1
|
Arshad H, Patel Z, Al-Azzawi ZAM, Amano G, Li L, Mehra S, Eid S, Schmitt-Ulms G, Watts JC. The molecular determinants of a universal prion acceptor. PLoS Pathog 2024; 20:e1012538. [PMID: 39255320 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1012538] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/09/2024] [Revised: 09/20/2024] [Accepted: 08/28/2024] [Indexed: 09/12/2024] Open
Abstract
In prion diseases, the species barrier limits the transmission of prions from one species to another. However, cross-species prion transmission is remarkably efficient in bank voles, and this phenomenon is mediated by the bank vole prion protein (BVPrP). The molecular determinants of BVPrP's ability to function as a universal prion acceptor remain incompletely defined. Building on our finding that cultured cells expressing BVPrP can replicate both mouse and hamster prion strains, we systematically identified key residues in BVPrP that permit cross-species prion replication. We found that residues N155 and N170 of BVPrP, which are absent in mouse PrP but present in hamster PrP, are critical for cross-species prion replication. Additionally, BVPrP residues V112, I139, and M205, which are absent in hamster PrP but present in mouse PrP, are also required to enable replication of both mouse and hamster prions. Unexpectedly, we found that residues E227 and S230 near the C-terminus of BVPrP severely restrict prion accumulation following cross-species prion challenge, suggesting that they may have evolved to counteract the inherent propensity of BVPrP to misfold. PrP variants with an enhanced ability to replicate both mouse and hamster prions displayed accelerated spontaneous aggregation kinetics in vitro. These findings suggest that BVPrP's unusual properties are governed by a key set of amino acids and that the enhanced misfolding propensity of BVPrP may enable cross-species prion replication.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Hamza Arshad
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Zeel Patel
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Zaid A M Al-Azzawi
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Genki Amano
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Leyao Li
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Surabhi Mehra
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Shehab Eid
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Gerold Schmitt-Ulms
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Joel C Watts
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Mehra S, Bourkas ME, Kaczmarczyk L, Stuart E, Arshad H, Griffin JK, Frost KL, Walsh DJ, Supattapone S, Booth SA, Jackson WS, Watts JC. Convergent generation of atypical prions in knockin mouse models of genetic prion disease. J Clin Invest 2024; 134:e176344. [PMID: 39087478 PMCID: PMC11291267 DOI: 10.1172/jci176344] [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: 10/02/2023] [Accepted: 06/11/2024] [Indexed: 08/02/2024] Open
Abstract
Most cases of human prion disease arise due to spontaneous misfolding of WT or mutant prion protein, yet recapitulating this event in animal models has proven challenging. It remains unclear whether spontaneous prion generation can occur within the mouse lifespan in the absence of protein overexpression and how disease-causing mutations affect prion strain properties. To address these issues, we generated knockin mice that express the misfolding-prone bank vole prion protein (BVPrP). While mice expressing WT BVPrP (I109 variant) remained free from neurological disease, a subset of mice expressing BVPrP with mutations (D178N or E200K) causing genetic prion disease developed progressive neurological illness. Brains from spontaneously ill knockin mice contained prion disease-specific neuropathological changes as well as atypical protease-resistant BVPrP. Moreover, brain extracts from spontaneously ill D178N- or E200K-mutant BVPrP-knockin mice exhibited prion seeding activity and transmitted disease to mice expressing WT BVPrP. Surprisingly, the properties of the D178N- and E200K-mutant prions appeared identical before and after transmission, suggesting that both mutations guide the formation of a similar atypical prion strain. These findings imply that knockin mice expressing mutant BVPrP spontaneously develop a bona fide prion disease and that mutations causing prion diseases may share a uniform initial mechanism of action.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Surabhi Mehra
