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Ruiz-Barrio I, Vázquez-Oliver A, Puig-Davi A, Rivas-Asensio E, Perez-Perez J, Fernandez-Vizuete C, Horta-Barba A, Olmedo-Saura G, Salvat-Rovira N, Sampedro F, Vacchi E, Melli G, Pagonabarraga J, Kulisevsky J, Martinez-Horta S. Skin Tau Quantification as a Novel Biomarker in Huntington's Disease. Mov Disord 2024. [PMID: 39192729 DOI: 10.1002/mds.29989] [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: 05/02/2024] [Revised: 07/25/2024] [Accepted: 08/05/2024] [Indexed: 08/29/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Emerging research implicates tau protein dysregulation in the pathophysiology of Huntington's disease. OBJECTIVE This study investigated skin tau quantification as a potential biomarker for Huntington's disease and its correlation with disease burden outcomes. METHODS In this cross-sectional study, we measured skin tau levels using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in 23 Huntington's disease mutations carriers and eight control subjects, examining group discrimination, correlations with genetic markers, clinical assessments, and neuroimaging data. Brain atrophy was quantified by both volumetric measurements from brain segmentation and a voxel-based morphometry approach. RESULTS Our findings showed elevated skin tau levels in manifest Huntington's disease compared with premanifest and healthy controls. These levels correlated with CAG repeat length, CAG-Age-Product score, composite Unified Huntington's Disease Rating Scale Total Motor Score, cognitive assessments, and disease-related cortical and subcortical volumes, all independent of age and gender. Using skin tau levels in cluster analysis along with genetic and clinical measures led to improved subject stratification, providing enhanced distinction and validity of clusters. CONCLUSIONS This study not only confirms the feasibility of skin tau quantification in Huntington's disease but also establishes its potential as a biomarker for enhancing group classification and assessing disease severity across the Huntington's disease spectrum, opening new directions in biomarker research. © 2024 International Parkinson and Movement Disorder Society.
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Affiliation(s)
- Iñigo Ruiz-Barrio
- Department of Medicine, Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona (UAB), Barcelona, Spain
- Movement Disorders Unit, Neurology Department, Hospital de Sant Pau, Barcelona, Spain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red-Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Madrid, Spain
- Sant Pau Biomedical Research Institute (IIB-Sant Pau), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Anna Vázquez-Oliver
- Movement Disorders Unit, Neurology Department, Hospital de Sant Pau, Barcelona, Spain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red-Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Madrid, Spain
- Sant Pau Biomedical Research Institute (IIB-Sant Pau), Barcelona, Spain
- European Huntington's Disease Network, Ulm, Germany
| | - Arnau Puig-Davi
- Department of Medicine, Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona (UAB), Barcelona, Spain
- Movement Disorders Unit, Neurology Department, Hospital de Sant Pau, Barcelona, Spain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red-Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Madrid, Spain
- Sant Pau Biomedical Research Institute (IIB-Sant Pau), Barcelona, Spain
- European Huntington's Disease Network, Ulm, Germany
| | - Elisa Rivas-Asensio
- Movement Disorders Unit, Neurology Department, Hospital de Sant Pau, Barcelona, Spain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red-Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Madrid, Spain
- Sant Pau Biomedical Research Institute (IIB-Sant Pau), Barcelona, Spain
- European Huntington's Disease Network, Ulm, Germany
| | - Jesus Perez-Perez
- Department of Medicine, Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona (UAB), Barcelona, Spain
- Movement Disorders Unit, Neurology Department, Hospital de Sant Pau, Barcelona, Spain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red-Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Madrid, Spain
- Sant Pau Biomedical Research Institute (IIB-Sant Pau), Barcelona, Spain
- European Huntington's Disease Network, Ulm, Germany
| | | | - Andrea Horta-Barba
- Department of Medicine, Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona (UAB), Barcelona, Spain
- Movement Disorders Unit, Neurology Department, Hospital de Sant Pau, Barcelona, Spain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red-Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Madrid, Spain
- Sant Pau Biomedical Research Institute (IIB-Sant Pau), Barcelona, Spain
- European Huntington's Disease Network, Ulm, Germany
| | - Gonzalo Olmedo-Saura
- Movement Disorders Unit, Neurology Department, Hospital de Sant Pau, Barcelona, Spain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red-Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Madrid, Spain
- Sant Pau Biomedical Research Institute (IIB-Sant Pau), Barcelona, Spain
- European Huntington's Disease Network, Ulm, Germany
| | - Nil Salvat-Rovira
- Department of Medicine, Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona (UAB), Barcelona, Spain
- Movement Disorders Unit, Neurology Department, Hospital de Sant Pau, Barcelona, Spain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red-Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Madrid, Spain
- Sant Pau Biomedical Research Institute (IIB-Sant Pau), Barcelona, Spain
- European Huntington's Disease Network, Ulm, Germany
| | - Frederic Sampedro
- Sant Pau Biomedical Research Institute (IIB-Sant Pau), Barcelona, Spain
- Radiology Department, Hospital de Sant Pau, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Elena Vacchi
- Neurodegenerative Diseases Group, Laboratory for Translational Research, Ente Ospedaliero Cantonale, Bellinzona, Switzerland
- Faculty of Biomedical Sciences, Università della Svizzera Italiana, Lugano, Switzerland
| | - Giorgia Melli
- Neurodegenerative Diseases Group, Laboratory for Translational Research, Ente Ospedaliero Cantonale, Bellinzona, Switzerland
- Faculty of Biomedical Sciences, Università della Svizzera Italiana, Lugano, Switzerland
- Neurology Department, Neurocenter of Southern Switzerland, Ente Ospedaliero Cantonale, Lugano, Switzerland
| | - Javier Pagonabarraga
- Department of Medicine, Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona (UAB), Barcelona, Spain
- Movement Disorders Unit, Neurology Department, Hospital de Sant Pau, Barcelona, Spain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red-Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Madrid, Spain
- Sant Pau Biomedical Research Institute (IIB-Sant Pau), Barcelona, Spain
- European Huntington's Disease Network, Ulm, Germany
| | - Jaime Kulisevsky
- Department of Medicine, Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona (UAB), Barcelona, Spain
- Movement Disorders Unit, Neurology Department, Hospital de Sant Pau, Barcelona, Spain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red-Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Madrid, Spain
- Sant Pau Biomedical Research Institute (IIB-Sant Pau), Barcelona, Spain
- European Huntington's Disease Network, Ulm, Germany
| | - Saul Martinez-Horta
- Department of Medicine, Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona (UAB), Barcelona, Spain
- Movement Disorders Unit, Neurology Department, Hospital de Sant Pau, Barcelona, Spain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red-Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Madrid, Spain
- Sant Pau Biomedical Research Institute (IIB-Sant Pau), Barcelona, Spain
- European Huntington's Disease Network, Ulm, Germany
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2
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Salem S, Kilgore MD, Anwer M, Maxan A, Child D, Bird TD, Keene CD, Cicchetti F, Latimer C. Evidence of mutant huntingtin and tau-related pathology within neuronal grafts in Huntington's disease cases. Neurobiol Dis 2024; 198:106542. [PMID: 38810948 DOI: 10.1016/j.nbd.2024.106542] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/26/2024] [Revised: 05/23/2024] [Accepted: 05/24/2024] [Indexed: 05/31/2024] Open
Abstract
A number of post-mortem studies conducted in transplanted Huntington's disease (HD) patients from various trials have reported the presence of pathological and misfolded proteins, in particular mutant huntingtin (mHtt) and phosphorylated tau neuropil threads, in the healthy grafted tissue. Here, we extended these observations with histological analysis of post-mortem tissue from three additional HD patients who had received similar striatal allografts from the fetal tissue transplantation trial conducted in Los Angeles in 1998. Immunohistochemical staining was performed using anti-mHtt antibodies, EM48 and MW7, as well as anti-hyperphosphorylated tau antibodies, AT8 and CP13. Immunofluorescence was used to assess the colocalization of EM48+ mHtt aggregates with the neuronal marker MAP2 and/or the extracellular matrix protein phosphacan in both the host and grafts. We confirmed the presence of mHtt aggregates within grafts of all three cases as well as tau neuropil threads in the grafts of two of the three transplanted HD patients. Phosphorylated tau was also variably expressed in the host cerebral cortex of all three subjects. While mHtt inclusions were present within neurons (immunofluorescence co-localization of MAP2 and EM48) as well as within the extracellular matrix of the host (immunofluorescence co-localization of phosphacan and EM48), their localization was limited to the extracellular matrix in the grafted tissue. This study corroborates previous findings that both mHtt and tau pathology can be found in the host and grafts of HD patients years post-grafting.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shireen Salem
- Centre de Recherche du CHU de Québec, Axe Neurosciences, T2-07, 2705, Boulevard Laurier, Québec, QC G1V 4G2, Canada; Departement de Médecine Moléculaire, Université Laval, Québec, QC, Canada
| | - Mitchell D Kilgore
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, Neuropathology Division, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Mehwish Anwer
- Centre de Recherche du CHU de Québec, Axe Neurosciences, T2-07, 2705, Boulevard Laurier, Québec, QC G1V 4G2, Canada; Departement de Psychiatrie et Neurosciences, Université Laval, Québec, QC, Canada
| | - Alexander Maxan
- Centre de Recherche du CHU de Québec, Axe Neurosciences, T2-07, 2705, Boulevard Laurier, Québec, QC G1V 4G2, Canada; Departement de Psychiatrie et Neurosciences, Université Laval, Québec, QC, Canada
| | - Dan Child
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, Neuropathology Division, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Thomas D Bird
- Department of Neurology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA; Geriatric Research, Education, and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Puget Sound Health Care System, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - C Dirk Keene
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, Neuropathology Division, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Francesca Cicchetti
- Centre de Recherche du CHU de Québec, Axe Neurosciences, T2-07, 2705, Boulevard Laurier, Québec, QC G1V 4G2, Canada; Departement de Médecine Moléculaire, Université Laval, Québec, QC, Canada; Departement de Psychiatrie et Neurosciences, Université Laval, Québec, QC, Canada.
| | - Caitlin Latimer
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, Neuropathology Division, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA.
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3
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Pérez‐Oliveira S, Castilla‐Silgado J, Painous C, Aldecoa I, Menéndez‐González M, Blázquez‐Estrada M, Corte D, Tomás‐Zapico C, Compta Y, Muñoz E, Lladó A, Balasa M, Aragonès G, García‐González P, Rosende‐Roca M, Boada M, Ruíz A, Pastor P, De la Casa‐Fages B, Rabano A, Sánchez‐Valle R, Molina‐Porcel L, Álvarez V. Huntingtin CAG repeats in neuropathologically confirmed tauopathies: Novel insights. Brain Pathol 2024; 34:e13250. [PMID: 38418081 PMCID: PMC11189778 DOI: 10.1111/bpa.13250] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2023] [Accepted: 02/09/2024] [Indexed: 03/01/2024] Open
Abstract
Previous studies have suggested a relationship between the number of CAG triplet repeats in the HTT gene and neurodegenerative diseases not related to Huntington's disease (HD). This study seeks to investigate whether the number of CAG repeats of HTT is associated with the risk of developing certain tauopathies and its influence as a modulator of the clinical and neuropathological phenotype. Additionally, it aims to evaluate the potential of polyglutamine staining as a neuropathological screening. We genotyped the HTT gene CAG repeat number and APOE-ℰ isoforms in a cohort of patients with neuropathological diagnoses of tauopathies (n=588), including 34 corticobasal degeneration (CBD), 98 progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) and 456 Alzheimer's disease (AD). Furthermore, we genotyped a control group of 1070 patients, of whom 44 were neuropathologic controls. We identified significant differences in the number of patients with pathological HTT expansions in the CBD group (2.7%) and PSP group (3.2%) compared to control subjects (0.2%). A significant increase in the size of the HTT CAG repeats was found in the AD compared to the control group, influenced by the presence of the Apoliprotein E (APOE)-ℰ4 isoform. Post-mortem assessments uncovered tauopathy pathology with positive polyglutamine aggregates, with a slight predominance in the neostriatum for PSP and CBD cases and somewhat greater limbic involvement in the AD case. Our results indicated a link between HTT CAG repeat expansion with other non-HD pathology, suggesting they could share common neurodegenerative pathways. These findings support that genetic or histological screening for HTT repeat expansions should be considered in tauopathies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sergio Pérez‐Oliveira
- Laboratory of GeneticsHospital Universitario Central de AsturiasOviedoSpain
- Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria del Principado de Asturias (ISPA)OviedoSpain
| | - Juan Castilla‐Silgado
- Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria del Principado de Asturias (ISPA)OviedoSpain
- Department of Functional Biology (Physiology)University of OviedoOviedoSpain
| | - Cèlia Painous
- Parkinson's Disease and Movement Disorders Unit, Department of NeurologyHospital Clinic of BarcelonaBarcelonaSpain
- UB Neuro Institut de Neurociències, Maeztu CenterUniversity of BarcelonaBarcelonaSpain
- Fundació de Recerca Clínic Barcelona‐Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (FRCB‐IDIBAPS)BarcelonaSpain
| | - Iban Aldecoa
- Neurological Tissue Bank of the Biobank‐Hospital Clinic‐FRCB‐IDIBAPSBarcelonaSpain
- Pathology Department, Biomedical Diagnostic CenterHospital Clínic de Barcelona, University of BarcelonaBarcelonaSpain
| | - Manuel Menéndez‐González
- Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria del Principado de Asturias (ISPA)OviedoSpain
- Department of NeurologyHospital Universitario Central de AsturiasOviedoSpain
- Department of MedicineUniversity of OviedoOviedoSpain
| | - Marta Blázquez‐Estrada
- Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria del Principado de Asturias (ISPA)OviedoSpain
- Department of NeurologyHospital Universitario Central de AsturiasOviedoSpain
- Department of MedicineUniversity of OviedoOviedoSpain
| | - Daniela Corte
- Biobank of Principado de Asturias, Hospital Universitario Central de Asturias (HUCA)OviedoSpain
| | - Cristina Tomás‐Zapico
- Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria del Principado de Asturias (ISPA)OviedoSpain
- Department of Functional Biology (Physiology)University of OviedoOviedoSpain
| | - Yaroslau Compta
- Parkinson's Disease and Movement Disorders Unit, Department of NeurologyHospital Clinic of BarcelonaBarcelonaSpain
- UB Neuro Institut de Neurociències, Maeztu CenterUniversity of BarcelonaBarcelonaSpain
- Fundació de Recerca Clínic Barcelona‐Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (FRCB‐IDIBAPS)BarcelonaSpain
| | - Esteban Muñoz
- Parkinson's Disease and Movement Disorders Unit, Department of NeurologyHospital Clinic of BarcelonaBarcelonaSpain
- UB Neuro Institut de Neurociències, Maeztu CenterUniversity of BarcelonaBarcelonaSpain
- Fundació de Recerca Clínic Barcelona‐Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (FRCB‐IDIBAPS)BarcelonaSpain
| | - Albert Lladó
- Alzheimer's Disease and other Cognitive Disorders UnitNeurology Service, Hospital Clínic, FRCB‐IDIBAPS, University of BarcelonaBarcelonaSpain
| | - Mircea Balasa
- Alzheimer's Disease and other Cognitive Disorders UnitNeurology Service, Hospital Clínic, FRCB‐IDIBAPS, University of BarcelonaBarcelonaSpain
| | - Gemma Aragonès
- Neurological Tissue Bank of the Biobank‐Hospital Clinic‐FRCB‐IDIBAPSBarcelonaSpain
| | - Pablo García‐González
- Ace Alzheimer Center Barcelona – Universitat Internacional de CatalunyaBarcelonaSpain
- Networking Research Center on Neurodegenerative Diseases (CIBERNED)Instituto de Salud Carlos IIIMadridSpain
| | - Maitée Rosende‐Roca
- Ace Alzheimer Center Barcelona – Universitat Internacional de CatalunyaBarcelonaSpain
- Networking Research Center on Neurodegenerative Diseases (CIBERNED)Instituto de Salud Carlos IIIMadridSpain
