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Burato A, Legname G. Comparing Prion Proteins Across Species: Is Zebrafish a Useful Model? Mol Neurobiol 2024:10.1007/s12035-024-04324-z. [PMID: 38918277 DOI: 10.1007/s12035-024-04324-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/22/2024] [Accepted: 06/19/2024] [Indexed: 06/27/2024]
Abstract
Despite the considerable body of research dedicated to the field of neurodegeneration, the gap in knowledge on the prion protein and its intricate involvement in brain diseases remains substantial. However, in the past decades, many steps forward have been taken toward a better understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying both the physiological role of the prion protein and the misfolding event converting it into its pathological counterpart, the prion. This review aims to provide an overview of the main findings regarding this protein, highlighting the advantages of many different animal models that share a conserved amino acid sequence and/or structure with the human prion protein. A particular focus will be given to the species Danio rerio, a compelling research organism for the investigation of prion biology, thanks to its conserved orthologs, ease of genetic manipulation, and cost-effectiveness of high-throughput experimentation. We will explore its potential in filling some of the gaps on physiological and pathological aspects of the prion protein, with the aim of directing the future development of therapeutic interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Burato
- Laboratory of Prion Biology, Department of Neuroscience, Scuola Internazionale Superiore Di Studi Avanzati (SISSA), Trieste, Italy
| | - Giuseppe Legname
- Laboratory of Prion Biology, Department of Neuroscience, Scuola Internazionale Superiore Di Studi Avanzati (SISSA), Trieste, Italy.
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2
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Andreotti G, Baur J, Ugrina M, Pfeiffer PB, Hartmann M, Wiese S, Miyahara H, Higuchi K, Schwierz N, Schmidt M, Fändrich M. Insights into the Structural Basis of Amyloid Resistance Provided by Cryo-EM Structures of AApoAII Amyloid Fibrils. J Mol Biol 2024; 436:168441. [PMID: 38199491 DOI: 10.1016/j.jmb.2024.168441] [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: 10/06/2023] [Revised: 12/20/2023] [Accepted: 01/04/2024] [Indexed: 01/12/2024]
Abstract
Amyloid resistance is the inability or the reduced susceptibility of an organism to develop amyloidosis. In this study we have analysed the molecular basis of the resistance to systemic AApoAII amyloidosis, which arises from the formation of amyloid fibrils from apolipoprotein A-II (ApoA-II). The disease affects humans and animals, including SAMR1C mice that express the C allele of ApoA-II protein, whereas other mouse strains are resistant to development of amyloidosis due to the expression of other ApoA-II alleles, such as ApoA-IIF. Using cryo-electron microscopy, molecular dynamics simulations and other methods, we have determined the structures of pathogenic AApoAII amyloid fibrils from SAMR1C mice and analysed the structural effects of ApoA-IIF-specific mutational changes. Our data show that these changes render ApoA-IIF incompatible with the specific fibril morphologies, with which ApoA-II protein can become pathogenic in vivo.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giada Andreotti
- Institute of Protein Biochemistry, Ulm University, 89081 Ulm, Germany.
| | - Julian Baur
- Institute of Protein Biochemistry, Ulm University, 89081 Ulm, Germany
| | - Marijana Ugrina
- Institute of Physics, University of Augsburg, 86159 Augsburg, Germany
| | | | - Max Hartmann
- Institute of Protein Biochemistry, Ulm University, 89081 Ulm, Germany
| | - Sebastian Wiese
- Core Unit Mass Spectrometry and Proteomics, Ulm University, 89081 Ulm, Germany
| | - Hiroki Miyahara
- Institute for Biomedical Science, Shinshu University, Matsumoto 390-8621, Japan
| | - Keiichi Higuchi
- Institute for Biomedical Science, Shinshu University, Matsumoto 390-8621, Japan; Faculty of Human Health Sciences, Meio University, Nago 905-8585, Japan
| | - Nadine Schwierz
- Institute of Physics, University of Augsburg, 86159 Augsburg, Germany
| | - Matthias Schmidt
- Institute of Protein Biochemistry, Ulm University, 89081 Ulm, Germany
| | - Marcus Fändrich
- Institute of Protein Biochemistry, Ulm University, 89081 Ulm, Germany
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3
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Prion Propagation is Dependent on Key Amino Acids in Charge Cluster 2 within the Prion Protein. J Mol Biol 2023; 435:167925. [PMID: 36535427 DOI: 10.1016/j.jmb.2022.167925] [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: 08/16/2022] [Revised: 12/08/2022] [Accepted: 12/13/2022] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
To dissect the N-terminal residues within the cellular prion protein (PrPC) that are critical for efficient prion propagation, we generated a library of point, double, or triple alanine replacements within residues 23-111 of PrP, stably expressed them in cells silenced for endogenous mouse PrPC and challenged the reconstituted cells with four common but biologically diverse mouse prion strains. Amino acids (aa) 105-111 of Charge Cluster 2 (CC2), which is disordered in PrPC, were found to be required for propagation of all four prion strains; other residues had no effect or exhibited strain-specific effects. Replacements in CC2, including aa105-111, dominantly inhibited prion propagation in the presence of endogenous wild type PrPC whilst other changes were not inhibitory. Single alanine replacements within aa105-111 identified leucine 108 and valine 111 or the cluster of lysine 105, threonine 106 and asparagine 107 as critical for prion propagation. These residues mediate specific ordering of unstructured CC2 into β-sheets in the infectious prion fibrils from Rocky Mountain Laboratory (RML) and ME7 mouse prion strains.
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Jackson GS, Linehan J, Brandner S, Asante EA, Wadsworth JDF, Collinge J. Overexpression of mouse prion protein in transgenic mice causes a non-transmissible spongiform encephalopathy. Sci Rep 2022; 12:17198. [PMID: 36229637 PMCID: PMC9562354 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-21608-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/19/2021] [Accepted: 09/29/2022] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Transgenic mice over-expressing human PRNP or murine Prnp transgenes on a mouse prion protein knockout background have made key contributions to the understanding of human prion diseases and have provided the basis for many of the fundamental advances in prion biology, including the first report of synthetic mammalian prions. In this regard, the prion paradigm is increasingly guiding the exploration of seeded protein misfolding in the pathogenesis of other neurodegenerative diseases. Here we report that a well-established and widely used line of such mice (Tg20 or tga20), which overexpress wild-type mouse prion protein, exhibit spontaneous aggregation and accumulation of misfolded prion protein in a strongly age-dependent manner, which is accompanied by focal spongiosis and occasional neuronal loss. In some cases a clinical syndrome developed with phenotypic features that closely resemble those seen in prion disease. However, passage of brain homogenate from affected, aged mice failed to transmit this syndrome when inoculated intracerebrally into further recipient animals. We conclude that overexpression of the wild-type mouse prion protein can cause an age-dependent protein misfolding disorder or proteinopathy that is not associated with the production of an infectious agent but can produce a phenotype closely similar to authentic prion disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Graham S Jackson
- MRC Prion Unit at UCL, UCL Institute of Prion Diseases, Courtauld Building, 33 Cleveland Street, London, W1W 7FF, UK.
| | - Jacqueline Linehan
- MRC Prion Unit at UCL, UCL Institute of Prion Diseases, Courtauld Building, 33 Cleveland Street, London, W1W 7FF, UK
| | - Sebastian Brandner
- MRC Prion Unit at UCL, UCL Institute of Prion Diseases, Courtauld Building, 33 Cleveland Street, London, W1W 7FF, UK
- Division of Neuropathology, Queen Square Institute of Neurology, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Emmanuel A Asante
- MRC Prion Unit at UCL, UCL Institute of Prion Diseases, Courtauld Building, 33 Cleveland Street, London, W1W 7FF, UK
| | - Jonathan D F Wadsworth
- MRC Prion Unit at UCL, UCL Institute of Prion Diseases, Courtauld Building, 33 Cleveland Street, London, W1W 7FF, UK
| | - John Collinge
- MRC Prion Unit at UCL, UCL Institute of Prion Diseases, Courtauld Building, 33 Cleveland Street, London, W1W 7FF, UK
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5
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Grimaldi I, Leser FS, Janeiro JM, da Rosa BG, Campanelli AC, Romão L, Lima FRS. The multiple functions of PrP C in physiological, cancer, and neurodegenerative contexts. J Mol Med (Berl) 2022; 100:1405-1425. [PMID: 36056255 DOI: 10.1007/s00109-022-02245-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/06/2022] [Revised: 08/05/2022] [Accepted: 08/09/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Cellular prion protein (PrPC) is a highly conserved glycoprotein, present both anchored in the cell membrane and soluble in the extracellular medium. It has a diversity of ligands and is variably expressed in numerous tissues and cell subtypes, most notably in the central nervous system (CNS). Its importance has been brought to light over the years both under physiological conditions, such as embryogenesis and immune system homeostasis, and in pathologies, such as cancer and neurodegenerative diseases. During development, PrPC plays an important role in CNS, participating in axonal growth and guidance and differentiation of glial cells, but also in other organs such as the heart, lung, and digestive system. In diseases, PrPC has been related to several types of tumors, modulating cancer stem cells, enhancing malignant properties, and inducing drug resistance. Also, in non-neoplastic diseases, such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases, PrPC seems to alter the dynamics of neurotoxic aggregate formation and, consequently, the progression of the disease. In this review, we explore in detail the multiple functions of this protein, which proved to be relevant for understanding the dynamics of organism homeostasis, as well as a promising target in the treatment of both neoplastic and degenerative diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Izabella Grimaldi
- Glial Cell Biology Laboratory, Biomedical Sciences Institute, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil
| | - Felipe Saceanu Leser
- Glial Cell Biology Laboratory, Biomedical Sciences Institute, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil
| | - José Marcos Janeiro
- Glial Cell Biology Laboratory, Biomedical Sciences Institute, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil
| | - Bárbara Gomes da Rosa
- Glial Cell Biology Laboratory, Biomedical Sciences Institute, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil
| | - Ana Clara Campanelli
- Glial Cell Biology Laboratory, Biomedical Sciences Institute, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil
| | - Luciana Romão
- Cell Morphogenesis Laboratory, Biomedical Sciences Institute, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil
| | - Flavia Regina Souza Lima
- Glial Cell Biology Laboratory, Biomedical Sciences Institute, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.
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Ma J, Zhang J, Yan R. Recombinant Mammalian Prions: The “Correctly” Misfolded Prion Protein Conformers. Viruses 2022; 14:v14091940. [PMID: 36146746 PMCID: PMC9504972 DOI: 10.3390/v14091940] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2022] [Revised: 08/22/2022] [Accepted: 08/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Generating a prion with exogenously produced recombinant prion protein is widely accepted as the ultimate proof of the prion hypothesis. Over the years, a plethora of misfolded recPrP conformers have been generated, but despite their seeding capability, many of them have failed to elicit a fatal neurodegenerative disorder in wild-type animals like a naturally occurring prion. The application of the protein misfolding cyclic amplification technique and the inclusion of non-protein cofactors in the reaction mixture have led to the generation of authentic recombinant prions that fully recapitulate the characteristics of native prions. Together, these studies reveal that recPrP can stably exist in a variety of misfolded conformations and when inoculated into wild-type animals, misfolded recPrP conformers cause a wide range of outcomes, from being completely innocuous to lethal. Since all these recPrP conformers possess seeding capabilities, these results clearly suggest that seeding activity alone is not equivalent to prion activity. Instead, authentic prions are those PrP conformers that are not only heritable (the ability to seed the conversion of normal PrP) but also pathogenic (the ability to cause fatal neurodegeneration). The knowledge gained from the studies of the recombinant prion is important for us to understand the pathogenesis of prion disease and the roles of misfolded proteins in other neurodegenerative disorders.