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases and
| | - Matthew E.C. Bourkas
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases and
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Lech Kaczmarczyk
- Wallenberg Center for Molecular Medicine, Department of Biomedical and Clinical Sciences, Linköping University, Linköping, Sweden
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), Bonn, Germany
| | - Erica Stuart
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases and
| | - Hamza Arshad
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases and
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | | | - Kathy L. Frost
- One Health Division, National Microbiology Laboratory, Public Health Agency of Canada, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
| | | | - Surachai Supattapone
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology and
- Department of Medicine, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, New Hampshire, USA
| | - Stephanie A. Booth
- One Health Division, National Microbiology Laboratory, Public Health Agency of Canada, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
- Department of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
| | - Walker S. Jackson
- Wallenberg Center for Molecular Medicine, Department of Biomedical and Clinical Sciences, Linköping University, Linköping, Sweden
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), Bonn, Germany
| | - Joel C. Watts
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases and
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Olech M. Conventional and State-of-the-Art Detection Methods of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE). Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:ijms24087135. [PMID: 37108297 PMCID: PMC10139118 DOI: 10.3390/ijms24087135] [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: 03/16/2023] [Revised: 04/08/2023] [Accepted: 04/09/2023] [Indexed: 04/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) is a fatal neurodegenerative disease that belongs to a group of diseases known as transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs). It is believed that the infectious agent responsible for prion diseases is abnormally folded prion protein (PrPSc), which derives from a normal cellular protein (PrPC), which is a cell surface glycoprotein predominantly expressed in neurons. There are three different types of BSE, the classical BSE (C-type) strain and two atypical strains (H-type and L-type). BSE is primarily a disease of cattle; however, sheep and goats also can be infected with BSE strains and develop a disease clinically and pathogenically indistinguishable from scrapie. Therefore, TSE cases in cattle and small ruminants require discriminatory testing to determine whether the TSE is BSE or scrapie and to discriminate classical BSE from the atypical H- or L-type strains. Many methods have been developed for the detection of BSE and have been reported in numerous studies. Detection of BSE is mainly based on the identification of characteristic lesions or detection of the PrPSc in the brain, often by use of their partial proteinase K resistance properties. The objective of this paper was to summarize the currently available methods, highlight their diagnostic performance, and emphasize the advantages and drawbacks of the application of individual tests.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Monika Olech
- Department of Pathology, National Veterinary Research Institute, 24-100 Puławy, Poland
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Arshad H, Patel Z, Amano G, Li LY, Al-Azzawi ZAM, Supattapone S, Schmitt-Ulms G, Watts JC. A single protective polymorphism in the prion protein blocks cross-species prion replication in cultured cells. J Neurochem 2023; 165:230-245. [PMID: 36511154 DOI: 10.1111/jnc.15739] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/03/2022] [Revised: 11/22/2022] [Accepted: 11/28/2022] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
