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Chang SC, Hannaoui S, Arifin MI, Huang YH, Tang X, Wille H, Gilch S. Propagation of PrP Sc in mice reveals impact of aggregate composition on prion disease pathogenesis. Commun Biol 2023; 6:1162. [PMID: 37964018 PMCID: PMC10645910 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-023-05541-3] [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: 10/10/2022] [Accepted: 11/03/2023] [Indexed: 11/16/2023] Open
Abstract
Infectious prions consist of PrPSc, a misfolded, aggregation-prone isoform of the host's prion protein. PrPSc assemblies encode distinct biochemical and biological properties. They harbor a specific profile of PrPSc species, from small oligomers to fibrils in different ratios, where the highest infectivity aligns with oligomeric particles. To investigate the impact of PrPSc aggregate complexity on prion propagation, biochemical properties, and disease pathogenesis, we fractionated elk prions by sedimentation velocity centrifugation, followed by sub-passages of individual fractions in cervidized mice. Upon first passage, different fractions generated PrPSc with distinct biochemical, biophysical, and neuropathological profiles. Notably, low or high molecular weight PrPSc aggregates caused different clinical signs of hyperexcitability or lethargy, respectively, which were retained over passage, whereas other properties converged. Our findings suggest that PrPSc quaternary structure determines an initial selection of a specific replication environment, resulting in transmissible features that are independent of PrPSc biochemical and biophysical properties.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sheng Chun Chang
- Department of Comparative Biology and Experimental Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
- Hotchkiss Brain Institute, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Samia Hannaoui
- Department of Comparative Biology and Experimental Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
- Hotchkiss Brain Institute, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Maria Immaculata Arifin
- Department of Comparative Biology and Experimental Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
- Hotchkiss Brain Institute, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Yuan-Hung Huang
- Department of Comparative Biology and Experimental Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
- Hotchkiss Brain Institute, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Xinli Tang
- Department of Biochemistry, Center for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Holger Wille
- Department of Biochemistry, Center for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
- Neuroscience and Mental Health Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Sabine Gilch
- Department of Comparative Biology and Experimental Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada.
- Hotchkiss Brain Institute, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada.
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2
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Susceptibility of Ovine Bone Marrow-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cell Spheroids to Scrapie Prion Infection. Animals (Basel) 2023; 13:ani13061043. [PMID: 36978584 PMCID: PMC10044354 DOI: 10.3390/ani13061043] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2023] [Revised: 02/16/2023] [Accepted: 03/09/2023] [Indexed: 03/15/2023] Open
Abstract
In neurodegenerative diseases, including prion diseases, cellular in vitro models appear as fundamental tools for the study of pathogenic mechanisms and potential therapeutic compounds. Two-dimensional (2D) monolayer cell culture systems are the most used cell-based assays, but these platforms are not able to reproduce the microenvironment of in vivo cells. This limitation can be surpassed using three-dimensional (3D) culture systems such as spheroids that more effectively mimic in vivo cell interactions. Herein, we evaluated the effect of scrapie prion infection in monolayer-cultured ovine bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (oBM-MSCs) and oBM-MSC-derived spheroids in growth and neurogenic conditions, analyzing their cell viability and their ability to maintain prion infection. An MTT assay was performed in oBM-MSCs and spheroids subjected to three conditions: inoculated with brain homogenate from scrapie-infected sheep, inoculated with brain homogenate from healthy sheep, and non-inoculated controls. The 3D conditions improved the cell viability in most cases, although in scrapie-infected spheroids in growth conditions, a decrease in cell viability was observed. The levels of pathological prion protein (PrPSc) in scrapie-infected oBM-MSCs and spheroids were measured by ELISA. In neurogenic conditions, monolayer cells and spheroids maintained the levels of PrPSc over time. In growth conditions, however, oBM-MSCs showed decreasing levels of PrPSc throughout time, whereas spheroids were able to maintain stable PrPSc levels. The presence of PrPSc in spheroids was also confirmed by immunocytochemistry. Altogether, these results show that a 3D culture microenvironment improves the permissiveness of oBM-MSCs to scrapie infection in growth conditions and maintains the infection ability in neurogenic conditions, making this model of potential use for prion studies.
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Loss of small GTPase Rab7 activation in prion infection negatively affects a feedback loop regulating neuronal cholesterol metabolism. J Biol Chem 2023; 299:102883. [PMID: 36623732 PMCID: PMC9926124 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2023.102883] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2022] [Revised: 12/11/2022] [Accepted: 12/14/2022] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Prion diseases are fatal and infectious neurodegenerative diseases that occur in humans and animals. They are caused by the misfolding of the cellular prion protein PrPc into the infectious isoform PrPSc. PrPSc accumulates mostly in endolysosomal vesicles of prion-infected cells, eventually causing neurodegeneration. In response to prion infection, elevated cholesterol levels and a reduction in membrane-attached small GTPase Rab7 have been observed in neuronal cells. Here, we investigated the molecular events causing an impaired Rab7 membrane attachment and the potential mechanistic link with elevated cholesterol levels in prion infection. We demonstrate that prion infection is associated with reduced levels of active Rab7 (Rab7.GTP) in persistently prion-infected neuronal cell lines, primary cerebellar granular neurons, and neurons in the brain of mice with terminal prion disease. In primary cerebellar granular neurons, levels of active Rab7 were increased during the very early stages of the prion infection prior to a significant decrease concomitant with PrPSc accumulation. The reduced activation of Rab7 in prion-infected neuronal cell lines is also associated with its reduced ubiquitination status, decreased interaction with its effector RILP, and altered lysosomal positioning. Consequently, the Rab7-mediated trafficking of low-density lipoprotein to lysosomes is delayed. This results in an impaired feedback regulation of cholesterol synthesis leading to an increase in cholesterol levels. Notably, transient overexpression of the constitutively active mutant of Rab7 rescues the delay in the low-density lipoprotein trafficking, hence reducing cholesterol levels and attenuating PrPSc propagation, demonstrating a mechanistic link between the loss of Rab7.GTP and elevated cholesterol levels.
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Mercer RCC, Harris DA. Mechanisms of prion-induced toxicity. Cell Tissue Res 2022; 392:81-96. [PMID: 36070155 DOI: 10.1007/s00441-022-03683-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2022] [Accepted: 08/30/2022] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
Prion diseases are devastating neurodegenerative diseases caused by the structural conversion of the normally benign prion protein (PrPC) to an infectious, disease-associated, conformer, PrPSc. After decades of intense research, much is known about the self-templated prion conversion process, a phenomenon which is now understood to be operative in other more common neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. In this review, we provide the current state of knowledge concerning a relatively poorly understood aspect of prion diseases: mechanisms of neurotoxicity. We provide an overview of proposed functions of PrPC and its interactions with other extracellular proteins in the central nervous system, in vivo and in vitro models used to delineate signaling events downstream of prion propagation, the application of omics technologies, and the emerging appreciation of the role played by non-neuronal cell types in pathogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robert C C Mercer
- Department of Biochemistry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA
| | - David A Harris
- Department of Biochemistry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA.