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Gene-Edited Cell Models to Study Chronic Wasting Disease. Viruses 2022; 14:v14030609. [PMID: 35337016 PMCID: PMC8950194 DOI: 10.3390/v14030609] [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: 02/08/2022] [Revised: 03/08/2022] [Accepted: 03/11/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Prion diseases are fatal infectious neurodegenerative disorders affecting both humans and animals. They are caused by the misfolded isoform of the cellular prion protein (PrPC), PrPSc, and currently no options exist to prevent or cure prion diseases. Chronic wasting disease (CWD) in deer, elk and other cervids is considered the most contagious prion disease, with extensive shedding of infectivity into the environment. Cell culture models provide a versatile platform for convenient quantification of prions, for studying the molecular and cellular biology of prions, and for performing high-throughput screening of potential therapeutic compounds. Unfortunately, only a very limited number of cell lines are available that facilitate robust and persistent propagation of CWD prions. Gene-editing using programmable nucleases (e.g., CRISPR-Cas9 (CC9)) has proven to be a valuable tool for high precision site-specific gene modification, including gene deletion, insertion, and replacement. CC9-based gene editing was used recently for replacing the PrP gene in mouse and cell culture models, as efficient prion propagation usually requires matching sequence homology between infecting prions and prion protein in the recipient host. As expected, such gene-editing proved to be useful for developing CWD models. Several transgenic mouse models were available that propagate CWD prions effectively, however, mostly fail to reproduce CWD pathogenesis as found in the cervid host, including CWD prion shedding. This is different for the few currently available knock-in mouse models that seem to do so. In this review, we discuss the available in vitro and in vivo models of CWD, and the impact of gene-editing strategies.
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Virus Infection, Genetic Mutations, and Prion Infection in Prion Protein Conversion. Int J Mol Sci 2021; 22:ijms222212439. [PMID: 34830321 PMCID: PMC8624980 DOI: 10.3390/ijms222212439] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2021] [Revised: 11/14/2021] [Accepted: 11/16/2021] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Conformational conversion of the cellular isoform of prion protein, PrPC, into the abnormally folded, amyloidogenic isoform, PrPSc, is an underlying pathogenic mechanism in prion diseases. The diseases manifest as sporadic, hereditary, and acquired disorders. Etiological mechanisms driving the conversion of PrPC into PrPSc are unknown in sporadic prion diseases, while prion infection and specific mutations in the PrP gene are known to cause the conversion of PrPC into PrPSc in acquired and hereditary prion diseases, respectively. We recently reported that a neurotropic strain of influenza A virus (IAV) induced the conversion of PrPC into PrPSc as well as formation of infectious prions in mouse neuroblastoma cells after infection, suggesting the causative role of the neuronal infection of IAV in sporadic prion diseases. Here, we discuss the conversion mechanism of PrPC into PrPSc in different types of prion diseases, by presenting our findings of the IAV infection-induced conversion of PrPC into PrPSc and by reviewing the so far reported transgenic animal models of hereditary prion diseases and the reverse genetic studies, which have revealed the structure-function relationship for PrPC to convert into PrPSc after prion infection.
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Arnould H, Baudouin V, Baudry A, Ribeiro LW, Ardila-Osorio H, Pietri M, Caradeuc C, Soultawi C, Williams D, Alvarez M, Crozet C, Djouadi F, Laforge M, Bertho G, Kellermann O, Launay JM, Schmitt-Ulms G, Schneider B. Loss of prion protein control of glucose metabolism promotes neurodegeneration in model of prion diseases. PLoS Pathog 2021; 17:e1009991. [PMID: 34610054 PMCID: PMC8519435 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1009991] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2021] [Revised: 10/15/2021] [Accepted: 09/29/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Corruption of cellular prion protein (PrPC) function(s) at the plasma membrane of neurons is at the root of prion diseases, such as Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease and its variant in humans, and Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathies, better known as mad cow disease, in cattle. The roles exerted by PrPC, however, remain poorly elucidated. With the perspective to grasp the molecular pathways of neurodegeneration occurring in prion diseases, and to identify therapeutic targets, achieving a better understanding of PrPC roles is a priority. Based on global approaches that compare the proteome and metabolome of the PrPC expressing 1C11 neuronal stem cell line to those of PrPnull-1C11 cells stably repressed for PrPC expression, we here unravel that PrPC contributes to the regulation of the energetic metabolism by orienting cells towards mitochondrial oxidative degradation of glucose. Through its coupling to cAMP/protein kinase A signaling, PrPC tones down the expression of the pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase 4 (PDK4). Such an event favors the transfer of pyruvate into mitochondria and its conversion into acetyl-CoA by the pyruvate dehydrogenase complex and, thereby, limits fatty acids β-oxidation and subsequent onset of oxidative stress conditions. The corruption of PrPC metabolic role by pathogenic prions PrPSc causes in the mouse hippocampus an imbalance between glucose oxidative degradation and fatty acids β-oxidation in a PDK4-dependent manner. The inhibition of PDK4 extends the survival of prion-infected mice, supporting that PrPSc-induced deregulation of PDK4 activity and subsequent metabolic derangements contribute to prion diseases. Our study posits PDK4 as a potential therapeutic target to fight against prion diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hélène Arnould
- INSERM, UMR-S 1124, Paris, France
- Université de Paris, UMR-S 1124, Paris, France
| | - Vincent Baudouin
- INSERM, UMR-S 1124, Paris, France
- Université de Paris, UMR-S 1124, Paris, France
| | - Anne Baudry
- INSERM, UMR-S 1124, Paris, France
- Université de Paris, UMR-S 1124, Paris, France
| | - Luiz W. Ribeiro
- INSERM, UMR-S 1124, Paris, France
- Université de Paris, UMR-S 1124, Paris, France
| | | | - Mathéa Pietri
- INSERM, UMR-S 1124, Paris, France
- Université de Paris, UMR-S 1124, Paris, France
| | - Cédric Caradeuc
- CNRS, UMR 8601, Paris, France
- Université de Paris, UMR 8601, Paris, France
| | - Cynthia Soultawi
- INSERM, UMR-S 1124, Paris, France
- Université de Paris, UMR-S 1124, Paris, France
| | - Declan Williams
- University of Toronto, Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, Canada
| | - Marjorie Alvarez
- INSERM, UMR-S 1124, Paris, France
- Université de Paris, UMR-S 1124, Paris, France
| | - Carole Crozet
- IRMB, Université de Montpellier, INSERM, CHU de Montpellier, Montpellier, France
| | - Fatima Djouadi
- INSERM, UMR-S 1138, Paris, France
- Université de Paris, UMR-S 1138, Paris, France
| | - Mireille Laforge
- INSERM, UMR-S 1124, Paris, France
- Université de Paris, UMR-S 1124, Paris, France
| | - Gildas Bertho
- CNRS, UMR 8601, Paris, France
- Université de Paris, UMR 8601, Paris, France
| | - Odile Kellermann
- INSERM, UMR-S 1124, Paris, France
- Université de Paris, UMR-S 1124, Paris, France
| | - Jean-Marie Launay
- Assistance Publique des Hôpitaux de Paris, INSERM UMR942, Hôpital Lariboisière, Paris, France
- Pharma Research Department, Hoffmann La Roche Ltd, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Gerold Schmitt-Ulms
- University of Toronto, Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, Canada
| | - Benoit Schneider
- INSERM, UMR-S 1124, Paris, France
- Université de Paris, UMR-S 1124, Paris, France
- * E-mail:
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Gallardo MJ, Delgado FO. Animal prion diseases: A review of intraspecies transmission. Open Vet J 2021; 11:707-723. [PMID: 35070868 PMCID: PMC8770171 DOI: 10.5455/ovj.2021.v11.i4.23] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2021] [Accepted: 11/16/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Animal prion diseases are a group of neurodegenerative, transmissible, and fatal disorders that affect several animal species. The causative agent, prion, is a misfolded isoform of normal cellular prion protein, which is found in cells with higher concentration in the central nervous system. This review explored the sources of infection and different natural transmission routes of animal prion diseases in susceptible populations. Chronic wasting disease in cervids and scrapie in small ruminants are prion diseases capable of maintaining themselves in susceptible populations through horizontal and vertical transmission. The other prion animal diseases can only be transmitted through food contaminated with prions. Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) is the only animal prion disease considered zoonotic. However, due to its inability to transmit within a population, it could be controlled. The emergence of atypical cases of scrapie and BSE, even the recent report of prion disease in camels, demonstrates the importance of understanding the transmission routes of prion diseases to take measures to control them and to assess the risks to human and animal health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mauro Julián Gallardo
- Instituto de Patobiología Veterinaria, IPVet, UEDD INTA-CONICET, Hurlingham, Argentina
- Cátedra de Enfermedades Infecciosas, Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Fernando Oscar Delgado
- Instituto de Patobiología Veterinaria, IPVet, UEDD INTA-CONICET, Hurlingham, Argentina
- Facultad de Cs. Agrarias y Veterinarias, Universidad del Salvador, Pilar, Argentina
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Dexter E, Kong Q. Neuroprotective effect and potential of cellular prion protein and its cleavage products for treatment of neurodegenerative disorders part I. a literature review. Expert Rev Neurother 2021; 21:969-982. [PMID: 34470561 DOI: 10.1080/14737175.2021.1965881] [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] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION The cellular prion protein (PrPC) is well known for its pathogenic roles in prion diseases, several other neurodegenerative diseases (such as Alzheimer's disease), and multiple types of cancer, but the beneficial aspects of PrPC and its cleavage products received much less attention. AREAS COVERED Here the authors will systematically review the literatures on the negative as well as protective aspects of PrPC and its derivatives (especially PrP N-terminal N1 peptide and shed PrP). The authors will dissect the current findings on N1 and shed PrP, including evidence for their neuroprotective effects, the categories of PrPC cleavage, and numerous cleavage enzymes involved. The authors will also discuss the protective effects and therapeutic potentials of PrPC-rich exosomes. The cited articles were obtained from extensive PubMed searches of recent literature, including peer-reviewed original articles and review articles. EXPERT OPINION PrP and its N-terminal fragments have strong neuroprotective activities that should be explored for therapeutics and prophylactics development against prion disease, Alzheimer's disease and a few other neurodegenerative diseases. The strategies to develop PrP-based therapeutics and prophylactics for these neurodegenerative diseases will be discussed in a companion article (Part II).
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Affiliation(s)
- Emily Dexter
- Department of Pathology, School of Medicine, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, USA
| | - Qingzhong Kong
- Department of Pathology, School of Medicine, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, USA.,Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, USA
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Uchiyama K, Miyata H, Yamaguchi Y, Imamura M, Okazaki M, Pasiana AD, Chida J, Hara H, Atarashi R, Watanabe H, Kondoh G, Sakaguchi S. Strain-Dependent Prion Infection in Mice Expressing Prion Protein with Deletion of Central Residues 91-106. Int J Mol Sci 2020; 21:ijms21197260. [PMID: 33019549 PMCID: PMC7582732 DOI: 10.3390/ijms21197260] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/27/2020] [Revised: 09/23/2020] [Accepted: 09/24/2020] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Conformational conversion of the cellular prion protein, PrPC, into the abnormally folded isoform, PrPSc, is a key pathogenic event in prion diseases. However, the exact conversion mechanism remains largely unknown. Transgenic mice expressing PrP with a deletion of the central residues 91–106 were generated in the absence of endogenous PrPC, designated Tg(PrP∆91–106)/Prnp0/0 mice and intracerebrally inoculated with various prions. Tg(PrP∆91–106)/Prnp0/0 mice were resistant to RML, 22L and FK-1 prions, neither producing PrPSc∆91–106 or prions in the brain nor developing disease after inoculation. However, they remained marginally susceptible to bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) prions, developing disease after elongated incubation times and accumulating PrPSc∆91–106 and prions in the brain after inoculation with BSE prions. Recombinant PrP∆91-104 converted into PrPSc∆91–104 after incubation with BSE-PrPSc-prions but not with RML- and 22L–PrPSc-prions, in a protein misfolding cyclic amplification assay. However, digitonin and heparin stimulated the conversion of PrP∆91–104 into PrPSc∆91–104 even after incubation with RML- and 22L-PrPSc-prions. These results suggest that residues 91–106 or 91–104 of PrPC are crucially involved in prion pathogenesis in a strain-dependent manner and may play a similar role to digitonin and heparin in the conversion of PrPC into PrPSc.