| | - Mercè Boada
- Ace Alzheimer Center Barcelona – Universitat Internacional de CatalunyaBarcelonaSpain
- Networking Research Center on Neurodegenerative Diseases (CIBERNED)Instituto de Salud Carlos IIIMadridSpain
| | - Agustín Ruíz
- Ace Alzheimer Center Barcelona – Universitat Internacional de CatalunyaBarcelonaSpain
- Networking Research Center on Neurodegenerative Diseases (CIBERNED)Instituto de Salud Carlos IIIMadridSpain
| | - Pau Pastor
- Unit of Neurodegenerative Diseases, Department of NeurologyUniversity Hospital Germans Trias i Pujol and The Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP) BadalonaBarcelonaSpain
| | - Beatriz De la Casa‐Fages
- Movement Disorders Unit, Department of NeurologyHospital General Universitario Gregorio MarañónMadridSpain
- Instituto Investigación Sanitaria Gregorio MarañónMadridSpain
| | - Alberto Rabano
- Neuropathology Department and Brain Tissue BankCIEN Foundation, Queen Sofia Foundation Alzheimer CenterMadridSpain
| | - Raquel Sánchez‐Valle
- Alzheimer's Disease and other Cognitive Disorders UnitNeurology Service, Hospital Clínic, FRCB‐IDIBAPS, University of BarcelonaBarcelonaSpain
| | - Laura Molina‐Porcel
- UB Neuro Institut de Neurociències, Maeztu CenterUniversity of BarcelonaBarcelonaSpain
- Alzheimer's Disease and other Cognitive Disorders UnitNeurology Service, Hospital Clínic, FRCB‐IDIBAPS, University of BarcelonaBarcelonaSpain
| | - Victoria Álvarez
- Laboratory of GeneticsHospital Universitario Central de AsturiasOviedoSpain
- Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria del Principado de Asturias (ISPA)OviedoSpain
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4
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Langerscheidt F, Wied T, Al Kabbani MA, van Eimeren T, Wunderlich G, Zempel H. Genetic forms of tauopathies: inherited causes and implications of Alzheimer's disease-like TAU pathology in primary and secondary tauopathies. J Neurol 2024; 271:2992-3018. [PMID: 38554150 PMCID: PMC11136742 DOI: 10.1007/s00415-024-12314-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/25/2024] [Revised: 03/06/2024] [Accepted: 03/07/2024] [Indexed: 04/01/2024]
Abstract
Tauopathies are a heterogeneous group of neurologic diseases characterized by pathological axodendritic distribution, ectopic expression, and/or phosphorylation and aggregation of the microtubule-associated protein TAU, encoded by the gene MAPT. Neuronal dysfunction, dementia, and neurodegeneration are common features of these often detrimental diseases. A neurodegenerative disease is considered a primary tauopathy when MAPT mutations/haplotypes are its primary cause and/or TAU is the main pathological feature. In case TAU pathology is observed but superimposed by another pathological hallmark, the condition is classified as a secondary tauopathy. In some tauopathies (e.g. MAPT-associated frontotemporal dementia (FTD), progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP), corticobasal degeneration (CBD), and Alzheimer's disease (AD)) TAU is recognized as a significant pathogenic driver of the disease. In many secondary tauopathies, including Parkinson's disease (PD) and Huntington's disease (HD), TAU is suggested to contribute to the development of dementia, but in others (e.g. Niemann-Pick disease (NPC)) TAU may only be a bystander. The genetic and pathological mechanisms underlying TAU pathology are often not fully understood. In this review, the genetic predispositions and variants associated with both primary and secondary tauopathies are examined in detail, assessing evidence for the role of TAU in these conditions. We highlight less common genetic forms of tauopathies to increase awareness for these disorders and the involvement of TAU in their pathology. This approach not only contributes to a deeper understanding of these conditions but may also lay the groundwork for potential TAU-based therapeutic interventions for various tauopathies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Felix Langerscheidt
- Institute of Human Genetics, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, University of Cologne, 50931, Cologne, Germany
- Center for Molecular Medicine Cologne (CMMC), University of Cologne, 50931, Cologne, Germany
| | - Tamara Wied
- Institute of Human Genetics, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, University of Cologne, 50931, Cologne, Germany
- Center for Molecular Medicine Cologne (CMMC), University of Cologne, 50931, Cologne, Germany
- Department of Natural Sciences, Bonn-Rhein-Sieg University of Applied Sciences, Von-Liebig-Str. 20, 53359, Rheinbach, Germany
| | - Mohamed Aghyad Al Kabbani
- Institute of Human Genetics, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, University of Cologne, 50931, Cologne, Germany
- Center for Molecular Medicine Cologne (CMMC), University of Cologne, 50931, Cologne, Germany
| | - Thilo van Eimeren
- Multimodal Neuroimaging Group, Department of Nuclear Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, University of Cologne, 50937, Cologne, Germany
- Department of Neurology, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, University of Cologne, 50937, Cologne, Germany
| | - Gilbert Wunderlich
- Department of Neurology, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, University of Cologne, 50937, Cologne, Germany
- Center for Rare Diseases, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, University of Cologne, 50931, Cologne, Germany
| | - Hans Zempel
- Institute of Human Genetics, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, University of Cologne, 50931, Cologne, Germany.
- Center for Molecular Medicine Cologne (CMMC), University of Cologne, 50931, Cologne, Germany.
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Abyadeh M, Gupta V, Paulo JA, Mahmoudabad AG, Shadfar S, Mirshahvaladi S, Gupta V, Nguyen CTO, Finkelstein DI, You Y, Haynes PA, Salekdeh GH, Graham SL, Mirzaei M. Amyloid-beta and tau protein beyond Alzheimer's disease. Neural Regen Res 2024; 19:1262-1276. [PMID: 37905874 DOI: 10.4103/1673-5374.386406] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/04/2023] [Accepted: 09/07/2023] [Indexed: 11/02/2023] Open
Abstract
ABSTRACT The aggregation of amyloid-beta peptide and tau protein dysregulation are implicated to play key roles in Alzheimer's disease pathogenesis and are considered the main pathological hallmarks of this devastating disease. Physiologically, these two proteins are produced and expressed within the normal human body. However, under pathological conditions, abnormal expression, post-translational modifications, conformational changes, and truncation can make these proteins prone to aggregation, triggering specific disease-related cascades. Recent studies have indicated associations between aberrant behavior of amyloid-beta and tau proteins and various neurological diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, as well as retinal neurodegenerative diseases like Glaucoma and age-related macular degeneration. Additionally, these proteins have been linked to cardiovascular disease, cancer, traumatic brain injury, and diabetes, which are all leading causes of morbidity and mortality. In this comprehensive review, we provide an overview of the connections between amyloid-beta and tau proteins and a spectrum of disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Vivek Gupta
- Department of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Health and Human Sciences, Macquarie Medical School, Macquarie University, Macquarie Park, North Ryde, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Joao A Paulo
- Department of Cell Biology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | | | - Sina Shadfar
- Department of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Health and Human Sciences, Macquarie Medical School, Macquarie University, Macquarie Park, North Ryde, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Shahab Mirshahvaladi
- Department of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Health and Human Sciences, Macquarie Medical School, Macquarie University, Macquarie Park, North Ryde, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Veer Gupta
- School of Medicine, Deakin University, Geelong, VIC, Australia
| | - Christine T O Nguyen
- Department of Optometry and Vision Sciences, School of Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine Dentistry and Health Sciences, University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, Australia
| | - David I Finkelstein
- The Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, Australia
| | - Yuyi You
- Department of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Health and Human Sciences, Macquarie Medical School, Macquarie University, Macquarie Park, North Ryde, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Paul A Haynes
- School of Natural Sciences, Macquarie University, Macquarie Park, NSW, Australia
| | - Ghasem H Salekdeh
- School of Natural Sciences, Macquarie University, Macquarie Park, NSW, Australia
| | - Stuart L Graham
- Department of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Health and Human Sciences, Macquarie Medical School, Macquarie University, Macquarie Park, North Ryde, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Mehdi Mirzaei
- Department of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Health and Human Sciences, Macquarie Medical School, Macquarie University, Macquarie Park, North Ryde, Sydney, NSW, Australia
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6
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Martinez‐Horta S, Perez‐Perez J, Perez‐Gonzalez R, Sampedro F, Horta‐Barba A, Campolongo A, Rivas‐Asensio E, Puig‐Davi A, Pagonabarraga J, Kulisevsky J. Cognitive phenotype and neurodegeneration associated with Tau in Huntington's disease. Ann Clin Transl Neurol 2024; 11:1160-1171. [PMID: 38544341 PMCID: PMC11093246 DOI: 10.1002/acn3.52031] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2024] [Accepted: 02/13/2024] [Indexed: 05/15/2024] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVE The clinical phenotype of Huntington's disease (HD) can be very heterogeneous between patients, even when they share equivalent CAG repeat length, age, or disease burden. This heterogeneity is especially evident in terms of the cognitive profile and related brain changes. To shed light on the mechanisms participating in this heterogeneity, the present study delves into the association between Tau pathology and more severe cognitive phenotypes and brain damage in HD. METHODS We used a comprehensive neuropsychological examination to characterize the cognitive phenotype of a sample of 30 participants with early-to-middle HD for which we also obtained 3 T structural magnetic resonance image (MRI) and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). We quantified CSF levels of neurofilament light chain (NfL), total Tau (tTau), and phosphorylated Tau-231 (pTau-231). Thanks to the cognitive characterization carried out, we subsequently explored the relationship between different levels of biomarkers, the cognitive phenotype, and brain integrity. RESULTS The results confirmed that more severe forms of cognitive deterioration in HD extend beyond executive dysfunction and affect processes with clear posterior-cortical dependence. This phenotype was in turn associated with higher CSF levels of tTau and pTau-231 and to a more pronounced pattern of posterior-cortical atrophy in specific brain regions closely linked to the cognitive processes affected by Tau. INTERPRETATION Our findings reinforce the association between Tau pathology, cognition, and neurodegeneration in HD, emphasizing the need to explore the role of Tau in the cognitive heterogeneity of the disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Saul Martinez‐Horta
- Movement Disorders Unit, Neurology DepartmentHospital de la Santa Creu i Sant PauBarcelonaSpain
- Biomedical Research Institute Sant Pau (IIB‐Sant Pau)BarcelonaSpain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red‐Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED)MadridSpain
- Department of MedicineAutonomous University of BarcelonaBarcelonaSpain
- European Huntington's Disease Network (EHDN)
| | - Jesús Perez‐Perez
- Movement Disorders Unit, Neurology DepartmentHospital de la Santa Creu i Sant PauBarcelonaSpain
- Biomedical Research Institute Sant Pau (IIB‐Sant Pau)BarcelonaSpain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red‐Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED)MadridSpain
- Department of MedicineAutonomous University of BarcelonaBarcelonaSpain
- European Huntington's Disease Network (EHDN)
| | - Rocío Perez‐Gonzalez
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red‐Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED)MadridSpain
- Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria y Biomédica de Alicante (ISABIAL) and Instituto de Neurociencias UMH‐CSICAlicanteSpain
| | - Frederic Sampedro
- Biomedical Research Institute Sant Pau (IIB‐Sant Pau)BarcelonaSpain
- Neuroradiology unit, Radiology DepartmentHospital de la Santa Creu i Sant PauBarcelonaSpain
| | - Andrea Horta‐Barba
- Movement Disorders Unit, Neurology DepartmentHospital de la Santa Creu i Sant PauBarcelonaSpain
- Biomedical Research Institute Sant Pau (IIB‐Sant Pau)BarcelonaSpain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red‐Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED)MadridSpain
- European Huntington's Disease Network (EHDN)
| | - Antonia Campolongo
- Movement Disorders Unit, Neurology DepartmentHospital de la Santa Creu i Sant PauBarcelonaSpain
- Biomedical Research Institute Sant Pau (IIB‐Sant Pau)BarcelonaSpain
- Department of MedicineAutonomous University of BarcelonaBarcelonaSpain
| | - Elisa Rivas‐Asensio
- Movement Disorders Unit, Neurology DepartmentHospital de la Santa Creu i Sant PauBarcelonaSpain
- Biomedical Research Institute Sant Pau (IIB‐Sant Pau)BarcelonaSpain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red‐Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED)MadridSpain
| | - Arnau Puig‐Davi
- Movement Disorders Unit, Neurology DepartmentHospital de la Santa Creu i Sant PauBarcelonaSpain
- Biomedical Research Institute Sant Pau (IIB‐Sant Pau)BarcelonaSpain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red‐Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED)MadridSpain
- Department of MedicineAutonomous University of BarcelonaBarcelonaSpain
- European Huntington's Disease Network (EHDN)
| | - Javier Pagonabarraga
- Movement Disorders Unit, Neurology DepartmentHospital de la Santa Creu i Sant PauBarcelonaSpain
- Biomedical Research Institute Sant Pau (IIB‐Sant Pau)BarcelonaSpain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red‐Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED)MadridSpain
- Department of MedicineAutonomous University of BarcelonaBarcelonaSpain
- European Huntington's Disease Network (EHDN)
| | - Jaime Kulisevsky
- Movement Disorders Unit, Neurology DepartmentHospital de la Santa Creu i Sant PauBarcelonaSpain
- Biomedical Research Institute Sant Pau (IIB‐Sant Pau)BarcelonaSpain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red‐Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED)MadridSpain
- Department of MedicineAutonomous University of BarcelonaBarcelonaSpain
- European Huntington's Disease Network (EHDN)
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7
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Jellinger KA. Mild cognitive impairment in Huntington's disease: challenges and outlooks. J Neural Transm (Vienna) 2024; 131:289-304. [PMID: 38265518 DOI: 10.1007/s00702-024-02744-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2023] [Accepted: 01/14/2024] [Indexed: 01/25/2024]
Abstract
Although Huntington's disease (HD) has classically been viewed as an autosomal-dominant inherited neurodegenerative motor disorder, cognitive and/or behavioral changes are predominant and often an early manifestation of disease. About 40% of individuals in the presymptomatic period of HD meet the criteria for mild cognitive impairment, later progressing to dementia. The heterogenous spectrum of cognitive decline is characterized by deficits across multiple domains, particularly executive dysfunctions, but the underlying pathogenic mechanisms are still poorly understood. Investigating the pathophysiology of cognitive changes may give insight into important and early neurodegenerative events. Multimodal imaging revealed circuit-wide gray and white matter degenerative processes in several key brain regions, affecting prefronto-striatal/cortico-basal ganglia circuits and many other functional brain networks. Studies in transgenic animal models indicated early synaptic dysfunction, deficient neurotrophic transport and other molecular changes contributing to neuronal death. Synaptopathy within the cerebral cortex, striatum and hippocampus may be particularly important in mediating cognitive and neuropsychiatric manifestations of HD, although many other neuronal systems are involved. The interaction of mutant huntingtin protein (mHTT) with tau and its implication for cognitive impairment in HD is a matter of discussion. Further neuroimaging and neuropathological studies are warranted to better elucidate early pathophysiological mechanisms and to develop validated biomarkers to detect patients' cognitive status during the early stages of the condition significantly to implement effective preventing or management strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kurt A Jellinger
- Institute of Clinical Neurobiology, Alberichgasse 5/13, 1150, Vienna, Austria.