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5
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Kim MJ, Kim HJ, Jang B, Kim HJ, Mostafa MN, Park SJ, Kim YS, Choi EK. Impairment of Neuronal Mitochondrial Quality Control in Prion-Induced Neurodegeneration. Cells 2022; 11:cells11172744. [PMID: 36078152 PMCID: PMC9454542 DOI: 10.3390/cells11172744] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2022] [Revised: 08/19/2022] [Accepted: 08/30/2022] [Indexed: 12/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Mitochondrial dynamics continually maintain cell survival and bioenergetics through mitochondrial quality control processes (fission, fusion, and mitophagy). Aberrant mitochondrial quality control has been implicated in the pathogenic mechanism of various human diseases, including cancer, cardiac dysfunction, and neurological disorders, such as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and prion disease. However, the mitochondrial dysfunction-mediated neuropathological mechanisms in prion disease are still uncertain. Here, we used both in vitro and in vivo scrapie-infected models to investigate the involvement of mitochondrial quality control in prion pathogenesis. We found that scrapie infection led to the induction of mitochondrial reactive oxygen species (mtROS) and the loss of mitochondrial membrane potential (ΔΨm), resulting in enhanced phosphorylation of dynamin-related protein 1 (Drp1) at Ser616 and its subsequent translocation to the mitochondria, which was followed by excessive mitophagy. We also confirmed decreased expression levels of mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) complexes and reduced ATP production by scrapie infection. In addition, scrapie-infection-induced aberrant mitochondrial fission and mitophagy led to increased apoptotic signaling, as evidenced by caspase 3 activation and poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase cleavage. These results suggest that scrapie infection induced mitochondrial dysfunction via impaired mitochondrial quality control processes followed by neuronal cell death, which may have an important role in the neuropathogenesis of prion diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mo-Jong Kim
- Department of Biomedical Gerontology, Graduate School of Hallym University, Chuncheon 24252, Korea
- Ilsong Institute of Life Science, Hallym University, Seoul 07247, Korea
| | - Hee-Jun Kim
- Hongcheon Institute of Medicinal Herb, Hongcheon 25142, Korea
| | - Byungki Jang
- Ilsong Institute of Life Science, Hallym University, Seoul 07247, Korea
| | - Hyun-Ji Kim
- Ilsong Institute of Life Science, Hallym University, Seoul 07247, Korea
| | - Mohd Najib Mostafa
- Department of Biomedical Gerontology, Graduate School of Hallym University, Chuncheon 24252, Korea
- Ilsong Institute of Life Science, Hallym University, Seoul 07247, Korea
| | - Seok-Joo Park
- Ilsong Institute of Life Science, Hallym University, Seoul 07247, Korea
| | - Yong-Sun Kim
- Ilsong Institute of Life Science, Hallym University, Seoul 07247, Korea
- Department of Microbiology, College of Medicine, Hallym University, Chuncheon 24252, Korea
| | - Eun-Kyoung Choi
- Department of Biomedical Gerontology, Graduate School of Hallym University, Chuncheon 24252, Korea
- Ilsong Institute of Life Science, Hallym University, Seoul 07247, Korea
- Correspondence:
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6
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Nikolić L, Ferracin C, Legname G. Recent advances in cellular models for discovering prion disease therapeutics. Expert Opin Drug Discov 2022; 17:985-996. [PMID: 35983689 DOI: 10.1080/17460441.2022.2113773] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Prion diseases are a group of rare and lethal rapidly progressive neurodegenerative diseases arising due to conversion of the physiological cellular prion protein into its pathological counterparts, denoted as "prions". These agents are resistant to inactivation by standard decontamination procedures and can be transmitted between individuals, consequently driving the irreversible brain damage typical of the diseases. AREAS COVERED Since its infancy, prion research has mainly depended on animal models for untangling the pathogenesis of the disease as well as for the drug development studies. With the advent of prion-infected cell lines, relevant animal models have been complemented by a variety of cell-based models presenting a much faster, ethically acceptable alternative. EXPERT OPINION To date, there are still either no effective prophylactic regimens or therapies for human prion diseases. Therefore, there is an urgent need for more relevant cellular models that best approximate in vivo models. Each cellular model presented and discussed in detail in this review has its own benefits and limitations. Once embarking in a drug screening campaign for the identification of molecules that could interfere with prion conversion and replication, one should carefully consider the ideal cellular model.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lea Nikolić
- PhD Student in Functional and Structural Genomics, Laboratory of Prion Biology, Department of Neuroscience, Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati (SISSA), Trieste, Italy,
| | - Chiara Ferracin
- PhD Student in Functional and Structural Genomics, Laboratory of Prion Biology, Department of Neuroscience, Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati (SISSA), Trieste, Italy
| | - Giuseppe Legname
- D.Phil., Full Professor of Biochemistry, Laboratory of Prion Biology, Department of Neuroscience, Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati (SISSA), Trieste, Italy
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7
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Arshad H, Watts JC. Genetically engineered cellular models of prion propagation. Cell Tissue Res 2022; 392:63-80. [PMID: 35581386 DOI: 10.1007/s00441-022-03630-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/16/2022] [Accepted: 04/26/2022] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
For over three decades, cultured cells have been a useful tool for dissecting the molecular details of prion replication and the identification of candidate therapeutics for prion disease. A major issue limiting the translatability of these studies has been the inability to reliably propagate disease-relevant, non-mouse strains of prions in cells relevant to prion pathogenesis. In recent years, fueled by advances in gene editing technology, it has become possible to propagate prions from hamsters, cervids, and sheep in immortalized cell lines originating from the central nervous system. In particular, the use of CRISPR-Cas9-mediated gene editing to generate versions of prion-permissive cell lines that lack endogenous PrP expression has provided a blank canvas upon which re-expression of PrP leads to species-matched susceptibility to prion infection. When coupled with the ability to propagate prions in cells or organoids derived from stem cells, these next-generation cellular models should provide an ideal paradigm for identifying small molecules and other biological therapeutics capable of interfering with prion replication in animal and human prion disorders. In this review, we summarize recent advances that have widened the spectrum of prion strains that can be propagated in cultured cells and cutting-edge tissue-based models.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hamza Arshad
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Krembil Discovery Tower Rm. 4KD481, 60 Leonard Ave, Toronto, ON, M5T 0S8, Canada.,Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto, 1 King's College Circle, Medical Sciences Building Rm. 5207, Toronto, ON, M5S 1A8, Canada
| | - Joel C Watts
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Krembil Discovery Tower Rm. 4KD481, 60 Leonard Ave, Toronto, ON, M5T 0S8, Canada. .,Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto, 1 King's College Circle, Medical Sciences Building Rm. 5207, Toronto, ON, M5S 1A8, Canada.
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Heumüller SE, Hornberger AC, Hebestreit AS, Hossinger A, Vorberg IM. Propagation and Dissemination Strategies of Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy Agents in Mammalian Cells. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:ijms23062909. [PMID: 35328330 PMCID: PMC8949484 DOI: 10.3390/ijms23062909] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2022] [Revised: 02/25/2022] [Accepted: 03/01/2022] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Transmissible spongiform encephalopathies or prion disorders are fatal infectious diseases that cause characteristic spongiform degeneration in the central nervous system. The causative agent, the so-called prion, is an unconventional infectious agent that propagates by converting the host-encoded cellular prion protein PrP into ordered protein aggregates with infectious properties. Prions are devoid of coding nucleic acid and thus rely on the host cell machinery for propagation. While it is now established that, in addition to PrP, other cellular factors or processes determine the susceptibility of cell lines to prion infection, exact factors and cellular processes remain broadly obscure. Still, cellular models have uncovered important aspects of prion propagation and revealed intercellular dissemination strategies shared with other intracellular pathogens. Here, we summarize what we learned about the processes of prion invasion, intracellular replication and subsequent dissemination from ex vivo cell models.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefanie-Elisabeth Heumüller
- Laboratory of Prion Cell Biology, German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases Bonn (DZNE e.V.), Venusberg-Campus 1/99, 53127 Bonn, Germany; (S.-E.H.); (A.C.H.); (A.S.H.); (A.H.)
| | - Annika C. Hornberger
- Laboratory of Prion Cell Biology, German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases Bonn (DZNE e.V.), Venusberg-Campus 1/99, 53127 Bonn, Germany; (S.-E.H.); (A.C.H.); (A.S.H.); (A.H.)
| | - Alina S. Hebestreit
- Laboratory of Prion Cell Biology, German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases Bonn (DZNE e.V.), Venusberg-Campus 1/99, 53127 Bonn, Germany; (S.-E.H.); (A.C.H.); (A.S.H.); (A.H.)
| | - André Hossinger
- Laboratory of Prion Cell Biology, German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases Bonn (DZNE e.V.), Venusberg-Campus 1/99, 53127 Bonn, Germany; (S.-E.H.); (A.C.H.); (A.S.H.); (A.H.)
| | - Ina M. Vorberg
- Laboratory of Prion Cell Biology, German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases Bonn (DZNE e.V.), Venusberg-Campus 1/99, 53127 Bonn, Germany; (S.-E.H.); (A.C.H.); (A.S.H.); (A.H.)
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn, Siegmund-Freud-Str. 25, 53127 Bonn, Germany
- Correspondence:
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9
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Primary glia cells from bank vole propagate multiple rodent-adapted scrapie prions. Sci Rep 2022; 12:2190. [PMID: 35140295 PMCID: PMC8828835 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-06198-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2021] [Accepted: 01/25/2022] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Since the beginning prion research has been largely dependent on animal models for deciphering the disease, drug development or prion detection and quantification. Thereby, ethical as well as cost and labour-saving aspects call for alternatives in vitro. Cell models can replace or at least complement animal studies, but their number is still limited and the application usually restricted to certain strains and host species due to often strong transmission barriers. Bank voles promise to be an exception as they or materials prepared from them are uniquely susceptible to prions from various species in vivo, in vitro and in cell-free applications. Here we present a mainly astrocyte-based primary glia cell assay from bank vole, which is infectible with scrapie strains from bank vole, mouse and hamster. Stable propagation of bank vole-adapted RML, murine 22L and RML, and hamster 263K scrapie is detectable from 20 or 30 days post exposure onwards. Thereby, the infected bank vole glia cells show similar or even faster prion propagation than likewise infected glia cells of the corresponding murine or hamster hosts. We propose that our bank vole glia cell assay could be a versatile tool for studying and comparing multiple prion strains with different species backgrounds combined in one cell assay.