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Affiliation(s)
- Keiji Uchiyama
- Division of Molecular Neurobiology, The Institute for Enzyme Research (KOSOKEN), Tokushima University, 3-18-15 Kuramoto, Tokushima 770-8503, Japan; (K.U.); (Y.Y.); (M.O.); (A.D.P.); (J.C.); (H.H.)
| | - Hironori Miyata
- Animal Research Center, School of Medicine, University of Occupational and Environmental Health, Yahatanishi, Kitakyushu 807-8555, Japan;
| | - Yoshitaka Yamaguchi
- Division of Molecular Neurobiology, The Institute for Enzyme Research (KOSOKEN), Tokushima University, 3-18-15 Kuramoto, Tokushima 770-8503, Japan; (K.U.); (Y.Y.); (M.O.); (A.D.P.); (J.C.); (H.H.)
| | - Morikazu Imamura
- Division of Microbiology, Department of Infectious Diseases, Faculty of Medicine, University of Miyazaki, 5200 Kihara, Kiyotake, Miyazaki 889-1692, Japan; (M.I.); (R.A.)
| | - Mariya Okazaki
- Division of Molecular Neurobiology, The Institute for Enzyme Research (KOSOKEN), Tokushima University, 3-18-15 Kuramoto, Tokushima 770-8503, Japan; (K.U.); (Y.Y.); (M.O.); (A.D.P.); (J.C.); (H.H.)
- Student Laboratory, Tokushima University, Faculty of Medicine, 3-18-15 Kuramoto, Tokushima 770-8503, Japan
| | - Agriani Dini Pasiana
- Division of Molecular Neurobiology, The Institute for Enzyme Research (KOSOKEN), Tokushima University, 3-18-15 Kuramoto, Tokushima 770-8503, Japan; (K.U.); (Y.Y.); (M.O.); (A.D.P.); (J.C.); (H.H.)
| | - Junji Chida
- Division of Molecular Neurobiology, The Institute for Enzyme Research (KOSOKEN), Tokushima University, 3-18-15 Kuramoto, Tokushima 770-8503, Japan; (K.U.); (Y.Y.); (M.O.); (A.D.P.); (J.C.); (H.H.)
| | - Hideyuki Hara
- Division of Molecular Neurobiology, The Institute for Enzyme Research (KOSOKEN), Tokushima University, 3-18-15 Kuramoto, Tokushima 770-8503, Japan; (K.U.); (Y.Y.); (M.O.); (A.D.P.); (J.C.); (H.H.)
| | - Ryuichiro Atarashi
- Division of Microbiology, Department of Infectious Diseases, Faculty of Medicine, University of Miyazaki, 5200 Kihara, Kiyotake, Miyazaki 889-1692, Japan; (M.I.); (R.A.)
| | - Hitomi Watanabe
- Laboratory of Integrative Biological Science, Institute for Frontier Life and Medical Sciences, Kyoto University, Yoshida-Konoe-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8501, Japan; (H.W.); (G.K.)
| | - Gen Kondoh
- Laboratory of Integrative Biological Science, Institute for Frontier Life and Medical Sciences, Kyoto University, Yoshida-Konoe-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8501, Japan; (H.W.); (G.K.)
| | - Suehiro Sakaguchi
- Division of Molecular Neurobiology, The Institute for Enzyme Research (KOSOKEN), Tokushima University, 3-18-15 Kuramoto, Tokushima 770-8503, Japan; (K.U.); (Y.Y.); (M.O.); (A.D.P.); (J.C.); (H.H.)
- Correspondence:
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Hara H, Sakaguchi S. N-Terminal Regions of Prion Protein: Functions and Roles in Prion Diseases. Int J Mol Sci 2020; 21:ijms21176233. [PMID: 32872280 PMCID: PMC7504422 DOI: 10.3390/ijms21176233] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/15/2020] [Revised: 08/25/2020] [Accepted: 08/27/2020] [Indexed: 01/30/2023] Open
Abstract
The normal cellular isoform of prion protein, designated PrPC, is constitutively converted to the abnormally folded, amyloidogenic isoform, PrPSc, in prion diseases, which include Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in humans and scrapie and bovine spongiform encephalopathy in animals. PrPC is a membrane glycoprotein consisting of the non-structural N-terminal domain and the globular C-terminal domain. During conversion of PrPC to PrPSc, its 2/3 C-terminal region undergoes marked structural changes, forming a protease-resistant structure. In contrast, the N-terminal region remains protease-sensitive in PrPSc. Reverse genetic studies using reconstituted PrPC-knockout mice with various mutant PrP molecules have revealed that the N-terminal domain has an important role in the normal function of PrPC and the conversion of PrPC to PrPSc. The N-terminal domain includes various characteristic regions, such as the positively charged residue-rich polybasic region, the octapeptide repeat (OR) region consisting of five repeats of an octapeptide sequence, and the post-OR region with another positively charged residue-rich polybasic region followed by a stretch of hydrophobic residues. We discuss the normal functions of PrPC, the conversion of PrPC to PrPSc, and the neurotoxicity of PrPSc by focusing on the roles of the N-terminal regions in these topics.
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Chernoff YO, Grizel AV, Rubel AA, Zelinsky AA, Chandramowlishwaran P, Chernova TA. Application of yeast to studying amyloid and prion diseases. ADVANCES IN GENETICS 2020; 105:293-380. [PMID: 32560789 PMCID: PMC7527210 DOI: 10.1016/bs.adgen.2020.01.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Amyloids are fibrous cross-β protein aggregates that are capable of proliferation via nucleated polymerization. Amyloid conformation likely represents an ancient protein fold and is linked to various biological or pathological manifestations. Self-perpetuating amyloid-based protein conformers provide a molecular basis for transmissible (infectious or heritable) protein isoforms, termed prions. Amyloids and prions, as well as other types of misfolded aggregated proteins are associated with a variety of devastating mammalian and human diseases, such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and Huntington's diseases, transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and transthyretinopathies. In yeast and fungi, amyloid-based prions control phenotypically detectable heritable traits. Simplicity of cultivation requirements and availability of powerful genetic approaches makes yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae an excellent model system for studying molecular and cellular mechanisms governing amyloid formation and propagation. Genetic techniques allowing for the expression of mammalian or human amyloidogenic and prionogenic proteins in yeast enable researchers to capitalize on yeast advantages for characterization of the properties of disease-related proteins. Chimeric constructs employing mammalian and human aggregation-prone proteins or domains, fused to fluorophores or to endogenous yeast proteins allow for cytological or phenotypic detection of disease-related protein aggregation in yeast cells. Yeast systems are amenable to high-throughput screening for antagonists of amyloid formation, propagation and/or toxicity. This review summarizes up to date achievements of yeast assays in application to studying mammalian and human disease-related aggregating proteins, and discusses both limitations and further perspectives of yeast-based strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yury O Chernoff
- School of Biological Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, United States; Laboratory of Amyloid Biology, St. Petersburg State University, St. Petersburg, Russia.
| | - Anastasia V Grizel
- Laboratory of Amyloid Biology, St. Petersburg State University, St. Petersburg, Russia
| | - Aleksandr A Rubel
- Laboratory of Amyloid Biology, St. Petersburg State University, St. Petersburg, Russia; Department of Genetics and Biotechnology, St. Petersburg State University, St. Petersburg, Russia; Sirius University of Science and Technology, Sochi, Russia
| | - Andrew A Zelinsky
- Laboratory of Amyloid Biology, St. Petersburg State University, St. Petersburg, Russia
| | | | - Tatiana A Chernova
- Department of Biochemistry, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, United States
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Lathe R, Darlix JL. Prion protein PrP nucleic acid binding and mobilization implicates retroelements as the replicative component of transmissible spongiform encephalopathy. Arch Virol 2020; 165:535-556. [PMID: 32025859 PMCID: PMC7024060 DOI: 10.1007/s00705-020-04529-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2019] [Accepted: 12/13/2019] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
The existence of more than 30 strains of transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE) and the paucity of infectivity of purified PrPSc, as well as considerations of PrP structure, are inconsistent with the protein-only (prion) theory of TSE. Nucleic acid is a strong contender as a second component. We juxtapose two key findings: (i) PrP is a nucleic-acid-binding antimicrobial protein that is similar to retroviral Gag proteins in its ability to trigger reverse transcription. (ii) Retroelement mobilization is widely seen in TSE disease. Given further evidence that PrP also mediates nucleic acid transport into and out of the cell, a strong case is to be made that a second element – retroelement nucleic acid – bound to PrP constitutes the second component necessary to explain the multiple strains of TSE.
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Affiliation(s)
- Richard Lathe
- Division of Infection Medicine, University of Edinburgh School of Medicine, Edinburgh, UK. .,Shemyakin and Ovchinnikov Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences, Pushchino, Moscow, Moscow Region, Russia.
| | - Jean-Luc Darlix
- Faculté de Pharmacie, Centre Nationale de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) Laboratory of Bioimaging and Pathologies (Unité Mixte de Recherche 7021), Université de Strasbourg, Illkirch, France.
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16
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Adão-Novaes J, Valverde R, Landemberger M, Silveira M, Simões-Pires E, Lowe J, Linden R. Substrain-related dependence of Cu(I)-ATPase activity among prion protein-null mice. Brain Res 2020; 1727:146550. [DOI: 10.1016/j.brainres.2019.146550] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/15/2019] [Revised: 11/08/2019] [Accepted: 11/09/2019] [Indexed: 01/20/2023]
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Thellung S, Corsaro A, Bosio AG, Zambito M, Barbieri F, Mazzanti M, Florio T. Emerging Role of Cellular Prion Protein in the Maintenance and Expansion of Glioma Stem Cells. Cells 2019; 8:cells8111458. [PMID: 31752162 PMCID: PMC6912268 DOI: 10.3390/cells8111458] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2019] [Revised: 11/12/2019] [Accepted: 11/13/2019] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Cellular prion protein (PrPC) is a membrane-anchored glycoprotein representing the physiological counterpart of PrP scrapie (PrPSc), which plays a pathogenetic role in prion diseases. Relatively little information is however available about physiological role of PrPC. Although PrPC ablation in mice does not induce lethal phenotypes, impairment of neuronal and bone marrow plasticity was reported in embryos and adult animals. In neurons, PrPC stimulates neurite growth, prevents oxidative stress-dependent cell death, and favors antiapoptotic signaling. However, PrPC activity is not restricted to post-mitotic neurons, but promotes cell proliferation and migration during embryogenesis and tissue regeneration in adult. PrPC acts as scaffold to stabilize the binding between different membrane receptors, growth factors, and basement proteins, contributing to tumorigenesis. Indeed, ablation of PrPC expression reduces cancer cell proliferation and migration and restores cell sensitivity to chemotherapy. Conversely, PrPC overexpression in cancer stem cells (CSCs) from different tumors, including gliomas—the most malignant brain tumors—is predictive for poor prognosis, and correlates with relapses. The mechanisms of the PrPC role in tumorigenesis and its molecular partners in this activity are the topic of the present review, with a particular focus on PrPC contribution to glioma CSCs multipotency, invasiveness, and tumorigenicity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefano Thellung
- Sezione di Farmacologia, Dipartimento di Medicina Interna & Centro di Eccellenza per la Ricerca Biomedica (CEBR), Università di Genova, 16132 Genova, Italy; (S.T.); (A.C.); (A.G.B.); (M.Z.); (F.B.)
| | - Alessandro Corsaro
- Sezione di Farmacologia, Dipartimento di Medicina Interna & Centro di Eccellenza per la Ricerca Biomedica (CEBR), Università di Genova, 16132 Genova, Italy; (S.T.); (A.C.); (A.G.B.); (M.Z.); (F.B.)
| | - Alessia G. Bosio
- Sezione di Farmacologia, Dipartimento di Medicina Interna & Centro di Eccellenza per la Ricerca Biomedica (CEBR), Università di Genova, 16132 Genova, Italy; (S.T.); (A.C.); (A.G.B.); (M.Z.); (F.B.)
| | - Martina Zambito
- Sezione di Farmacologia, Dipartimento di Medicina Interna & Centro di Eccellenza per la Ricerca Biomedica (CEBR), Università di Genova, 16132 Genova, Italy; (S.T.); (A.C.); (A.G.B.); (M.Z.); (F.B.)
| | - Federica Barbieri
- Sezione di Farmacologia, Dipartimento di Medicina Interna & Centro di Eccellenza per la Ricerca Biomedica (CEBR), Università di Genova, 16132 Genova, Italy; (S.T.); (A.C.); (A.G.B.); (M.Z.); (F.B.)
| | - Michele Mazzanti
- Dipartimento di Bioscienze, Università di Milano, 20133 Milano, Italy
- Correspondence: (T.F.); (M.M.); Tel.: +39-01-0353-8806 (T.F.); +39-02-5031-4958 (M.M.)
| | - Tullio Florio
- Sezione di Farmacologia, Dipartimento di Medicina Interna & Centro di Eccellenza per la Ricerca Biomedica (CEBR), Università di Genova, 16132 Genova, Italy; (S.T.); (A.C.); (A.G.B.); (M.Z.); (F.B.)
