1
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Panes JD, Saavedra P, Pineda B, Escobar K, Cuevas ME, Moraga-Cid G, Fuentealba J, Rivas CI, Rezaei H, Muñoz-Montesino C. PrP C as a Transducer of Physiological and Pathological Signals. Front Mol Neurosci 2021; 14:762918. [PMID: 34880726 PMCID: PMC8648500 DOI: 10.3389/fnmol.2021.762918] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2021] [Accepted: 10/18/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
After the discovery of prion phenomenon, the physiological role of the cellular prion protein (PrP C ) remained elusive. In the past decades, molecular and cellular analysis has shed some light regarding interactions and functions of PrP C in health and disease. PrP C , which is located mainly at the plasma membrane of neuronal cells attached by a glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI) anchor, can act as a receptor or transducer from external signaling. Although the precise role of PrP C remains elusive, a variety of functions have been proposed for this protein, namely, neuronal excitability and viability. Although many issues must be solved to clearly define the role of PrP C , its connection to the central nervous system (CNS) and to several misfolding-associated diseases makes PrP C an interesting pharmacological target. In a physiological context, several reports have proposed that PrP C modulates synaptic transmission, interacting with various proteins, namely, ion pumps, channels, and metabotropic receptors. PrP C has also been implicated in the pathophysiological cell signaling induced by β-amyloid peptide that leads to synaptic dysfunction in the context of Alzheimer's disease (AD), as a mediator of Aβ-induced cell toxicity. Additionally, it has been implicated in other proteinopathies as well. In this review, we aimed to analyze the role of PrP C as a transducer of physiological and pathological signaling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jessica D Panes
- Departamento de Fisiología, Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad de Concepción, Concepción, Chile
| | - Paulina Saavedra
- Departamento de Fisiología, Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad de Concepción, Concepción, Chile.,Departamento de Fisiopatología, Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad de Concepción, Concepción, Chile
| | - Benjamin Pineda
- Departamento de Fisiología, Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad de Concepción, Concepción, Chile
| | - Kathleen Escobar
- Departamento de Fisiología, Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad de Concepción, Concepción, Chile.,Departamento de Fisiopatología, Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad de Concepción, Concepción, Chile
| | - Magdalena E Cuevas
- Departamento de Fisiología, Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad de Concepción, Concepción, Chile
| | - Gustavo Moraga-Cid
- Departamento de Fisiología, Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad de Concepción, Concepción, Chile
| | - Jorge Fuentealba
- Departamento de Fisiología, Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad de Concepción, Concepción, Chile
| | - Coralia I Rivas
- Departamento de Fisiopatología, Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad de Concepción, Concepción, Chile
| | - Human Rezaei
- Virologie et Immunologie Moléculaires (VIM), Institut National de Recherche pour l'Agriculture, l'Alimentation et l'Environnement (INRAE), Jouy-en-Josas, France.,Université de Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines (UVSQ), Versailles, France.,Université Paris-Saclay, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Carola Muñoz-Montesino
- Departamento de Fisiología, Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad de Concepción, Concepción, Chile
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2
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Munoz-Montesino C, Larkem D, Barbereau C, Igel-Egalon A, Truchet S, Jacquet E, Nhiri N, Moudjou M, Sizun C, Rezaei H, Béringue V, Dron M. A seven-residue deletion in PrP leads to generation of a spontaneous prion formed from C-terminal C1 fragment of PrP. J Biol Chem 2020; 295:14025-14039. [PMID: 32788216 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.ra120.014738] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2020] [Revised: 07/27/2020] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Prions result from a drastic conformational change of the host-encoded cellular prion protein (PrP), leading to the formation of β-sheet-rich, insoluble, and protease-resistant self-replicating assemblies (PrPSc). The cellular and molecular mechanisms involved in spontaneous prion formation in sporadic and inherited human prion diseases or equivalent animal diseases are poorly understood, in part because cell models of spontaneously forming prions are currently lacking. Here, extending studies on the role of the H2 α-helix C terminus of PrP, we found that deletion of the highly conserved 190HTVTTTT196 