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8
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Amartumur S, Nguyen H, Huynh T, Kim TS, Woo RS, Oh E, Kim KK, Lee LP, Heo C. Neuropathogenesis-on-chips for neurodegenerative diseases. Nat Commun 2024; 15:2219. [PMID: 38472255 PMCID: PMC10933492 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-46554-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2023] [Accepted: 02/28/2024] [Indexed: 03/14/2024] Open
Abstract
Developing diagnostics and treatments for neurodegenerative diseases (NDs) is challenging due to multifactorial pathogenesis that progresses gradually. Advanced in vitro systems that recapitulate patient-like pathophysiology are emerging as alternatives to conventional animal-based models. In this review, we explore the interconnected pathogenic features of different types of ND, discuss the general strategy to modelling NDs using a microfluidic chip, and introduce the organoid-on-a-chip as the next advanced relevant model. Lastly, we overview how these models are being applied in academic and industrial drug development. The integration of microfluidic chips, stem cells, and biotechnological devices promises to provide valuable insights for biomedical research and developing diagnostic and therapeutic solutions for NDs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarnai Amartumur
- Department of Biophysics, Institute of Quantum Biophysics, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon, 16419, Korea
| | - Huong Nguyen
- Department of Biophysics, Institute of Quantum Biophysics, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon, 16419, Korea
| | - Thuy Huynh
- Department of Biophysics, Institute of Quantum Biophysics, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon, 16419, Korea
| | - Testaverde S Kim
- Center for Integrated Nanostructure Physics (CINAP), Institute for Basic Science (IBS), Suwon, 16419, Korea
| | - Ran-Sook Woo
- Department of Anatomy and Neuroscience, College of Medicine, Eulji University, Daejeon, 34824, Korea
| | - Eungseok Oh
- Department of Neurology, Chungnam National University Hospital, Daejeon, 35015, Korea
| | - Kyeong Kyu Kim
- Department of Precision Medicine, Graduate School of Basic Medical Science (GSBMS), Institute for Anti-microbial Resistance Research and Therapeutics, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Suwon, 16419, Korea
| | - Luke P Lee
- Department of Biophysics, Institute of Quantum Biophysics, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon, 16419, Korea.
- Harvard Medical School, Division of Engineering in Medicine and Renal Division, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, 02115, USA.
- Department of Bioengineering, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, University of California, Berkeley, CA, 94720, USA.
| | - Chaejeong Heo
- Department of Biophysics, Institute of Quantum Biophysics, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon, 16419, Korea.
- Center for Integrated Nanostructure Physics (CINAP), Institute for Basic Science (IBS), Suwon, 16419, Korea.
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9
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Jurcau A, Simion A, Jurcau MC. Emerging antibody-based therapies for Huntington's disease: current status and perspectives for future development. Expert Rev Neurother 2024; 24:299-312. [PMID: 38324338 DOI: 10.1080/14737175.2024.2314183] [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: 11/19/2023] [Accepted: 01/31/2024] [Indexed: 02/08/2024]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Being an inherited neurodegenerative disease with an identifiable genetic defect, Huntington's disease (HD) is a suitable candidate for early intervention, possibly even in the pre-symptomatic stage. Our recent advances in elucidating the pathogenesis of HD have revealed a series of novel potential therapeutic targets, among which immunotherapies are actively pursued in preclinical experiments. AREAS COVERED This review focuses on the potential of antibody-based treatments targeting various epitopes (of mutant huntingtin as well as phosphorylated tau) that are currently evaluated in vitro and in animal experiments. The references used in this review were retrieved from the PubMed database, searching for immunotherapies in HD, and clinical trial registries were reviewed for molecules already evaluated in clinical trials. EXPERT OPINION Antibody-based therapies have raised considerable interest in a series of neurodegenerative diseases characterized by deposition of aggregated of aberrantly folded proteins, HD included. Intrabodies and nanobodies can interact with mutant huntingtin inside the nervous cells. However, the conflicting results obtained with some of these intrabodies highlight the need for proper choice of epitopes and for developing animal models more closely mimicking human disease. Approval of these strategies will require a considerable financial and logistic effort on behalf of healthcare systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anamaria Jurcau
- Department of Psycho-Neurosciences and Rehabilitation, University of Oradea, Oradea, Romania
| | - Aurel Simion
- Department of Psycho-Neurosciences and Rehabilitation, University of Oradea, Oradea, Romania
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10
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Pena E, San Martin-Salamanca R, El Alam S, Flores K, Arriaza K. Tau Protein Alterations Induced by Hypobaric Hypoxia Exposure. Int J Mol Sci 2024; 25:889. [PMID: 38255962 PMCID: PMC10815386 DOI: 10.3390/ijms25020889] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2023] [Revised: 12/21/2023] [Accepted: 01/05/2024] [Indexed: 01/24/2024] Open
Abstract
Tauopathies are a group of neurodegenerative diseases whose central feature is dysfunction of the microtubule-associated protein tau (MAPT). Although the exact etiology of tauopathies is still unknown, it has been hypothesized that their onset may occur up to twenty years before the clear emergence of symptoms, which has led to questions about whether the prognosis of these diseases can be improved by, for instance, targeting the factors that influence tauopathy development. One such factor is hypoxia, which is strongly linked to Alzheimer's disease because of its association with obstructive sleep apnea and has been reported to affect molecular pathways related to the dysfunction and aggregation of tau proteins and other biomarkers of neurological damage. In particular, hypobaric hypoxia exposure increases the activation of several kinases related to the hyperphosphorylation of tau in neuronal cells, such as ERK, GSK3β, and CDK5. In addition, hypoxia also increases the levels of inflammatory molecules (IL-β1, IL-6, and TNF-α), which are also associated with neurodegeneration. This review discusses the many remaining questions regarding the influence of hypoxia on tauopathies and the contribution of high-altitude exposure to the development of these diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Samia El Alam
- High Altitude Medicine Research Center (CEIMA), Arturo Prat University, Iquique 1110939, Chile; (E.P.); (R.S.M.-S.); (K.F.); (K.A.)
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11
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Lepinay E, Cicchetti F. Tau: a biomarker of Huntington's disease. Mol Psychiatry 2023; 28:4070-4083. [PMID: 37749233 DOI: 10.1038/s41380-023-02230-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2022] [Revised: 07/31/2023] [Accepted: 08/11/2023] [Indexed: 09/27/2023]
Abstract
Developing effective treatments for patients with Huntington's disease (HD)-a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by severe cognitive, motor and psychiatric impairments-is proving extremely challenging. While the monogenic nature of this condition enables to identify individuals at risk, robust biomarkers would still be extremely valuable to help diagnose disease onset and progression, and especially to confirm treatment efficacy. If measurements of cerebrospinal fluid neurofilament levels, for example, have demonstrated use in recent clinical trials, other proteins may prove equal, if not greater, relevance as biomarkers. In fact, proteins such as tau could specifically be used to detect/predict cognitive affectations. We have herein reviewed the literature pertaining to the association between tau levels and cognitive states, zooming in on Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease and traumatic brain injury in which imaging, cerebrospinal fluid, and blood samples have been interrogated or used to unveil a strong association between tau and cognition. Collectively, these areas of research have accrued compelling evidence to suggest tau-related measurements as both diagnostic and prognostic tools for clinical practice. The abundance of information retrieved in this niche of study has laid the groundwork for further understanding whether tau-related biomarkers may be applied to HD and guide future investigations to better understand and treat this disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eva Lepinay
- Centre de Recherche du CHU de Québec, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, QC, Canada
- Département de Psychiatrie & Neurosciences, Université Laval, Québec, QC, Canada
| | - Francesca Cicchetti
- Centre de Recherche du CHU de Québec, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, QC, Canada.
- Département de Psychiatrie & Neurosciences, Université Laval, Québec, QC, Canada.
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12
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Hwang YS, Oh E, Kim M, Lee CY, Kim HS, Chung SJ, Sung YH, Yoon WT, Cho JH, Lee JH, Kim HJ, Chang HJ, Jeon B, Woo KA, Ko SB, Kwon KY, Moon J, Shin C, Kim YE, Lee JY. Plasma neurofilament light-chain and phosphorylated tau as biomarkers of disease severity in Huntington's disease: Korean cohort data. J Neurol Sci 2023; 452:120744. [PMID: 37541133 DOI: 10.1016/j.jns.2023.120744] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/07/2023] [Revised: 06/23/2023] [Accepted: 07/26/2023] [Indexed: 08/06/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To investigate neurofilament light chain (NfL), phosphorylated tau (p-Tau) and total tau (t-Tau) as plasma markers for clinical severity in Korean Huntington's disease (HD) cohort. METHODS Genetically-confirmed 67 HD patients participated from 13 referral hospitals in South Korea. The subjects were evaluated with the Unified Huntington's Disease Rating Scale (UHDRS), total motor score (TMS) and total functional capacity (TFC), Mini-Mental Status Examination (K-MMSE), Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA-K), and Beck's depression inventory (K-BDI). We measured plasma NfL, p-Tau and t-Tau concentrations using single-molecule array (SIMOA) assays. Stages of HD were classified based on UHDRS-TFC score and plasma markers were analyzed for correlation with clinical severity scales. RESULTS Plasma NfL was elevated in both 6 premanifest and 61 full manifest HD patients compared to the reference value, which increased further from premanifest to manifest HD groups. The NfL level was not significantly correlated with UHDRS TMS or TFC scores in manifest HD patients. Plasma p-Tau was also elevated in HD patients (p = 0.038). The level was the highest in stage III-V HD (n = 30) group (post-hoc p < 0.05). The p-Tau was correlated with UHDRS TFC scores (adjusted p = 0.002). Plasma t-Tau neither differed among the groups nor associated with any clinical variables. CONCLUSIONS This study supports plasma NfL being a biomarker for initial HD manifestation in Korean cohort, and a novel suggestion of plasma p-Tau as a potential biomarker reflecting the clinical severity in full-manifest HD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yun Su Hwang
- Department of Neurology, Jeonbuk National University Medical School and Hospital & Research Institute of Clinical Medicine of Jeonbuk National University - Biomedical Research Institute of Jeonbuk National University Hospital, Jeonju, Republic of Korea
| | - Eungseok Oh
- Department of Neurology, Chungnam National University College of Medicine and Hospital, Daejeon, Republic of Korea
| | - Manho Kim
- Department of Neurology, Seoul National University Hospital & Dementia and Neuroscience Research Institute, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Chan Young Lee
- Department of Neurology, Ewha Womans University Mokdong Hospital, Ewha Womans University, College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Hyun Sook Kim
- Department of Neurology, Bundang Medical Center, CHA university School of Medicine, Seongnam, Republic of Korea
| | - Sun Ju Chung
- Department of Neurology, Asan Medical Center, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Young Hee Sung
- Department of Neurology, Gil Medical Center, Gachon University College of Medicine, Incheon, Republic of Korea
| | - Won Tae Yoon
- Department of Neurology, Kangbuk Samsung Hospital, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Jin Hwan Cho
- Department of Neurology, Samsung Medical Center, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Jae-Hyeok Lee
- Department of Neurology, Research Institute for Convergence of Biomedical Science and Technology, Pusan National University Yangsan Hospital, Pusan, Republic of Korea
| | - Han-Joon Kim
- Department of Neurology, Movement Disorders Center, Seoul National University Hospital & Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Hee Jin Chang
- Department of Neurology, Movement Disorders Center, Seoul National University Hospital & Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea; Department of Neurology, Seoul National University College of Medicine & Seoul Metropolitan Government-Seoul National University Boramae Medical Center, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Beomseok Jeon
- Department of Neurology, Movement Disorders Center, Seoul National University Hospital & Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Kyung Ah Woo
- Department of Neurology, Movement Disorders Center, Seoul National University Hospital & Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea; Department of Neurology, Seoul National University College of Medicine & Seoul Metropolitan Government-Seoul National University Boramae Medical Center, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Seong Beom Ko
- Department of Neurology, Korea University Guro Hospital, Korea University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Kyum-Yil Kwon
- Department of Neurology, Soonchunhyang University Seoul Hospital, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Jangsup Moon
- Department of Neurology, Seoul National University Hospital & Dementia and Neuroscience Research Institute, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea; Department of Genomic Medicine, College of medicine, Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Chaewon Shin
- Department of Neurology, Chungnam National University Sejong Hospital, Sejong, Republic of Korea; Chungnam National University College of Medicine, Daejon, Republic of Korea
| | - Young Eun Kim
- Department of Neurology, Hallym University Sacred Heart Hospital, Anyang, Republic of Korea
| | - Jee-Young Lee
- Department of Neurology, Seoul National University College of Medicine & Seoul Metropolitan Government-Seoul National University Boramae Medical Center, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
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Yu H, Xiong M, Zhang Z. The role of glycogen synthase kinase 3 beta in neurodegenerative diseases. Front Mol Neurosci 2023; 16:1209703. [PMID: 37781096 PMCID: PMC10540228 DOI: 10.3389/fnmol.2023.1209703] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2023] [Accepted: 08/29/2023] [Indexed: 10/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Neurodegenerative diseases (NDDs) pose an increasingly prevalent threat to the well-being and survival of elderly individuals worldwide. NDDs include Alzheimer's disease (AD), Parkinson's disease (PD), Huntington's disease (HD), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), and so on. They are characterized by progressive loss or dysfunction of neurons in the central or peripheral nervous system and share several cellular and molecular mechanisms, including protein aggregation, mitochondrial dysfunction, gene mutations, and chronic neuroinflammation. Glycogen synthase kinase-3 beta (GSK-3β) is a serine/threonine kinase that is believed to play a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of NDDs. Here we summarize the structure and physiological functions of GSK3β and explore its involvement in NDDs. We also discussed its potential as a therapeutic target.
