Neurobiology of cognitive disorders

Good Cop, Bad Cop: Defining the Roles of Δ40p53 in Cancer and Aging

The tumour suppressor p53 is essential for maintaining DNA integrity, and plays a major role in cellular senescence and aging. Understanding the mechanisms that contribute to p53 dysfunction can uncover novel possibilities for improving cancer therapies and diagnosis, as well as cognitive decline associated with aging. In recent years, the complexity of p53 signalling has become increasingly apparent owing to the discovery of the p53 isoforms. These isoforms play important roles in regulating cell growth and turnover in response to different stressors, depending on the cellular context. In this review, we focus on Δ40p53, an N-terminally truncated p53 isoform. Δ40p53 can alter p53 target gene expression in both a positive and negative manner, modulating the biological outcome of p53 activation; it also functions independently of p53. Therefore, proper control of the Δ40p53: p53 ratio is essential for normal cell growth, aging, and responses to cancer therapy. Defining the contexts and the mechanisms by which Δ40p53 behaves as a "good cop or bad cop" is critical if we are to target this isoform therapeutically.

Autophagy activation prevents sevoflurane-induced neurotoxicity in H4 human neuroglioma cells

AIM

The inhaled anesthetic sevoflurane may induce cognitive impairment in both animals and humans. Previous study has shown that sevoflurane triggers ER stress and may lead to apoptosis in rat hippocampal neurons. In this study, we examined whether sevoflurane caused autophagy and its contributions to sevoflurane induced neuronal cell injury.

METHODS

H4 human neuroglioma cells were exposed to 4.1% sevoflurane for 6 h. Cell viability and apoptosis ratio were assessed using a CCK8 kit and flow cytometry, respectively. Autophagosomes in the cells were detected using GFP-LC3 plasmid transfection or transmission electronic microscopy. The expression of LC3B, p62/SQSTM, C/EBP homologous protein (CHOP) and glucose-related protein 78 (GRP78) was assessed with Western blotting.

RESULTS

Sevoflurane treatment induced apoptosis and markedly increased the LC3-II level and GFP-LC3 puncta number, decreased p62 expression in H4 cells. Activation of autophagy by rapamycin (1 μmol/L) significantly reduced sevoflurane-induced apoptosis and increased cell viability, whereas inhibition of autophagy with 3-MA (5 mmol/L) caused the opposite effects. Furthermore, sevoflurane treatment markedly increased the expression of CHOP and GRP78, two hallmark proteins of ER stress. Inhibition of ER stress by 4-phenylbutyrate (500 μmol/L) abrogated sevoflurane-induced autophagy and apoptosis, and improved the viability. Moreover, sevoflurane-stimulated expression of CHOP and GRP78 was inhibited by rapamycin, but further enhanced by 3-MA.

CONCLUSION

Sevoflurane treatment induces ER stress and activates autophagy, which antagonizes sevoflurane-induced apoptosis in H4 human neuroglioma cells. The results suggest that autophagy may be a potential therapeutic target in preventing sevoflurane-induced neurotoxicity.

The amyloid precursor protein (APP) intracellular domain regulates translation of p44, a short isoform of p53, through an IRES-dependent mechanism

p44 is a short isoform of the tumor suppressor protein p53 that is regulated in an age-dependent manner. When overexpressed in the mouse, it causes a progeroid phenotype that includes premature cognitive decline, synaptic defects, and hyperphosphorylation of tau. The hyperphosphorylation of tau has recently been linked to the ability of p44 to regulate transcription of relevant tau kinases. Here, we report that the amyloid precursor protein (APP) intracellular domain (AICD), which results from the processing of the APP, regulates translation of p44 through a cap-independent mechanism that requires direct binding to the second internal ribosome entry site (IRES) of the p53 mRNA. We also report that AICD associates with nucleolin, an already known IRES-specific trans-acting factor that binds with p53 IRES elements and regulates translation of p53 isoforms. The potential biological impact of our findings was assessed in a mouse model of Alzheimer's disease. In conclusion, our study reveals a novel aspect of AICD and p53/p44 biology and provides a possible molecular link between APP, p44, and tau.

Flow cytometry analysis of synaptosomes from post-mortem human brain reveals changes specific to Lewy body and Alzheimer's disease

Synaptic dysfunction is thought to have an important role in the pathophysiology of neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Lewy body disease (LBD). To improve our understanding of synaptic alterations in health and disease, we investigated synaptosomes prepared from post-mortem human cerebral cortex, putamen (PT), and two regions of the caudate nucleus, dorso-lateral (DL) and ventro-medial (VM), regions commonly affected in AD and LBD. We observed that the fraction of synaptosomal particles with reactivity for dopamine transporter (DAT) was significantly reduced in the PT and VM caudate of patients with neuropathological diagnosis of LBD. As expected, these differences also were reflected in direct measurements of dopamine (DA) and its metabolite, 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (DOPAC), in caudate and PT of LBD patients. The fraction of synaptosomal particles positive for amyloid β (Aβ) was significantly increased in frontal cortical samples of patients with the neuropathological diagnosis of severe AD, and was positively correlated with disease progression. We also prepared synaptosomes from the striatum of mice with severe loss of DA neurons (Slc6a3-DTR mice) and wild-type littermate controls. We observed markedly reduced levels of DAT-positive synaptosomes in Slc6a3-DTR mice following exposure to diphtheria toxin (DT). Striatal levels of DA and DOPAC in Slc6a3-DTR mice also were reduced significantly following DT exposure. We conclude that flow cytometric analysis of synaptosomes prepared from human or mouse brain provides an opportunity to study expression of pathology-associated proteins and also the specific loss of dopaminergic nerve terminals. Hence, we believe it is a valid method to detect pathological changes at the level of the synapse in LBD as well as AD.