segment of ovine PrP led to spontaneous prion formation in the RK13 rabbit kidney cell model. On long-term passage, the mutant cells stably produced proteinase K (PK)-resistant, insoluble, and aggregated assemblies that were infectious for naïve cells expressing either the mutant protein or other PrPs with slightly different deletions in the same area. The electrophoretic pattern of the PK-resistant core of the spontaneous prion (ΔSpont) contained mainly C-terminal polypeptides akin to C1, the cell-surface anchored C-terminal moiety of PrP generated by natural cellular processing. RK13 cells expressing solely the Δ190-196 C1 PrP construct, in the absence of the full-length protein, were susceptible to ΔSpont prions. ΔSpont infection induced the conversion of the mutated C1 into a PK-resistant and infectious form perpetuating the biochemical characteristics of ΔSpont prion. In conclusion, this work provides a unique cell-derived system generating spontaneous prions and provides evidence that the 113 C-terminal residues of PrP are sufficient for a self-propagating prion entity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carola Munoz-Montesino
- Université Paris-Saclay, Institut National de Recherche pour l'Agriculture, l'Alimentation et l'Environnement, Université de Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, Virologie et Immunologie Moléculaires, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Djabir Larkem
- Université Paris-Saclay, Institut National de Recherche pour l'Agriculture, l'Alimentation et l'Environnement, Université de Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, Virologie et Immunologie Moléculaires, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Clément Barbereau
- Université Paris-Saclay, Institut National de Recherche pour l'Agriculture, l'Alimentation et l'Environnement, Université de Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, Virologie et Immunologie Moléculaires, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Angélique Igel-Egalon
- Université Paris-Saclay, Institut National de Recherche pour l'Agriculture, l'Alimentation et l'Environnement, Université de Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, Virologie et Immunologie Moléculaires, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Sandrine Truchet
- Université Paris-Saclay, Institut National de Recherche pour l'Agriculture, l'Alimentation et l'Environnement, Université de Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, Virologie et Immunologie Moléculaires, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Eric Jacquet
- Institut de Chimie des Substances Naturelles, CNRS, Université Paris-Saclay, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Naïma Nhiri
- Institut de Chimie des Substances Naturelles, CNRS, Université Paris-Saclay, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Mohammed Moudjou
- Université Paris-Saclay, Institut National de Recherche pour l'Agriculture, l'Alimentation et l'Environnement, Université de Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, Virologie et Immunologie Moléculaires, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Christina Sizun
- Institut de Chimie des Substances Naturelles, CNRS, Université Paris-Saclay, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Human Rezaei
- Université Paris-Saclay, Institut National de Recherche pour l'Agriculture, l'Alimentation et l'Environnement, Université de Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, Virologie et Immunologie Moléculaires, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Vincent Béringue
- Université Paris-Saclay, Institut National de Recherche pour l'Agriculture, l'Alimentation et l'Environnement, Université de Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, Virologie et Immunologie Moléculaires, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Michel Dron
- Université Paris-Saclay, Institut National de Recherche pour l'Agriculture, l'Alimentation et l'Environnement, Université de Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, Virologie et Immunologie Moléculaires, Jouy-en-Josas, France
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3
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Collu F, Spiga E, Chakroun N, Rezaei H, Fraternali F. Probing the early stages of prion protein (PrP) aggregation with atomistic molecular dynamics simulations. Chem Commun (Camb) 2018; 54:8007-8010. [PMID: 29967919 DOI: 10.1039/c8cc04089c] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Prions are self-replicating infectious proteinaceous agents whose conformations are capable of forming amyloid-like aggregate fibrils. Here we present molecular dynamics simulations aimed at investigating the aggregation process of the β-rich H2H3 domain of the ovine prion protein (H2H3-OvPrPSc), known to be the portion of prion protein carrying oligomerization activity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Francesca Collu
- King's College London, Randall Centre for Cell & Molecular Biophysics, London, UK.