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Affiliation(s)
- Honglu Yu
- Department of Neurology, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan, China
| | - Min Xiong
- Department of Neurology, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan, China
| | - Zhentao Zhang
- Department of Neurology, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan, China
- TaiKang Center for Life and Medical Sciences, Wuhan University, Wuhan, China
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14
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Wibawa P, Walterfang M, Malpas CB, Glikmann‐Johnston Y, Poudel G, Razi A, Hannan AJ, Velakoulis D, Georgiou‐Karistianis N. Selective perforant-pathway atrophy in Huntington disease: MRI analysis of hippocampal subfields. Eur J Neurol 2023; 30:2650-2660. [PMID: 37306313 PMCID: PMC10946817 DOI: 10.1111/ene.15918] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2022] [Revised: 04/17/2023] [Accepted: 06/08/2023] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION While individuals with Huntington disease (HD) show memory impairment that indicates hippocampal dysfunction, the available literature does not consistently identify structural evidence for involvement of the whole hippocampus but rather suggests that hippocampal atrophy may be confined to certain hippocampal subregions. METHODS We processed T1-weighted MRI from IMAGE-HD study using FreeSurfer 7.0 and compared the volumes of the hippocampal subfields among 36 early motor symptomatic (symp-HD), 40 pre-symptomatic (pre-HD), and 36 healthy control individuals across three timepoints over 36 months. RESULTS Mixed-model analyses revealed significantly lower subfield volumes in symp-HD, compared with pre-HD and control groups, in the subicular regions of the perforant-pathway: presubiculum, subiculum, dentate gyrus, tail, and right molecular layer. These adjoining subfields aggregated into a single principal component, which demonstrated an accelerated rate of atrophy in the symp-HD. Volumes between pre-HD and controls did not show any significant difference. In the combined HD groups, CAG repeat length and disease burden score were associated with presubiculum, molecular layer, tail, and perforant-pathway subfield volumes. Hippocampal left tail and perforant-pathway subfields were associated with motor onset in the pre-HD group. CONCLUSIONS Hippocampal subfields atrophy in early symptomatic HD affects key regions of the perforant-pathway, which may implicate the distinctive memory impairment at this stage of illness. Their volumetric associations with genetic and clinical markers suggest the selective susceptibility of these subfields to mutant Huntingtin and disease progression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pierre Wibawa
- NeuropsychiatryRoyal Melbourne HospitalParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
- Melbourne Neuropsychiatry CenterUniversity of MelbourneParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
- School of Psychological Sciences and Turner Institute for Brain and Mental HealthMonash UniversityClaytonVictoriaAustralia
| | - Mark Walterfang
- NeuropsychiatryRoyal Melbourne HospitalParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
- Melbourne Neuropsychiatry CenterUniversity of MelbourneParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental HealthUniversity of MelbourneParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
| | - Charles B. Malpas
- NeuropsychiatryRoyal Melbourne HospitalParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
- Melbourne Neuropsychiatry CenterUniversity of MelbourneParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
| | - Yifat Glikmann‐Johnston
- School of Psychological Sciences and Turner Institute for Brain and Mental HealthMonash UniversityClaytonVictoriaAustralia
| | - Govinda Poudel
- Mary Mackillop Institute for Health ResearchAustralian Catholic UniversityFitzroyVictoriaAustralia
| | - Adeel Razi
- School of Psychological Sciences and Turner Institute for Brain and Mental HealthMonash UniversityClaytonVictoriaAustralia
| | - Anthony J. Hannan
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental HealthUniversity of MelbourneParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
| | - Dennis Velakoulis
- NeuropsychiatryRoyal Melbourne HospitalParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
- Melbourne Neuropsychiatry CenterUniversity of MelbourneParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental HealthUniversity of MelbourneParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
| | - Nellie Georgiou‐Karistianis
- School of Psychological Sciences and Turner Institute for Brain and Mental HealthMonash UniversityClaytonVictoriaAustralia
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15
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Mees I, Nisbet R, Hannan A, Renoir T. Implications of Tau Dysregulation in Huntington's Disease and Potential for New Therapeutics. J Huntingtons Dis 2023; 12:1-13. [PMID: 37092231 DOI: 10.3233/jhd-230569] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/25/2023]
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD) is an autosomal dominant neurodegenerative disorder. The disease, characterized by motor, cognitive, and psychiatric impairments, is caused by the expansion of a CAG repeat in the huntingtin gene. Despite the discovery of the mutation in 1993, no disease-modifying treatments are yet available. Understanding the molecular and cellular mechanisms involved in HD is therefore crucial for the development of novel treatments. Emerging research has found that HD might be classified as a secondary tauopathy, with the presence of tau insoluble aggregates in late HD. Increased total tau protein levels have been observed in both HD patients and animal models of HD. Tau hyperphosphorylation, the main feature of tau pathology, has also been investigated and our own published results suggest that the protein phosphorylation machinery is dysregulated in the early stages of HD in R6/1 transgenic mice, primarily in the cortex and striatum. Protein phosphorylation, catalysed by kinases, regulates numerous cellular mechanisms and has been shown to be dysregulated in other neurodegenerative disorders, including Alzheimer's disease. While it is still unclear how the mutation in the huntingtin gene leads to tau dysregulation in HD, several hypotheses have been explored. Evidence suggests that the mutant huntingtin does not directly interact with tau, but instead interacts with tau kinases, phosphatases, and proteins involved in tau alternative splicing, which could result in tau dysregulation as observed in HD. Altogether, there is increasing evidence that tau is undergoing pathological changes in HD and may be a good therapeutic target.
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Affiliation(s)
- Isaline Mees
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, Melbourne Brain Centre, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Australia
| | - Rebecca Nisbet
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, Melbourne Brain Centre, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Australia
| | - Anthony Hannan
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, Melbourne Brain Centre, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Australia
- Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Australia
| | - Thibault Renoir
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, Melbourne Brain Centre, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Australia
- Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Australia
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16
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Salem S, Cicchetti F. Untangling the Role of Tau in Huntington's Disease Pathology. J Huntingtons Dis 2023; 12:15-29. [PMID: 36806513 DOI: 10.3233/jhd-220557] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/16/2023]
Abstract
There is increasing evidence for the presence of pathological forms of tau in tissues of both Huntington's disease (HD) patients and animal models of this condition. While cumulative studies of the past decade have led to the proposition that this disorder could also be considered a tauopathy, the implications of tau in cellular toxicity and consequent behavioral impairments are largely unknown. In fact, recent animal work has challenged the contributory role of tau in HD pathogenesis/pathophysiology. This review presents the supporting and opposing arguments for the involvement of tau in HD, highlighting the discrepancies that have emerged. Reflecting on what is known in other tauopathies, the putative mechanisms through which tau could initiate and/or contribute to pathology are discussed, shedding light on the future research directions that could be considered to confirm, or rule out, the clinical relevance of tau in HD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shireen Salem
- Centre de Recherche du CHU de Québec, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, QC, Canada.,Département de Médecine Moléculaire, Université Laval, Québec, QC, Canada
| | - Francesca Cicchetti
- Centre de Recherche du CHU de Québec, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, QC, Canada.,Département de Médecine Moléculaire, Université Laval, Québec, QC, Canada.,Département de Psychiatrie & Neurosciences, Université Laval, Québec, QC, Canada
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17
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Plasma TDP-43 Reflects Cortical Neurodegeneration and Correlates with Neuropsychiatric Symptoms in Huntington's Disease. Clin Neuroradiol 2022; 32:1077-1085. [PMID: 35238950 DOI: 10.1007/s00062-022-01150-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/09/2021] [Accepted: 02/02/2022] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
PURPOSE Huntington's disease (HD) is a monogenic neurodegenerative disease with no effective treatment currently available. The pathological hallmark of HD is the aggregation of mutant huntingtin in the medium spiny neurons of the striatum, leading to severe subcortical atrophy. Cortical degeneration also occurs in HD from its very early stages, although its biological origin is poorly understood. Among the possible pathological mechanisms that could promote cortical damage in HD, the in vivo study of TDP-43 pathology remains to be explored, which was the main objective of this work. METHODS We investigated the clinical and structural brain correlates of plasma TDP-43 levels in a sample of 36 HD patients. Neuroimaging alterations were assessed both at the macrostructural (cortical thickness) and microstructural (intracortical diffusivity) levels. Importantly, we controlled for mutant huntingtin and tau biomarkers in order to assess the independent role of TDP-43 in HD neurodegeneration. RESULTS Plasma TDP-43 levels in HD specifically correlated with the presence and severity of apathy (p = 0.003). The TDP-43 levels also reflected cortical thinning and microstructural degeneration, especially in frontal and anterior-temporal regions (p < 0.05 corrected). These TDP-43-related brain alterations correlated, in turn, with the severity of cognitive, motor and behavioral symptoms. CONCLUSION Our results suggest that the presence of TDP-43 pathology in HD has an independent contribution to the severity of neuropsychiatric symptoms and frontotemporal degeneration. These findings point out the importance of TDP-43 as an additional pathological process to be taken into consideration in this devastating disorder.
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18
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Rawat P, Sehar U, Bisht J, Selman A, Culberson J, Reddy PH. Phosphorylated Tau in Alzheimer's Disease and Other Tauopathies. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:12841. [PMID: 36361631 PMCID: PMC9654278 DOI: 10.3390/ijms232112841] [Citation(s) in RCA: 66] [Impact Index Per Article: 33.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/11/2022] [Revised: 10/21/2022] [Accepted: 10/22/2022] [Indexed: 07/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the leading cause of dementia in elderly people. Amyloid beta (Aβ) deposits and neurofibrillary tangles are the major pathological features in an Alzheimer's brain. These proteins are highly expressed in nerve cells and found in most tissues. Tau primarily provides stabilization to microtubules in the part of axons and dendrites. However, tau in a pathological state becomes hyperphosphorylated, causing tau dysfunction and leading to synaptic impairment and degeneration of neurons. This article presents a summary of the role of tau, phosphorylated tau (p-tau) in AD, and other tauopathies. Tauopathies, including Pick's disease, frontotemporal dementia, corticobasal degeneration, Alzheimer's disease, argyrophilic grain disease, progressive supranuclear palsy, and Huntington's disease, are the result of misprocessing and accumulation of tau within the neuronal and glial cells. This article also focuses on current research on the post-translational modifications and genetics of tau, tau pathology, the role of tau in tauopathies and the development of new drugs targeting p-tau, and the therapeutics for treating and possibly preventing tauopathies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Priyanka Rawat
- Department of Internal Medicine, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX 79430, USA
| | - Ujala Sehar
- Department of Internal Medicine, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX 79430, USA
| | - Jasbir Bisht
- Department of Pediatrics, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX 79430, USA
| | - Ashley Selman
- Department of Internal Medicine, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX 79430, USA
| | - John Culberson
- Department of Family Medicine, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX 79430, USA
| | - P. Hemachandra Reddy
- Department of Internal Medicine, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX 79430, USA
- Nutritional Sciences Department, College Human Sciences, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX 79409, USA
- Department of Pharmacology and Neuroscience, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX 79430, USA
- Department of Neurology, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX 79430, USA
- Department of Public Health, Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX 79430, USA
- Department of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX 79430, USA
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19
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Petry S, Nateghi B, Keraudren R, Sergeant N, Planel E, Hébert SS, St-Amour I. Differential Regulation of Tau Exon 2 and 10 Isoforms in Huntington's Disease Brain. Neuroscience 2022; 518:54-63. [PMID: 35868517 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2022.07.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2022] [Revised: 06/18/2022] [Accepted: 07/13/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD) is an inherited neurodegenerative disorder caused by an expansion of CAG repeats in the Huntingtin (HTT) gene. Accumulating evidence suggests that the microtubule-associated tau protein participates in the pathogenesis of HD. Recently, we have identified changes in tau alternative splicing of exons 2, 3 and 10 in the putamen of HD patients (St-Amour et al, 2018). In this study, we sought to determine whether tau mis-splicing events were equally observed in other brain regions that are less prone to neurodegeneration. Using Western blot and PCR, we characterized the relationship between MAPT splicing of exons 2, 3 and 10, tauopathy and Htt pathologies, as well as neurodegeneration markers in matching putamen and cortical samples from HD (N = 48) and healthy control (N = 25) subjects. We first show that levels of 4R-tau (exon 10 inclusion) isoforms are higher in both the putamen and the cortex of individuals with HD, consistent with earlier findings. On the other hand, higher 0N-tau (exclusion of exons 2 and 3) and lower 1N-tau (exclusion of exon 3) isoforms were seen exclusively in the putamen of HD individuals. Interestingly, investigated splicing factors were deregulated in both regions whereas exon 2 differences coincided with increased tau hyperphosphorylation, aggregation and markers of neurodegeneration. Overall, these results imply a differential regulation of tau exon 2 and exon 10 alternative splicing in HD putamen that could provide a useful biomarker or therapeutic target.
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Affiliation(s)
- Serena Petry
- Centre de recherche du CHU de Québec-Université Laval, CHUL, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, Canada
| | - Behnaz Nateghi
- Centre de recherche du CHU de Québec-Université Laval, CHUL, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, Canada
| | - Rémi Keraudren
- Centre de recherche du CHU de Québec-Université Laval, CHUL, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, Canada
| | - Nicolas Sergeant
- Inserm, CHU Lille, University of Lille, Lille, France; Alzheimer and Tauopathies, LabEx DISTALZ, Lille France
| | - Emmanuel Planel
- Centre de recherche du CHU de Québec-Université Laval, CHUL, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, Canada; Faculté de médecine, Département de psychiatrie et de neurosciences, Université Laval, Québec, Canada
| | - Sébastien S Hébert
- Centre de recherche du CHU de Québec-Université Laval, CHUL, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, Canada; Faculté de médecine, Département de psychiatrie et de neurosciences, Université Laval, Québec, Canada.
| | - Isabelle St-Amour
- Centre de recherche du CHU de Québec-Université Laval, CHUL, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, Canada; CERVO Brain Research Centre, Centre Intégré Universitaire de Santé et des Services Sociaux de la Capitale-Nationale, Québec, Canada; Faculté de pharmacie, Université Laval, Québec, Canada.
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20
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Martí-Martínez S, Valor LM. A Glimpse of Molecular Biomarkers in Huntington's Disease. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:ijms23105411. [PMID: 35628221 PMCID: PMC9142992 DOI: 10.3390/ijms23105411] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2022] [Revised: 05/10/2022] [Accepted: 05/11/2022] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD) is a devastating neurodegenerative disorder that is caused by an abnormal expansion of CAG repeats in the Huntingtin (HTT) gene. Although the main symptomatology is explained by alterations at the level of the central nervous system, predominantly affecting the basal ganglia, a peripheral component of the disease is being increasingly acknowledged. Therefore, the manifestation of the disease is complex and variable among CAG expansion carriers, introducing uncertainty in the appearance of specific signs, age of onset and severity of disease. The monogenic nature of the disorder allows a precise diagnosis, but the use of biomarkers with prognostic value is still needed to achieve clinical management of the patients in an individual manner. In addition, we need tools to evaluate the patient's response to potential therapeutic approaches. In this review, we provide a succinct summary of the most interesting molecular biomarkers that have been assessed in patients, mostly obtained from body fluids such as cerebrospinal fluid, peripheral blood and saliva.