P44, the 'longevity-assurance' isoform of P53, regulates tau phosphorylation and is activated in an age-dependent fashion

p44 is a short isoform of p53 with 'longevity-assurance' activity. Overexpression of p44 in the mouse (p44(+/+) transgenic mice) causes a progeroid phenotype that mimics an accelerated form of aging. The phenotype includes abnormal phosphorylation of the microtubule-binding protein tau, synaptic deficits, and cognitive decline. Genetic engineering demonstrated that the phosphorylation status of tau acts upstream of the synaptic deficits. Here, we provide evidence that p44 promotes the phosphorylation of tau in the mouse. Specifically, we show that p44 binds to the promoter of tau kinases Dyrk1A, GSK3β, Cdk5, p35, and p39 and activates their transcription. The upregulation of the above kinases is followed by increased phosphorylation of tau. Finally, we show that p44 is preferentially found in the nucleus and that its levels increase with age in the mouse brain. Taken together, these results suggest that an imbalance in the p53:p44 ratio might be involved with the altered tau metabolism that characterizes aging.

Targeting NOX enzymes in the central nervous system: therapeutic opportunities

Among the pathogenic mechanisms underlying central nervous system (CNS) diseases, oxidative stress is almost invariably described. For this reason, numerous attempts have been made to decrease reactive oxygen species (ROS) with the administration of antioxidants as potential therapies for CNS disorders. However, such treatments have always failed in clinical trials. Targeting specific sources of reactive oxygen species in the CNS (e.g. NOX enzymes) represents an alternative promising option. Indeed, NOX enzymes are major generators of ROS, which regulate progression of CNS disorders as diverse as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, schizophrenia, Alzheimer disease, Parkinson disease, and stroke. On the other hand, in autoimmune demyelinating diseases, ROS generated by NOX enzymes are protective, presumably by dampening the specific immune response. In this review, we discuss the possibility of developing therapeutics targeting NADPH oxidase (NOX) enzymes for the treatment of different CNS pathologies. Specific compounds able to modulate the activation of NOX enzymes, and the consequent production of ROS, could fill the need for disease-modifying drugs for many incurable CNS pathologies.

Frontotemporal dementia: from Mendelian genetics towards genome wide association studies

Frontotemporal lobar degeneration is the most common cause of dementia of non-Alzheimer's type worldwide. It manifests, clinically, with behavioural changes and language impairment and is pathologically associated with tau- or ubiquitin-positive inclusions detected in neurons and glial cells of the frontal and temporal lobes in the brain. Genetic variations in the microtubule-associated protein tau and progranulin genes explain almost 50% of familial cases, whilst variations in TAR DNA-binding protein, charged multivescicular body protein 2B, valosin-containing protein and fused in sarcoma genes contribute to <5% of cases. The rapidly developing investigative techniques available to geneticists such as genome-wide association studies, whole-exome sequencing and, soon, whole-genome sequencing promise to contribute to the unravelling of the genetic architecture of this complex disease and, in the future, to the development of more sensitive, accurate and effective diagnostic and treatment measures.

The n-terminal 5-MER peptide analogue P165 of amyloid precursor protein exerts protective effects on SH-SY5Y cells and rat hippocampus neuronal synapses

The disturbance of the insulin-signaling pathway plays an important role in Alzheimer's disease. Resistance to insulin signaling renders neurons energy-deficient and vulnerable to oxidization or other metabolic insults and impairs synaptic plasticity. In search of neuroprotective drugs, we synthesized a peptide analogue, P165, an active domain of the soluble amyloid precursor protein, which is resistant to degradation and is suitable for oral administration in a clinical setting. Initially, we confirmed that P165 can protect cells from streptozotocin-caused damage and stimulate cell outgrowth using cultured SH-SY5Y cell lines treated with streptozotocin. P165 significantly reduced lactate dehydrogenase leakage from damaged cells, thereby rescuing cell energy production. Insulin signaling such as insulin receptor substrate-1 (IRS-1) and phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) proteins were upregulated to stimulate cell survival and growth. We proceeded to investigate the effect of P165 on streptozotocin-treated Alzheimer's disease (AD) rats. The data showed that P165 protected synaptic loss and dysfunction by increasing synaptophysin and PSD-95 (post synaptic density-95), while simultaneously decreasing α-synuclein expression. Moreover, animal behavior testing clearly showed that P165 increased rats' learning and memory activity. Overall, these results constitute evidence that peptide analogue 165 may protect synapse and improve learning and memory ability in AD.

An X11alpha/FSBP complex represses transcription of the GSK3beta gene promoter

X11alpha is a neuronal adaptor protein that interacts with the amyloid precursor protein (APP) through a centrally located phosphotyrosine binding domain to inhibit the production of Abeta peptide that is deposited in Alzheimer's disease brains. X11alpha also contains two C-terminal postsynaptic density-95, large discs, zona occludens 1 (PDZ) domains, and we show here that through its PDZ domains, X11alpha interacts with a novel transcription factor, fibrinogen silencer binding protein. Moreover, we show that an X11alpha/fibrinogen silencer binding protein complex signals to the nucleus to repress glycogen synthase kinase-3beta promoter activity. Glycogen synthase kinase-3beta is a favoured candidate kinase for phosphorylating tau in Alzheimer's disease. Our findings show a new function for X11alpha that may impact on Alzheimer's disease pathogenesis.