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10
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Lutter L, Aubrey LD, Xue WF. On the Structural Diversity and Individuality of Polymorphic Amyloid Protein Assemblies. J Mol Biol 2021; 433:167124. [PMID: 34224749 DOI: 10.1016/j.jmb.2021.167124] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2021] [Revised: 06/20/2021] [Accepted: 06/26/2021] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
The prediction of highly ordered three-dimensional structures of amyloid protein fibrils from the amino acid sequences of their monomeric self-assembly precursors constitutes a challenging and unresolved aspect of the classical protein folding problem. Because of the polymorphic nature of amyloid assembly whereby polypeptide chains of identical amino acid sequences under identical conditions are capable of self-assembly into a spectrum of different fibril structures, the prediction of amyloid structures from an amino acid sequence requires a detailed and holistic understanding of its assembly free energy landscape. The full extent of the structure space accessible to the cross-β molecular architecture of amyloid must also be resolved. Here, we review the current understanding of the diversity and the individuality of amyloid structures, and how the polymorphic landscape of amyloid links to biology and disease phenotypes. We present a comprehensive review of structural models of amyloid fibrils derived by cryo-EM, ssNMR and AFM to date, and discuss the challenges ahead for resolving the structural basis and the biological consequences of polymorphic amyloid assemblies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Liisa Lutter
- School of Biosciences, Division of Natural Sciences, University of Kent, CT2 7NJ Canterbury, UK
| | - Liam D Aubrey
- School of Biosciences, Division of Natural Sciences, University of Kent, CT2 7NJ Canterbury, UK
| | - Wei-Feng Xue
- School of Biosciences, Division of Natural Sciences, University of Kent, CT2 7NJ Canterbury, UK.
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Pineau H, Sim VL. From Cell Culture to Organoids-Model Systems for Investigating Prion Strain Characteristics. Biomolecules 2021; 11:biom11010106. [PMID: 33466947 PMCID: PMC7830147 DOI: 10.3390/biom11010106] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/09/2020] [Revised: 01/05/2021] [Accepted: 01/11/2021] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Prion diseases are the hallmark protein folding neurodegenerative disease. Their transmissible nature has allowed for the development of many different cellular models of disease where prion propagation and sometimes pathology can be induced. This review examines the range of simple cell cultures to more complex neurospheres, organoid, and organotypic slice cultures that have been used to study prion disease pathogenesis and to test therapeutics. We highlight the advantages and disadvantages of each system, giving special consideration to the importance of strains when choosing a model and when interpreting results, as not all systems propagate all strains, and in some cases, the technique used, or treatment applied, can alter the very strain properties being studied.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hailey Pineau
- Department of Medicine, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 2B7, Canada;
- Centre for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 2R3, Canada
| | - Valerie L. Sim
- Department of Medicine, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 2B7, Canada;
- Centre for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 2R3, Canada
- Correspondence:
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12
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Microglia in Prion Diseases: Angels or Demons? Int J Mol Sci 2020; 21:ijms21207765. [PMID: 33092220 PMCID: PMC7589037 DOI: 10.3390/ijms21207765] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2020] [Revised: 10/16/2020] [Accepted: 10/16/2020] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Prion diseases are rare transmissible neurodegenerative disorders caused by the accumulation of a misfolded isoform (PrPSc) of the cellular prion protein (PrPC) in the central nervous system (CNS). Neuropathological hallmarks of prion diseases are neuronal loss, astrogliosis, and enhanced microglial proliferation and activation. As immune cells of the CNS, microglia participate both in the maintenance of the normal brain physiology and in driving the neuroinflammatory response to acute or chronic (e.g., neurodegenerative disorders) insults. Microglia involvement in prion diseases, however, is far from being clearly understood. During this review, we summarize and discuss controversial findings, both in patient and animal models, suggesting a neuroprotective role of microglia in prion disease pathogenesis and progression, or—conversely—a microglia-mediated exacerbation of neurotoxicity in later stages of disease. We also will consider the active participation of PrPC in microglial functions, by discussing previous reports, but also by presenting unpublished results that support a role for PrPC in cytokine secretion by activated primary microglia.
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13
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Tahir W, Abdulrahman B, Abdelaziz DH, Thapa S, Walia R, Schätzl HM. An astrocyte cell line that differentially propagates murine prions. J Biol Chem 2020; 295:11572-11583. [PMID: 32561641 PMCID: PMC7450132 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.ra120.012596] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/15/2020] [Revised: 06/08/2020] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Prion diseases are fatal infectious neurodegenerative disorders in human and animals caused by misfolding of the cellular prion protein (PrPC) into the pathological isoform PrPSc. Elucidating the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying prion propagation may help to develop disease interventions. Cell culture systems for prion propagation have greatly advanced molecular insights into prion biology, but translation of in vitro to in vivo findings is often disappointing. A wider range of cell culture systems might help overcome these shortcomings. Here, we describe an immortalized mouse neuronal astrocyte cell line (C8D1A) that can be infected with murine prions. Both PrPC protein and mRNA levels in astrocytes were comparable with those in neuronal and non-neuronal cell lines permitting persistent prion infection. We challenged astrocytes with three mouse-adapted prion strains (22L, RML, and ME7) and cultured them for six passages. Immunoblotting results revealed that the astrocytes propagated 22L prions well over all six passages, whereas ME7 prions did not replicate, and RML prions replicated only very weakly after five passages. Immunofluorescence analysis indicated similar results for PrPSc. Interestingly, when we used prion conversion activity as a readout in real-time quaking-induced conversion assays with RML-infected cell lysates, we observed a strong signal over all six passages, comparable with that for 22L-infected cells. These data indicate that the C8D1A cell line is permissive to prion infection. Moreover, the propagated prions differed in conversion and proteinase K–resistance levels in these astrocytes. We propose that the C8D1A cell line could be used to decipher prion strain biology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Waqas Tahir
- Department of Comparative Biology & Experimental Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.,Calgary Prion Research Unit, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.,Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Basant Abdulrahman
- Department of Comparative Biology & Experimental Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.,Calgary Prion Research Unit, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.,Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.,Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Helwan University, Cairo, Egypt
| | - Dalia H Abdelaziz
- Department of Comparative Biology & Experimental Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.,Calgary Prion Research Unit, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.,Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.,Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Helwan University, Cairo, Egypt
| | - Simrika Thapa
- Department of Comparative Biology & Experimental Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.,Calgary Prion Research Unit, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.,Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Rupali Walia
- Department of Comparative Biology & Experimental Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.,Calgary Prion Research Unit, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.,Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Hermann M Schätzl
- Department of Comparative Biology & Experimental Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada .,Calgary Prion Research Unit, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.,Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
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14
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Tanaka M, Yamasaki T, Hasebe R, Suzuki A, Horiuchi M. Enhanced phosphorylation of PERK in primary cultured neurons as an autonomous neuronal response to prion infection. PLoS One 2020; 15:e0234147. [PMID: 32479530 PMCID: PMC7263615 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0234147] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2020] [Accepted: 05/19/2020] [Indexed: 01/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Conversion of cellular prion protein (PrPC) into the pathogenic isoform of prion protein (PrPSc) in neurons is one of the key pathophysiological events in prion diseases. However, the molecular mechanism of neurodegeneration in prion diseases has yet to be fully elucidated because of a lack of suitable experimental models for analyzing neuron-autonomous responses to prion infection. In the present study, we used neuron-enriched primary cultures of cortical and thalamic mouse neurons to analyze autonomous neuronal responses to prion infection. PrPSc levels in neurons increased over the time after prion infection; however, no obvious neuronal losses or neurite alterations were observed. Interestingly, a finer analysis of individual neurons co-stained with PrPSc and phosphorylated protein kinase RNA-activated-like endoplasmic reticulum (ER) kinase (p-PERK), the early cellular response of the PERK-eukaryotic initiation factor 2 (eIF2α) pathway, demonstrated a positive correlation between the number of PrPSc granular stains and p-PERK granular stains, in cortical neurons at 21 dpi. Although the phosphorylation of PERK was enhanced in prion-infected cortical neurons, there was no sign of subsequent translational repression of synaptic protein synthesis or activations of downstream unfolded protein response (UPR) in the PERK-eIF2α pathway. These results suggest that PrPSc production in neurons induces ER stress in a neuron-autonomous manner; however, it does not fully activate UPR in prion-infected neurons. Our findings provide insights into the autonomous neuronal responses to prion propagation and the involvement of neuron-non-autonomous factor(s) in the mechanisms of neurodegeneration in prion diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Misaki Tanaka
- Laboratory of Veterinary Hygiene, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Takeshi Yamasaki
- Laboratory of Veterinary Hygiene, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Rie Hasebe
- Laboratory of Veterinary Hygiene, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Akio Suzuki
- Laboratory of Veterinary Hygiene, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Motohiro Horiuchi
- Laboratory of Veterinary Hygiene, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