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4
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Silva CJ, Erickson-Beltran ML, Martín-Burriel I, Badiola JJ, Requena JR, Bolea R. Determining the Relative Susceptibility of Four Prion Protein Genotypes to Atypical Scrapie. Anal Chem 2018; 90:1255-1262. [PMID: 29240410 DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.7b03985] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
Abstract
Atypical scrapie is a sheep prion (PrPSc) disease whose epidemiology is consistent with a sporadic origin and is associated with specific polymorphisms of the normal cellular prion protein (PrPC). To determine the relative amounts of PrP polymorphisms present in atypical scrapie, total PrP was digested with chymotrypsin to generate characteristic peptides spanning relevant polymorphisms at positions 136, 141, 154, 171, and 172 of sheep PrPC. A multiple reaction monitoring method (MRM), employing 15N-labeled internal standards, was used to detect and quantify these polymorphisms present in both the PrPSc and PrPC from heterozygous (ALRRY and ALHQY or ALRQD or AFRQY) atypical scrapie-infected or uninfected control sheep. Both polymorphisms of the full length and truncated (C1) natively expressed PrPC are produced in equal amounts. The overall amount of PrPC present in the infected or uninfected animals was similar. PrPSc isolated from heterozygotes was composed of significant amounts of both PrP polymorphisms, including the ALRRY polymorphism which is highly resistant to classical scrapie. Thus, an atypical scrapie infection does not result from an overexpression of sheep PrPC. The replication of all atypical scrapie prions occurs at comparable rates, despite polymorphisms at positions 141, 154, 171, or 172.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher J Silva
- Produce Safety & Microbiology Research Unit, Western Regional Research Center, United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service , Albany, California 94710, United States of America
| | - Melissa L Erickson-Beltran
- Produce Safety & Microbiology Research Unit, Western Regional Research Center, United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service , Albany, California 94710, United States of America
| | - Inmaculada Martín-Burriel
- LAGENBIO, Laboratorio de Genética Bioquímica, Facultad de Veterinaria, IA2 Universidad de Zaragoza , 50013, Zaragoza, Spain.,Veterinary Faculty, Centro de Investigación en Encefalopatías y Enfermedades Transmisibles Emergentes (CIEETE), Universidad de Zaragoza , 50013, Zaragoza, Spain
| | - Juan José Badiola
- Veterinary Faculty, Centro de Investigación en Encefalopatías y Enfermedades Transmisibles Emergentes (CIEETE), Universidad de Zaragoza , 50013, Zaragoza, Spain
| | - Jesús R Requena
- CIMUS Biomedical Research Institute & Department of Medical Sciences, University of Santiago de Compostela-IDIS , Santiago de Compostela, Spain
| | - Rosa Bolea
- Veterinary Faculty, Centro de Investigación en Encefalopatías y Enfermedades Transmisibles Emergentes (CIEETE), Universidad de Zaragoza , 50013, Zaragoza, Spain
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5
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Igel-Egalon A, Béringue V, Rezaei H, Sibille P. Prion Strains and Transmission Barrier Phenomena. Pathogens 2018; 7:E5. [PMID: 29301257 PMCID: PMC5874731 DOI: 10.3390/pathogens7010005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/23/2017] [Revised: 12/25/2017] [Accepted: 12/26/2017] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Several experimental evidences show that prions are non-conventional pathogens, which physical support consists only in proteins. This finding raised questions regarding the observed prion strain-to-strain variations and the species barrier that happened to be crossed with dramatic consequences on human health and veterinary policies during the last 3 decades. This review presents a focus on a few advances in the field of prion structure and prion strains characterization: from the historical approaches that allowed the concept of prion strains to emerge, to the last results demonstrating that a prion strain may in fact be a combination of a few quasi species with subtle biophysical specificities. Then, we will focus on the current knowledge on the factors that impact species barrier strength and species barrier crossing. Finally, we present probable scenarios on how the interaction of strain properties with host characteristics may account for differential selection of new conformer variants and eventually species barrier crossing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Angélique Igel-Egalon
- Virologie et Immunologie Moléculaires, INRA, Université Paris-Saclay, UR892, 78350 Jouy-en-Josas, France.
| | - Vincent Béringue
- Virologie et Immunologie Moléculaires, INRA, Université Paris-Saclay, UR892, 78350 Jouy-en-Josas, France.
| | - Human Rezaei
- Virologie et Immunologie Moléculaires, INRA, Université Paris-Saclay, UR892, 78350 Jouy-en-Josas, France.
| | - Pierre Sibille
- Virologie et Immunologie Moléculaires, INRA, Université Paris-Saclay, UR892, 78350 Jouy-en-Josas, France.