The bank vole (BV) prion protein (PrP) can function as a universal acceptor of prions. However, the molecular details of BVPrP's promiscuity for replicating a diverse range of prion strains remain obscure. To develop a cultured cell paradigm capable of interrogating the unique properties of BVPrP, we generated monoclonal lines of CAD5 cells lacking endogenous PrP but stably expressing either hamster (Ha), mouse (Mo), or BVPrP (M109 or I109 polymorphic variants) and then challenged them with various strains of mouse or hamster prions. Cells expressing BVPrP were susceptible to both mouse and hamster prions, whereas cells expressing MoPrP or HaPrP could only be infected with species-matched prions. Propagation of mouse and hamster prions in cells expressing BVPrP resulted in strain adaptation in several instances, as evidenced by alterations in conformational stability, glycosylation, susceptibility to anti-prion small molecules, and the inability of BVPrP-adapted mouse prion strains to infect cells expressing MoPrP. Interestingly, cells expressing BVPrP containing the G127V prion gene variant, identified in individuals resistant to kuru, were unable to become infected with prions. Moreover, the G127V polymorphic variant impeded the spontaneous aggregation of recombinant BVPrP. These results demonstrate that BVPrP can facilitate cross-species prion replication in cultured cells and that a single amino acid change can override the prion-permissive nature of BVPrP. This cellular paradigm will be useful for dissecting the molecular features of BVPrP that allow it to function as a universal prion acceptor.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Hamza Arshad
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Zeel Patel
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Genki Amano
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Le Yao Li
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Zaid A M Al-Azzawi
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Surachai Supattapone
- Department of Biochemistry, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, New Hampshire, USA
- Department of Medicine, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, New Hampshire, USA
| | - Gerold Schmitt-Ulms
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Joel C Watts
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Xu S, Abeysekara S, Dudas S, Czub S, Staskevicius A, Mitchell G, Amoako KK, McAllister TA. Biodegradation of bovine spongiform encephalopathy prions in compost. Sci Rep 2022; 12:22233. [PMID: 36564427 PMCID: PMC9789035 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-26201-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2022] [Accepted: 12/12/2022] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
To reduce the transmission risk of bovine spongiform encephalopathy prions (PrPBSE), specified risk materials (SRM) that can harbour PrPBSE are prevented from entering the feed and food chains. As composting is one approach to disposing of SRM, we investigated the inactivation of PrPBSE in lab-scale composters over 28 days and in bin composters over 106-120 days. Lab-scale composting was conducted using 45 kg of feedlot manure with and without chicken feathers. Based on protein misfolding cyclic amplification (PMCA), after 28 days of composting, PrPBSE seeding activity was reduced by 3-4 log10 with feathers and 3 log10 without. Bin composters were constructed using ~ 2200 kg feedlot manure and repeated in 2017 and 2018. PMCA results showed that seeding activity of PrPBSE was reduced by 1-2 log10 in the centre, but only by 1 log10 in the bottom of bin composters. Subsequent assessment by transgenic (Tgbov XV) mouse bioassay confirmed a similar reduction in PrPBSE infectivity. Enrichment for proteolytic microorganisms through the addition of feathers to compost could enhance PrPBSE degradation. In addition to temperature, other factors including varying concentrations of PrPBSE and the nature of proteolytic microbial populations may be responsible for differential degradation of PrPBSE during composting.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Shanwei Xu
- Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Morden Research and Development Centre, 101 Route 100, Morden, MB, R6M 1Y5, Canada.
| | - Sujeema Abeysekara
- Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Lethbridge Research and Development Centre, Lethbridge, AB, Canada
| | - Sandor Dudas
- Canadian and WOAH Reference Laboratories for BSE, Canadian Food Inspection Agency, Lethbridge, AB, Canada
| | - Stefanie Czub
- Canadian and WOAH Reference Laboratories for BSE, Canadian Food Inspection Agency, Lethbridge, AB, Canada
| | - Antanas Staskevicius
- Canadian and WOAH Reference Laboratories for Scrapie and CWD, Canadian Food Inspection Agency, Ottawa, ON, Canada
| | - Gordon Mitchell
- Canadian and WOAH Reference Laboratories for Scrapie and CWD, Canadian Food Inspection Agency, Ottawa, ON, Canada
| | - Kingsley K Amoako