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Affiliation(s)
- Silvia Martí-Martínez
- Servicio de Neurología, Hospital General Universitario Dr. Balmis, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria y Biomédica de Alicante (ISABIAL), 03010 Alicante, Spain;
| | - Luis M. Valor
- Laboratorio de Apoyo a la Investigación, Hospital General Universitario Dr. Balmis, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria y Biomédica de Alicante (ISABIAL), 03010 Alicante, Spain
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +34-965-913-988
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21
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Alpaugh M, Masnata M, de Rus Jacquet A, Lepinay E, Denis HL, Saint-Pierre M, Davies P, Planel E, Cicchetti F. Passive immunization against phosphorylated tau improves features of Huntington's disease pathology. Mol Ther 2022; 30:1500-1522. [PMID: 35051614 PMCID: PMC9077324 DOI: 10.1016/j.ymthe.2022.01.020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2021] [Revised: 11/05/2021] [Accepted: 01/12/2022] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Huntington's disease is classically described as a neurodegenerative disorder of monogenic aetiology. The disease is characterized by an abnormal polyglutamine expansion in the huntingtin gene, which drives the toxicity of the mutated form of the protein. However, accumulation of the microtubule-associated protein tau, which is involved in a number of neurological disorders, has also been observed in patients with Huntington's disease. In order to unravel the contribution of tau hyperphosphorylation to hallmark features of Huntington's disease, we administered weekly intraperitoneal injections of the anti-tau pS202 CP13 monoclonal antibody to zQ175 mice and characterized the resulting behavioral and biochemical changes. After 12 weeks of treatment, motor impairments, cognitive performance and general health were improved in zQ175 mice along with a significant reduction in hippocampal pS202 tau levels. Despite the lack of effect of CP13 on neuronal markers associated with Huntington's disease pathology, tau-targeting enzymes and gliosis, CP13 was shown to directly impact mutant huntingtin aggregation such that brain levels of amyloid fibrils and huntingtin oligomers were decreased, while larger huntingtin protein aggregates were increased. Investigation of CP13 treatment of Huntington's disease patient-derived induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) revealed a reduction in pS202 levels in differentiated cortical neurons and a rescue of neurite length. Collectively, these findings suggest that attenuating tau pathology could mitigate behavioral and molecular hallmarks associated with Huntington's disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melanie Alpaugh
- Centre de Recherche du CHU de Québec - Université Laval, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, QC G1V 4G2, Canada; Département de Psychiatrie & Neurosciences, Université Laval, Québec, QC G1K 0A6, Canada
| | - Maria Masnata
- Centre de Recherche du CHU de Québec - Université Laval, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, QC G1V 4G2, Canada; Département de Psychiatrie & Neurosciences, Université Laval, Québec, QC G1K 0A6, Canada
| | - Aurelie de Rus Jacquet
- Centre de Recherche du CHU de Québec - Université Laval, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, QC G1V 4G2, Canada; Département de Psychiatrie & Neurosciences, Université Laval, Québec, QC G1K 0A6, Canada
| | - Eva Lepinay
- Centre de Recherche du CHU de Québec - Université Laval, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, QC G1V 4G2, Canada; Département de Psychiatrie & Neurosciences, Université Laval, Québec, QC G1K 0A6, Canada
| | - Hélèna L Denis
- Centre de Recherche du CHU de Québec - Université Laval, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, QC G1V 4G2, Canada; Département de Psychiatrie & Neurosciences, Université Laval, Québec, QC G1K 0A6, Canada
| | - Martine Saint-Pierre
- Département de Psychiatrie & Neurosciences, Université Laval, Québec, QC G1K 0A6, Canada
| | - Peter Davies
- Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, USA
| | - Emmanuel Planel
- Centre de Recherche du CHU de Québec - Université Laval, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, QC G1V 4G2, Canada; Département de Psychiatrie & Neurosciences, Université Laval, Québec, QC G1K 0A6, Canada
| | - Francesca Cicchetti
- Centre de Recherche du CHU de Québec - Université Laval, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, QC G1V 4G2, Canada; Département de Psychiatrie & Neurosciences, Université Laval, Québec, QC G1K 0A6, Canada.
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22
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Nguyen QTR, Ortigoza Escobar JD, Burgunder JM, Mariotti C, Saft C, Hjermind LE, Youssov K, Landwehrmeyer GB, Bachoud-Lévi AC. Combining Literature Review With a Ground Truth Approach for Diagnosing Huntington's Disease Phenocopy. Front Neurol 2022; 13:817753. [PMID: 35222250 PMCID: PMC8866848 DOI: 10.3389/fneur.2022.817753] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2021] [Accepted: 01/17/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
One percent of patients with a Huntington's disease (HD) phenotype do not have the Huntington (HTT) gene mutation. These are known as HD phenocopies. Their diagnosis is still a challenge. Our objective is to provide a diagnostic approach to HD phenocopies based on medical expertise and a review of the literature. We employed two complementary approaches sequentially: a review of the literature and two surveys analyzing the daily clinical practice of physicians who are experts in movement disorders. The review of the literature was conducted from 1993 to 2020, by extracting articles about chorea or HD-like disorders from the database Pubmed, yielding 51 articles, and analyzing 20 articles in depth to establish the surveys. Twenty-eight physicians responded to the first survey exploring the red flags suggestive of specific disease entities. Thirty-three physicians completed the second survey which asked for the classification of paraclinical tests according to their diagnostic significance. The analysis of the results of the second survey used four different clustering algorithms and the density-based clustering algorithm DBSCAN to classify the paraclinical tests into 1st, 2nd, and 3rd-line recommendations. In addition, we included suggestions from members of the European Reference Network-Rare Neurological Diseases (ERN-RND Chorea & Huntington disease group). Finally, we propose guidance that integrate the detection of clinical red flags with a classification of paraclinical testing options to improve the diagnosis of HD phenocopies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Quang Tuan Rémy Nguyen
- AP-HP, Hôpital Henri Mondor-Albert Chenevier, Centre National de Référence Maladie de Huntington, Service de Neurologie, Créteil, France
- Univ Paris Est Creteil, INSERM U955, Institut Mondor de Recherche Biomédicale, Laboratoire de Neuropsychologie Interventionnelle, Creteil, France
- Département d'Etudes Cognitives, École normale supérieure, PSL University, Paris, France
- *Correspondence: Quang Tuan Rémy Nguyen
| | - Juan Dario Ortigoza Escobar
- Movement Disorders Unit, Institut de Recerca Sant Joan de Déu, CIBERER-ISCIII, Barcelona, Spain
- European Reference Network for Rare Neurological Diseases (ERN-RND), Tübingen, Germany
| | - Jean-Marc Burgunder
- European Reference Network for Rare Neurological Diseases (ERN-RND), Tübingen, Germany
- Siloah and Department of Neurology, Department of Clinical Research, Swiss Huntington's Disease Centre, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Caterina Mariotti
- European Reference Network for Rare Neurological Diseases (ERN-RND), Tübingen, Germany
- Unit of Genetics of Neurodegenerative and Metabolic Diseases, Carlo Besta Neurological Institute IRCCS Foundation, Milan, Italy
| | - Carsten Saft
- European Reference Network for Rare Neurological Diseases (ERN-RND), Tübingen, Germany
- Department of Neurology, Huntington Center North Rhine-Westphalia, Ruhr-University, St. Josef-Hospital, Bochum, Germany
| | - Lena Elisabeth Hjermind
- European Reference Network for Rare Neurological Diseases (ERN-RND), Tübingen, Germany
- Department of Neurology, Rigshospitalet, Danish Dementia Research Centre, Clinic of Neurogenetics, Copenhagen University Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Katia Youssov
- AP-HP, Hôpital Henri Mondor-Albert Chenevier, Centre National de Référence Maladie de Huntington, Service de Neurologie, Créteil, France
- Univ Paris Est Creteil, INSERM U955, Institut Mondor de Recherche Biomédicale, Laboratoire de Neuropsychologie Interventionnelle, Creteil, France
| | - G. Bernhard Landwehrmeyer
- European Reference Network for Rare Neurological Diseases (ERN-RND), Tübingen, Germany
- Department of Neurology, University of Ulm, Ulm, Germany
| | - Anne-Catherine Bachoud-Lévi
- AP-HP, Hôpital Henri Mondor-Albert Chenevier, Centre National de Référence Maladie de Huntington, Service de Neurologie, Créteil, France
- Département d'Etudes Cognitives, École normale supérieure, PSL University, Paris, France
- European Reference Network for Rare Neurological Diseases (ERN-RND), Tübingen, Germany
- Anne-Catherine Bachoud-Lévi
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23
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Mees I, Tran H, Roberts A, Lago L, Li S, Roberts BR, Hannan AJ, Renoir T. Quantitative Phosphoproteomics Reveals Extensive Protein Phosphorylation Dysregulation in the Cerebral Cortex of Huntington's Disease Mice Prior to Onset of Symptoms. Mol Neurobiol 2022; 59:2456-2471. [PMID: 35083661 DOI: 10.1007/s12035-021-02698-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/03/2021] [Accepted: 12/13/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Protein phosphorylation plays a role in many important cellular functions such as cellular plasticity, gene expression, and intracellular trafficking. All of these are dysregulated in Huntington's disease (HD), a devastating neurodegenerative disorder caused by an expanded CAG repeat in exon 1 of the huntingtin gene. However, no studies have yet found protein phosphorylation differences in preclinical HD mouse models. Our current study investigated changes occurring in the cortical phosphoproteome of 8-week-old (prior to motor deficits) and 20-week-old (fully symptomatic) R6/1 transgenic HD mice. When comparing 8-week-old HD mice with their wild-type (WT) littermates, we found 660 peptides differentially phosphorylated, which were mapped to 227 phosphoproteins. These proteins were mainly involved in synaptogenesis, cytoskeleton organization, axon development, and nervous system development. Tau protein, found hyperphosphorylated at multiple sites in early symptomatic HD mice, also appeared as a main upstream regulator for the changes observed. Surprisingly, we found fewer changes in the phosphorylation profile of HD mice at the fully symptomatic stage, with 29 peptides differentially phosphorylated compared to WT mice, mapped to 25 phosphoproteins. These proteins were involved in cAMP signaling, dendrite development, and microtubule binding. Furthermore, huntingtin protein appeared as an upstream regulator for the changes observed at the fully symptomatic stage, suggesting impacts on kinases and phosphatases that extend beyond the mutated polyglutamine tract. In summary, our findings show that the most extensive changes in the phosphorylation machinery appear at an early presymptomatic stage in HD pathogenesis and might constitute a new target for the development of treatments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Isaline Mees
- Melbourne Brain Centre, Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, 3010, Australia
| | - Harvey Tran
- Melbourne Brain Centre, Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, 3010, Australia
| | - Anne Roberts
- Melbourne Brain Centre, Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, 3010, Australia.,Department of Biochemistry, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, 30322, USA
| | - Larissa Lago
- Melbourne Brain Centre, Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, 3010, Australia
| | - Shanshan Li
- Melbourne Brain Centre, Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, 3010, Australia
| | - Blaine R Roberts
- Melbourne Brain Centre, Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, 3010, Australia.,Department of Biochemistry, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, 30322, USA
| | - Anthony J Hannan
- Melbourne Brain Centre, Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, 3010, Australia.,Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Australia
| | - Thibault Renoir
- Melbourne Brain Centre, Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, 3010, Australia. .,Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Australia.