- IRCCS Ospedale Policlinico San Martino, 16132 Genova, Italy
- Correspondence: (T.F.); (M.M.); Tel.: +39-01-0353-8806 (T.F.); +39-02-5031-4958 (M.M.)
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Iadanza MG, Jackson MP, Hewitt EW, Ranson NA, Radford SE. A new era for understanding amyloid structures and disease. Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol 2019; 19:755-773. [PMID: 30237470 DOI: 10.1038/s41580-018-0060-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 579] [Impact Index Per Article: 115.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
The aggregation of proteins into amyloid fibrils and their deposition into plaques and intracellular inclusions is the hallmark of amyloid disease. The accumulation and deposition of amyloid fibrils, collectively known as amyloidosis, is associated with many pathological conditions that can be associated with ageing, such as Alzheimer disease, Parkinson disease, type II diabetes and dialysis-related amyloidosis. However, elucidation of the atomic structure of amyloid fibrils formed from their intact protein precursors and how fibril formation relates to disease has remained elusive. Recent advances in structural biology techniques, including cryo-electron microscopy and solid-state NMR spectroscopy, have finally broken this impasse. The first near-atomic-resolution structures of amyloid fibrils formed in vitro, seeded from plaque material and analysed directly ex vivo are now available. The results reveal cross-β structures that are far more intricate than anticipated. Here, we describe these structures, highlighting their similarities and differences, and the basis for their toxicity. We discuss how amyloid structure may affect the ability of fibrils to spread to different sites in the cell and between organisms in a prion-like manner, along with their roles in disease. These molecular insights will aid in understanding the development and spread of amyloid diseases and are inspiring new strategies for therapeutic intervention.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew G Iadanza
- Astbury Centre for Structural Molecular Biology, School of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK
| | - Matthew P Jackson
- Astbury Centre for Structural Molecular Biology, School of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK
| | - Eric W Hewitt
- Astbury Centre for Structural Molecular Biology, School of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK
| | - Neil A Ranson
- Astbury Centre for Structural Molecular Biology, School of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK
| | - Sheena E Radford
- Astbury Centre for Structural Molecular Biology, School of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK.
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Farkas C, Fuentes-Villalobos F, Rebolledo-Jaramillo B, Benavides F, Castro AF, Pincheira R. Streamlined computational pipeline for genetic background characterization of genetically engineered mice based on next generation sequencing data. BMC Genomics 2019; 20:131. [PMID: 30755158 PMCID: PMC6373082 DOI: 10.1186/s12864-019-5504-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2018] [Accepted: 01/31/2019] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Genetically engineered mice (GEM) are essential tools for understanding gene function and disease modeling. Historically, gene targeting was first done in embryonic stem cells (ESCs) derived from the 129 family of inbred strains, leading to a mixed background or congenic mice when crossed with C57BL/6 mice. Depending on the number of backcrosses and breeding strategies, genomic segments from 129-derived ESCs can be introgressed into the C57BL/6 genome, establishing a unique genetic makeup that needs characterization in order to obtain valid conclusions from experiments using GEM lines. Currently, SNP genotyping is used to detect the extent of 129-derived ESC genome introgression into C57BL/6 recipients; however, it fails to detect novel/rare variants. RESULTS Here, we present a computational pipeline implemented in the Galaxy platform and in BASH/R script to determine genetic introgression of GEM using next generation sequencing data (NGS), such as whole genome sequencing (WGS), whole exome sequencing (WES) and RNA-Seq. The pipeline includes strategies to uncover variants linked to a targeted locus, genome-wide variant visualization, and the identification of potential modifier genes. Although these methods apply to congenic mice, they can also be used to describe variants fixed by genetic drift. As a proof of principle, we analyzed publicly available RNA-Seq data from five congenic knockout (KO) lines and our own RNA-Seq data from the Sall2 KO line. Additionally, we performed target validation using several genetics approaches. CONCLUSIONS We revealed the impact of the 129-derived ESC genome introgression on gene expression, predicted potential modifier genes, and identified potential phenotypic interference in KO lines. Our results demonstrate that our new approach is an effective method to determine genetic introgression of GEM.
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Affiliation(s)
- C Farkas
- Laboratorio de Transducción de Señales y Cáncer. Departamento de Bioquímica y Biología Molecular. Facultad Cs. Biológicas, Universidad de Concepción, Concepción, Chile
| | - F Fuentes-Villalobos
- Laboratorio de Transducción de Señales y Cáncer. Departamento de Bioquímica y Biología Molecular. Facultad Cs. Biológicas, Universidad de Concepción, Concepción, Chile
| | | | - F Benavides
- Department of Epigenetics and Molecular Carcinogenesis, M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Smithville, TX, USA
| | - A F Castro
- Laboratorio de Transducción de Señales y Cáncer. Departamento de Bioquímica y Biología Molecular. Facultad Cs. Biológicas, Universidad de Concepción, Concepción, Chile
| | - R Pincheira
- Laboratorio de Transducción de Señales y Cáncer. Departamento de Bioquímica y Biología Molecular. Facultad Cs. Biológicas, Universidad de Concepción, Concepción, Chile.
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20
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Song Z, Yang W, Cheng G, Zhou X, Yang L, Zhao D. Prion protein is essential for the RE1 silencing transcription factor (REST)-dependent developmental switch in synaptic NMDA receptors. Cell Death Dis 2018; 9:541. [PMID: 29748616 PMCID: PMC5945644 DOI: 10.1038/s41419-018-0576-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2018] [Accepted: 03/19/2018] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
It is important that the correct amounts of GluN2 subunits are maintained, as they determine NMDAR functional properties, which are crucial to neuronal communication, synaptogenesis and cognitive function. The transcriptional repressor RE1 silencing transcription factor (REST) is critical for the postnatal developmental switch in NMDARs. However, the mechanisms triggering REST and the link between NMDARs and REST are unclear. Here we show a new physiological essential role for cellular prion protein (PrPC) in REST-dependent homeostasis and the developmental switch of NMDARs. REST and REST-associated proteins were overactivated in the hippocampi of Prnp knockout mice (Prnp 0/0 ) compared with wild-type Prnp (Prnp +/+ ) mice. This coincided with the disruption of the normal developmental switch from GluN2B-to-GluN2A in vivo. PrPC co-located with REST under physiological environments and mediated the translocation of REST in conditioners of NMDARs in vitro in Prnp +/+ hippocampal neurons. Regardless of whether REST was knocked down or overexpressed, deletion of PrPC not only disrupted REST-mediated distribution of mitochondria, but also prevented REST-regulated expression of GluN2B and GluN2A in Prnp 0/0 . Importantly, these effects were rescued after overexpression of full-length PrPC through restoration of NMDAR2 subunits and their distributions in dendritic processes in Prnp 0/0 . Consistently, knockdown of PrPC in Prnp +/+ had a similar effect on Prnp 0/0 . Furthermore, PrPC colocalized with both GluN2B and GluN2A in Prnp +/+ . For the first time, we demonstrate that PrPC is essential for REST-regulated NMDARs. Confirming the regulation of NMDAR-modulating mechanisms could provide novel therapeutic targets against dysfunctions of glutamatergic transmission in the nervous system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhiqi Song
- The State Key Laboratories for Agrobiotechnology, Key Lab of Animal Epidemiology and Zoonosis, Ministry of Agriculture, National Animal Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy Laboratory, College of Veterinary Medicine, China Agricultural University, 100193, Beijing, China
- Institute of Laboratory Animal Sciences, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (CAMS) and Comparative Medicine Center, Peking Union Medical Collage (PUMC), Key Laboratory of Human Disease Comparative Medicine, Ministry of Health, 100021, Beijing, China
| | - Wei Yang
- The State Key Laboratories for Agrobiotechnology, Key Lab of Animal Epidemiology and Zoonosis, Ministry of Agriculture, National Animal Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy Laboratory, College of Veterinary Medicine, China Agricultural University, 100193, Beijing, China
- Hebei Institute of Animal Science and Veterinary Medicine, 071000, Baoding, China
| | - Guangyu Cheng
- The State Key Laboratories for Agrobiotechnology, Key Lab of Animal Epidemiology and Zoonosis, Ministry of Agriculture, National Animal Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy Laboratory, College of Veterinary Medicine, China Agricultural University, 100193, Beijing, China
| | - Xiangmei Zhou
- The State Key Laboratories for Agrobiotechnology, Key Lab of Animal Epidemiology and Zoonosis, Ministry of Agriculture, National Animal Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy Laboratory, College of Veterinary Medicine, China Agricultural University, 100193, Beijing, China
| | - Lifeng Yang
- The State Key Laboratories for Agrobiotechnology, Key Lab of Animal Epidemiology and Zoonosis, Ministry of Agriculture, National Animal Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy Laboratory, College of Veterinary Medicine, China Agricultural University, 100193, Beijing, China
| | - Deming Zhao
- The State Key Laboratories for Agrobiotechnology, Key Lab of Animal Epidemiology and Zoonosis, Ministry of Agriculture, National Animal Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy Laboratory, College of Veterinary Medicine, China Agricultural University, 100193, Beijing, China.
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Cellular prion protein controls stem cell-like properties of human glioblastoma tumor-initiating cells. Oncotarget 2018; 7:38638-38657. [PMID: 27229535 PMCID: PMC5122417 DOI: 10.18632/oncotarget.9575] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/30/2015] [Accepted: 05/04/2016] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Prion protein (PrPC) is a cell surface glycoprotein whose misfolding is responsible for prion diseases. Although its physiological role is not completely defined, several lines of evidence propose that PrPC is involved in self-renewal, pluripotency gene expression, proliferation and differentiation of neural stem cells. Moreover, PrPC regulates different biological functions in human tumors, including glioblastoma (GBM). We analyzed the role of PrPC in GBM cell pathogenicity focusing on tumor-initiating cells (TICs, or cancer stem cells, CSCs), the subpopulation responsible for development, progression and recurrence of most malignancies. Analyzing four GBM CSC-enriched cultures, we show that PrPC expression is directly correlated with the proliferation rate of the cells. To better define its role in CSC biology, we knocked-down PrPC expression in two of these GBM-derived CSC cultures by specific lentiviral-delivered shRNAs. We provide evidence that CSC proliferation rate, spherogenesis and in vivo tumorigenicity are significantly inhibited in PrPC down-regulated cells. Moreover, PrPC down-regulation caused loss of expression of the stemness and self-renewal markers (NANOG, Sox2) and the activation of differentiation pathways (i.e. increased GFAP expression). Our results suggest that PrPC controls the stemness properties of human GBM CSCs and that its down-regulation induces the acquisition of a more differentiated and less oncogenic phenotype.