- Global Station for Zoonosis Control, Global Institute for Collaborative Research and Education, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
- * E-mail:
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15
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Krance SH, Luke R, Shenouda M, Israwi AR, Colpitts SJ, Darwish L, Strauss M, Watts JC. Cellular models for discovering prion disease therapeutics: Progress and challenges. J Neurochem 2020; 153:150-172. [PMID: 31943194 DOI: 10.1111/jnc.14956] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/19/2019] [Revised: 01/07/2020] [Accepted: 01/08/2020] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Prions, which cause fatal neurodegenerative disorders such as Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, are misfolded and infectious protein aggregates. Currently, there are no treatments available to halt or even delay the progression of prion disease in the brain. The infectious nature of prions has resulted in animal paradigms that accurately recapitulate all aspects of prion disease, and these have proven to be instrumental for testing the efficacy of candidate therapeutics. Nonetheless, infection of cultured cells with prions provides a much more powerful system for identifying molecules capable of interfering with prion propagation. Certain lines of cultured cells can be chronically infected with various types of mouse prions, and these models have been used to unearth candidate anti-prion drugs that are at least partially efficacious when administered to prion-infected rodents. However, these studies have also revealed that not all types of prions are equal, and that drugs active against mouse prions are not necessarily effective against prions from other species. Despite some recent progress, the number of cellular models available for studying non-mouse prions remains limited. In particular, human prions have proven to be particularly challenging to propagate in cultured cells, which has severely hindered the discovery of drugs for Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. In this review, we summarize the cellular models that are presently available for discovering and testing drugs capable of blocking the propagation of prions and highlight challenges that remain on the path towards developing therapies for prion disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Saffire H Krance
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.,Hurvitz Brain Sciences Program, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Russell Luke
- Department of Cell and Systems Biology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Marc Shenouda
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.,Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Ahmad R Israwi
- Department of Cell and Systems Biology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Sarah J Colpitts
- Department of Immunology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Lina Darwish
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.,Hurvitz Brain Sciences Program, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Maximilian Strauss
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.,Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Joel C Watts
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.,Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
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16
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Foliaki ST, Lewis V, Islam AMT, Ellett LJ, Senesi M, Finkelstein DI, Roberts B, Lawson VA, Adlard PA, Collins SJ. Early existence and biochemical evolution characterise acutely synaptotoxic PrPSc. PLoS Pathog 2019; 15:e1007712. [PMID: 30970042 PMCID: PMC6490942 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1007712] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/07/2018] [Revised: 04/30/2019] [Accepted: 03/18/2019] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Although considerable evidence supports that misfolded prion protein (PrPSc) is the principal component of “prions”, underpinning both transmissibility and neurotoxicity, clear consensus around a number of fundamental aspects of pathogenesis has not been achieved, including the time of appearance of neurotoxic species during disease evolution. Utilizing a recently reported electrophysiology paradigm, we assessed the acute synaptotoxicity of ex vivo PrPSc prepared as crude homogenates from brains of M1000 infected wild-type mice (cM1000) harvested at time-points representing 30%, 50%, 70% and 100% of the terminal stage of disease (TSD). Acute synaptotoxicity was assessed by measuring the capacity of cM1000 to impair hippocampal CA1 region long-term potentiation (LTP) and post-tetanic potentiation (PTP) in explant slices. Of particular note, cM1000 from 30% of the TSD was able to cause significant impairment of LTP and PTP, with the induced failure of LTP increasing over subsequent time-points while the capacity of cM1000 to induce PTP failure appeared maximal even at this early stage of disease progression. Evidence that the synaptotoxicity directly related to PrP species was demonstrated by the significant rescue of LTP dysfunction at each time-point through immuno-depletion of >50% of total PrP species from cM1000 preparations. Moreover, similar to our previous observations at the terminal stage of M1000 prion disease, size fractionation chromatography revealed that capacity for acute synpatotoxicity correlated with predominance of oligomeric PrP species in infected brains across all time points, with the profile appearing maximised by 50% of the TSD. Using enhanced sensitivity western blotting, modestly proteinase K (PK)-resistant PrPSc was detectable at very low levels in cM1000 at 30% of the TSD, becoming robustly detectable by 70% of the TSD at which time substantial levels of highly PK-resistant PrPSc was also evident. Further illustrating the biochemical evolution of acutely synaptotoxic species the synaptotoxicity of cM1000 from 30%, 50% and 70% of the TSD, but not at 100% TSD, was abolished by digestion of immuno-captured PrP species with mild PK treatment (5μg/ml for an hour at 37°C), demonstrating that the predominant synaptotoxic PrPSc species up to and including 70% of the TSD were proteinase-sensitive. Overall, these findings in combination with our previous assessments of transmitting prions support that synaptotoxic and infectious M1000 PrPSc species co-exist from at least 30% of the TSD, simultaneously increasing thereafter, albeit with eventual plateauing of transmitting conformers. Although evidence clearly supports that misfolded prion protein (PrPSc) is the principal component of “prions”, underpinning both transmissibility and neurotoxicity, consensus is lacking around the time of appearance and biochemical profile of neurotoxic species during disease evolution. Employing an electrophysiology model, measuring the capacity of brain homogenates derived from across the disease time-course to impair CA1 region long-term potentiation (LTP) and post-tetanic potentiation (PTP) in hippocampal slices, we observed that synaptotoxic species were present from 30% of the terminal stage of disease (TSD). Evidence that synaptotoxicity directly related to PrP species was demonstrated by significant rescue of LTP dysfunction at each time-point through immuno-depleting >~50% of total PrP species from cM1000 preparations. Moreover, size fractionation chromatography revealed that acute synpatotoxicity correlated with predominance of oligomeric PrP species in infected brains across all time points, while additional characterisation of cM1000 demonstrated that the predominant synaptotoxic PrPSc species up to and including 70% of the TSD were quite proteinase-sensitive. These findings in combination with our previous assessments of transmitting prions support that synaptotoxic and infectious M1000 PrPSc species co-exist from at least 30% of the TSD, simultaneously increasing thereafter, with biochemical transformation of synaptotoxic conformers continuing until late in disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simote Totauhelotu Foliaki
- Department of Medicine (Royal Melbourne Hospital), The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
| | - Victoria Lewis
- Department of Medicine (Royal Melbourne Hospital), The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
| | | | - Laura Jane Ellett
- Department of Pathology The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
| | - Matteo Senesi
- Department of Medicine (Royal Melbourne Hospital), The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
| | | | - Blaine Roberts
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
| | - Victoria A. Lawson
- Department of Pathology The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
| | - Paul Anthony Adlard
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
| | - Steven John Collins
- Department of Medicine (Royal Melbourne Hospital), The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
- * E-mail:
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17
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Vorberg IM. All the Same? The Secret Life of Prion Strains within Their Target Cells. Viruses 2019; 11:v11040334. [PMID: 30970585 DOI: 10.3390/v11040334] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2019] [Revised: 04/02/2019] [Accepted: 04/05/2019] [Indexed: 01/23/2023] Open
Abstract
Prions are infectious β-sheet-rich protein aggregates composed of misfolded prion protein (PrPSc) that do not possess coding nucleic acid. Prions replicate by recruiting and converting normal cellular PrPC into infectious isoforms. In the same host species, prion strains target distinct brain regions and cause different disease phenotypes. Prion strains are associated with biophysically distinct PrPSc conformers, suggesting that strain properties are enciphered within alternative PrPSc quaternary structures. So far it is unknown how prion strains target specific cells and initiate productive infections. Deeper mechanistic insight into the prion life cycle came from cell lines permissive to a range of different prion strains. Still, it is unknown why certain cell lines are refractory to infection by one strain but permissive to another. While pharmacologic and genetic manipulations revealed subcellular compartments involved in prion replication, little is known about strain-specific requirements for endocytic trafficking pathways. This review summarizes our knowledge on how prions replicate within their target cells and on strain-specific differences in prion cell biology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ina M Vorberg
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE e.V.), Sigmund-Freud-Strasse 27, 53127 Bonn, Germany.
- Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn, 53127 Bonn, Germany.
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18
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In vitro Modeling of Prion Strain Tropism. Viruses 2019; 11:v11030236. [PMID: 30857283 PMCID: PMC6466166 DOI: 10.3390/v11030236] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2019] [Revised: 03/04/2019] [Accepted: 03/05/2019] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Prions are atypical infectious agents lacking genetic material. Yet, various strains have been isolated from animals and humans using experimental models. They are distinguished by the resulting pattern of disease, including the localization of PrPsc deposits and the spongiform changes they induce in the brain of affected individuals. In this paper, we discuss the emerging use of cellular and acellular models to decipher the mechanisms involved in the strain-specific targeting of distinct brain regions. Recent studies suggest that neuronal cultures, protein misfolding cyclic amplification, and combination of both approaches may be useful to explore this under-investigated but central domain of the prion field.