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24
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Mees I, Li S, Beauchamp LC, Barnham KJ, Dutschmann M, Hannan AJ, Renoir T. Loss-of-function and gain-of-function studies refute the hypothesis that tau protein is causally involved in the pathogenesis of Huntington's disease. Hum Mol Genet 2022; 31:1997-2009. [PMID: 34999772 DOI: 10.1093/hmg/ddac001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2021] [Revised: 12/17/2021] [Accepted: 01/04/2022] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Tau is a microtubule-associated protein, whose abnormal phosphorylation and deposition in the brain characterizes a range of neurodegenerative diseases called tauopathies. Recent clinical (post-mortem) and pre-clinical evidence suggests that Huntington's disease (HD), an autosomal dominant neurodegenerative disorder, could be considered as a tauopathy. Studies have found the presence of hyperphosphorylated tau, altered tau isoform ratio and aggregated tau in HD brains. However, little is known about the implication of tau in the development of HD pathophysiology, which includes motor, cognitive and affective symptoms. To shine a light on the involvement of tau in HD, our present study aimed at (i) knocking out tau expression and (ii) expressing a transgene encoding mutant human tau in the R6/1 mouse model of HD. We hypothesized that expression of the mutant human tau transgene in HD mice would worsen the HD phenotype, while knocking out endogenous mouse tau in HD mice would improve some behavioural deficits display by HD mice. Our data suggests that neither the expression of a tau transgene nor the ablation of tau expression impacted the progression of the HD motor, cognitive and affective phenotypes. Supporting these behavioural findings, we also found that modulating tau expression had no effect on brain weights in HD mice. We also report that expression of the tau transgene increased the weight of WT and HD male mice, whereas tau ablation increased the weight of HD females only. Together, our results indicate that tau might not be as important in regulating the progression of HD symptomatology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Isaline Mees
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, Melbourne Brain Centre, University of Melbourne, Australia
| | - Shanshan Li
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, Melbourne Brain Centre, University of Melbourne, Australia
| | - Leah C Beauchamp
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, Melbourne Brain Centre, University of Melbourne, Australia.,Melbourne Dementia Research Centre, University of Melbourne, Australia.,Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, University of Melbourne, Australia
| | - Kevin J Barnham
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, Melbourne Brain Centre, University of Melbourne, Australia.,Melbourne Dementia Research Centre, University of Melbourne, Australia.,Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, University of Melbourne, Australia
| | - Mathias Dutschmann
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, Melbourne Brain Centre, University of Melbourne, Australia
| | - Anthony J Hannan
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, Melbourne Brain Centre, University of Melbourne, Australia.,Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Australia
| | - Thibault Renoir
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, Melbourne Brain Centre, University of Melbourne, Australia.,Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Australia
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25
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Sallaberry CA, Voss BJ, Majewski J, Biernat J, Mandelkow E, Chi EY, Vander Zanden CM. Tau and Membranes: Interactions That Promote Folding and Condensation. Front Cell Dev Biol 2021; 9:725241. [PMID: 34621743 PMCID: PMC8491580 DOI: 10.3389/fcell.2021.725241] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2021] [Accepted: 08/31/2021] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Tau misfolding and assembly is linked to a number of neurodegenerative diseases collectively described as tauopathies, including Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and Parkinson’s disease. Anionic cellular membranes, such as the cytosolic leaflet of the plasma membrane, are sites that concentrate and neutralize tau, primarily due to electrostatic interactions with tau’s microtubule binding repeat domain (RD). In addition to electrostatic interactions with lipids, tau also has interactions with membrane proteins, which are important for tau’s cellular functions. Tau also interacts with lipid tails to facilitate direct translocation across the membrane and can form stable protein-lipid complexes involved in cell-to-cell transport. Concentrated tau monomers at the membrane surface can form reversible condensates, change secondary structures, and induce oligomers, which may eventually undergo irreversible crosslinking and fibril formation. These β-sheet rich tau structures are capable of disrupting membrane organization and are toxic in cell-based assays. Given the evidence for relevant membrane-based tau assembly, we review the emerging hypothesis that polyanionic membranes may serve as a site for phase-separated tau condensation. Membrane-mediated phase separation may have important implications for regulating tau folding/misfolding, and may be a powerful mechanism to spatially direct tau for native membrane-mediated functions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chad A Sallaberry
- Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, University of Colorado Colorado Springs, Colorado Springs, CO, United States
| | - Barbie J Voss
- Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, University of Colorado Colorado Springs, Colorado Springs, CO, United States
| | - Jaroslaw Majewski
- Division of Molecular and Cellular Biosciences, National Science Foundation, Alexandria, VA, United States.,Department of Chemical & Biological Engineering, Center for Biomedical Engineering, The University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM, United States.,Theoretical Biology and Biophysics Division, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM, United States
| | - Jacek Biernat
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), Bonn, Germany
| | - Eckhard Mandelkow
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), Bonn, Germany.,Center of Advanced European Studies and Research (CAESAR) Center, Bonn, Germany.,Department of Neurodegenerative Disease and Geriatric Psychiatry, Medical School, University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany
| | - Eva Y Chi
- Department of Chemical & Biological Engineering, Center for Biomedical Engineering, The University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM, United States
| | - Crystal M Vander Zanden
- Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, University of Colorado Colorado Springs, Colorado Springs, CO, United States
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26
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Schulze Westhoff M, Osmanovic A, Meissner C, Heck J, Mahmoudi N, Hendrich C, Berding G, Seifert J, Bleich S, Frieling H, Krüger T, Groh A. An unusual presentation of Huntington's disease. Clin Case Rep 2021; 9:e04547. [PMID: 34295499 PMCID: PMC8283861 DOI: 10.1002/ccr3.4547] [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: 02/12/2021] [Accepted: 06/13/2021] [Indexed: 01/25/2023] Open
Abstract
We describe the case of a 59-year-old woman who exhibited psychotic symptoms, cognitive dysfunction, and restlessness. While the clinical picture and 18F-FDG PET/CT suggested the presence of a tauopathy, especially frontotemporal dementia or progressive supranuclear palsy, genetic testing eventually revealed Huntington's disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martin Schulze Westhoff
- Department of PsychiatrySocial Psychiatry and PsychotherapyHannover Medical SchoolHannoverGermany
| | - Alma Osmanovic
- Department of NeurologyHannover Medical SchoolHannoverGermany
| | - Catharina Meissner
- Department of PsychiatrySocial Psychiatry and PsychotherapyHannover Medical SchoolHannoverGermany
| | - Johannes Heck
- Institute for Clinical PharmacologyHannover Medical SchoolHannoverGermany
| | - Nima Mahmoudi
- Department of Diagnostic and Interventional NeuroradiologyHannover Medical SchoolHannoverGermany
| | - Corinna Hendrich
- Institute for Human GeneticsHannover Medical SchoolHannoverGermany
| | - Georg Berding
- Department of Nuclear MedicineHannover Medical SchoolHannoverGermany
| | - Johanna Seifert
- Department of PsychiatrySocial Psychiatry and PsychotherapyHannover Medical SchoolHannoverGermany
| | - Stefan Bleich
- Department of PsychiatrySocial Psychiatry and PsychotherapyHannover Medical SchoolHannoverGermany
| | - Helge Frieling
- Department of PsychiatrySocial Psychiatry and PsychotherapyHannover Medical SchoolHannoverGermany
| | - Tillmann Krüger
- Department of PsychiatrySocial Psychiatry and PsychotherapyHannover Medical SchoolHannoverGermany
| | - Adrian Groh
- Department of PsychiatrySocial Psychiatry and PsychotherapyHannover Medical SchoolHannoverGermany
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When Good Kinases Go Rogue: GSK3, p38 MAPK and CDKs as Therapeutic Targets for Alzheimer's and Huntington's Disease. Int J Mol Sci 2021; 22:ijms22115911. [PMID: 34072862 PMCID: PMC8199025 DOI: 10.3390/ijms22115911] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2021] [Revised: 05/26/2021] [Accepted: 05/28/2021] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a mostly sporadic brain disorder characterized by cognitive decline resulting from selective neurodegeneration in the hippocampus and cerebral cortex whereas Huntington's disease (HD) is a monogenic inherited disorder characterized by motor abnormalities and psychiatric disturbances resulting from selective neurodegeneration in the striatum. Although there have been numerous clinical trials for these diseases, they have been unsuccessful. Research conducted over the past three decades by a large number of laboratories has demonstrated that abnormal actions of common kinases play a key role in the pathogenesis of both AD and HD as well as several other neurodegenerative diseases. Prominent among these kinases are glycogen synthase kinase (GSK3), p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) and some of the cyclin-dependent kinases (CDKs). After a brief summary of the molecular and cell biology of AD and HD this review covers what is known about the role of these three groups of kinases in the brain and in the pathogenesis of the two neurodegenerative disorders. The potential of targeting GSK3, p38 MAPK and CDKS as effective therapeutics is also discussed as is a brief discussion on the utilization of recently developed drugs that simultaneously target two or all three of these groups of kinases. Multi-kinase inhibitors either by themselves or in combination with strategies currently being used such as immunotherapy or secretase inhibitors for AD and knockdown for HD could represent a more effective therapeutic approach for these fatal neurodegenerative diseases.
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Interactome Mapping Provides a Network of Neurodegenerative Disease Proteins and Uncovers Widespread Protein Aggregation in Affected Brains. Cell Rep 2021; 32:108050. [PMID: 32814053 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2020.108050] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 16.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/05/2019] [Revised: 02/15/2020] [Accepted: 07/28/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Interactome maps are valuable resources to elucidate protein function and disease mechanisms. Here, we report on an interactome map that focuses on neurodegenerative disease (ND), connects ∼5,000 human proteins via ∼30,000 candidate interactions and is generated by systematic yeast two-hybrid interaction screening of ∼500 ND-related proteins and integration of literature interactions. This network reveals interconnectivity across diseases and links many known ND-causing proteins, such as α-synuclein, TDP-43, and ATXN1, to a host of proteins previously unrelated to NDs. It facilitates the identification of interacting proteins that significantly influence mutant TDP-43 and HTT toxicity in transgenic flies, as well as of ARF-GEP100 that controls misfolding and aggregation of multiple ND-causing proteins in experimental model systems. Furthermore, it enables the prediction of ND-specific subnetworks and the identification of proteins, such as ATXN1 and MKL1, that are abnormally aggregated in postmortem brains of Alzheimer's disease patients, suggesting widespread protein aggregation in NDs.
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Sawant N, Reddy PH. Role of Phosphorylated Tau and Glucose Synthase Kinase 3 Beta in Huntington's Disease Progression. J Alzheimers Dis 2020; 72:S177-S191. [PMID: 31744007 DOI: 10.3233/jad-190851] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
The purpose of our article is to critically assess the role of phosphorylated tau in Huntington's disease (HD) progression and pathogenesis. HD is a fatal and pure genetic disease, characterized by chorea, seizures, involuntary movements, dystonia, cognitive decline, intellectual impairment, and emotional disturbances. HD is caused by expanded polyglutamine (polyQ or CAG) repeats within the exon 1 of the HD gene. HD has an autosomal dominant pattern of inheritance with genetic anticipation. Although the HD gene was discovered 26 years ago, there is no complete understanding of how mutant huntingtin (mHTT) selectively targets medium spiny projection neurons in the basal ganglia of the brain in patients with HD. Several years of intense research revealed that multiple cellular changes are involved in disease process, including transcriptional dysregulation, mitochondrial abnormalities and impaired bioenergetics, defective axonal transport, calcium dyshomeostasis, synaptic damage and caspase, and NMDAR activations. Recent research also revealed that phosphorylated tau and defective GSK-3β signaling are strongly linked to progression of the disease. This article summarizes the recent developments of cellular and pathological changes in disease progression of HD. This article also highlights recent developments in phosphorylated tau and defective GSK-3β signaling and the involvement of calcineurin in HD progression and pathogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Neha Sawant
- Internal Medicine Department, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX, USA
| | - P Hemachandra Reddy
- Internal Medicine Department, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX, USA.,Garrison Institute on Aging, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX, USA.,Cell Biology & Biochemistry Department, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX, USA.,Pharmacology & Neuroscience Department, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX, USA.,Neurology Department, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX, USA.,Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences Departments, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX, USA.,Garrison Institute on Aging, South West Campus, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX, USA
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30
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Masnata M, Salem S, de Rus Jacquet A, Anwer M, Cicchetti F. Targeting Tau to Treat Clinical Features of Huntington's Disease. Front Neurol 2020; 11:580732. [PMID: 33329322 PMCID: PMC7710872 DOI: 10.3389/fneur.2020.580732] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2020] [Accepted: 09/17/2020] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD) is an autosomal dominant neurodegenerative disorder characterized by severe motor, cognitive and psychiatric impairments. While motor deficits often confirm diagnosis, cognitive dysfunctions usually manifest early in the disease process and are consistently ranked among the leading factors that impact the patients' quality of life. The genetic component of HD, a mutation in the huntingtin (HTT) gene, is traditionally presented as the main contributor to disease pathology. However, accumulating evidence suggests the implication of the microtubule-associated tau protein to the pathogenesis and therefore, proposes an alternative conceptual framework where tau and mutant huntingtin (mHTT) act conjointly to drive neurodegeneration and cognitive dysfunction. This perspective on disease etiology offers new avenues to design therapeutic interventions and could leverage decades of research on Alzheimer's disease (AD) and other tauopathies to rapidly advance drug discovery. In this mini review, we examine the breadth of tau-targeting treatments currently tested in the preclinical and clinical settings for AD and other tauopathies, and discuss the potential application of these strategies to HD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Masnata
- Centre de Recherche du CHU de Québec, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, QC, Canada.,Département de Psychiatrie & Neurosciences, Université Laval, Québec, QC, Canada
| | - Shireen Salem
- Centre de Recherche du CHU de Québec, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, QC, Canada.,Département de Médecine Moléculaire, Université Laval, Québec, QC, Canada
| | - Aurelie de Rus Jacquet
- Centre de Recherche du CHU de Québec, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, QC, Canada.,Département de Psychiatrie & Neurosciences, Université Laval, Québec, QC, Canada
| | - Mehwish Anwer
- Centre de Recherche du CHU de Québec, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, QC, Canada.,Département de Psychiatrie & Neurosciences, Université Laval, Québec, QC, Canada
| | - Francesca Cicchetti
- Centre de Recherche du CHU de Québec, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, QC, Canada.,Département de Psychiatrie & Neurosciences, Université Laval, Québec, QC, Canada.,Département de Médecine Moléculaire, Université Laval, Québec, QC, Canada
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31
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32
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Miller JH, Das V. Potential for Treatment of Neurodegenerative Diseases with Natural Products or Synthetic Compounds that Stabilize Microtubules. Curr Pharm Des 2020; 26:4362-4372. [DOI: 10.2174/1381612826666200621171302] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/25/2020] [Accepted: 05/08/2020] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
Abstract
No effective therapeutics to treat neurodegenerative diseases exist, despite significant attempts to find
drugs that can reduce or rescue the debilitating symptoms of tauopathies such as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s
disease, frontotemporal dementia, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or Pick’s disease. A number of in vitro and in
vivo models exist for studying neurodegenerative diseases, including cell models employing induced-pluripotent
stem cells, cerebral organoids, and animal models of disease. Recent research has focused on microtubulestabilizing
agents, either natural products or synthetic compounds that can prevent the axonal destruction caused
by tau protein pathologies. Although promising results have come from animal model studies using brainpenetrant
natural product microtubule-stabilizing agents, such as paclitaxel analogs that can access the brain,
epothilones B and D, and other synthetic compounds such as davunetide or the triazolopyrimidines, early clinical
trials in humans have been disappointing. This review aims to summarize the research that has been carried out in
this area and discuss the potential for the future development of an effective microtubule stabilizing drug to treat
neurodegenerative disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- John H. Miller
- School of Biological Sciences and Centre for Biodiscovery, Victoria University of Wellington, PO Box 600, Wellington 6140, New Zealand
| | - Viswanath Das
- Institute of Molecular and Translational Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, Palacky University, Hněvotínska 5, 77900 Olomouc, Czech Republic
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33
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Highet B, Dieriks BV, Murray HC, Faull RLM, Curtis MA. Huntingtin Aggregates in the Olfactory Bulb in Huntington's Disease. Front Aging Neurosci 2020; 12:261. [PMID: 33013352 PMCID: PMC7461834 DOI: 10.3389/fnagi.2020.00261] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/01/2020] [Accepted: 07/31/2020] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Olfactory deficits are an early and prevalent non-motor symptom of Huntington's disease (HD). In other neurodegenerative diseases where olfactory deficits occur, such as Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease, pathological protein aggregates (tau, β-amyloid, α-synuclein) accumulate in the anterior olfactory nucleus (AON) of the olfactory bulb (OFB). Therefore, in this study we determined whether aggregates are also present in HD OFBs; 13 HD and five normal human OFBs were stained for mutant huntingtin (mHtt), tau, β-amyloid, TDP-43, and α-synuclein. Our results show that mHtt aggregates detected with 1F8 antibody are present within all HD OFBs, and mHtt aggregate load in the OFB does not correlate with Vonsattel grading scores. The majority of the aggregates were located in the AON and in similar abundance in each anatomical segment of the AON. No mHtt aggregates were found in controls; 31% of HD cases also contained tau neurofibrillary tangles within the AON. This work demonstrates HD pathology in the OFB and indicates that disease-specific protein aggregation in the AON is a common feature of neurodegenerative diseases that show olfactory deficits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Blake Highet
- Department of Anatomy and Medical Imaging, Faculty of Medical and Health Science, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
- Centre for Brain Research, Faculty of Medical and Health Science, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Birger Victor Dieriks
- Department of Anatomy and Medical Imaging, Faculty of Medical and Health Science, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
- Centre for Brain Research, Faculty of Medical and Health Science, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Helen C. Murray
- Department of Anatomy and Medical Imaging, Faculty of Medical and Health Science, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
- Centre for Brain Research, Faculty of Medical and Health Science, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Richard L. M. Faull
- Department of Anatomy and Medical Imaging, Faculty of Medical and Health Science, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
- Centre for Brain Research, Faculty of Medical and Health Science, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Maurice A. Curtis
- Department of Anatomy and Medical Imaging, Faculty of Medical and Health Science, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
- Centre for Brain Research, Faculty of Medical and Health Science, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
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Mulroy E, Jaunmuktane Z, Balint B, Erro R, Latorre A, Bhatia KP. Some New and Unexpected Tauopathies in Movement Disorders. Mov Disord Clin Pract 2020; 7:616-626. [PMID: 32775506 PMCID: PMC7396854 DOI: 10.1002/mdc3.12995] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/10/2020] [Revised: 05/12/2020] [Accepted: 05/25/2020] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Eoin Mulroy
- Department of Clinical and Movement Neurosciences UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology London United Kingdom
| | - Zane Jaunmuktane
- Department of Clinical and Movement Neurosciences UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology London United Kingdom.,Division of Neuropathology, The National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery University College London Hospitals National Health Service Foundation Trust London United Kingdom
| | - Bettina Balint
- Department of Clinical and Movement Neurosciences UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology London United Kingdom.,Department of Neurology University Hospital Heidelberg Germany
| | - Roberto Erro
- Department of Medicine, Surgery and Dentistry "Scuola Medica Salernitana," Neuroscience Section University of Salerno Baronissi Italy
| | - Anna Latorre
- Department of Clinical and Movement Neurosciences UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology London United Kingdom
| | - Kailash P Bhatia
- Department of Clinical and Movement Neurosciences UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology London United Kingdom
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35
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Autoimmune Mechanisms of Interferon Hypersensitivity and Neurodegenerative Diseases: Down Syndrome. Autoimmune Dis 2020; 2020:6876920. [PMID: 32566271 PMCID: PMC7285398 DOI: 10.1155/2020/6876920] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2020] [Accepted: 05/06/2020] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Down syndrome (DS), also known as trisomy 21 (T21), is associated with interferon (IFN) hypersensitivity, as well as predilections for Alzheimer's dementia (AD) and various autoimmune diseases. IFN-α and IFN-γ receptors are encoded on chromosome 21 (Ch21). It remains unclear how other Ch21 genes contribute to the neuropathological features of DS/T21. This study tests the hypothesis that identifying IFN-stimulated response element (ISRE) control sites on Ch21 will mark novel candidate genes for DS/T21-related IFN hypersensitivity and neuropathology not previously reported to be associated with IFN functions. We performed whole chromosome searches of online databases. The general ISRE consensus and gamma interferon activation consensus sequences (GAS) were used for identifying IFN-stimulated response elements. Candidate genes were defined as those possessing two or more ISRE and/or GAS control sites within and/or upstream of the transcription start site. A literature search of gene functions was used to select the candidate genes most likely to explain neuropathology associated with IFN hypersensitivity. DOPEY2, TMEM50B, PCBP3, RCAN1, and SIM2 were found to meet the aforementioned gene search and functional criteria. These findings suggest that DOPEY2, TMEM50B, PCBP3, RCAN1, and SIM2 are genes which may be dysregulated in DS/T21 and may therefore serve as novel targets for treatments aimed at ameliorating the neuropathological features of DS/T21. Future studies should determine whether these genes are dysregulated in patients with DS, DS-related AD, and autoimmune diseases.