- National Centres for Animal Disease, Canadian Food Inspection Agency, Lethbridge, AB, Canada
| | - Tim A McAllister
- Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Lethbridge Research and Development Centre, Lethbridge, AB, Canada
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Wu J, Chen D, Shi Q, Dong X. Protein amplification technology: New advances in human prion disease diagnosis. BIOSAFETY AND HEALTH 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bsheal.2021.09.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
|
7
|
Bélondrade M, Nicot S, Mayran C, Bruyere-Ostells L, Almela F, Di Bari MA, Levavasseur E, Watts JC, Fournier-Wirth C, Lehmann S, Haïk S, Nonno R, Bougard D. Sensitive protein misfolding cyclic amplification of sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease prions is strongly seed and substrate dependent. Sci Rep 2021; 11:4058. [PMID: 33603091 PMCID: PMC7893054 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-83630-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/09/2020] [Accepted: 02/05/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Unlike variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease prions, sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease prions have been shown to be difficult to amplify in vitro by protein misfolding cyclic amplification (PMCA). We assessed PMCA of pathological prion protein (PrPTSE) from 14 human sCJD brain samples in 3 substrates: 2 from transgenic mice expressing human prion protein (PrP) with either methionine (M) or valine (V) at position 129, and 1 from bank voles. Brain extracts representing the 5 major clinicopathological sCJD subtypes (MM1/MV1, MM2, MV2, VV1, and VV2) all triggered seeded PrPTSE amplification during serial PMCA with strong seed- and substrate-dependence. Remarkably, bank vole PrP substrate allowed the propagation of all sCJD subtypes with preservation of the initial molecular PrPTSE type. In contrast, PMCA in human PrP substrates was accompanied by a PrPTSE molecular shift during heterologous (M/V129) PMCA reactions, with increased permissiveness of V129 PrP substrate to in vitro sCJD prion amplification compared to M129 PrP substrate. Combining PMCA amplification sensitivities with PrPTSE electrophoretic profiles obtained in the different substrates confirmed the classification of 4 distinct major sCJD prion strains (M1, M2, V1, and V2). Finally, the level of sensitivity required to detect VV2 sCJD prions in cerebrospinal fluid was achieved.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Maxime Bélondrade
- Pathogenesis and Control of Chronic Infections, Etablissement Français du Sang, Inserm, Université de Montpellier, Montpellier, France
| | - Simon Nicot
- Pathogenesis and Control of Chronic Infections, Etablissement Français du Sang, Inserm, Université de Montpellier, Montpellier, France
| | - Charly Mayran
- Pathogenesis and Control of Chronic Infections, Etablissement Français du Sang, Inserm, Université de Montpellier, Montpellier, France
| | - Lilian Bruyere-Ostells
- Pathogenesis and Control of Chronic Infections, Etablissement Français du Sang, Inserm, Université de Montpellier, Montpellier, France
| | - Florian Almela
- Pathogenesis and Control of Chronic Infections, Etablissement Français du Sang, Inserm, Université de Montpellier, Montpellier, France
| | - Michele A Di Bari
- Department of Food Safety, Nutrition and Veterinary Public Health, Istituto Superiore di Sanita, Rome, Italy
| | - Etienne Levavasseur
- Inserm U 1127, CNRS UMR 7225, UPMC Université Paris 06 UMR S 1127, Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle épinière, Sorbonne Universités, Paris, France
| | - Joel C Watts
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases and Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | - Chantal Fournier-Wirth
- Pathogenesis and Control of Chronic Infections, Etablissement Français du Sang, Inserm, Université de Montpellier, Montpellier, France
| | - Sylvain Lehmann
- IRMB, INM, INSERM, CHU Montpellier, (LBPC-PPC), Univ Montpellier, Montpellier, France
| | - Stéphane Haïk
- Inserm U 1127, CNRS UMR 7225, UPMC Université Paris 06 UMR S 1127, Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle épinière, Sorbonne Universités, Paris, France
| | - Romolo Nonno
- Department of Food Safety, Nutrition and Veterinary Public Health, Istituto Superiore di Sanita, Rome, Italy
| | - Daisy Bougard
- Pathogenesis and Control of Chronic Infections, Etablissement Français du Sang, Inserm, Université de Montpellier, Montpellier, France.