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19
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Mercer RC, Harris DA. Identification of anti-prion drugs and targets using toxicity-based assays. Curr Opin Pharmacol 2019; 44:20-27. [PMID: 30684854 DOI: 10.1016/j.coph.2018.12.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/19/2018] [Revised: 12/18/2018] [Accepted: 12/20/2018] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
Abstract
Prion diseases are untreatable and invariably fatal, making the discovery of effective therapeutic interventions a priority. Most candidate molecules have been discovered based on their ability to reduce the levels of PrPSc, the infectious form of the prion protein, in cultured neuroblastoma cells. We have employed an alternative assay, based on an abnormal cellular phenotype associated with a mutant prion protein, to discover a novel class of anti-prion compounds, the phenethyl piperidines. Using an assay that monitors the acute toxic effects of PrPSc on the synapses of cultured hippocampal neurons, we have identified p38 MAPK as a druggable pharmacological target that is already being pursued for the treatment of other human diseases. Organotypic brain slices, which can propagate prions and mimic several neuropathological features of the disease, have also been used to test inhibitory compounds. An effective anti-prion regimen will involve synergistic combination of drugs acting at multiple steps of the pathogenic process, resulting not only in reduction in prion levels but also suppression of neurotoxic signaling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robert Cc Mercer
- Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA 02118, United States
| | - David A Harris
- Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA 02118, United States.
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20
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Le NTT, Wu B, Harris DA. Prion neurotoxicity. Brain Pathol 2019; 29:263-277. [PMID: 30588688 DOI: 10.1111/bpa.12694] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2018] [Accepted: 11/28/2018] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Although the mechanisms underlying prion propagation and infectivity are now well established, the processes accounting for prion toxicity and pathogenesis have remained mysterious. These processes are of enormous clinical relevance as they hold the key to identification of new molecular targets for therapeutic intervention. In this review, we will discuss two broad areas of investigation relevant to understanding prion neurotoxicity. The first is the use of in vitro experimental systems that model key events in prion pathogenesis. In this context, we will describe a hippocampal neuronal culture system we developed that reproduces the earliest pathological alterations in synaptic morphology and function in response to PrPSc . This system has allowed us to define a core synaptotoxic signaling pathway involving the activation of NMDA and AMPA receptors, stimulation of p38 MAPK phosphorylation and collapse of the actin cytoskeleton in dendritic spines. The second area concerns a striking and unexpected phenomenon in which certain structural manipulations of the PrPC molecule itself, including introduction of N-terminal deletion mutations or binding of antibodies to C-terminal epitopes, unleash powerful toxic effects in cultured cells and transgenic mice. We will describe our studies of this phenomenon, which led to the recognition that it is related to the induction of large, abnormal ionic currents by the structurally altered PrP molecules. Our results suggest a model in which the flexible N-terminal domain of PrPC serves as a toxic effector which is regulated by intramolecular interactions with the globular C-terminal domain. Taken together, these two areas of study have provided important clues to underlying cellular and molecular mechanisms of prion neurotoxicity. Nevertheless, much remains to be done on this next frontier of prion science.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nhat T T Le
- Department of Biochemistry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA
| | - Bei Wu
- Department of Biochemistry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA
| | - David A Harris
- Department of Biochemistry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA
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21
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Neuroinflammation, Microglia, and Cell-Association during Prion Disease. Viruses 2019; 11:v11010065. [PMID: 30650564 PMCID: PMC6356204 DOI: 10.3390/v11010065] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/24/2018] [Revised: 01/09/2019] [Accepted: 01/10/2019] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Prion disorders are transmissible diseases caused by a proteinaceous infectious agent that can infect the lymphatic and nervous systems. The clinical features of prion diseases can vary, but common hallmarks in the central nervous system (CNS) are deposition of abnormally folded protease-resistant prion protein (PrPres or PrPSc), astrogliosis, microgliosis, and neurodegeneration. Numerous proinflammatory effectors expressed by astrocytes and microglia are increased in the brain during prion infection, with many of them potentially damaging to neurons when chronically upregulated. Microglia are important first responders to foreign agents and damaged cells in the CNS, but these immune-like cells also serve many essential functions in the healthy CNS. Our current understanding is that microglia are beneficial during prion infection and critical to host defense against prion disease. Studies indicate that reduction of the microglial population accelerates disease and increases PrPSc burden in the CNS. Thus, microglia are unlikely to be a foci of prion propagation in the brain. In contrast, neurons and astrocytes are known to be involved in prion replication and spread. Moreover, certain astrocytes, such as A1 reactive astrocytes, have proven neurotoxic in other neurodegenerative diseases, and thus might also influence the progression of prion-associated neurodegeneration.
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22
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Abstract
The development of multiple cell culture models of prion infection over the last two decades has led to a significant increase in our understanding of how prions infect cells. In particular, new techniques to distinguish exogenous from endogenous prions have allowed us for the first time to look in depth at the earliest stages of prion infection through to the establishment of persistent infection. These studies have shown that prions can infect multiple cell types, both neuronal and nonneuronal. Once in contact with the cell, they are rapidly taken up via multiple endocytic pathways. After uptake, the initial replication of prions occurs almost immediately on the plasma membrane and within multiple endocytic compartments. Following this acute stage of prion replication, persistent prion infection may or may not be established. Establishment of a persistent prion infection in cells appears to depend upon the achievement of a delicate balance between the rate of prion replication and degradation, the rate of cell division, and the efficiency of prion spread from cell to cell. Overall, cell culture models have shown that prion infection of the cell is a complex and variable process which can involve multiple cellular pathways and compartments even within a single cell.
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Affiliation(s)
- Suzette A Priola
- Laboratory of Persistent Viral Diseases, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Hamilton, MT, United States.
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23
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T. Islam AM, Adlard PA, Finkelstein DI, Lewis V, Biggi S, Biasini E, Collins SJ. Acute Neurotoxicity Models of Prion Disease. ACS Chem Neurosci 2018; 9:431-445. [PMID: 29393619 DOI: 10.1021/acschemneuro.7b00517] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Prion diseases are phenotypically diverse, transmissible, neurodegenerative disorders affecting both animals and humans. Misfolding of the normal prion protein (PrPC) into disease-associated conformers (PrPSc) is considered the critical etiological event underpinning prion diseases, with such misfolded isoforms linked to both disease transmission and neurotoxicity. Although important advances in our understanding of prion biology and pathogenesis have occurred over the last 3-4 decades, many fundamental questions remain to be resolved, including consensus regarding the principal pathways subserving neuronal dysfunction, as well as detailed biophysical characterization of PrPSc species transmitting disease and/or directly associated with neurotoxicity. In vivo and in vitro models have been, and remain, critical to furthering our understanding across many aspects of prion disease patho-biology. Prion animal models are arguably the most authentic in vivo models of neurodegeneration that exist and have provided valuable and multifarious insights into pathogenesis; however, they are expensive and time-consuming, and it can be problematic to clearly discern evidence of direct PrPSc neurotoxicity in the overall context of pathogenesis. In vitro models, in contrast, generally offer greater tractability and appear more suited to assessments of direct acute neurotoxicity but have until recently been relatively simplistic, and overall there remains a relative paucity of validated, biologically relevant models with heightened reliability as far as translational insights, contributing to difficulties in redressing our knowledge gaps in prion disease pathogenesis. In this review, we provide an overview of the spectrum and methodological diversity of in vivo and in vitro models of prion acute toxicity, as well as the pathogenic insights gained from these studies.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | - S. Biggi
- CIBIO, University of Trento, 38123 Povo, Trento, Italy
| | - E. Biasini
- CIBIO, University of Trento, 38123 Povo, Trento, Italy
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24
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Comoy EE, Mikol J, Jaffré N, Lebon V, Levavasseur E, Streichenberger N, Sumian C, Perret-Liaudet A, Eloit M, Andreoletti O, Haïk S, Hantraye P, Deslys JP. Experimental transfusion of variant CJD-infected blood reveals previously uncharacterised prion disorder in mice and macaque. Nat Commun 2017; 8:1268. [PMID: 29097653 PMCID: PMC5668246 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-017-01347-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2017] [Accepted: 09/11/2017] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Exposure of human populations to bovine spongiform encephalopathy through contaminated food has resulted in <250 cases of variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD). However, more than 99% of vCJD infections could have remained silent suggesting a long-term risk of secondary transmission particularly through blood. Here, we present experimental evidence that transfusion in mice and non-human primates of blood products from symptomatic and non-symptomatic infected donors induces not only vCJD, but also a different class of neurological impairments. These impairments can all be retransmitted to mice with a pathognomonic accumulation of abnormal prion protein, thus expanding the spectrum of known prion diseases. Our findings suggest that the intravenous route promotes propagation of masked prion variants according to different mechanisms involved in peripheral replication.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emmanuel E Comoy
- CEA, Institut François Jacob, Université Paris-Saclay, 18 Route du Panorama, 92265, Fontenay-aux-Roses, France.