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36
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Role for ATXN1, ATXN2, and HTT intermediate repeats in frontotemporal dementia and Alzheimer's disease. Neurobiol Aging 2020; 87:139.e1-139.e7. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2019.10.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/26/2019] [Revised: 10/03/2019] [Accepted: 10/26/2019] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
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37
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Quntanilla RA, Tapia-Monsalves C. The Role of Mitochondrial Impairment in Alzheimer´s Disease Neurodegeneration: The Tau Connection. Curr Neuropharmacol 2020; 18:1076-1091. [PMID: 32448104 PMCID: PMC7709157 DOI: 10.2174/1570159x18666200525020259] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2019] [Revised: 04/23/2020] [Accepted: 05/17/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Accumulative evidence has shown that mitochondrial dysfunction plays a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Mitochondrial impairment actively contributes to the synaptic and cognitive failure that characterizes AD. The presence of soluble pathological forms of tau like hyperphosphorylated at Ser396 and Ser404 and cleaved at Asp421 by caspase 3, negatively impacts mitochondrial bioenergetics, transport, and morphology in neurons. These adverse effects against mitochondria health will contribute to the synaptic impairment and cognitive decline in AD. Current studies suggest that mitochondrial failure induced by pathological tau forms is likely the result of the opening of the mitochondrial permeability transition pore (mPTP). mPTP is a mitochondrial mega-channel that is activated by increases in calcium and is associated with mitochondrial stress and apoptosis. This structure is composed of different proteins, where Ciclophilin D (CypD) is considered to be the primary mediator of mPTP activation. Also, new studies suggest that mPTP contributes to Aβ pathology and oxidative stress in AD. Further, inhibition of mPTP through the reduction of CypD expression prevents cognitive and synaptic impairment in AD mouse models. More importantly, tau protein contributes to the physiological regulation of mitochondria through the opening/interaction with mPTP in hippocampal neurons. Therefore, in this paper, we will discuss evidence that suggests an important role of pathological forms of tau against mitochondrial health. Also, we will discuss the possible role of mPTP in the mitochondrial impairment produced by the presence of tau pathology and its impact on synaptic function present in AD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rodrigo A. Quntanilla
- Laboratory of Neurodegenerative Diseases, Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, Instituto de Ciencias Biomédicas, Universidad Autónoma de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Carola Tapia-Monsalves
- Laboratory of Neurodegenerative Diseases, Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, Instituto de Ciencias Biomédicas, Universidad Autónoma de Chile, Santiago, Chile
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38
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Antibody-based therapies for Huntington’s disease: current status and future directions. Neurobiol Dis 2019; 132:104569. [DOI: 10.1016/j.nbd.2019.104569] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2019] [Revised: 08/01/2019] [Accepted: 08/02/2019] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
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Hervy J, Bicout DJ. Dynamical decoration of stabilized-microtubules by Tau-proteins. Sci Rep 2019; 9:12473. [PMID: 31462746 PMCID: PMC6713733 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-48790-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/27/2019] [Accepted: 08/12/2019] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Tau is a microtubule-associated protein that regulates axonal transport, stabilizes and spatially organizes microtubules in parallel networks. The Tau-microtubule pair is crucial for maintaining the architecture and integrity of axons. Therefore, it is essential to understand how these two entities interact to ensure and modulate the normal axonal functions. Based on evidence from several published experiments, we have developed a two-dimensional model that describes the interaction between a population of Tau proteins and a stabilized microtubule at the scale of the tubulin dimers (binding sites) as an adsorption-desorption dynamical process in which Tau can bind on the microtubule outer surface via two distinct modes: a longitudinal (along a protofilament) and lateral (across adjacent protofilaments) modes. Such a process yields a dynamical distribution of Tau molecules on the microtubule surface referred to as microtubule decoration that we have characterized at the equilibrium using two observables: the total microtubule surface coverage with Tau's and the distribution of nearest neighbors Tau's. Using both analytical and numerical approaches, we have derived expressions and computed these observables as a function of key parameters controlling the binding reaction: the stoichiometries of the Taus in the two binding modes, the associated dissociation constants and the ratio of the Tau concentration to that of microtubule tubulin dimers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jordan Hervy
- Institut Laue-Langevin, 71 Avenue des Martyrs, 38042, Grenoble, France
- Laboratory of Physics and Modelling of Condensed Matter, Grenoble Alpes University, CNRS, Grenoble, France
| | - Dominique J Bicout
- Institut Laue-Langevin, 71 Avenue des Martyrs, 38042, Grenoble, France.
- EPSP, TIMC Laboratory, UMR CNRS 5525 Grenoble Alpes University, VetAgro Sup, Grenoble, France.
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40
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Baskota SU, Lopez OL, Greenamyre JT, Kofler J. Spectrum of tau pathologies in Huntington's disease. J Transl Med 2019; 99:1068-1077. [PMID: 30573872 PMCID: PMC9342691 DOI: 10.1038/s41374-018-0166-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/26/2018] [Revised: 09/26/2018] [Accepted: 10/31/2018] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD) is an autosomal dominant disorder caused by a trinucleotide expansion in the huntingtin gene. Recently, a new role for tau has been implicated in the pathogenesis of HD, whereas others have argued that postmortem tau pathology findings are attributable to concurrent Alzheimer's disease pathology. The frequency of other well-defined common age-related tau pathologies in HD has not been examined in detail. In this single center, retrospective analysis, we screened seven cases of Huntington's disease (5 females, 2 males, age at death: 47-73 years) for neuronal and glial tau pathology using phospho-tau immunohistochemistry. All seven cases showed presence of neuronal tau pathology. Five cases met diagnostic criteria for primary age-related tauopathy (PART), with three cases classified as definite PART and two cases as possible PART, all with a Braak stage of I. One case was diagnosed with low level of Alzheimer's disease neuropathologic change. In the youngest case, rare perivascular aggregates of tau-positive neurons, astrocytes and processes were identified at sulcal depths, meeting current neuropathological criteria for stage 1 chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). Although the patient had no history of playing contact sports, he experienced several falls, but no definitive concussions during his disease course. Three of the PART cases and the CTE-like case showed additional evidence of aging-related tau astrogliopathy. None of the cases showed significant tau pathology in the striatum. In conclusion, while we found evidence for tau hyperphosphorylation and aggregation in all seven of our HD cases, the tau pathology was readily classifiable into known diagnostic entities and most likely represents non-specific age- or perhaps trauma-related changes. As the tau pathology was very mild in all cases and not unexpected for a population of this age range, it does not appear that the underlying HD may have promoted or accelerated tau accumulation.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Oscar L Lopez
- Department of Neurology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - J Timothy Greenamyre
- Department of Neurology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
- Pittsburgh Institute for Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Julia Kofler
- Department of Pathology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
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41
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Neuropathology and pathogenesis of extrapyramidal movement disorders: a critical update. II. Hyperkinetic disorders. J Neural Transm (Vienna) 2019; 126:997-1027. [DOI: 10.1007/s00702-019-02030-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2019] [Accepted: 06/14/2019] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
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42
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Demonstration of prion-like properties of mutant huntingtin fibrils in both in vitro and in vivo paradigms. Acta Neuropathol 2019; 137:981-1001. [PMID: 30788585 PMCID: PMC6531424 DOI: 10.1007/s00401-019-01973-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/18/2018] [Revised: 02/07/2019] [Accepted: 02/07/2019] [Indexed: 12/02/2022]
Abstract
In recent years, evidence has accumulated to suggest that mutant huntingtin protein (mHTT) can spread into healthy tissue in a prion-like fashion. This theory, however, remains controversial. To fully address this concept and to understand the possible consequences of mHTT spreading to Huntington’s disease pathology, we investigated the effects of exogenous human fibrillar mHTT (Q48) and huntingtin (HTT) (Q25) N-terminal fragments in three cellular models and three distinct animal paradigms. For in vitro experiments, human neuronal cells [induced pluripotent stem cell-derived GABA neurons (iGABA) and (SH-SY5Y)] as well as human THP1-derived macrophages, were incubated with recombinant mHTT fibrils. Recombinant mHTT and HTT fibrils were taken up by all cell types, inducing cell morphology changes and death. Variations in HTT aggregation were further observed following incubation with fibrils in both THP1 and SH-SY5Y cells. For in vivo experiments, adult wild-type (WT) mice received a unilateral intracerebral cortical injection and R6/2 and WT pups were administered fibrils via bilateral intraventricular injections. In both protocols, the injection of Q48 fibrils resulted in cognitive deficits and increased anxiety-like behavior. Post-mortem analysis of adult WT mice indicated that most fibrils had been degraded/cleared from the brain by 14 months post-surgery. Despite the absence of fibrils at these later time points, a change in the staining pattern of endogenous HTT was detected. A similar change was revealed in post-mortem analysis of the R6/2 mice. These effects were specific to central administration of fibrils, as mice receiving intravenous injections were not characterized by behavioral changes. In fact, peripheral administration resulted in an immune response mounting against the fibrils. Together, the in vitro and in vivo data indicate that exogenously administered mHTT is capable of both causing and exacerbating disease pathology.
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43
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Chen XQ. Involvement of T-complex protein 1-ring complex/chaperonin containing T-complex protein 1 (TRiC/CCT) in retrograde axonal transport through tau phosphorylation. Neural Regen Res 2019; 14:588-590. [PMID: 30632495 PMCID: PMC6352588 DOI: 10.4103/1673-5374.247460] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/25/2023] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Xu-Qiao Chen
- Department of Neurosciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
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Gratuze M, Josset N, Petry FR, Pflieger M, Eyoum Jong L, Truchetti G, Poitras I, Julien J, Bezeau F, Morin F, Samadi P, Cicchetti F, Bretzner F, Planel E. The toxin MPTP generates similar cognitive and locomotor deficits in hTau and tau knock-out mice. Brain Res 2019; 1711:106-114. [PMID: 30641037 DOI: 10.1016/j.brainres.2019.01.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2018] [Revised: 01/07/2019] [Accepted: 01/10/2019] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Parkinson's disease (PD) is characterized by motor deficits, although cognitive disturbances are frequent and have been noted early in the disease. The main pathological characteristics of PD are the loss of dopaminergic neurons and the presence of aggregated α-synuclein in Lewy bodies of surviving cells. Studies have also documented the presence of other proteins within Lewy bodies, particularly tau, a microtubule-associated protein implicated in a wide range of neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer's disease (AD). In AD, tau pathology correlates with cognitive dysfunction, and tau mutations have been reported to lead to dementia associated with parkinsonism. However, the role of tau in PD pathogenesis remains unclear. To address this question, we induced parkinsonism by injecting the toxin 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) in hTau mice, a mouse model of tauopathy expressing human tau, and a mouse model knock-out for tau (TKO). We found that although MPTP impaired locomotion (gait analysis) and cognition (Barnes maze), there were no discernable differences between hTau and TKO mice. MPTP also induced a slight but significant increase in tau phosphorylation (Thr205) in the hippocampus of hTau mice, as well as a significant decrease in the soluble and insoluble tau fractions that correlated with the loss of dopaminergic neurons in the brainstem. Overall, our findings suggest that, although MPTP can induce an increase in tau phosphorylation at specific epitopes, tau does not seem to causally contribute to cognitive and locomotor deficits induced by this toxin.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maud Gratuze
- Université Laval, Faculté de Médecine, Département de Psychiatrie et Neurosciences, Québec, QC, Canada; Centre de recherche du Centre Hospitalier de l'Université Laval de Québec, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, QC, Canada.
| | - Nicolas Josset
- Université Laval, Faculté de Médecine, Département de Psychiatrie et Neurosciences, Québec, QC, Canada; Centre de recherche du Centre Hospitalier de l'Université Laval de Québec, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, QC, Canada
| | - Franck R Petry
- Université Laval, Faculté de Médecine, Département de Psychiatrie et Neurosciences, Québec, QC, Canada; Centre de recherche du Centre Hospitalier de l'Université Laval de Québec, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, QC, Canada
| | - Mathieu Pflieger
- Centre de recherche du Centre Hospitalier de l'Université Laval de Québec, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, QC, Canada
| | - Laura Eyoum Jong
- Université Laval, Faculté de Médecine, Département de Psychiatrie et Neurosciences, Québec, QC, Canada; Centre de recherche du Centre Hospitalier de l'Université Laval de Québec, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, QC, Canada
| | - Geoffrey Truchetti
- Université Laval, Faculté de Médecine, Département de Psychiatrie et Neurosciences, Québec, QC, Canada; Centre de recherche du Centre Hospitalier de l'Université Laval de Québec, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, QC, Canada
| | - Isabelle Poitras
- Université Laval, Faculté de Médecine, Département de Psychiatrie et Neurosciences, Québec, QC, Canada; Centre de recherche du Centre Hospitalier de l'Université Laval de Québec, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, QC, Canada
| | - Jacinthe Julien
- Centre de recherche du Centre Hospitalier de l'Université Laval de Québec, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, QC, Canada
| | - François Bezeau
- Université Laval, Faculté de Médecine, Département de Psychiatrie et Neurosciences, Québec, QC, Canada; Centre de recherche du Centre Hospitalier de l'Université Laval de Québec, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, QC, Canada
| | - Françoise Morin
- Centre de recherche du Centre Hospitalier de l'Université Laval de Québec, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, QC, Canada
| | - Pershia Samadi
- Université Laval, Faculté de Médecine, Département de Psychiatrie et Neurosciences, Québec, QC, Canada; Centre de recherche du Centre Hospitalier de l'Université Laval de Québec, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, QC, Canada
| | - Francesca Cicchetti
- Université Laval, Faculté de Médecine, Département de Psychiatrie et Neurosciences, Québec, QC, Canada; Centre de recherche du Centre Hospitalier de l'Université Laval de Québec, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, QC, Canada
| | - Frédéric Bretzner
- Université Laval, Faculté de Médecine, Département de Psychiatrie et Neurosciences, Québec, QC, Canada; Centre de recherche du Centre Hospitalier de l'Université Laval de Québec, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, QC, Canada
| | - Emmanuel Planel
- Université Laval, Faculté de Médecine, Département de Psychiatrie et Neurosciences, Québec, QC, Canada; Centre de recherche du Centre Hospitalier de l'Université Laval de Québec, Axe Neurosciences, Québec, QC, Canada.
