The TGF-beta1/upstream stimulatory factor-regulated PAI-1 gene: potential involvement and a therapeutic target in Alzheimer's disease

Proteomic profiling of interferon-responsive reactive astrocytes in rodent and human

Astrocytes are a heterogeneous population of central nervous system glial cells that respond to pathological insults and injury by undergoing a transformation called "reactivity." Reactive astrocytes exhibit distinct and context-dependent cellular, molecular, and functional state changes that can either support or disturb tissue homeostasis. We recently identified a reactive astrocyte sub-state defined by interferon-responsive genes like Igtp, Ifit3, Mx1, and others, called interferon-responsive reactive astrocytes (IRRAs). To further this transcriptomic definition of IRRAs, we wanted to define the proteomic changes that occur in this reactive sub-state. We induced IRRAs in immunopanned rodent astrocytes and human iPSC-differentiated astrocytes using TNF, IL1α, C1Q, and IFNβ and characterized their proteomic profile (both cellular and secreted) using unbiased quantitative proteomics. We identified 2335 unique cellular proteins, including IFIT2/3, IFITM3, OASL1/2, MX1/2/3, and STAT1. We also report that rodent and human IRRAs secrete PAI1, a serine protease inhibitor which may influence reactive states and functions of nearby cells. Finally, we evaluated how IRRAs are distinct from neurotoxic reactive astrocytes (NRAs). While NRAs are described by expression of the complement protein C3, it was not upregulated in IRRAs. Instead, we found ~90 proteins unique to IRRAs not identified in NRAs, including OAS1A, IFIT3, and MX1. Interferon signaling in astrocytes is critical for the antiviral immune response and for regulating synaptic plasticity and glutamate transport mechanisms. How IRRAs contribute to these functions is unknown. This study provides the basis for future experiments to define the functional roles of IRRAs in the context of neurodegenerative disorders.

Current Naturopathy to Combat Alzheimer's Disease

Neurodegeneration is the progressive loss of structure or function of neurons, which may ultimately involve cell death. The most common neurodegenerative disorder in the brain happens with Alzheimer's disease (AD), the most common cause of dementia. It ultimately leads to neuronal death, thereby impairing the normal functionality of the central or peripheral nervous system. The onset and prevalence of AD involve heterogeneous etiology, either in terms of genetic predisposition, neurometabolomic malfunctioning, or lifestyle. The worldwide relevancies are estimated to be over 45 million people. The rapid increase in AD has led to a concomitant increase in the research work directed towards discovering a lucrative cure for AD. The neuropathology of AD comprises the deficiency in the availability of neurotransmitters and important neurotrophic factors in the brain, extracellular betaamyloid plaque depositions, and intracellular neurofibrillary tangles of hyperphosphorylated tau protein. Current pharmaceutical interventions utilizing synthetic drugs have manifested resistance and toxicity problems. This has led to the quest for new pharmacotherapeutic candidates naturally prevalent in phytochemicals. This review aims to provide an elaborative description of promising Phyto component entities having activities against various potential AD targets. Therefore, naturopathy may combine with synthetic chemotherapeutics to longer the survival of the patients.

Review of evidence implicating the plasminogen activator system in blood-brain barrier dysfunction associated with Alzheimer's disease

Elucidating the pathogenic mechanisms of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) to identify therapeutic targets has been the focus of many decades of research. While deposition of extracellular amyloid-beta plaques and intraneuronal neurofibrillary tangles of hyperphosphorylated tau have historically been the two characteristic hallmarks of AD pathology, therapeutic strategies targeting these proteinopathies have not been successful in the clinics. Neuroinflammation has been gaining more attention as a therapeutic target because increasing evidence implicates neuroinflammation as a key factor in the early onset of AD disease progression. The peripheral immune response has emerged as an important contributor to the chronic neuroinflammation associated with AD pathophysiology. In this context, the plasminogen activator system (PAS), also referred to as the vasculature’s fibrinolytic system, is emerging as a potential factor in AD pathogenesis. Evolving evidence suggests that the PAS plays a role in linking chronic peripheral inflammatory conditions to neuroinflammation in the brain. While the PAS is better known for its peripheral functions, components of the PAS are expressed in the brain and have been demonstrated to alter neuroinflammation and blood-brain barrier (BBB) permeation. Here, we review plasmin-dependent and -independent mechanisms by which the PAS modulates the BBB in AD pathogenesis and discuss therapeutic implications of these observations.