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Cofactors influence the biological properties of infectious recombinant prions. Acta Neuropathol 2018; 135:179-199. [PMID: 29094186 DOI: 10.1007/s00401-017-1782-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2017] [Revised: 10/20/2017] [Accepted: 10/21/2017] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Prion diseases are caused by a misfolding of the cellular prion protein (PrP) to a pathogenic isoform named PrPSc. Prions exist as strains, which are characterized by specific pathological and biochemical properties likely encoded in the three-dimensional structure of PrPSc. However, whether cofactors determine these different PrPSc conformations and how this relates to their specific biological properties is largely unknown. To understand how different cofactors modulate prion strain generation and selection, Protein Misfolding Cyclic Amplification was used to create a diversity of infectious recombinant prion strains by propagation in the presence of brain homogenate. Brain homogenate is known to contain these mentioned cofactors, whose identity is only partially known, and which facilitate conversion of PrPC to PrPSc. We thus obtained a mix of distinguishable infectious prion strains. Subsequently, we replaced brain homogenate, by different polyanionic cofactors that were able to drive the evolution of mixed prion populations toward specific strains. Thus, our results show that a variety of infectious recombinant prions can be generated in vitro and that their specific type of conformation, i.e., the strain, is dependent on the cofactors available during the propagation process. These observations have significant implications for understanding the pathogenesis of prion diseases and their ability to replicate in different tissues and hosts. Importantly, these considerations might apply to other neurodegenerative diseases for which different conformations of misfolded proteins have been described.
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Sperm-borne phospholipase C zeta-1 ensures monospermic fertilization in mice. Sci Rep 2018; 8:1315. [PMID: 29358633 PMCID: PMC5778054 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-19497-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 78] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2017] [Accepted: 01/03/2018] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Sperm entry in mammalian oocytes triggers intracellular Ca2+ oscillations that initiate resumption of the meiotic cell cycle and subsequent activations. Here, we show that phospholipase C zeta 1 (PLCζ1) is the long-sought sperm-borne oocyte activation factor (SOAF). Plcz1 gene knockout (KO) mouse spermatozoa fail to induce Ca2+ changes in intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). In contrast to ICSI, Plcz1 KO spermatozoa induced atypical patterns of Ca2+ changes in normal fertilizations, and most of the fertilized oocytes ceased development at the 1–2-cell stage because of oocyte activation failure or polyspermy. We further discovered that both zona pellucida block to polyspermy (ZPBP) and plasma membrane block to polyspermy (PMBP) were delayed in oocytes fertilized with Plcz1 KO spermatozoa. With the observation that polyspermy is rare in astacin-like metalloendopeptidase (Astl) KO female oocytes that lack ZPBP, we conclude that PMPB plays more critical role than ZPBP in vivo. Finally, we obtained healthy pups from male mice carrying human infertile PLCZ1 mutation by single sperm ICSI supplemented with Plcz1 mRNA injection. These results suggest that mammalian spermatozoa have a primitive oocyte activation mechanism and that PLCζ1 is a SOAF that ensures oocyte activation steps for monospermic fertilization in mammals.
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Choi W, Kim E, Yum SY, Lee C, Lee J, Moon J, Ramachandra S, Malaweera BO, Cho J, Kim JS, Kim S, Jang G. Efficient PRNP deletion in bovine genome using gene-editing technologies in bovine cells. Prion 2016. [PMID: 26217959 DOI: 10.1080/19336896.2015.1071459] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Even though prion (encoded by the PRNP gene) diseases like bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) are fatal neurodegenerative diseases in cattle, their study via gene deletion has been limited due to the absence of cell lines or mutant models. In this study, we aim to develop an immortalized fibroblast cell line in which genome-engineering technology can be readily applied to create gene-modified clones for studies. To this end, this study is designed to 1) investigate the induction of primary fibroblasts to immortalization by introducing Bmi-1 and hTert genes; 2) investigate the disruption of the PRNP in those cells; and 3) evaluate the gene expression and embryonic development using knockout (KO) cell lines. Primary cells from a male neonate were immortalized with Bmi-1and hTert. Immortalized cells were cultured for more than 180 days without any changes in their doubling time and morphology. Furthermore, to knockout the PRNP gene, plasmids that encode transcription activator-like effector nuclease (TALEN) pairs were transfected into the cells, and transfected single cells were propagated. Mutated clonal cell lines were confirmed by T7 endonuclease I assay and sequencing. Four knockout cell lines were used for somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT), and the resulting embryos were developed to the blastocyst stage. The genes (CSNK2A1, FAM64A, MPG and PRND) were affected after PRNP disruption in immortalized cells. In conclusion, we established immortalized cattle fibroblasts using Bmi-1 and hTert genes, and used TALENs to knockout the PRNP gene in these immortalized cells. The efficient PRNP KO is expected to be a useful technology to develop our understanding of in vitro prion protein functions in cattle.
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Affiliation(s)
- WooJae Choi
- a Laboratory of Theriogenology and Biotechnology; Department of Veterinary Clinical Science ; College of Veterinary Medicine and the Research Institute of Veterinary Science; Seoul National University ; Seoul , Republic of Korea
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Notari S, Xiao X, Espinosa JC, Cohen Y, Qing L, Aguilar-Calvo P, Kofskey D, Cali I, Cracco L, Kong Q, Torres JM, Zou W, Gambetti P. Transmission characteristics of variably protease-sensitive prionopathy. Emerg Infect Dis 2016; 20:2006-14. [PMID: 25418590 PMCID: PMC4257788 DOI: 10.3201/eid2012.140548] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
This disease is transmissible and thus an authentic prion disease. Variably protease-sensitive prionopathy (VPSPr), a recently identified and seemingly sporadic human prion disease, is distinct from Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) but shares features of Gerstmann-Sträussler-Scheinker disease (GSS). However, contrary to exclusively inherited GSS, no prion protein (PrP) gene variations have been detected in VPSPr, suggesting that VPSPr might be the long-sought sporadic form of GSS. The VPSPr atypical features raised the issue of transmissibility, a prototypical property of prion diseases. We inoculated VPSPr brain homogenate into transgenic mice expressing various levels of human PrP (PrPC). On first passage, 54% of challenged mice showed histopathologic lesions, and 34% harbored abnormal PrP similar to that of VPSPr. Surprisingly, no prion disease was detected on second passage. We concluded that VPSPr is transmissible; thus, it is an authentic prion disease. However, we speculate that normal human PrPC is not an efficient conversion substrate (or mouse brain not a favorable environment) and therefore cannot sustain replication beyond the first passage.
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Veber D, Scalabrino G. Are PrPCs involved in some human myelin diseases? Relating experimental studies to human pathology. J Neurol Sci 2015; 359:396-403. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jns.2015.09.365] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/27/2015] [Revised: 09/04/2015] [Accepted: 09/23/2015] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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Murdoch BM, Murdoch GK. Genetics of Prion Disease in Cattle. Bioinform Biol Insights 2015; 9:1-10. [PMID: 26462233 PMCID: PMC4589088 DOI: 10.4137/bbi.s29678] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/04/2015] [Revised: 08/10/2015] [Accepted: 08/12/2015] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) is a prion disease that is invariably fatal in cattle and has been implicated as a significant human health risk. As a transmissible disease of livestock, it has impacted food safety, production practices, global trade, and profitability. Genetic polymorphisms that alter the prion protein in humans and sheep are associated with transmissible spongiform encephalopathy susceptibility or resistance. In contrast, there is no strong evidence that nonsynonymous mutations in the bovine prion gene (PRNP) are associated with classical BSE (C-BSE) disease susceptibility, though two bovine PRNP insertion/deletion polymorphisms, in the putative region, are associated with susceptibility to C-BSE. However, these associations do not explain the full extent of BSE susceptibility, and loci outside of PRNP appear to be associated with disease incidence in some cattle populations. This article provides a review of the current state of genetic knowledge regarding prion diseases in cattle.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brenda M Murdoch
- Animal and Veterinary Science, University of Idaho, Moscow, ID, USA
| | - Gordon K Murdoch
- Animal and Veterinary Science, University of Idaho, Moscow, ID, USA
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Guitart K, Loers G, Schachner M, Kleene R. Prion protein regulates glutathione metabolism and neural glutamate and cysteine uptake via excitatory amino acid transporter 3. J Neurochem 2015; 133:558-71. [PMID: 25692227 DOI: 10.1111/jnc.13071] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2014] [Revised: 01/29/2015] [Accepted: 02/08/2015] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
Prion protein (PrP) plays crucial roles in regulating antioxidant systems to improve cell defenses against cellular stress. Here, we show that the interactions of PrP with the excitatory amino acid transporter 3 (EAAT3), γ-glutamyl transpeptidase (γ-GT), and multi-drug resistance protein 1 (MRP1) in astrocytes and the interaction between PrP and EAAT3 in neurons regulate the astroglial and neuronal metabolism of the antioxidant glutathione. Ablation of PrP in astrocytes and cerebellar neurons leads to dysregulation of EAAT3-mediated uptake of glutamate and cysteine, which are precursors for the synthesis of glutathione. In PrP-deficient astrocytes, levels of intracellular glutathione are increased, and under oxidative stress, levels of extracellular glutathione are increased, due to (i) increased glutathione release via MRP1 and (ii) reduced activity of the glutathione-degrading enzyme γ-GT. In PrP-deficient cerebellar neurons, cell death is enhanced under oxidative stress and glutamate excitotoxicity, when compared to wild-type cerebellar neurons. These results indicate a functional interplay of PrP with EAAT3, MRP1 and γ-GT in astrocytes and of PrP and EAAT3 in neurons, suggesting that these interactions play an important role in the metabolic cross-talk between astrocytes and neurons and in protection of neurons by astrocytes from oxidative and glutamate-induced cytotoxicity. Interactions of prion protein (PrP) with excitatory amino acid transporter 3 (EAAT3), γ-glutamyl transpeptidase (GGT) and multi-drug resistance protein 1 (MRP1) regulate the astroglial and neuronal metabolism of glutathione (GSH) which protects cells against the cytotoxic oxidative stress. PrP controls the release of GSH from astrocytes via MRP1 and regulates the hydrolysis of extracellular GSH by GGT as well as the neuronal and astroglial glutamate and cysteine uptake via EAAT3.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kathrin Guitart
- Zentrum für Molekulare Neurobiologie, Universitätsklinikum Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
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Sakudo A, Onodera T. Prion protein (PrP) gene-knockout cell lines: insight into functions of the PrP. Front Cell Dev Biol 2015; 2:75. [PMID: 25642423 PMCID: PMC4295555 DOI: 10.3389/fcell.2014.00075] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2014] [Accepted: 12/22/2014] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Elucidation of prion protein (PrP) functions is crucial to fully understand prion diseases. A major approach to studying PrP functions is the use of PrP gene-knockout (Prnp (-/-)) mice. So far, six types of Prnp (-/-) mice have been generated, demonstrating the promiscuous functions of PrP. Recently, other PrP family members, such as Doppel and Shadoo, have been found. However, information obtained from comparative studies of structural and functional analyses of these PrP family proteins do not fully reveal PrP functions. Recently, varieties of Prnp (-/-) cell lines established from Prnp (-/-) mice have contributed to the analysis of PrP functions. In this mini-review, we focus on Prnp (-/-) cell lines and summarize currently available Prnp (-/-) cell lines and their characterizations. In addition, we introduce the recent advances in the methodology of cell line generation with knockout or knockdown of the PrP gene. We also discuss how these cell lines have provided valuable insights into PrP functions and show future perspectives.
