distinct spinal cord locations are similarly affected in the
disease.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Jéssica Neves Andrade
- Departamento de Morfologia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
| | | | - Giselle Foureaux
- Departamento de Morfologia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
| | | | - José Carlos Nogueira
- Departamento de Morfologia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
| | | | | | | | - Rayan Silva de Paula
- Departamento de Morfologia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
| | - Luisa Peixoto
- Departamento de Morfologia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
| | - Fabíola Mara Ribeiro
- Departamento de Bioquímica e Imunologia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
| | | | - ÉriKa Cristina Jorge
- Departamento de Morfologia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
| | - Silvia Guatimosim
- Departamento de Fisiologia e Biofísica, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
| | - Cristina Guatimosim
- Departamento de Morfologia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
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48
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Bartl S, Oueslati A, Southwell AL, Siddu A, Parth M, David LS, Maxan A, Salhat N, Burkert M, Mairhofer A, Friedrich T, Pankevych H, Balazs K, Staffler G, Hayden MR, Cicchetti F, Smrzka OW. Inhibiting cellular uptake of mutant huntingtin using a monoclonal antibody: Implications for the treatment of Huntington's disease. Neurobiol Dis 2020; 141:104943. [PMID: 32407769 DOI: 10.1016/j.nbd.2020.104943] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2019] [Revised: 04/08/2020] [Accepted: 05/06/2020] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD) is caused by a highly polymorphic CAG trinucleotide expansion in the gene encoding for the huntingtin protein (HTT). The resulting mutant huntingtin protein (mutHTT) is ubiquitously expressed but also exhibits the ability to propagate from cell-to-cell to disseminate pathology; a property which may serve as a new therapeutic focus. Accordingly, we set out to develop a monoclonal antibody (mAB) targeting a particularly exposed region close to the aa586 caspase-6 cleavage site of the HTT protein. This monoclonal antibody, designated C6-17, effectively binds mutHTT and is able to deplete the protein from cell culture supernatants. Using cell-based assays, we demonstrate that extracellular secretion of mutHTT into cell culture media and its subsequent uptake in recipient HeLa cells can be almost entirely blocked by mAB C6-17. Immunohistochemical stainings of post-mortem HD brain tissue confirmed the specificity of mAB C6-17 to human mutHTT aggregates. These findings demonstrate that mAB C6-17 not only successfully engages with its target, mutHTT, but also inhibits cell uptake suggesting that this antibody could interfere with the pathological processes of mutHTT spreading in vivo.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Abid Oueslati
- Université Laval/Centre de recherche du CHU, Québec, Canada
| | | | - Alberto Siddu
- Université Laval/Centre de recherche du CHU, Québec, Canada
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Oskar W Smrzka
- AFFiRiS AG, Vienna, Austria; Ablevia biotech GmbH, Vienna, Austria
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49
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Tereshchenko A, van der Plas E, Mathews KD, Epping E, Conrad AL, Langbehn DR, Nopoulos P. Developmental Trajectory of Height, Weight, and BMI in Children and Adolescents at Risk for Huntington's Disease: Effect of mHTT on Growth. J Huntingtons Dis 2020; 9:245-251. [PMID: 32894247 PMCID: PMC7683066 DOI: 10.3233/jhd-200407] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The gene (Huntingtin or HTT) causing Huntington's disease (HD) is vital for development and is expressed throughout the brain and body lifelong. The mutant form (mHTT) may influence growth and development. OBJECTIVE To determine the impact of mHTT on human measures of growth, including height, weight, and body mass index (BMI), between child and adolescent carriers of mHTT and control peers. METHODS Children ages 6-18 years of age (n = 186) at risk for HD were enrolled in the KidsHD study. For research purposes only, genetic testing was performed to classify participants as Gene-Expanded (GE = 78) or as Gene Non-Expanded (GNE = 108). Outcome measures included height, weight, and body mass index (BMI). Mixed models were used to determine if non-linear age trends differed between groups for BMI, height, and weight. RESULTS Differences were seen in the trajectory of BMI in which the GE group reached a plateau in late adolescence with no further increase, compared with a nearly linear increase in the GNE group. There was a significant sex interaction pattern where GE males were taller than GNE males in adolescence, in the presence of similar weight. In contrast, GE females weighed significantly less than their GNE counterparts in adolescence, in the presence of similar height. CONCLUSION Measures of growth are abnormal in child and adolescent carriers of mHTT, decades before HD onset. Although further studies are needed for replication, the current findings suggest that developmental aberrations may be systemic and a vital part of disease pathology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexander Tereshchenko