| | - Jacqueline Mikol
- CEA, Institut François Jacob, Université Paris-Saclay, 18 Route du Panorama, 92265, Fontenay-aux-Roses, France
| | - Nina Jaffré
- CEA, Institut François Jacob, Université Paris-Saclay, 18 Route du Panorama, 92265, Fontenay-aux-Roses, France
- MacoPharma, 200 Chaussée Fernand Forest, 59200, Tourcoing, France
| | - Vincent Lebon
- CEA, Institut François Jacob, Université Paris-Saclay, 18 Route du Panorama, 92265, Fontenay-aux-Roses, France
| | - Etienne Levavasseur
- Université Pierre et Marie Curie, UMR-S 1127, CNRS UMR 722, Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle Epinière, G.H. Pitié-Salpêtrière, 47 Boulevard de l'Hôpital, 75013, Paris, France
| | - Nathalie Streichenberger
- Hospices Civils de Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, Institut NeuroMyogène CNRS UMR 5310-INSERM U1217, 59 Boulevard Pinel, 69677, Bron, France
| | - Chryslain Sumian
- MacoPharma, 200 Chaussée Fernand Forest, 59200, Tourcoing, France
| | - Armand Perret-Liaudet
- Hospices Civils de Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, Institut NeuroMyogène CNRS UMR 5310-INSERM U1217, 59 Boulevard Pinel, 69677, Bron, France
| | - Marc Eloit
- Institut Pasteur, 15 Rue du Docteur Roux, 75015, Paris, France
| | - Olivier Andreoletti
- UMR INRA-ENVT 1225, Ecole Nationale Vétérinaire de Toulouse, 23 chemin des Capelles, 31076, Toulouse, France
| | - Stéphane Haïk
- Université Pierre et Marie Curie, UMR-S 1127, CNRS UMR 722, Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle Epinière, G.H. Pitié-Salpêtrière, 47 Boulevard de l'Hôpital, 75013, Paris, France
| | - Philippe Hantraye
- CEA, Institut François Jacob, Université Paris-Saclay, 18 Route du Panorama, 92265, Fontenay-aux-Roses, France
| | - Jean-Philippe Deslys
- CEA, Institut François Jacob, Université Paris-Saclay, 18 Route du Panorama, 92265, Fontenay-aux-Roses, France
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25
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Privat N, Levavasseur E, Yildirim S, Hannaoui S, Brandel JP, Laplanche JL, Béringue V, Seilhean D, Haïk S. Region-specific protein misfolding cyclic amplification reproduces brain tropism of prion strains. J Biol Chem 2017; 292:16688-16696. [PMID: 28821618 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m117.793646] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/02/2017] [Revised: 07/25/2017] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Human prion diseases such as Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease are transmissible brain proteinopathies, characterized by the accumulation of a misfolded isoform of the host cellular prion protein (PrP) in the brain. According to the prion model, prions are defined as proteinaceous infectious particles composed solely of this abnormal isoform of PrP (PrPSc). Even in the absence of genetic material, various prion strains can be propagated in experimental models. They can be distinguished by the pattern of disease they produce and especially by the localization of PrPSc deposits within the brain and the spongiform lesions they induce. The mechanisms involved in this strain-specific targeting of distinct brain regions still are a fundamental, unresolved question in prion research. To address this question, we exploited a prion conversion in vitro assay, protein misfolding cyclic amplification (PMCA), by using experimental scrapie and human prion strains as seeds and specific brain regions from mice and humans as substrates. We show here that region-specific PMCA in part reproduces the specific brain targeting observed in experimental, acquired, and sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob diseases. Furthermore, we provide evidence that, in addition to cellular prion protein, other region- and species-specific molecular factors influence the strain-dependent prion conversion process. This important step toward understanding prion strain propagation in the human brain may impact research on the molecular factors involved in protein misfolding and the development of ultrasensitive methods for diagnosing prion disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicolas Privat
- From the INSERM, UMR S1127, 75013 Paris, France.,CNRS, UMR 7225, 75013 Paris, France.,UPMC, Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle épinière (ICM), 75013 Paris, France
| | - Etienne Levavasseur
- From the INSERM, UMR S1127, 75013 Paris, France.,CNRS, UMR 7225, 75013 Paris, France.,UPMC, Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle épinière (ICM), 75013 Paris, France
| | - Serfildan Yildirim
- From the INSERM, UMR S1127, 75013 Paris, France.,CNRS, UMR 7225, 75013 Paris, France.,UPMC, Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle épinière (ICM), 75013 Paris, France
| | - Samia Hannaoui
- From the INSERM, UMR S1127, 75013 Paris, France.,CNRS, UMR 7225, 75013 Paris, France.,UPMC, Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle épinière (ICM), 75013 Paris, France
| | - Jean-Philippe Brandel
- From the INSERM, UMR S1127, 75013 Paris, France.,CNRS, UMR 7225, 75013 Paris, France.,UPMC, Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle épinière (ICM), 75013 Paris, France.,AP-HP, Cellule nationale de référence des MCJ, G.H. Pitié-Salpêtrière, 75013 Paris, France
| | - Jean-Louis Laplanche
- AP-HP, Service de Biochimie et Biologie Moléculaire, Hôpital Lariboisière, 75010 Paris, France
| | | | - Danielle Seilhean
- UPMC, Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle épinière (ICM), 75013 Paris, France.,AP-HP, Laboratoire de Neuropathologie, G.H. Pitié-Salpêtrière, 75013 Paris, France
| | - Stéphane Haïk
- From the INSERM, UMR S1127, 75013 Paris, France, .,CNRS, UMR 7225, 75013 Paris, France.,UPMC, Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle épinière (ICM), 75013 Paris, France.,AP-HP, Cellule nationale de référence des MCJ, G.H. Pitié-Salpêtrière, 75013 Paris, France.,AP-HP, Laboratoire de Neuropathologie, G.H. Pitié-Salpêtrière, 75013 Paris, France
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26
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Hannaoui S, Amidian S, Cheng YC, Duque Velásquez C, Dorosh L, Law S, Telling G, Stepanova M, McKenzie D, Wille H, Gilch S. Destabilizing polymorphism in cervid prion protein hydrophobic core determines prion conformation and conversion efficiency. PLoS Pathog 2017; 13:e1006553. [PMID: 28800624 PMCID: PMC5568445 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1006553] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/23/2017] [Revised: 08/23/2017] [Accepted: 07/26/2017] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Prion diseases are infectious neurodegenerative disorders of humans and animals caused by misfolded forms of the cellular prion protein PrPC. Prions cause disease by converting PrPC into aggregation-prone PrPSc. Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is the most contagious prion disease with substantial lateral transmission, affecting free-ranging and farmed cervids. Although the PrP primary structure is highly conserved among cervids, the disease phenotype can be modulated by species-specific polymorphisms in the prion protein gene. How the resulting amino-acid substitutions impact PrPC and PrPSc structure and propagation is poorly understood. We investigated the effects of the cervid 116A>G substitution, located in the most conserved PrP domain, on PrPC structure and conversion and on 116AG-prion conformation and infectivity. Molecular dynamics simulations revealed structural de-stabilization of 116G-PrP, which enhanced its in vitro conversion efficiency when used as recombinant PrP substrate in real-time quaking-induced conversion (RT-QuIC). We demonstrate that 116AG-prions are conformationally less stable, show lower activity as a seed in RT-QuIC and exhibit reduced infectivity in vitro and in vivo. Infectivity of 116AG-prions was significantly enhanced upon secondary passage in mice, yet conformational features were retained. These findings indicate that structurally de-stabilized PrPC is readily convertible by cervid prions of different genetic background and results in a prion conformation adaptable to cervid wild-type PrP. Conformation is an important criterion when assessing transmission barrier, and conformational variants can target a different host range. Therefore, a thorough analysis of CWD isolates and re-assessment of species-barriers is important in order to fully exclude a zoonotic potential of CWD. Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a prion disease which affects wild and captive cervids. Prion diseases are infectious neurodegenerative disorders, and the causative agent consists of abnormally folded prion protein termed PrPSc. Prions replicate without genetic information, and their three-dimensional structure is thought to encode heritable information necessary to propagate using the cellular prion protein PrPC as a substrate for conversion. In this study, we use in vitro and in vivo techniques to analyze the effect of a polymorphism at codon 116 (A>G) of the white-tailed deer prion protein on CWD prion conformation, propagation and pathogenesis. We observed differences in conformation, infectivity and seeding activity in vitro between CWD prions isolated from white-tailed deer encoding wild-type (116AA) PrPC or 116AG-PrPC. In mouse bioassays conformational differences are retained, however, 116AG CWD prions resulted in significantly shortened incubation times upon passages. Molecular dynamics simulations suggest that the structure of 116G-PrPC is more flexible, which is supported by an improved convertibility in an in vitro conversion assay. Altogether these data indicate the importance of a variation in the most conserved PrP domain, and highlight the relationship between PrPC structural flexibility, prion conformation and conversion, and pathogenesis of prion disease in vivo.