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Affiliation(s)
- Akikazu Sakudo
- Laboratory of Biometabolic Chemistry, Faculty of Medicine, School of Health Sciences, University of the Ryukyus Nishihara, Japan
| | - Takashi Onodera
- Research Center for Food Safety, School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, University of Tokyo Tokyo, Japan
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Scalabrino G, Veber D, Tredici G. Relationships between cobalamin, epidermal growth factor, and normal prions in the myelin maintenance of central nervous system. Int J Biochem Cell Biol 2014; 55:232-41. [PMID: 25239885 DOI: 10.1016/j.biocel.2014.09.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2014] [Revised: 09/06/2014] [Accepted: 09/08/2014] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
Cobalamin (Cbl), epidermal growth factor (EGF), and prions (PrPs) are key molecules for myelin maintenance in the central and peripheral nervous systems. Cbl and EGF increase normal prion (PrP(C)) synthesis and PrP(C) levels in rat spinal cord (SC) and elsewhere. Cbl deficiency increases PrP(C) levels in rat SC and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), and decreases PrP(C)-mRNA levels in rat SC. The administration of anti-octapeptide repeat PrP(C) region antibodies (Abs) to Cbl-deficient (Cbl-D) rats prevents SC myelin lesions and a local increase in tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α levels, whereas anti-TNF-α Abs prevent SC myelin lesions and the increase in SC and CSF PrP(C) levels. As it is known that both Cbl and EGF regulate SC PrP(C) synthesis independently, and that Cbl regulates SC EGF synthesis, EGF may play both Cbl-independent and Cbl-dependent roles. When Cbl-D rats undergo Cbl replacement therapy, SC PrP(C) levels are similar to those observed in Cbl-D rats. In rat frontal cortex (which is marginally affected by Cbl deficiency in histological terms), Cbl deficiency decreases PrP(C) levels and the increase induced by Cbl replacement leads to their normalization. Increased nerve PrP(C) levels are detected in the myelin lesions of the peripheral neuropathy of Cbl-D rats, and CSF PrP(C) levels are also increased in Cbl-D patients (but not in patients with Cbl-unrelated neurological diseases). Various common steps in the downstream signaling pathway of Cbl, EGF, and PrP(C) underlines the close relationship between the three molecules in keeping myelin normal.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giuseppe Scalabrino
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Laboratory of Neuropathology, University of Milan, 20133 Milano, Italy.
| | - Daniela Veber
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Laboratory of Neuropathology, University of Milan, 20133 Milano, Italy
| | - Giovanni Tredici
- Department of Translational Medicine and Surgery, University of Milano-Bicocca, 20052 Monza, Italy
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31
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Shin HY, Park JH, Carp RI, Choi EK, Kim YS. Deficiency of prion protein induces impaired autophagic flux in neurons. Front Aging Neurosci 2014; 6:207. [PMID: 25202268 PMCID: PMC4142790 DOI: 10.3389/fnagi.2014.00207] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2014] [Accepted: 07/25/2014] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Normal cellular prion protein (PrPC) is highly expressed in the central nervous system. The Zürich I Prnp-deficient mouse strain did not show an abnormal phenotype in initial studies, however, in later studies, deficits in exploratory behavior and short- and long-term memory have been revealed. In the present study, numerous autophagic vacuoles were found in neurons from Zürich I Prnp-deficient mice. The autophagic accumulation in the soma of cortical neurons in Zürich I Prnp-deficient mice was observed as early as 3 months of age, and in the hippocampal neurons at 6 months of age. Specifically, there is accumulation of electron dense pigments associated with autophagy in the neurons of Zürich I Prnp-deficient mice. Furthermore, autophagic accumulations were observed as early as 3 months of age in the CA3 region of hippocampal and cerebral cortical neuropils. The autophagic vacuoles increased with age in the hippocampus of Zürich I Prnp-deficient mice at a faster rate and to a greater extent than in normal C57BL/6J mice, whereas the cortex exhibited high levels that were maintained from 3 months old in Zürich I Prnp-deficient mice. The pigmented autophagic accumulation is due to the incompletely digested material from autophagic vacuoles. Furthermore, a deficiency in PrPC may disrupt the autophagic flux by inhibiting autophagosome-lysosomal fusion. Overall, our results provide insight into the protective role of PrPC in neurons, which may play a role in normal behavior and other brain functions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hae-Young Shin
- Ilsong Institute of Life Science, Hallym University Anyang, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Jeong-Ho Park
- Ilsong Institute of Life Science, Hallym University Anyang, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
| | - Richard I Carp
- New York State Institute for Basic Research in Developmental Disabilities Staten Island, NY, USA
| | - Eun-Kyoung Choi
- Ilsong Institute of Life Science, Hallym University Anyang, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea ; Department of Biomedical Gerontology, Graduate School of Hallym University Chuncheon, Gangwon-do, South Korea
| | - Yong-Sun Kim
- Ilsong Institute of Life Science, Hallym University Anyang, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea ; Department of Microbiology, College of Medicine, Hallym University Chuncheon, Gangwon-do, South Korea
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Onodera T, Sakudo A, Wu G, Saeki K. Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy in Japan: History and Recent Studies on Oxidative Stress in Prion Diseases. Microbiol Immunol 2013; 50:565-78. [PMID: 16924141 DOI: 10.1111/j.1348-0421.2006.tb03831.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
With the respect to BSE and vCJD, compliance with the following three rules should strictly be observed: (i) Identification and destruction of all clinically affected cattle; (ii) destruction of all mammalian proteins used in feeding ruminant livestock; and (iii) destruction of all high-risk tissues for use in human consumption. Scrapie in sheep has been documented in the 18th century in the United Kingdom. Through studies of brain-to-brain transmission in the same species in 1935, Cuille et al. successfully isolated the culprit protein from the sheep brain. To transmit said protein from an animal to another, intracerebral inoculation was much more efficient than intraperitoneal or oral route in certain species; i.e. the hamster and mouse. Since discovery of the more efficacious infection route, studies and development of prion research have undergone 4 developmental phases. Phase I depicted discoveries of the pathological features of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) and scrapie with typical lesions of spongiform encephalopathy, while Phase II revealed individual-to-individual (or cross-species) transmissions of CJD, kuru and scrapie in animals. Phases I and II suggested the possible participation of a slow virus in the infection process. In Phase III, Prusiner et al. proposed the 'prion' theory in 1982, followed by the milestone development of the transgenic or gene-targeted mouse in prion research in Phase IV. By strain-typing of prions, CJD has been classified as type 2 or 4 by Parchi et al. and Wadsworth as type-2 or -4 and type-1 or -2, respectively. Wadsworth type 1 is detected in the cerebellum, while Wadsworth type 2 was detected in the prefrontal cortex of 10% of sporadic CJD patients. In 1999, Puoti et al. have reported the co-existence of two types of PrP(res) in a same patient. These reports indicated that PrP(res)-typing is a quantitative rather than a qualitative process, and the relationship between the molecular type and the prion strain is rather complex. In fact, previous findings of Truchot have correlated type-1 distribution with synaptic deposits, and type-2 with arrangement of diffuse deposits in neurons. Although the normal function of PrP(C) has not been fully understood, recent studies have shown that PrP(C) plays a role in copper metabolism, signal transduction, neuroprotection and cell maturation. Further search of PrP(C)-interacting molecules and detailed studies using Prnp(-/-) mice and various type of Prnp(-/-) cell lines under various conditions are the prerequisites in elucidating PrP functions. In the pathogenesis of prion diseases, present results support the hypothesis that 'loss-of-function' of PrP(C) decreases resistance to oxidative stress, and 'gain-of-function' of PrP(Sc) increases oxidative stress. The mechanisms of (i) the 'loss-of-function' of PrP(C) in enhanced susceptibility to oxidative stress and (ii) the 'gain-of-function' of PrP(Sc) in generation of oxidative stress remain to be elucidated, although their mechanisms of action, at least in part, involve the decrease and increase in SOD activity, respectively.
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Affiliation(s)
- Takashi Onodera
- Department of Molecular Immunology, School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, University of Tokyo
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Bechtel K, Geschwind MD. Ethics in prion disease. Prog Neurobiol 2013; 110:29-44. [PMID: 23906487 PMCID: PMC3818451 DOI: 10.1016/j.pneurobio.2013.07.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2013] [Revised: 07/05/2013] [Accepted: 07/06/2013] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
This paper is intended to discuss some of the scientific and ethical issues that are created by increased research efforts towards earlier diagnosis, as well as to treatment of, human prion diseases (and related dementias), including the resulting consequences for individuals, their families, and society. Most patients with prion disease currently are diagnosed when they are about 2/3 of the way through their disease course (Geschwind et al., 2010a; Paterson et al., 2012b), when the disease has progressed so far that even treatments that stop the disease process would probably have little benefit. Although there are currently no treatments available for prion diseases, we and others have realized that we must diagnose patients earlier and with greater accuracy so that future treatments have hope of success. As approximately 15% of prion diseases have a autosomal dominant genetic etiology, this further adds to the complexity of ethical issues, particularly regarding when to conduct genetic testing, release of genetic results, and when or if to implement experimental therapies. Human prion diseases are both infectious and transmissible; great care is required to balance the needs of the family and individual with both public health needs and strained hospital budgets. It is essential to proactively examine and address the ethical issues involved, as well as to define and in turn provide best standards of care.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kendra Bechtel
- Memory and Aging Center, University of California, San Francisco, United States
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Asante EA, Linehan JM, Smidak M, Tomlinson A, Grimshaw A, Jeelani A, Jakubcova T, Hamdan S, Powell C, Brandner S, Wadsworth JDF, Collinge J. Inherited prion disease A117V is not simply a proteinopathy but produces prions transmissible to transgenic mice expressing homologous prion protein. PLoS Pathog 2013; 9:e1003643. [PMID: 24086135 PMCID: PMC3784465 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1003643] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/17/2013] [Accepted: 08/05/2013] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Prions are infectious agents causing fatal neurodegenerative diseases of humans and animals. In humans, these have sporadic, acquired and inherited aetiologies. The inherited prion diseases are caused by one of over 30 coding mutations in the human prion protein (PrP) gene (PRNP) and many of these generate infectious prions as evidenced by their experimental transmissibility by inoculation to laboratory animals. However, some, and in particular an extensively studied type of Gerstmann-Sträussler-Scheinker syndrome (GSS) caused by a PRNP A117V mutation, are thought not to generate infectious prions and instead constitute prion proteinopathies with a quite distinct pathogenetic mechanism. Multiple attempts to transmit A117V GSS have been unsuccessful and typical protease-resistant PrP (PrP(Sc)), pathognomonic of prion disease, is not detected in brain. Pathogenesis is instead attributed to production of an aberrant topological form of PrP, C-terminal transmembrane PrP ((Ctm)PrP). Barriers to transmission of prion strains from one species to another appear to relate to structural compatibility of PrP in host and inoculum and we have therefore produced transgenic mice expressing human 117V PrP. We found that brain tissue from GSS A117V patients did transmit disease to these mice and both the neuropathological features of prion disease and presence of PrP(Sc) was demonstrated in the brains of recipient transgenic mice. This PrP(Sc) rapidly degraded during laboratory analysis, suggesting that the difficulty in its detection in patients with GSS A117V could relate to post-mortem proteolysis. We conclude that GSS A117V is indeed a prion disease although the relative contributions of (Ctm)PrP and prion propagation in neurodegeneration and their pathogenetic interaction remains to be established.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emmanuel A. Asante
- Medical Research Council Prion Unit and Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, University College London Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London, United Kingdom
| | - Jacqueline M. Linehan
- Medical Research Council Prion Unit and Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, University College London Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London, United Kingdom
| | - Michelle Smidak
- Medical Research Council Prion Unit and Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, University College London Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London, United Kingdom
| | - Andrew Tomlinson
- Medical Research Council Prion Unit and Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, University College London Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London, United Kingdom
| | - Andrew Grimshaw
- Medical Research Council Prion Unit and Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, University College London Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London, United Kingdom
| | - Asif Jeelani
- Medical Research Council Prion Unit and Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, University College London Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London, United Kingdom
| | - Tatiana Jakubcova
- Medical Research Council Prion Unit and Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, University College London Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London, United Kingdom
| | - Shyma Hamdan
- Medical Research Council Prion Unit and Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, University College London Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London, United Kingdom
| | - Caroline Powell
- Medical Research Council Prion Unit and Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, University College London Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London, United Kingdom
| | - Sebastian Brandner
- Medical Research Council Prion Unit and Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, University College London Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London, United Kingdom
| | - Jonathan D. F. Wadsworth
- Medical Research Council Prion Unit and Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, University College London Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London, United Kingdom
| | - John Collinge
- Medical Research Council Prion Unit and Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, University College London Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London, United Kingdom
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Llorens F, Ferrer I, del Río JA. Gene expression resulting from PrPC ablation and PrPC overexpression in murine and cellular models. Mol Neurobiol 2013; 49:413-23. [PMID: 23949728 DOI: 10.1007/s12035-013-8529-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/02/2013] [Accepted: 08/05/2013] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
The cellular prion protein (PrP(C)) plays a key role in prion diseases when it converts to the pathogenic form scrapie prion protein. Increasing knowledge of its participation in prion infection contrasts with the elusive and controversial data regarding its physiological role probably related to its pleiotropy, cell-specific functions, and cellular-specific milieu. Multiple approaches have been made to the increasing understanding of the molecular mechanisms and cellular functions modulated by PrP(C) at the transcriptomic and proteomic levels. Gene expression analyses have been made in several mouse and cellular models with regulated expression of PrP(C) resulting in PrP(C) ablation or PrP(C) overexpression. These analyses support previous functional data and have yielded clues about new potential functions. However, experiments on animal models have shown moderate and varied results which are difficult to interpret. Moreover, studies in cell cultures correlate little with in vivo counterparts. Yet, both animal and cell models have provided some insights on how to proceed in the future by using more refined methods and selected functional experiments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Franc Llorens
- Institute of Neuropathology, University Hospital Bellvitge-Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL), L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, Spain,
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36
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Miranda A, Ramos-Ibeas P, Pericuesta E, Ramirez MA, Gutierrez-Adan A. The role of prion protein in stem cell regulation. Reproduction 2013; 146:R91-9. [PMID: 23740082 DOI: 10.1530/rep-13-0100] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Cellular prion protein (PrP(C)) has been well described as an essential partner of prion diseases due to the existence of a pathological conformation (PrP(Sc)). Recently, it has also been demonstrated that PrP(C) is an important element of the pluripotency and self-renewal matrix, with an increasing amount of evidence pointing in this direction. Here, we review the data that demonstrate its role in the transcriptional regulation of pluripotency, in the differentiation of stem cells into different lineages (e.g. muscle and neurons), in embryonic development, and its involvement in reproductive cells. Also highlighted are recent results from our laboratory that describe an important regulation by PrP(C) of the major pluripotency gene Nanog. Together, these data support the appearance of new strategies to control stemness, which could represent an important advance in the field of regenerative medicine.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Miranda
- Departamento de Reproducción Animal, INIA, Avenida Puerta de Hierro no. 12, Local 10, Madrid 28040, Spain
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37
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The Functional Role of Prion Protein (PrPC) on Autophagy. Pathogens 2013; 2:436-45. [PMID: 25437200 PMCID: PMC4235692 DOI: 10.3390/pathogens2030436] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/02/2013] [Revised: 06/11/2013] [Accepted: 06/18/2013] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Cellular prion protein (PrPC) plays an important role in the cellular defense against oxidative stress. However, the exact protective mechanism of PrPC is unclear. Autophagy is essential for survival, differentiation, development, and homeostasis in several organisms. Although the role that autophagy plays in neurodegenerative disease has yet to be established, it is clear that autophagy-induced cell death is observed in neurodegenerative disorders that exhibit protein aggregations. Moreover, autophagy can promote cell survival and cell death under various conditions. In this review, we describe the involvement of autophagy in prion disease and the effects of PrPC.