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Ellen van der Plas
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Katherine D. Mathews
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA, USA
- Department of Neurology, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Eric Epping
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Amy L. Conrad
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Douglas R. Langbehn
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA, USA
- University of Iowa College of Public Health Administration, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Peg Nopoulos
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA, USA
- Department of Neurology, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA, USA
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50
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Pinho BR, Duarte AI, Canas PM, Moreira PI, Murphy MP, Oliveira JMA. The interplay between redox signalling and proteostasis in neurodegeneration: In vivo effects of a mitochondria-targeted antioxidant in Huntington's disease mice. Free Radic Biol Med 2020; 146:372-382. [PMID: 31751762 PMCID: PMC6970224 DOI: 10.1016/j.freeradbiomed.2019.11.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/09/2019] [Revised: 11/14/2019] [Accepted: 11/16/2019] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Abnormal protein homeostasis (proteostasis), dysfunctional mitochondria, and aberrant redox signalling are often associated in neurodegenerative disorders, such as Huntington's (HD), Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases. It remains incompletely understood, however, how changes in redox signalling affect proteostasis mechanisms, including protein degradation pathways and unfolded protein responses (UPR). Here we address this open question by investigating the interplay between redox signalling and proteostasis in a mouse model of HD, and by examining the in vivo effects of the mitochondria-targeted antioxidant MitoQ. We performed behavioural tests in wild-type and R6/2 HD mice, examined markers of oxidative stress, UPR activation, and the status of key protein degradation pathways in brain and peripheral tissues. We show that R6/2 mice present widespread markers of oxidative stress, with tissue-specific changes in proteostasis that were more pronounced in the brain and muscle than in the liver. R6/2 mice presented increased levels of cytosolic and mitochondrial chaperones, particularly in muscle, indicating UPR activation. Treatment with MitoQ significantly ameliorated fine motor control of R6/2 mice, and reduced markers of oxidative damage in muscle. Additionally, MitoQ attenuated overactive autophagy induction in the R6/2 muscle, which has been associated with muscle wasting. Treatment with MitoQ did not alter autophagy markers in the brain, in agreement with its low brain bioavailability, which limits the risk of impairing neuronal protein clearance mechanisms. This study supports the hypotheses that abnormal redox signalling in muscle contributes to altered proteostasis and motor impairment in HD, and that redox interventions can improve muscle performance, highlighting the importance of peripheral therapeutics in HD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brígida R Pinho
- REQUIMTE/LAQV, Department of Drug Sciences, Pharmacology Lab, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal
| | - Ana I Duarte
- CNC - Center for Neuroscience & Cell Biology, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal; Institute for Interdisciplinary Research (IIIUC), University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal
| | - Paula M Canas
- CNC - Center for Neuroscience & Cell Biology, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal
| | - Paula I Moreira
- CNC - Center for Neuroscience & Cell Biology, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal; Institute of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal
| | - Michael P Murphy
- MRC Mitochondrial Biology Unit, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB20XY, UK
| | - Jorge M A Oliveira
- REQUIMTE/LAQV, Department of Drug Sciences, Pharmacology Lab, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal; Consortium for Mitochondrial Research (CfMR), University College London, Gower Street, WC1E 6BT, London, UK.
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