Transcriptional Upregulation of Plasminogen Activator Inhibitor-1 in Rat Primary Astrocytes by a Proteasomal Inhibitor MG132

Plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1) is a member of serine protease inhibitor family, which regulates the activity of tissue plasminogen activator (tPA). In CNS, tPA/PAI-1 activity is involved in the regulation of a variety of cellular processes such as neuronal development, synaptic plasticity and cell survival. To gain a more insights into the regulatory mechanism modulating tPA/PAI-1 activity in brain, we investigated the effects of proteasome inhibitors on tPA/PAI-1 expression and activity in rat primary astrocytes, the major cell type expressing both tPA and PAI-1. We found that submicromolar concentration of MG132, a cell permeable peptide-aldehyde inhibitor of ubiquitin proteasome pathway selectively upregulates PAI-1 expression. Upregulation of PAI-1 mRNA as well as increased PAI-1 promoter reporter activity suggested that MG132 transcriptionally increased PAI-1 expression. The induction of PAI-1 downregulated tPA activity in rat primary astrocytes. Another proteasome inhibitor lactacystin similarly increased the expression of PAI-1 in rat primary astrocytes. MG132 activated MAPK pathways as well as PI3K/Akt pathways. Inhibitors of these signaling pathways reduced MG132-mediated upregulation of PAI-1 in varying degrees and most prominent effects were observed with SB203580, a p38 MAPK pathway inhibitor. The regulation of tPA/PAI-1 activity by proteasome inhibitor in rat primary astrocytes may underlie the observed CNS effects of MG132 such as neuroprotection.

Novel Combinatorial Therapeutic Targeting of PAI-1 (SERPINE1) Gene Expression in Alzheimer's Disease

Accumulation of neurotoxic amyloid peptides (Aβ) in the brain, generated by β-site proteolytic processing of the amyloid precursor protein (APP), is the hallmark pathophysiologic feature of Alzheimer's disease. The plasmin-activating cascade, in which urokinase (uPA) and tissue-type (tPA) plasminogen activators convert plasminogen to the broad-spectrum protease plasmin, appears to serve a protective, Aβ-clearing, role in the central nervous system. Plasmin degrades Aβ and catalyzes α- site APP proteolysis generating nontoxic peptides. Plasmin activation in the brain is negatively regulated by the fast-acting clade E serine protease inhibitor (SERPIN) plasminogen activator inhibitor type-1 (PAI-1; SERPINE1) resulting in Aβ accumulation. PAI-1 and its major physiological inducer TGF-β1, moreover, are both increased in Alzheimer's disease models and implicated in the etiology and progression of human neurodegenerative disorders. Current findings support the hypothesis that targeting of PAI-1 function (by small molecule drugs) and/or gene expression (by histone deacetylase inhibitors) may constitute a clinically-relevant molecular approach to the therapy of neurodegenerative diseases associated with increased PAI-1 levels.