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Abstract
The infectious agent of the transmissible spongiform encephalopathies, or prion diseases, has been the center of intense debate for decades. Years of studies have provided overwhelming evidence to support the prion hypothesis that posits a protein conformal infectious agent is responsible for the transmissibility of the disease. The recent studies that generate prion infectivity with purified bacterially expressed recombinant prion protein not only provides convincing evidence supporting the core of the prion hypothesis, that a pathogenic conformer of host prion protein is able to seed the conversion of its normal counterpart to the likeness of itself resulting in the replication of the pathogenic conformer and occurrence of disease, they also indicate the importance of cofactors, particularly lipid or lipid-like molecules, in forming the protein conformation-based infectious agent. This article reviews the literature regarding the chemical nature of the infectious agent and the potential contribution from lipid molecules to prion infectivity, and discusses the important remaining questions in this research area.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fei Wang
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry, Ohio State University, 1645 Neil Ave., Columbus, OH 43210, USA.
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39
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Benestad SL, Austbø L, Tranulis MA, Espenes A, Olsaker I. Healthy goats naturally devoid of prion protein. Vet Res 2012; 43:87. [PMID: 23249298 PMCID: PMC3542104 DOI: 10.1186/1297-9716-43-87] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2012] [Accepted: 11/23/2012] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Prion diseases such as scrapie in small ruminants, bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in cattle and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) in man, are fatal neurodegenerative disorders. These diseases result from the accumulation of misfolded conformers of the host-encoded prion protein (PrP) in the central nervous system. To date naturally-occurring PrP free animals have not been reported. Here we describe healthy non-transgenic animals, Norwegian Dairy Goats, lacking prion protein due to a nonsense mutation early in the gene. These animals are predicted to be resistant to prion disease and will be valuable for research and for production of prion-free products.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sylvie L Benestad
- Norwegian Veterinary Institute, P,O,Box 750, Sentrum, Oslo, 0106, Norway.
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Santos TG, Beraldo FH, Hajj GNM, Lopes MH, Roffe M, Lupinacci FCS, Ostapchenko VG, Prado VF, Prado MAM, Martins VR. Laminin-γ1 chain and stress inducible protein 1 synergistically mediate PrPC-dependent axonal growth via Ca2+ mobilization in dorsal root ganglia neurons. J Neurochem 2012; 124:210-23. [PMID: 23145988 DOI: 10.1111/jnc.12091] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2012] [Revised: 11/01/2012] [Accepted: 11/01/2012] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Abstract
Prion protein (PrP(C)) is a cell surface glycoprotein that is abundantly expressed in nervous system. The elucidation of the PrP(C) interactome network and its significance on neural physiology is crucial to understanding neurodegenerative events associated with prion and Alzheimer's diseases. PrP(C) co-opts stress inducible protein 1/alpha7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (STI1/α7nAChR) or laminin/Type I metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluR1/5) to modulate hippocampal neuronal survival and differentiation. However, potential cross-talk between these protein complexes and their role in peripheral neurons has never been addressed. To explore this issue, we investigated PrP(C)-mediated axonogenesis in peripheral neurons in response to STI1 and laminin-γ1 chain-derived peptide (Ln-γ1). STI1 and Ln-γ1 promoted robust axonogenesis in wild-type neurons, whereas no effect was observed in neurons from PrP(C) -null mice. PrP(C) binding to Ln-γ1 or STI1 led to an increase in intracellular Ca(2+) levels via distinct mechanisms: STI1 promoted extracellular Ca(2+) influx, and Ln-γ1 released calcium from intracellular stores. Both effects depend on phospholipase C activation, which is modulated by mGluR1/5 for Ln-γ1, but depends on, C-type transient receptor potential (TRPC) channels rather than α7nAChR for STI1. Treatment of neurons with suboptimal concentrations of both ligands led to synergistic actions on PrP(C)-mediated calcium response and axonogenesis. This effect was likely mediated by simultaneous binding of the two ligands to PrP(C). These results suggest a role for PrP(C) as an organizer of diverse multiprotein complexes, triggering specific signaling pathways and promoting axonogenesis in the peripheral nervous system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tiago G Santos
- International Research Center, A.C. Camargo Hospital, São Paulo, Brazil
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41
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Yamaguchi Y, Miyata H, Uchiyama K, Ootsuyama A, Inubushi S, Mori T, Muramatsu N, Katamine S, Sakaguchi S. Biological and biochemical characterization of mice expressing prion protein devoid of the octapeptide repeat region after infection with prions. PLoS One 2012; 7:e43540. [PMID: 22927985 PMCID: PMC3424169 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0043540] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2012] [Accepted: 07/23/2012] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Accumulating lines of evidence indicate that the N-terminal domain of prion protein (PrP) is involved in prion susceptibility in mice. In this study, to investigate the role of the octapeptide repeat (OR) region alone in the N-terminal domain for the susceptibility and pathogenesis of prion disease, we intracerebrally inoculated RML scrapie prions into tg(PrPΔOR)/Prnp(0/0) mice, which express mouse PrP missing only the OR region on the PrP-null background. Incubation times of these mice were not extended. Protease-resistant PrPΔOR, or PrP(Sc)ΔOR, was easily detectable but lower in the brains of these mice, compared to that in control wild-type mice. Consistently, prion titers were slightly lower and astrogliosis was milder in their brains. However, in their spinal cords, PrP(Sc)ΔOR and prion titers were abundant and astrogliosis was as strong as in control wild-type mice. These results indicate that the role of the OR region in prion susceptibility and pathogenesis of the disease is limited. We also found that the PrP(Sc)ΔOR, including the pre-OR residues 23-50, was unusually protease-resistant, indicating that deletion of the OR region could cause structural changes to the pre-OR region upon prion infection, leading to formation of a protease-resistant structure for the pre-OR region.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yoshitaka Yamaguchi
- Division of Molecular Neurobiology, The Institute for Enzyme Research (KOSOKEN), The University of Tokushima, Tokushima, Japan
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Nagasaki University Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Nagasaki, Japan
| | - Hironori Miyata
- Animal Research Center, School of Medicine, University of Occupational and Environmental Health, Kitakyushu, Japan
| | - Keiji Uchiyama
- Division of Molecular Neurobiology, The Institute for Enzyme Research (KOSOKEN), The University of Tokushima, Tokushima, Japan
| | - Akira Ootsuyama
- Department of Radiation Biology and Health, School of Medicine, University of Occupational and Environmental Health, Kitakyushu, Japan
| | - Sachiko Inubushi
- Division of Molecular Neurobiology, The Institute for Enzyme Research (KOSOKEN), The University of Tokushima, Tokushima, Japan
| | - Tsuyoshi Mori
- Division of Molecular Neurobiology, The Institute for Enzyme Research (KOSOKEN), The University of Tokushima, Tokushima, Japan
| | - Naomi Muramatsu
- Division of Molecular Neurobiology, The Institute for Enzyme Research (KOSOKEN), The University of Tokushima, Tokushima, Japan
| | - Shigeru Katamine
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Nagasaki University Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Nagasaki, Japan
| | - Suehiro Sakaguchi
- Division of Molecular Neurobiology, The Institute for Enzyme Research (KOSOKEN), The University of Tokushima, Tokushima, Japan
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Nagasaki University Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Nagasaki, Japan
- * E-mail:
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Linden R, Cordeiro Y, Lima LMTR. Allosteric function and dysfunction of the prion protein. Cell Mol Life Sci 2012; 69:1105-24. [PMID: 21984610 PMCID: PMC11114699 DOI: 10.1007/s00018-011-0847-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/17/2011] [Revised: 09/16/2011] [Accepted: 09/20/2011] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
Transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs) are neurodegenerative diseases associated with progressive oligo- and multimerization of the prion protein (PrP(C)), its conformational conversion, aggregation and precipitation. We recently proposed that PrP(C) serves as a cell surface scaffold protein for a variety of signaling modules, the effects of which translate into wide-range functional consequences. Here we review evidence for allosteric functions of PrP(C), which constitute a common property of scaffold proteins. The available data suggest that allosteric effects among PrP(C) and its partners are involved in the assembly of multi-component signaling modules at the cell surface, impose upon both physiological and pathological conformational responses of PrP(C), and that allosteric dysfunction of PrP(C) has the potential to entail progressive signal corruption. These properties may be germane both to physiological roles of PrP(C), as well as to the pathogenesis of the TSEs and other degenerative/non-communicable diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rafael Linden
- Instituto de Biofísica Carlos Chagas Filho, UFRJ, CCS, Cidade Universitária, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
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43
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Wei X, Roettger Y, Tan B, He Y, Dodel R, Hampel H, Wei G, Haney J, Gu H, Johnstone BH, Liu J, Farlow MR, Du Y. Human anti-prion antibodies block prion peptide fibril formation and neurotoxicity. J Biol Chem 2012; 287:12858-66. [PMID: 22362783 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m111.255836] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Prion diseases are a group of rare, fatal neurodegenerative disorders associated with a conformational transformation of the cellular prion protein (PrP(C)) into a self-replicating and proteinase K-resistant conformer, termed scrapie PrP (PrP(Sc)). Aggregates of PrP(Sc) deposited around neurons lead to neuropathological alterations. Currently, there is no effective treatment for these fatal illnesses; thus, the development of an effective therapy is a priority. PrP peptide-based ELISA assay methods were developed for detection and immunoaffinity chromatography capture was developed for purification of naturally occurring PrP peptide autoantibodies present in human CSF, individual donor serum, and commercial preparations of pooled intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIg). The ratio of anti-PrP autoantibodies (PrP-AA) to total IgG was ∼1:1200. The binding epitope of purified PrP-AA was mapped to an N-terminal region comprising the PrP amino acid sequence KTNMK. Purified PrP-AA potently blocked fibril formation by a toxic 21-amino acid fragment of the PrP peptide containing the amino acid alanine to valine substitution corresponding to position 117 of the full-length peptide (A117V). Furthermore, PrP-AA attenuated the neurotoxicity of PrP(A117V) and wild-type peptides in rat cerebellar granule neuron (CGN) cultures. In contrast, IgG preparations depleted of PrP-AA had little effect on PrP fibril formation or PrP neurotoxicity. The specificity of PrP-AA was demonstrated by immunoprecipitating PrP protein in brain tissues of transgenic mice expressing the human PrP(A117V) epitope and Sc237 hamster. Based on these intriguing findings, it is suggested that human PrP-AA may be useful for interfering with the pathogenic effects of pathogenic prion proteins and, thereby has the potential to be an effective means for preventing or attenuating human prion disease progression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xing Wei
- Department of Neurology, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, Indiana 46202, USA
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Makishima T, Hochman L, Armstrong P, Rosenberger E, Ridley R, Woo M, Perachio A, Wood S. Inner ear dysfunction in caspase-3 deficient mice. BMC Neurosci 2011; 12:102. [PMID: 21988729 PMCID: PMC3208590 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2202-12-102] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/19/2011] [Accepted: 10/12/2011] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Caspase-3 is one of the most downstream enzymes activated in the apoptotic pathway. In caspase-3 deficient mice, loss of cochlear hair cells and spiral ganglion cells coincide closely with hearing loss. In contrast with the auditory system, details of the vestibular phenotype have not been characterized. Here we report the vestibular phenotype and inner ear anatomy in the caspase-3 deficient (Casp3(-/-)) mouse strain. RESULTS Average ABR thresholds of Casp3(-/-) mice were significantly elevated (P < 0.05) compared to Casp3(+/-) mice and Casp3(+/+) mice at 3 months of age. In DPOAE testing, distortion product 2F1-F2 was significantly decreased (P < 0.05) in Casp3(-/-) mice, whereas Casp3(+/-) and Casp3(+/+) mice showed normal and comparable values to each other. Casp3(-/-) mice were hyperactive and exhibited circling behavior when excited. In lateral canal VOR testing, Casp3(-/-) mice had minimal response to any of the stimuli tested, whereas Casp3(+/-) mice had an intermediate response compared to Casp3(+/+) mice. Inner ear anatomical and histological analysis revealed gross hypomorphism of the vestibular organs, in which the main site was the anterior semicircular canal. Hair cell numbers in the anterior- and lateral crista, and utricle were significantly smaller in Casp3(-/-) mice whereas the Casp3(+/-) and Casp3(+/+) mice had normal hair cell numbers. CONCLUSIONS These results indicate that caspase-3 is essential for correct functioning of the cochlea as well as normal development and function of the vestibule.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tomoko Makishima
- Department of Otolaryngology, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, Texas, USA.