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Moudjou M, Castille J, Passet B, Herzog L, Reine F, Vilotte JL, Rezaei H, Béringue V, Igel-Egalon A. Improving the Predictive Value of Prion Inactivation Validation Methods to Minimize the Risks of Iatrogenic Transmission With Medical Instruments. Front Bioeng Biotechnol 2020; 8:591024. [PMID: 33335894 PMCID: PMC7736614 DOI: 10.3389/fbioe.2020.591024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/03/2020] [Accepted: 11/05/2020] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Prions are pathogenic infectious agents responsible for fatal, incurable neurodegenerative diseases in animals and humans. Prions are composed exclusively of an aggregated and misfolded form (PrPSc) of the cellular prion protein (PrPC). During the propagation of the disease, PrPSc recruits and misfolds PrPC into further PrPSc. In human, iatrogenic prion transmission has occurred with incompletely sterilized medical material because of the unusual resistance of prions to inactivation. Most commercial prion disinfectants validated against the historical, well-characterized laboratory strain of 263K hamster prions were recently shown to be ineffective against variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease human prions. These observations and previous reports support the view that any inactivation method must be validated against the prions for which they are intended to be used. Strain-specific variations in PrPSc physico-chemical properties and conformation are likely to explain the strain-specific efficacy of inactivation methods. Animal bioassays have long been used as gold standards to validate prion inactivation methods, by measuring reduction of prion infectivity. Cell-free assays such as the real-time quaking-induced conversion (RT-QuIC) assay and the protein misfolding cyclic amplification (PMCA) assay have emerged as attractive alternatives. They exploit the seeding capacities of PrPSc to exponentially amplify minute amounts of prions in biospecimens. European and certain national medicine agencies recently implemented their guidelines for prion inactivation of non-disposable medical material; they encourage or request the use of human prions and cell-free assays to improve the predictive value of the validation methods. In this review, we discuss the methodological and technical issues regarding the choice of (i) the cell-free assay, (ii) the human prion strain type, (iii) the prion-containing biological material. We also introduce a new optimized substrate for high-throughput PMCA amplification of human prions bound on steel wires, as translational model for prion-contaminated instruments.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Mohammed Moudjou
- Université Paris Saclay, INRAE, UVSQ, VIM, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Johan Castille
- Université Paris Saclay, INRAE, AgroParisTech, GABI, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Bruno Passet
- Université Paris Saclay, INRAE, AgroParisTech, GABI, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Laetitia Herzog
- Université Paris Saclay, INRAE, UVSQ, VIM, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Fabienne Reine
- Université Paris Saclay, INRAE, UVSQ, VIM, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Jean-Luc Vilotte
- Université Paris Saclay, INRAE, AgroParisTech, GABI, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Human Rezaei
- Université Paris Saclay, INRAE, UVSQ, VIM, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Vincent Béringue
- Université Paris Saclay, INRAE, UVSQ, VIM, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Angélique Igel-Egalon
- Université Paris Saclay, INRAE, UVSQ, VIM, Jouy-en-Josas, France.,FB.INT'L, Montigny-le-Bretonneux, France
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Cazzaniga FA, De Luca CMG, Bistaffa E, Consonni A, Legname G, Giaccone G, Moda F. Cell-free amplification of prions: Where do we stand? PROGRESS IN MOLECULAR BIOLOGY AND TRANSLATIONAL SCIENCE 2020; 175:325-358. [PMID: 32958239 DOI: 10.1016/bs.pmbts.2020.08.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Neurodegenerative diseases (NDs) such as Alzheimer's disease (AD), Parkinson's disease (PD), atypical parkinsonisms, frontotemporal dementia (FTLD) and prion diseases are characterized by the accumulation of misfolded proteins in the central nervous system (CNS). Although the cause for the initiation of protein aggregation is not well understood, these aggregates are disease-specific. For instance, AD is characterized by the intraneuronal accumulation of tau and extracellular deposition of amyloid-β (Aβ), PD is marked by the intraneuronal accumulation of α-synuclein, many FTLD are associated with the accumulation of TDP-43 while prion diseases show aggregates of misfolded prion protein. Hence, misfolded proteins are considered disease-specific biomarkers and their identification and localization in the CNS, collected postmortem, is required for a definitive diagnosis. With the development of two innovative cell-free amplification techniques named Protein Misfolding Cyclic Amplification (PMCA) and Real-Time Quaking-Induced Conversion (RT-QuIC), traces of disease-specific biomarkers were found in CSF and other peripheral tissues (e.g., urine, blood, and olfactory mucosa) of patients with different NDs. These techniques exploit an important feature shared by many misfolded proteins, that is their ability to interact with their normally folded counterparts and force them to undergo similar structural rearrangements. Essentially, RT-QuIC and PMCA mimic in vitro the same pathological processes of protein misfolding which occur in vivo in a very rapid manner. For this reason, they have been employed for studying different aspects of protein misfolding but, overall, they seem to be very promising for the premortem diagnosis of NDs.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Federico Angelo Cazzaniga
- Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Carlo Besta, Unit of Neurology 5 and Neuropathology, Milan, Italy
| | | | - Edoardo Bistaffa
- Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Carlo Besta, Unit of Neurology 5 and Neuropathology, Milan, Italy
| | - Alessandra Consonni
- Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Carlo Besta, Neurology IV-Neuroimmunology and Neuromuscular Diseases Unit, Milan, Italy
| | - Giuseppe Legname
- Laboratory of Prion Biology, Department of Neuroscience, Scuola Internazionale Superiore Di Studi Avanzati (SISSA), Trieste, Italy
| | - Giorgio Giaccone
- Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Carlo Besta, Unit of Neurology 5 and Neuropathology, Milan, Italy
| | - Fabio Moda
- Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Carlo Besta, Unit of Neurology 5 and Neuropathology, Milan, Italy.