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6
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Igel-Egalon A, Moudjou M, Martin D, Busley A, Knäpple T, Herzog L, Reine F, Lepejova N, Richard CA, Béringue V, Rezaei H. Reversible unfolding of infectious prion assemblies reveals the existence of an oligomeric elementary brick. PLoS Pathog 2017; 13:e1006557. [PMID: 28880932 PMCID: PMC5589264 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1006557] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2017] [Accepted: 07/28/2017] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Mammalian prions, the pathogens that cause transmissible spongiform encephalopathies, propagate by self-perpetuating the structural information stored in the abnormally folded, aggregated conformer (PrPSc) of the host-encoded prion protein (PrPC). To date, no structural model related to prion assembly organization satisfactorily describes how strain-specified structural information is encoded and by which mechanism this information is transferred to PrPC. To achieve progress on this issue, we correlated the PrPSc quaternary structural transition from three distinct prion strains during unfolding and refolding with their templating activity. We reveal the existence of a mesoscopic organization in PrPSc through the packing of a highly stable oligomeric elementary subunit (suPrP), in which the strain structural determinant (SSD) is encoded. Once kinetically trapped, this elementary subunit reversibly loses all replicative information. We demonstrate that acquisition of the templating interface and infectivity requires structural rearrangement of suPrP, in concert with its condensation. The existence of such an elementary brick scales down the SSD support to a small oligomer and provide a basis of reflexion for prion templating process and propagation. Prions are self-propagating assemblies with all necessary and sufficient replicative information stored in the 3D structure of the misfolded form of PrP called PrPSc. Since the emergence of the prion theory in the 80s, many attempts have been done to identify prion replicative information at molecular scale. Different models have been constructed based on a broad panel of experimental observations and some of them predict the existence of periodic elements constituting prion assemblies. Here, by using partial unfolding approaches, we trapped an oligomeric conformer that we called suPrP, which could constitute the elementary brick of prion assemblies. Once isolated, this elementary brick is devoid of infectivity. However, it becomes infectious once condensated into larger assemblies. The identification of the elementary PrP building block provides a new structural basis for understanding prion replicative information storage and spreading.
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Affiliation(s)
- Angélique Igel-Egalon
- INRA, Université Paris-Saclay, UR892, Virologie Immunologie Moléculaires, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Mohammed Moudjou
- INRA, Université Paris-Saclay, UR892, Virologie Immunologie Moléculaires, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Davy Martin
- INRA, Université Paris-Saclay, UR892, Virologie Immunologie Moléculaires, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Alexandra Busley
- INRA, Université Paris-Saclay, UR892, Virologie Immunologie Moléculaires, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Tina Knäpple
- INRA, Université Paris-Saclay, UR892, Virologie Immunologie Moléculaires, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Laetitia Herzog
- INRA, Université Paris-Saclay, UR892, Virologie Immunologie Moléculaires, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Fabienne Reine
- INRA, Université Paris-Saclay, UR892, Virologie Immunologie Moléculaires, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Nad’a Lepejova
- INRA, Université Paris-Saclay, UR892, Virologie Immunologie Moléculaires, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Charles-Adrien Richard
- INRA, Université Paris-Saclay, UR892, Virologie Immunologie Moléculaires, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Vincent Béringue
- INRA, Université Paris-Saclay, UR892, Virologie Immunologie Moléculaires, Jouy-en-Josas, France
- * E-mail: (VB); (HR)
| | - Human Rezaei
- INRA, Université Paris-Saclay, UR892, Virologie Immunologie Moléculaires, Jouy-en-Josas, France
- * E-mail: (VB); (HR)
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7
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Munoz-Montesino C, Sizun C, Moudjou M, Herzog L, Reine F, Igel-Egalon A, Barbereau C, Chapuis J, Ciric D, Laude H, Béringue V, Rezaei H, Dron M. A stretch of residues within the protease-resistant core is not necessary for prion structure and infectivity. Prion 2017; 11:25-30. [PMID: 28281924 DOI: 10.1080/19336896.2016.1274851] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Mapping out regions of PrP influencing prion conversion remains a challenging issue complicated by the lack of prion structure. The portion of PrP associated with infectivity contains the α-helical domain of the correctly folded protein and turns into a β-sheet-rich insoluble core in prions. Deletions performed so far inside this segment essentially prevented the conversion. Recently we found that deletion of the last C-terminal residues of the helix H2 was fully compatible with prion conversion in the RK13-ovPrP cell culture model, using 3 different infecting strains. This was in agreement with preservation of the overall PrPC structure even after removal of up to one-third of this helix. Prions with internal deletion were infectious for cells and mice expressing the wild-type PrP and they retained prion strain-specific characteristics. We thus identified a piece of the prion domain that is neither necessary for the conformational transition of PrPC nor for the formation of a stable prion structure.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Christina Sizun