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Affiliation(s)
- Samia Hannaoui
- Department of Ecosystem and Public Health, Calgary Prion Research Unit, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Sara Amidian
- Center for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | - Yo Ching Cheng
- Department of Ecosystem and Public Health, Calgary Prion Research Unit, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Camilo Duque Velásquez
- Center for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | - Lyudmyla Dorosh
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | - Sampson Law
- Department of Ecosystem and Public Health, Calgary Prion Research Unit, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Glenn Telling
- Prion Research Center, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, United States of America
| | - Maria Stepanova
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | - Debbie McKenzie
- Center for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | - Holger Wille
- Center for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | - Sabine Gilch
- Department of Ecosystem and Public Health, Calgary Prion Research Unit, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
- * E-mail:
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27
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Šafařík M, Moško T, Zawada Z, Šafaříková E, Dračínský M, Holada K, Šebestík J. Reactivity of 9-aminoacridine drug quinacrine with glutathione limits its antiprion activity. Chem Biol Drug Des 2017; 89:932-942. [DOI: 10.1111/cbdd.12918] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2016] [Revised: 10/19/2016] [Accepted: 11/23/2016] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Martin Šafařík
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry; Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic; Prague 6 Czech Republic
| | - Tibor Moško
- First Faculty of Medicine; Institute of Immunology and Microbiology; Charles University in Prague; Prague 2 Czech Republic
| | - Zbigniew Zawada
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry; Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic; Prague 6 Czech Republic
| | - Eva Šafaříková
- First Faculty of Medicine; Institute of Immunology and Microbiology; Charles University in Prague; Prague 2 Czech Republic
| | - Martin Dračínský
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry; Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic; Prague 6 Czech Republic
| | - Karel Holada
- First Faculty of Medicine; Institute of Immunology and Microbiology; Charles University in Prague; Prague 2 Czech Republic
| | - Jaroslav Šebestík
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry; Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic; Prague 6 Czech Republic
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28
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Tanaka M, Fujiwara A, Suzuki A, Yamasaki T, Hasebe R, Masujin K, Horiuchi M. Comparison of abnormal isoform of prion protein in prion-infected cell lines and primary-cultured neurons by PrPSc-specific immunostaining. J Gen Virol 2016; 97:2030-2042. [PMID: 27267758 DOI: 10.1099/jgv.0.000514] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/03/2023] Open
Abstract
We established abnormal isoform of prion protein (PrPSc)-specific double immunostaining using mAb 132, which recognizes aa 119-127 of the PrP molecule, and novel PrPSc-specific mAb 8D5, which recognizes the N-terminal region of the PrP molecule. Using the PrPSc-specific double immunostaining, we analysed PrPSc in immortalized neuronal cell lines and primary cerebral-neuronal cultures infected with prions. The PrPSc-specific double immunostaining showed the existence of PrPSc positive for both mAbs 132 and 8D5, as well as those positive only for either mAb 132 or mAb 8D5. This indicated that double immunostaining detects a greater number of PrPSc species than single immunostaining. Double immunostaining revealed cell-type-dependent differences in PrPSc staining patterns. In the 22 L prion strain-infected Neuro2a (N2a)-3 cells, a subclone of N2a neuroblastoma cell line, or GT1-7, a subclone of the GT1 hypothalamic neuronal cell line, granular PrPSc stains were observed at the perinuclear regions and cytoplasm, whereas unique string-like PrPSc stains were predominantly observed on the surface of the 22 L strain-infected primary cerebral neurons. Only 14 % of PrPSc in the 22 L strain-infected N2a-3 cells were positive for mAb 8D5, indicating that most of the PrPSc in N2a-3 lack the N-terminal portion. In contrast, nearly half PrPSc detected in the 22 L strain-infected primary cerebral neurons were positive for mAb 8D5, suggesting the abundance of full-length PrPSc that possesses the N-terminal portion of PrP. Further analysis of prion-infected primary neurons using PrPSc-specific immunostaining will reveal the neuron-specific mechanism for prion propagation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Misaki Tanaka
- Laboratory of Veterinary Hygiene, Graduate School of Veterinary Medicine, Hokkaido University, Kita 18, Nishi 9, Kita-ku, Sapporo 060-0818, Japan
| | - Ai Fujiwara
- Laboratory of Veterinary Hygiene, Graduate School of Veterinary Medicine, Hokkaido University, Kita 18, Nishi 9, Kita-ku, Sapporo 060-0818, Japan
| | - Akio Suzuki
- Laboratory of Veterinary Hygiene, Graduate School of Veterinary Medicine, Hokkaido University, Kita 18, Nishi 9, Kita-ku, Sapporo 060-0818, Japan
| | - Takeshi Yamasaki
- Laboratory of Veterinary Hygiene, Graduate School of Veterinary Medicine, Hokkaido University, Kita 18, Nishi 9, Kita-ku, Sapporo 060-0818, Japan
| | - Rie Hasebe
- Laboratory of Veterinary Hygiene, Graduate School of Veterinary Medicine, Hokkaido University, Kita 18, Nishi 9, Kita-ku, Sapporo 060-0818, Japan
| | - Kentaro Masujin
- National Agriculture Food Research Organization (NARO), 3-1-5 Kannondai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 305-0856, Japan.,Laboratory of Persistent Viral Diseases, Rocky Mountain Laboratories, National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Hamilton, MT, USA
| | - Motohiro Horiuchi
- Laboratory of Veterinary Hygiene, Graduate School of Veterinary Medicine, Hokkaido University, Kita 18, Nishi 9, Kita-ku, Sapporo 060-0818, Japan
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29
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A Neuronal Culture System to Detect Prion Synaptotoxicity. PLoS Pathog 2016; 12:e1005623. [PMID: 27227882 PMCID: PMC4881977 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1005623] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2016] [Accepted: 04/19/2016] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Synaptic pathology is an early feature of prion as well as other neurodegenerative diseases. Although the self-templating process by which prions propagate is well established, the mechanisms by which prions cause synaptotoxicity are poorly understood, due largely to the absence of experimentally tractable cell culture models. Here, we report that exposure of cultured hippocampal neurons to PrPSc, the infectious isoform of the prion protein, results in rapid retraction of dendritic spines. This effect is entirely dependent on expression of the cellular prion protein, PrPC, by target neurons, and on the presence of a nine-amino acid, polybasic region at the N-terminus of the PrPC molecule. Both protease-resistant and protease-sensitive forms of PrPSc cause dendritic loss. This system provides new insights into the mechanisms responsible for prion neurotoxicity, and it provides a platform for characterizing different pathogenic forms of PrPSc and testing potential therapeutic agents. Prion diseases are fatal neurodegenerative disorders that cause memory loss, impaired coordination, and abnormal movements. The molecular culprit in prion diseases is PrPSc, an infectious isoform of a host-encoded glycoprotein (PrPC) that can propagate itself by a self-templating mechanism. Whether PrPSc itself is toxic to neurons, and if so, the cellular mechanisms by which it produces neuronal pathology are largely unknown, in part because of the absence of suitable cell culture models. We describe here a hippocampal neuronal cultural system to detect the toxic effect of PrPSc on dendritic spines, which are postsynaptic elements responsible for excitatory synaptic transmission, and which are implicated in learning, memory, and the earliest stages of neurodegenerative diseases. We found that purified, exogenously applied PrPSc causes acute retraction of dendritic spines, an effect that is entirely dependent on expression of PrPC by target neurons, and on the on the presence of a nine-amino acid, polybasic region at the N-terminus of the PrPC molecule. Both protease-resistant and protease-sensitive forms of PrPSc cause dendritic retraction. This system provides new insights into the mechanisms responsible for prion neurotoxicity, and it provides a platform for characterizing different pathogenic forms of PrPSc and testing potential therapeutic agents.