| |
Collapse
|
10
|
Arshad H, Bourkas MEC, Watts JC. The utility of bank voles for studying prion disease. PROGRESS IN MOLECULAR BIOLOGY AND TRANSLATIONAL SCIENCE 2020; 175:179-211. [PMID: 32958232 DOI: 10.1016/bs.pmbts.2020.08.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
The transmission of prions between species is typically an inefficient process due to the species barrier, which represents incompatibility between prion seed and substrate molecules. Bank voles (Myodes glareolus) are an exception to this rule, as they are susceptible to a diverse range of prion strains from many different animal species. In particular, bank voles can be efficiently infected with most types of human prions and have played a critical role in validating variably protease-sensitive prionopathy (VPSPr) and certain forms of Gerstmann-Sträussler-Scheinker (GSS) disease as bona fide prion disorders rather than non-transmissible proteinopathies. The bank vole prion protein (BVPrP) confers a "universal prion acceptor" phenotype when expressed in mice and when used as a substrate for in vitro prion amplification assays, indicating that the unique prion transmission properties of bank voles are mediated by BVPrP. Over-expression of BVPrP in mice can also promote the spontaneous development of prion disease, indicating that BVPrP is intrinsically prone to both spontaneous and template-directed misfolding. Here, we discuss the utility of bank voles and BVPrP for prion research and how they have provided new tools for establishing rapid animal bioassays, modeling spontaneous prion disease, standardizing prion diagnostics, and understanding the molecular basis of the species barrier.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Hamza Arshad
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada; Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Matthew E C Bourkas
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada; Department of Biochemistry, 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.
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Identification of a homology-independent linchpin domain controlling mouse and bank vole prion protein conversion. PLoS Pathog 2020; 16:e1008875. [PMID: 32898162 PMCID: PMC7508373 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1008875] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2020] [Revised: 09/22/2020] [Accepted: 08/11/2020] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Prions are unorthodox pathogens that cause fatal neurodegenerative diseases in humans and other mammals. Prion propagation occurs through the self-templating of the pathogenic conformer PrPSc, onto the cell-expressed conformer, PrPC. Here we study the conversion of PrPC to PrPSc using a recombinant mouse PrPSc conformer (mouse protein-only recPrPSc) as a unique tool that can convert bank vole but not mouse PrPC substrates in vitro. Thus, its templating ability is not dependent on sequence homology with the substrate. In the present study, we used chimeric bank vole/mouse PrPC substrates to systematically determine the domain that allows for conversion by Mo protein-only recPrPSc. Our results show that that either the presence of the bank vole amino acid residues E227 and S230 or the absence of the second N-linked glycan are sufficient to allow PrPC substrates to be converted by Mo protein-only recPrPSc and several native infectious prion strains. We propose that residues 227 and 230 and the second glycan are part of a C-terminal domain that acts as a linchpin for bank vole and mouse prion conversion. Prions are unconventional infectious agents that lack nucleic acids such as DNA and RNA, and the mechanism by which prions replicate is not fully understood. It has been established that a central feature of the replication mechanism involves the misfolding of a host protein (PrPC) into an infectious shape termed PrPSc, but it is unclear how this misfolding occurs. Interestingly, it has been observed that a particular animal species, the European bank vole, is unusually susceptible to prion infection and that this near-universal susceptibility is caused by the specific PrPC sequence of this protein. Here we use a powerful and unique biochemical system to determine the specific region of bank vole PrPC that is primarily responsible for its propensity to misfold into PrPSc. This critical region, which is located at the extreme C-terminal end of the protein, appears to act as a linchpin domain that normally stabilizes the shape of PrPC and thereby regulates its misfolding into PrPSc.