- b Institut de Chimie des Substances Naturelles, CNRS, Université Paris Saclay , Gif-sur-Yvette , France
| | | | - Laetitia Herzog
- a VIM, INRA, Université Paris-Saclay , Jouy-en-Josas , France
| | - Fabienne Reine
- a VIM, INRA, Université Paris-Saclay , Jouy-en-Josas , France
| | | | | | - Jérôme Chapuis
- a VIM, INRA, Université Paris-Saclay , Jouy-en-Josas , France
| | - Danica Ciric
- a VIM, INRA, Université Paris-Saclay , Jouy-en-Josas , France
| | - Hubert Laude
- a VIM, INRA, Université Paris-Saclay , Jouy-en-Josas , France
| | | | - Human Rezaei
- a VIM, INRA, Université Paris-Saclay , Jouy-en-Josas , France
| | - Michel Dron
- a VIM, INRA, Université Paris-Saclay , Jouy-en-Josas , France
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8
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Silva CJ, Erickson-Beltran ML, Hui C, Badiola JJ, Nicholson EM, Requena JR, Bolea R. Quantitating PrP Polymorphisms Present in Prions from Heterozygous Scrapie-Infected Sheep. Anal Chem 2016; 89:854-861. [PMID: 27936597 DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.6b03822] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Scrapie is a prion (PrPSc) disease of sheep. The incubation period of sheep scrapie is strongly influenced by polymorphisms at positions 136, 154, and 171 of a sheep's normal cellular prion protein (PrPC). Chymotrypsin was used to digest sheep recombinant PrP to identify a set of characteristic peptides [M132LGSXMSRPL141 (X = A or V), Y153XENMY158 (X,= H or R), and Y166RPVDXY172 (X = H, K, Q, or R)] that could be used to detect and quantitate polymorphisms at positions 136, 154, and 171 of sheep PrPC or PrPSc. These peptides were used to develop a multiple reaction monitoring method (MRM) to detect the amounts of a particular polymorphism in a sample of PrPSc isolated from sheep heterozygous for their PrPC proteins. The limit of detection for these peptides was less than 50 attomole. Spinal cord tissue from heterozygous (ARQ/VRQ or ARH/ARQ) scrapie-infected Rasa Aragonesa sheep was analyzed using this MRM method. Both sets of heterozygotes show the presence of both polymorphisms in PrPSc. This was true for samples containing both proteinase K (PK)-sensitive and PK-resistant PrPSc and samples containing only the PK-resistant PrPSc. These results show that heterozygous animals contain PrPSc that is composed of significant amounts of both PrP polymorphisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher J Silva
- Produce Safety & Microbiology Research Unit, Western Regional Research Center, United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service , Albany, California 94710, United States
| | - Melissa L Erickson-Beltran
- Produce Safety & Microbiology Research Unit, Western Regional Research Center, United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service , Albany, California 94710, United States
| | - Colleen Hui
- Produce Safety & Microbiology Research Unit, Western Regional Research Center, United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service , Albany, California 94710, United States
| | - Juan José Badiola
- Veterinary Faculty, Centro de Investigación en Encefalopatías y Enfermedades Transmisibles Emergentes (CIEETE), Universidad de Zaragoza , 50013, Zaragoza Spain
| | - Eric M Nicholson
- Virus and Prion Research Unit, National Animal Disease Center, United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service , Ames, Iowa 50010, United States
| | - Jesús R Requena
- CIMUS Biomedical Research Institute, University of Santiago de Compostela-IDIS , Santiago de Compostela, 15782 Spain
| | - Rosa Bolea
- Veterinary Faculty, Centro de Investigación en Encefalopatías y Enfermedades Transmisibles Emergentes (CIEETE), Universidad de Zaragoza , 50013, Zaragoza Spain
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9
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The role of the unusual threonine string in the conversion of prion protein. Sci Rep 2016; 6:38877. [PMID: 27982059 PMCID: PMC5159806 DOI: 10.1038/srep38877] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/26/2016] [Accepted: 11/15/2016] [Indexed: 01/24/2023] Open
Abstract
The conversion of normal prion protein (PrP) into pathogenic PrP conformers is central to prion disease, but the mechanism remains unclear. The α-helix 2 of PrP contains a string of four threonines, which is unusual due to the high propensity of threonine to form β-sheets. This structural feature was proposed as the basis for initiating PrP conversion, but experimental results have been conflicting. We studied the role of the threonine string on PrP conversion by analyzing mouse Prnpa and Prnpb polymorphism that contains a polymorphic residue at the beginning of the threonine string, and PrP mutants in which threonine 191 was replaced by valine, alanine, or proline. The PMCA (protein misfolding cyclic amplification) assay was able to recapitulate the in vivo transmission barrier between PrPa and PrPb. Relative to PMCA, the amyloid fibril growth assay is less restrictive, but it did reflect certain properties of in vivo prion transmission. Our results suggest a plausible theory explaining the apparently contradictory results in the role of the threonine string in PrP conversion and provide novel insights into the complicated relationship among PrP stability, seeded conformational change, and prion structure, which is critical for understanding the molecular basis of prion infectivity.
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