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45
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Wadsworth JDF, Asante EA, Collinge J. Review: contribution of transgenic models to understanding human prion disease. Neuropathol Appl Neurobiol 2011; 36:576-97. [PMID: 20880036 PMCID: PMC3017745 DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2990.2010.01129.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/28/2023]
Abstract
Transgenic mice expressing human prion protein in the absence of endogenous mouse prion protein faithfully replicate human prions. These models reproduce all of the key features of human disease, including long clinically silent incubation periods prior to fatal neurodegeneration with neuropathological phenotypes that mirror human prion strain diversity. Critical contributions to our understanding of human prion disease pathogenesis and aetiology have only been possible through the use of transgenic mice. These models have provided the basis for the conformational selection model of prion transmission barriers and have causally linked bovine spongiform encephalopathy with variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. In the future these models will be essential for evaluating newly identified potentially zoonotic prion strains, for validating effective methods of prion decontamination and for developing effective therapeutic treatments for human prion disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- J D F Wadsworth
- MRC Prion Unit and Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Institute of Neurology, University College London, National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery, London, UK.
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Cervenakova L, Akimov S, Vasilyeva I, Yakovleva O, McKenzie C, Cervenak J, Piccardo P, Asher DM. Fukuoka-1 strain of transmissible spongiform encephalopathy agent infects murine bone marrow-derived cells with features of mesenchymal stem cells. Transfusion 2011; 51:1755-68. [PMID: 21303371 DOI: 10.1111/j.1537-2995.2010.03041.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The possible risk of iatrogenic transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs, prion diseases) from transplantation of marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) is uncertain. While most cell lines resist infection, a few propagate TSE agents. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS We generated MSC-like (MSC-L) cell cultures from bone marrow (BM) of mice inoculated with the human-derived Fukuoka-1 (Fu) strain of TSE agent. Cultured cells were characterized for various markers and cellular prion protein (PrP(C) ) by fluorescence-activated cell sorting and for PrP(C) and its pathologic TSE-associated form (PrP(TSE) ) by Western blotting (WB). Cell cultures were tested for their susceptibility to infection with Fu in vitro. The infectivity of one Fu-infected cell culture was assayed in mice. RESULTS BM cells from Fu-infected mice expressed neither PrP(C) nor PrP(TSE) after 3 days in culture as demonstrated by WB. Cells adherent to plastic and maintained under two different culture conditions became spontaneously immortalized and began to express PrP(C) at about the same time. One culture became transformed shortly after exposure to Fu in vitro and remained persistently infected, continuously generating PrP(TSE) through multiple passages; the infectivity of cultured cells was confirmed by intracerebral inoculation of lysates into mice. Both persistently TSE-infected and uninfected cells expressed a number of typical MSC markers. CONCLUSION BM-derived MSC-L cells of mice became persistently infected with the Fu agent under certain conditions in culture-conditions that differ substantially from those currently used to develop investigational human stem cell therapies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Larisa Cervenakova
- Transmissible Diseases Department, American Red Cross Holland Laboratory, Rockville, MD 20855, USA.
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Prcina M, Kontsekova E. Has prion protein important physiological function? Med Hypotheses 2011; 76:567-9. [PMID: 21277689 DOI: 10.1016/j.mehy.2011.01.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/26/2010] [Revised: 11/25/2010] [Accepted: 01/01/2011] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
Despite the great effort aimed at uncovering the physiological function of cellular prion protein, its role remains unclear. The highly conserved amino acid sequence of PrP indicates its important function, but normally developing PrP knockout mice and cattle were prepared. Here we propose hypothesis that prion protein has no function or a redundant one and more importantly, that the conserved amino acid sequence of mammalian PrPs is not the result of their important function, but rather due to cytotoxicity of most mutations occurring in the PrP molecule. It is possible that the majority of mutations in PrP dramatically destabilizes the PrP(C) structure and causes a pathological change in conformation, so that natural selection favours individuals with non-mutated PrP.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michal Prcina
- Institute of Neuroimmunology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, 845 10 Bratislava, Slovak Republic.
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Capellari S, Strammiello R, Saverioni D, Kretzschmar H, Parchi P. Genetic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease and fatal familial insomnia: insights into phenotypic variability and disease pathogenesis. Acta Neuropathol 2011; 121:21-37. [PMID: 20978903 DOI: 10.1007/s00401-010-0760-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 87] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/24/2010] [Revised: 09/17/2010] [Accepted: 10/11/2010] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
Abstract
Human prion diseases are a group of rare neurodegenerative disorders characterized by the conversion of the constitutively expressed prion protein, PrP(C), into an abnormally aggregated isoform, called PrP(Sc). While most people who develop a prion disease have no identifiable cause and a few acquire the disease through an identified source of infection, about 10-15% of patients are affected by a genetic form and carry either a point mutation or an insertion of octapeptide repeats in the prion protein gene. Prion diseases show the highest extent of phenotypic heterogeneity among neurodegenerative disorders and comprise three major disease entities with variable though overlapping phenotypic features: Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD), fatal insomnia and the Gerstmann-Sträussler-Scheinker syndrome. Both CJD and fatal insomnia are fully transmissible diseases, a feature that led to the isolation and characterization of different strains of the agent or prion showing distinctive clinical and neuropathological features after transmission to syngenic animals. Here, we review the current knowledge of the effects of the pathogenic mutations linked to genetic CJD and fatal familial insomnia on the prion protein metabolism and physicochemical properties, the disease phenotype and the strain characteristics. The data derived from studies in vitro and from those using cell and animal models are compared with those obtained from the analyses of the naturally occurring disease. The extent of phenotypic variation in genetic prion disease is analyzed in comparison to that of the sporadic disease, which has recently been the topic of a systematic and detailed characterization.
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Provansal M, Roche S, Pastore M, Casanova D, Belondrade M, Alais S, Leblanc P, Windl O, Lehmann S. Proteomic consequences of expression and pathological conversion of the prion protein in inducible neuroblastoma N2a cells. Prion 2010; 4:292-301. [PMID: 20930564 DOI: 10.4161/pri.4.4.13435] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Neurodegenerative diseases are often associated with misfolding and deposition of specific proteins in the nervous system. The prion protein, which is associated with transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs), is one of them. The normal function of the cellular form of the prion protein (PrP(C)) is mediated through specific signal transduction pathways and is linked to resistance to oxidative stress, neuronal outgrowth and cell survival. In TSEs, PrP(C) is converted into an abnormally folded isoform, called PrP(Sc), that may impair the normal function of the protein and/or generate toxic aggregates. To investigate these molecular events we performed a two-dimensional gel electrophoresis comparison of neuroblastoma N2a cells expressing different amounts of PrP(C) and eventually infected with the 22L prion strain. Mass spectrometry and peptide mass fingerprint analysis identified a series of proteins with modified expression. They included the chaperones Grp78/BiP, protein disulfide-isomerase A6, Grp75 and Hsp60 which had an opposite expression upon PrPC expression and PrP(Sc) production. The detection of these proteins was coherent with the idea that protein misfolding plays an important role in TSEs. Other proteins, such as calreticulin, tubulin, vimentin or the laminin receptor had their expression modified in infected cells, which was reminiscent of previous results. Altogether our data provide molecular information linking PrP expression and misfolding, which could be the basis of further therapeutic and pathophysiological research in this field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Monique Provansal
- CNRS, Institut de Génétique Humaine UPR1142, Université Montpellier and Institut de Recherches en Biothérapie (IRB), Biochimie-Protéomique Clinique, CHU de Montpellier, Montpellier, France
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Murdoch BM, Clawson ML, Yue S, Basu U, McKay S, Settles M, Capoferri R, Laegreid WW, Williams JL, Moore SS. PRNP haplotype associated with classical BSE incidence in European Holstein cattle. PLoS One 2010; 5. [PMID: 20862290 PMCID: PMC2940907 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0012786] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2010] [Accepted: 08/23/2010] [Indexed: 01/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Classical bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) is an acquired prion disease of cattle. The bovine prion gene (PRNP) contains regions of both high and low linkage disequilibrium (LD) that appear to be conserved across Bos taurus populations. The region of high LD, which spans the promoter and part of intron 2, contains polymorphic loci that have been associated with classical BSE status. However, the complex genetic architecture of PRNP has not been systematically tested for an association with classical BSE. Methodology/Principal Findings In this study, haplotype tagging single nucleotide polymorphisms (htSNPs) within PRNP were used to test for association between PRNP haplotypes and BSE disease. A combination of Illumina goldengate assay, sequencing and PCR amplification was used to genotype 18 htSNPs and 2 indels in 95 BSE case and 134 control animals. A haplotype within the region of high LD was found to be associated with BSE unaffected animals (p-value = 0.000114). Conclusion/Significance A PRNP haplotype association with classical BSE incidence has been identified. This result suggests that a genetic determinant in or near PRNP may influence classical BSE incidence in cattle.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brenda M Murdoch
- Department of Agricultural, Food and Nutritional Science, University of Alberta, Alberta, Edmonton, Canada.
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