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Xu Y, Zhang S, Zheng H. The cargo receptor SQSTM1 ameliorates neurofibrillary tangle pathology and spreading through selective targeting of pathological MAPT (microtubule associated protein tau). Autophagy 2018; 15:583-598. [PMID: 30290707 PMCID: PMC6526869 DOI: 10.1080/15548627.2018.1532258] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Accumulating evidence suggests that misfolded MAPT (microtubule associated protein tau), the main component of neurofibrillary tangles in tauopathies, is subject to degradation by the autophagy-lysosomal pathway. Selective autophagy is a subtype of macroautophagy that requires cargo receptors, such as OPTN (optineurin) or SQSTM1, to recognize specific targets for their sequestration within the autophagosome and their eventual degradation by the lysosome, although their roles in targeting distinct MAPT species have not been fully investigated. Using cargo receptor knockout cell lines and a seeding-based cellular assay in which neurofibrillary tangle pathology can be modeled in vitro, we reveal that while OPTN primarily targets soluble MAPT expressed in physiological conditions, SQSTM1 predominantly degrades insoluble but not soluble mutant MAPT. Endogenous SQSTM1 colocalizes with misfolded and aggregated MAPT species in vitro and in vivo, and both this colocalization and its function in MAPT clearance require both the LC3-interacting region (LIR) motif and also the PB1 self-polymerization domain of SQSTM1. Further, pathogenic MAPT accumulation reduces basal macroautophagy/autophagy in vitro and is associated with a compensatory upregulation of the lysosomal pathway in vivo. Finally, increased expression of SQSTM1 in MAPT transgenic mouse brains ameliorates MAPT pathology and prion-like spreading. Our results uncover distinct properties of selective autophagy receptors in targeting different MAPT species, implicate compromised autophagy as a potential underlying factor in mutant MAPT deposition, and demonstrate a potent and specific role of SQSTM1 in targeted clearance of pathogenic MAPT, through which it blocks neurofibrillary tangle accumulation and pathological spreading. Abbreviations: AAV: adeno-associated virus; AD: Alzheimer disease; ALP: autophagy-lysosomal pathway; ALS: amyotrophic lateral sclerosis; CALCOCO2/NDP52: calcium binding and coiled-coil domain 2; FTD: frontotemporal dementias; HD: Huntington disease; HTT: huntingtin; LIR: LC3-interacting region; NBR1: autophagy cargo receptor; NFE2L2/Nrf2: nuclear factor, erythroid derived 2, like 2; NFTs: neurofibrillary tangles; MAPT: microtubule associated protein tau; OPTN: optineurin; p-MAPT: hyperphosphorylated MAPT; PFA: paraformaldehyde; TARDBP/TDP-43: TAR DNA binding protein; TAX1BP1 Tax1: binding protein 1; ThioS: thioflavin-S; UBA: ubiquitin-associated.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yin Xu
- Huffington Center on Aging, Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Sheng Zhang
- The Brown Foundation Institute of Molecular Medicine, Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy, McGovern Medical School, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Hui Zheng
- Huffington Center on Aging, Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA,CONTACT Hui Zheng Huffington Center on Aging, Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
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Simmons DA. Modulating Neurotrophin Receptor Signaling as a Therapeutic Strategy for Huntington's Disease. J Huntingtons Dis 2018; 6:303-325. [PMID: 29254102 PMCID: PMC5757655 DOI: 10.3233/jhd-170275] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Huntington’s disease (HD) is an autosomal dominant neurodegenerative disorder caused by CAG repeat expansions in the IT15 gene which encodes the huntingtin (HTT) protein. Currently, no treatments capable of preventing or slowing disease progression exist. Disease modifying therapeutics for HD would be expected to target a comprehensive set of degenerative processes given the diverse mechanisms contributing to HD pathogenesis including neuroinflammation, excitotoxicity, and transcription dysregulation. A major contributor to HD-related degeneration is mutant HTT-induced loss of neurotrophic support. Thus, neurotrophin (NT) receptors have emerged as therapeutic targets in HD. The considerable overlap between NT signaling networks and those dysregulated by mutant HTT provides strong theoretical support for this approach. This review will focus on the contributions of disrupted NT signaling in HD-related neurodegeneration and how targeting NT receptors to augment pro-survival signaling and/or to inhibit degenerative signaling may combat HD pathologies. Therapeutic strategies involving NT delivery, peptidomimetics, and the targeting of specific NT receptors (e.g., Trks or p75NTR), particularly with small molecule ligands, are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Danielle A Simmons
- Department of Neurology and Neurological Sciences, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
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Maxan A, Cicchetti F. Tau: A Common Denominator and Therapeutic Target for Neurodegenerative Disorders. J Exp Neurosci 2018; 12:1179069518772380. [PMID: 29760562 PMCID: PMC5946355 DOI: 10.1177/1179069518772380] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2018] [Accepted: 02/22/2018] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
There is compelling evidence that a number of neurodegenerative diseases share common pathogenic mechanisms. Better understanding these mechanisms will allow us to develop new therapeutic strategies. This commentary follows up on our recent findings that tau pathology can be found in healthy fetal tissue transplanted into the brain of patients with either Huntington or Parkinson disease. We will examine how tau appears to be shared in a number of different conditions and how its expression relates to cognitive decline and disease progression. We will further review pathogenic mechanisms and especially the relevance of the possible prion-like behavior of tau. We will conclude by discussing how all this work opens up novel therapeutic approaches to treating the cognitive impairments related to neurodegenerative diseases using a common strategy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexander Maxan
- Axe Neurosciences, Centre de Recherche du CHU de Québec - Université Laval, Québec, QC, Canada
| | - Francesca Cicchetti
- Axe Neurosciences, Centre de Recherche du CHU de Québec - Université Laval, Québec, QC, Canada.,Département de Psychiatrie et de Neurosciences, Université Laval, Québec, QC, Canada
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St-Amour I, Turgeon A, Goupil C, Planel E, Hébert SS. Co-occurrence of mixed proteinopathies in late-stage Huntington's disease. Acta Neuropathol 2018; 135:249-265. [PMID: 29134321 DOI: 10.1007/s00401-017-1786-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 58] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2017] [Revised: 11/06/2017] [Accepted: 11/07/2017] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Accumulating evidence highlights the potential role of mixed proteinopathies (i.e., abnormal protein aggregation) in the development of clinical manifestations of neurodegenerative diseases (NDD). Huntington's disease (HD) is an inherited NDD caused by autosomal-dominant expanded CAG trinucleotide repeat mutation in the gene coding for Huntingtin (Htt). Previous studies have suggested the coexistence of phosphorylated-Tau, α-synuclein (α-Syn) and TAR DNA-binding protein 43 (TDP-43) inclusions in HD. However, definite evidence that HD pathology in humans can be accompanied by other proteinopathies is still lacking. Using human post-mortem putamen samples from 31 controls and 56 HD individuals, we performed biochemical analyses of the expression, oligomerization and aggregation of Tau, α-Syn, TDP-43, and Amyloid precursor protein (APP)/Aβ. In HD brain, we observed reduced soluble protein (but not mRNA) levels of Htt, α-Syn, and Tau. Our results also support abnormal phosphorylation of Tau in more advanced stages of disease. Aberrant splicing of Tau exons 2, 3 (exclusion) and 10 (inclusion) was also detected in HD patients, leading to higher 0N4R and lower 1N3R isoforms. Finally, following formic acid extraction, we observed increased aggregation of TDP-43, α-Syn, and phosphorylated-Tau during HD progression. Notably, we observed that 88% of HD patients with Vonsattel grade 4 neuropathology displayed at least one non-Htt proteinopathy compared to 29% in controls. Interestingly, α-Syn aggregation correlated with Htt, TDP-43 and phosphorylated-Tau in HD but not in controls. The impact of this work is twofold: (1) it provides compelling evidences that Tau, α-Syn and TDP-43 proteinopathies are increased in HD, and (2) it suggests the involvement of common mechanisms leading to abnormal accumulation of aggregation-prone proteins in NDD. Further studies will be needed to decipher the impact of these proteinopathies on clinical manifestation of HD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Isabelle St-Amour
- Axe Neurosciences, Centre de recherche du CHU de Québec-Université Laval, CHUL, 2705 Boul. Laurier, P0-9800, Québec, QC, G1V 4G2, Canada
- Département de psychiatrie et de neurosciences, Université Laval, Québec, QC, G1V 0A6, Canada
| | - Andréanne Turgeon
- Axe Neurosciences, Centre de recherche du CHU de Québec-Université Laval, CHUL, 2705 Boul. Laurier, P0-9800, Québec, QC, G1V 4G2, Canada
- Département de psychiatrie et de neurosciences, Université Laval, Québec, QC, G1V 0A6, Canada
| | - Claudia Goupil
- Axe Neurosciences, Centre de recherche du CHU de Québec-Université Laval, CHUL, 2705 Boul. Laurier, P0-9800, Québec, QC, G1V 4G2, Canada
- Département de psychiatrie et de neurosciences, Université Laval, Québec, QC, G1V 0A6, Canada
| | - Emmanuel Planel
- Axe Neurosciences, Centre de recherche du CHU de Québec-Université Laval, CHUL, 2705 Boul. Laurier, P0-9800, Québec, QC, G1V 4G2, Canada
- Département de psychiatrie et de neurosciences, Université Laval, Québec, QC, G1V 0A6, Canada
| | - Sébastien S Hébert
- Axe Neurosciences, Centre de recherche du CHU de Québec-Université Laval, CHUL, 2705 Boul. Laurier, P0-9800, Québec, QC, G1V 4G2, Canada.
- Département de psychiatrie et de neurosciences, Université Laval, Québec, QC, G1V 0A6, Canada.
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Weydt P, Dupuis L, Petersen Å. Thermoregulatory disorders in Huntington disease. HANDBOOK OF CLINICAL NEUROLOGY 2018; 157:761-775. [PMID: 30459039 DOI: 10.1016/b978-0-444-64074-1.00047-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Huntington disease (HD) is a paradigmatic autosomal-dominant adult-onset neurodegenerative disease. Since the identification of an abnormal expansion of a trinucleotide repeat tract in the huntingtin gene as the underlying genetic defect, a broad range of transgenic animal models of the disease has become available and these have helped to unravel the relevant molecular pathways in unprecedented detail. Of note, some of the most informative of these models develop thermoregulatory defects such as hypothermia, problems with adaptive thermogenesis, and an altered circadian temperature rhythm. Both central, e.g., in the hypothalamus and peripheral, i.e., the brown adipose tissue and skeletal muscle, problems contribute to the phenotype. Importantly, these structures and pathways are also affected in human HD. Yet, currently the evidence for bona fide thermodysregulation in human HD patients remains anecdotal. This may be due to a lack of reliable tools for monitoring body temperature in an outpatient setting. Regardless, study of the temperature phenotype has contributed to the identification of unexpected molecular targets, such as the PGC-1α pathway.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrick Weydt
- Department of Neurodegenerative Diseases and Gerontopsychiatry/Neurology, University of Bonn Medical Center, Bonn, Germany.
| | - Luc Dupuis
- Faculty of Medicine, University of Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France
| | - Åsa Petersen
- Translational Neuroendocrine Research Unit, Department of Experimental Medical Sciences, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
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Rey NL, Wesson DW, Brundin P. The olfactory bulb as the entry site for prion-like propagation in neurodegenerative diseases. Neurobiol Dis 2018; 109:226-248. [PMID: 28011307 PMCID: PMC5972535 DOI: 10.1016/j.nbd.2016.12.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 183] [Impact Index Per Article: 30.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/07/2016] [Revised: 12/13/2016] [Accepted: 12/15/2016] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Olfactory deficits are present in numerous neurodegenerative disorders and are accompanied by pathology in related brain regions. In several of these disorders, olfactory disturbances appear early and are considered as prodromal symptoms of the disease. In addition, pathological protein aggregates affect olfactory regions prior to other regions, suggesting that the olfactory system might be particularly vulnerable to neurodegenerative diseases. Exposed to the external environment, the olfactory epithelium and olfactory bulb allow pathogen and toxin penetration into the brain, a process that has been proposed to play a role in neurodegenerative diseases. Determining whether the olfactory bulb could be a starting point of pathology and of pathology spread is crucial to understanding how neurodegenerative diseases evolve. We argue that pathological changes following environmental insults contribute to the initiation of protein aggregation in the olfactory bulb, which then triggers the spread of the pathology within the brain by a templating mechanism in a prion-like manner. We review the evidence for the early involvement of olfactory structures in neurodegenerative diseases and the relationship between neuropathology and olfactory function. We discuss the vulnerability and putative underlying mechanisms by which pathology could be initiated in the olfactory bulb, from the entry of pathogens (promoted by increased permeability of the olfactory epithelium with aging or inflammation) to the sensitivity of the olfactory system to oxidative stress and inflammation. Finally, we review changes in protein expression and neural excitability triggered by pathogenic proteins that can promote pathogenesis in the olfactory bulb and beyond.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nolwen L Rey
- Center for Neurodegenerative Science, Van Andel Research Institute, Grand Rapids, MI 49503, USA.
| | - Daniel W Wesson
- Department of Neurosciences, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, OH 44106, USA
| | - Patrik Brundin
- Center for Neurodegenerative Science, Van Andel Research Institute, Grand Rapids, MI 49503, USA
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