Molecular actions and therapeutic potential of lithium in preclinical and clinical studies of CNS disorders

Lithium has been used clinically to treat bipolar disorder for over half a century, and remains a fundamental pharmacological therapy for patients with this illness. Although lithium's therapeutic mechanisms are not fully understood, substantial in vitro and in vivo evidence suggests that it has neuroprotective/neurotrophic properties against various insults, and considerable clinical potential for the treatment of several neurodegenerative conditions. Evidence from pharmacological and gene manipulation studies support the notion that glycogen synthase kinase-3 inhibition and induction of brain-derived neurotrophic factor-mediated signaling are lithium's main mechanisms of action, leading to enhanced cell survival pathways and alteration of a wide variety of downstream effectors. By inhibiting N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor-mediated calcium influx, lithium also contributes to calcium homeostasis and suppresses calcium-dependent activation of pro-apoptotic signaling pathways. In addition, lithium decreases inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate by inhibiting phosphoinositol phosphatases, a process recently identified as a novel mechanism for inducing autophagy. Through these mechanisms, therapeutic doses of lithium have been demonstrated to defend neuronal cells against diverse forms of death insults and to improve behavioral as well as cognitive deficits in various animal models of neurodegenerative diseases, including stroke, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, fragile X syndrome, as well as Huntington's, Alzheimer's, and Parkinson's diseases, among others. Several clinical trials are also underway to assess the therapeutic effects of lithium for treating these disorders. This article reviews the most recent findings regarding the potential targets involved in lithium's neuroprotective effects, and the implication of these findings for the treatment of a variety of diseases.

Pharmacological Treatment of Alzheimer's Disease: Is it Progressing Adequately?

INTRODUCTION

Between 1993 and 2000 four acetylcholinesterase inhibitors were marketed as a symptomatic treatment for Alzheimer's disease (AD), as well as memantine in 2003. Current research is focused on finding drugs that favorably modify the course of the disease. However, their entrance into the market does not seem to be imminent.

RESEARCH DEVELOPMENT

The aim of AD research is to find substances that inhibit certain elements of the AD pathogenic chain (beta- and gamma-secretase inhibitors, alpha-secretase stimulants, beta-amyloid aggregability reducers or disaggregation and elimination inductors, as well as tau-hyperphosphorylation, glutamate excitotoxicity, oxidative stress and mitochondrial damage reducers, among other action mechanisms). Demonstrating a disease's retarding effect demands longer trials than those necessary to ascertain symptomatic improvement. Besides, a high number of patients (thousands of them) is necessary, all of which turns out to be difficult and costly. Furthermore, it would be necessary to count on diagnosis and progression markers in the disease's pre-clinical stage, markers for specific phenotypes, as well as high-selectivity molecules acting only where necessary. In order to compensate these difficulties, drugs acting on several defects of the pathogenic chain or showing both symptomatic and neuroprotective action simultaneously are being researched.

CONCLUSIONS

There are multiple molecules used in research to modify AD progression. Although it turns out to be difficult to obtain drugs with sufficient efficacy so that their marketing is approved, if they were achieved they would lead to a reduction of AD prevalence.

Lithium inhibits Smad3/4 transactivation via increased CREB activity induced by enhanced PKA and AKT signaling

Smad proteins are intracellular transducers for transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta) signaling and play a critical role in differentiation, tissue repair and apoptosis of the central nervous system. Both TGF-beta and its regulated gene, plasminogen activator inhibitor type-1 (PAI-1), have been implicated in the etiology and progression of neurodegenerative diseases and mood disorders. We previously reported that GSK-3beta protein depletion suppresses Smad3/4-dependent gene transcription and causes a reduction in PAI-1 expression. Here, we provide evidence that lithium, the drug for the treatment and prophylaxis of bipolar disorder, inhibits Smad-dependent signaling by regulating cAMP-protein kinase A (PKA), AKT-glycogen synthase kinase-3beta (GSK-3beta), and CRE-dependent signaling pathways in neuron-enriched cerebral cortical cultures of rats. We demonstrate that lithium-induced activation of these pathways inhibits Smad3/4-dependent gene transcription through an increase in pCREB(Ser133) protein levels, an enhanced interaction between pCREB(Ser133) and p300/CBP, which causes Smad3/4-p300/CBP complex disruption and transcriptional suppression of Smad3/4-dependent genes. Therapeutic implications of our findings are discussed.