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30
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Vinatier G, Corsi JM, Mignotte B, Gaumer S. Quantification of Ataxin-3 and Ataxin-7 aggregates formed in vivo in Drosophila reveals a threshold of aggregated polyglutamine proteins associated with cellular toxicity. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 2015. [PMID: 26210447 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbrc.2015.07.071] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
Polyglutamine diseases are nine dominantly inherited neurodegenerative pathologies caused by the expansion of a polyglutamine domain in a protein responsible for the disease. This expansion leads to protein aggregation, inclusion formation and toxicity. Despite numerous studies focusing on the subject, whether soluble polyglutamine proteins are responsible for toxicity or not remains debated. To focus on this matter, we evaluated the level of soluble and insoluble truncated pathological Ataxin-3 in vivo in Drosophila, in presence or absence of two suppressors (i.e. Hsp70 and non-pathological Ataxin-3) and along aging. Suppressing truncated Ataxin-3-induced toxicity resulted in a lowered level of aggregated polyglutamine protein. Interestingly, aggregates accumulated as flies aged and reached a maximum level when cell death was detected. Our results were similar with two other pathological polyglutamine proteins, namely truncated Ataxin-7 and full-length Ataxin-3. Our data suggest that accumulation of insoluble aggregates beyond a critical threshold could be responsible for toxicity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gérald Vinatier
- Laboratoire de Génétique et Biologie Cellulaire, EA4589, Université Versailles-St-Quentin-en-Yvelines, Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes, 2 rue de la source de la Bièvre, 78180 Montigny-le-Bx, France
| | - Jean-Marc Corsi
- Laboratoire de Génétique et Biologie Cellulaire, EA4589, Université Versailles-St-Quentin-en-Yvelines, Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes, 2 rue de la source de la Bièvre, 78180 Montigny-le-Bx, France
| | - Bernard Mignotte
- Laboratoire de Génétique et Biologie Cellulaire, EA4589, Université Versailles-St-Quentin-en-Yvelines, Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes, 2 rue de la source de la Bièvre, 78180 Montigny-le-Bx, France
| | - Sébastien Gaumer
- Laboratoire de Génétique et Biologie Cellulaire, EA4589, Université Versailles-St-Quentin-en-Yvelines, Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes, 2 rue de la source de la Bièvre, 78180 Montigny-le-Bx, France.
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31
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Mirabile I, Jat PS, Brandner S, Collinge J. Identification of clinical target areas in the brainstem of prion-infected mice. Neuropathol Appl Neurobiol 2015; 41:613-30. [PMID: 25311251 PMCID: PMC4949711 DOI: 10.1111/nan.12189] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2014] [Accepted: 10/10/2014] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
AIMS While prion infection ultimately involves the entire brain, it has long been thought that the abrupt clinical onset and rapid neurological decline in laboratory rodents relates to involvement of specific critical neuroanatomical target areas. The severity and type of clinical signs, together with the rapid progression, suggest the brainstem as a candidate location for such critical areas. In this study we aimed to correlate prion pathology with clinical phenotype in order to identify clinical target areas. METHOD We conducted a comprehensive survey of brainstem pathology in mice infected with two distinct prion strains, which produce different patterns of pathology, in mice overexpressing prion protein (with accelerated clinical onset) and in mice in which neuronal expression was reduced by gene targeting (which greatly delays clinical onset). RESULTS We identified specific brainstem areas that are affected by prion pathology during the progression of the disease. In the early phase of disease the locus coeruleus, the nucleus of the solitary tract, and the pre-Bötzinger complex were affected by prion protein deposition. This was followed by involvement of the motor and autonomic centres of the brainstem. CONCLUSIONS Neurodegeneration in the locus coeruleus, the nucleus of the solitary tract and the pre-Bötzinger complex predominated and corresponded to the manifestation of the clinical phenotype. Because of their fundamental role in controlling autonomic function and the overlap with clinical signs in sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, we suggest that these nuclei represent key clinical target areas in prion diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ilaria Mirabile
- MRC Prion UnitDepartment of Neurodegenerative DiseaseUCL Institute of NeurologyLondonUK
| | - Parmjit S. Jat
- MRC Prion UnitDepartment of Neurodegenerative DiseaseUCL Institute of NeurologyLondonUK
| | - Sebastian Brandner
- MRC Prion UnitDepartment of Neurodegenerative DiseaseUCL Institute of NeurologyLondonUK
| | - John Collinge
- MRC Prion UnitDepartment of Neurodegenerative DiseaseUCL Institute of NeurologyLondonUK
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32
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Haïk S, Brandel JP. Infectious prion diseases in humans: cannibalism, iatrogenicity and zoonoses. INFECTION GENETICS AND EVOLUTION 2014; 26:303-12. [PMID: 24956437 DOI: 10.1016/j.meegid.2014.06.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2014] [Revised: 06/10/2014] [Accepted: 06/13/2014] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
In contrast with other neurodegenerative disorders associated to protein misfolding, human prion diseases include infectious forms (also called transmitted forms) such as kuru, iatrogenic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease and variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. The transmissible agent is thought to be solely composed of the abnormal isoform (PrP(Sc)) of the host-encoded prion protein that accumulated in the central nervous system of affected individuals. Compared to its normal counterpart, PrP(Sc) is β-sheet enriched and aggregated and its propagation is based on an autocatalytic conversion process. Increasing evidence supports the view that conformational variations of PrP(Sc) encoded the biological properties of the various prion strains that have been isolated by transmission studies in experimental models. Infectious forms of human prion diseases played a pivotal role in the emergence of the prion concept and in the characterization of the very unconventional properties of prions. They provide a unique model to understand how prion strains are selected and propagate in humans. Here, we review and discuss how genetic factors interplay with strain properties and route of transmission to influence disease susceptibility, incubation period and phenotypic expression in the light of the kuru epidemics due to ritual endocannibalism, the various series iatrogenic diseases secondary to extractive growth hormone treatment or dura mater graft and the epidemics of variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease linked to dietary exposure to the agent of bovine spongiform encephalopathy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stéphane Haïk
- Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06 UMR S 1127, Inserm, U 1127, CNRS UMR 7225, ICM, F-75013 Paris, France; AP-HP, Groupe hospitalier Pitié-Salpêtrière, Cellule Nationale de Référence des Maladies de Creutzfeldt-Jakob, F-75013 Paris, France; Centre National de Référence des Agents Transmissibles Non Conventionnels, F-75013 Paris, France.
| | - Jean-Philippe Brandel
- Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06 UMR S 1127, Inserm, U 1127, CNRS UMR 7225, ICM, F-75013 Paris, France; AP-HP, Groupe hospitalier Pitié-Salpêtrière, Cellule Nationale de Référence des Maladies de Creutzfeldt-Jakob, F-75013 Paris, France; Centre National de Référence des Agents Transmissibles Non Conventionnels, F-75013 Paris, France
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Mediano DR, Sanz-Rubio D, Ranera B, Bolea R, Martín-Burriel I. The potential of mesenchymal stem cell in prion research. Zoonoses Public Health 2014; 62:165-78. [PMID: 24854140 DOI: 10.1111/zph.12138] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2013] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
Scrapie and bovine spongiform encephalopathy are fatal neurodegenerative diseases caused by the accumulation of a misfolded protein (PrP(res)), the pathological form of the cellular prion protein (PrP(C)). For the last decades, prion research has greatly progressed, but many questions need to be solved about prion replication mechanisms, cell toxicity, differences in genetic susceptibility, species barrier or the nature of prion strains. These studies can be developed in murine models of transmissible spongiform encephalopathies, although development of cell models for prion replication and sample titration could reduce economic and timing costs and also serve for basic research and treatment testing. Some murine cell lines can replicate scrapie strains previously adapted in mice and very few show the toxic effects of prion accumulation. Brain cell primary cultures can be more accurate models but are difficult to develop in naturally susceptible species like humans or domestic ruminants. Stem cells can be differentiated into neuron-like cells and be infected by prions. However, the use of embryo stem cells causes ethical problems in humans. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) can be isolated from many adult tissues, including bone marrow, adipose tissue or even peripheral blood. These cells differentiate into neuronal cells, express PrP(C) and can be infected by prions in vitro. In addition, in the last years, these cells are being used to develop therapies for many diseases, including neurodegenerative diseases. We review here the use of cell models in prion research with a special interest in the potential use of MSCs.
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Affiliation(s)
- D R Mediano
- Facultad de Veterinaria, Laboratorio de Genética Bioquímica, Universidad de Zaragoza, Zaragoza, Spain
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34
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Hannaoui S, Gougerot A, Privat N, Levavasseur E, Bizat N, Hauw JJ, Brandel JP, Haïk S. Cycline efficacy on the propagation of human prions in primary cultured neurons is strain-specific. J Infect Dis 2013; 209:1144-8. [PMID: 24265435 DOI: 10.1093/infdis/jit623] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Abstract
In prion diseases, a major issue in therapeutic research is the variability of the effect between strains. Stimulated by the report of an antiprion effect in a scrapie model and by ongoing international clinical trials using doxycycline, we studied the efficacy of cyclines against the propagation of human prions. First, we successfully propagated various Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) isolates (sporadic, variant, and iatrogenic CJD) in neuronal cultures expressing the human prion protein. Then, we found that doxycycline was the most effective compound, with important variations between isolates. Isolates from sporadic CJD, the most common form of prion disease, showed the highest sensitivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Samia Hannaoui
- Université Pierre et Marie Curie - Paris 6, Centre de Recherche de l'Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle épinière (CRICM), UMRS 975, Equipe "Alzheimer's and Prion Diseases"
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