Collapse
|
12
|
Candelise N, Baiardi S, Franceschini A, Rossi M, Parchi P. Towards an improved early diagnosis of neurodegenerative diseases: the emerging role of in vitro conversion assays for protein amyloids. Acta Neuropathol Commun 2020; 8:117. [PMID: 32711575 PMCID: PMC7382043 DOI: 10.1186/s40478-020-00990-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/07/2020] [Accepted: 07/06/2020] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Tissue accumulation of abnormal aggregates of amyloidogenic proteins such as prion protein, α-synuclein, and tau represents the hallmark of most common neurodegenerative disorders and precedes the onset of symptoms by years. As a consequence, the sensitive and specific detection of abnormal forms of these proteins in patients' accessible tissues or fluids as biomarkers may have a significant impact on the clinical diagnosis of these disorders. By exploiting seeded polymerization propagation mechanisms to obtain cell-free reactions that allow highly amplified detection of these amyloid proteins, novel emerging in vitro techniques, such as the real-time quaking-induced conversion assay (RT-QuIC) have paved the way towards this important goal. Given its high accuracy in identifying misfolded forms of prion protein from Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) CSF, RT-QuIC has already been included in the diagnostic criteria for the clinical diagnosis of sporadic CJD, the most common human prion disease. By showing that this assay may also accurately discriminate between Lewy body disorders and other forms of parkinsonisms or dementias, more recent studies strongly suggested that CSF RT-QuIC can also be successfully applied to synucleinopathies. Finally, preliminary encouraging data also suggested that CSF RT-QuIC might also work for tau protein, and accurately distinguish between 3R- and 4R tauopathies, including Pick's disease, progressive supranuclear palsy, and corticobasal degeneration. Here we will review the state of the art of cell-free aggregation assays, their current diagnostic value and putative limitations, and the future perspectives for their expanded use in clinical practice.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Niccolò Candelise
- Department of Experimental, Diagnostic and Specialty Medicine (DIMES), University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - Simone Baiardi
- IRCCS, Istituto delle Scienze Neurologiche di Bologna, Ospedale Bellaria, Via Altura 1/8, 40139 Bologna, Italy
- Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - Alessia Franceschini
- IRCCS, Istituto delle Scienze Neurologiche di Bologna, Ospedale Bellaria, Via Altura 1/8, 40139 Bologna, Italy
| | - Marcello Rossi
- IRCCS, Istituto delle Scienze Neurologiche di Bologna, Ospedale Bellaria, Via Altura 1/8, 40139 Bologna, Italy
| | - Piero Parchi
- Department of Experimental, Diagnostic and Specialty Medicine (DIMES), University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
- IRCCS, Istituto delle Scienze Neurologiche di Bologna, Ospedale Bellaria, Via Altura 1/8, 40139 Bologna, Italy
| |
Collapse
|
13
|
Burke CM, Walsh DJ, Mark KMK, Deleault NR, Nishina KA, Agrimi U, Di Bari MA, Supattapone S. Cofactor and glycosylation preferences for in vitro prion conversion are predominantly determined by strain conformation. PLoS Pathog 2020; 16:e1008495. [PMID: 32294141 PMCID: PMC7185723 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1008495] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2020] [Revised: 04/27/2020] [Accepted: 03/24/2020] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Prion diseases are caused by the misfolding of a host-encoded glycoprotein, PrPC, into a pathogenic conformer, PrPSc. Infectious prions can exist as different strains, composed of unique conformations of PrPSc that generate strain-specific biological traits, including distinctive patterns of PrPSc accumulation throughout the brain. Prion strains from different animal species display different cofactor and PrPC glycoform preferences to propagate efficiently in vitro, but it is unknown whether these molecular preferences are specified by the amino acid sequence of PrPC substrate or by the conformation of PrPSc seed. To distinguish between these two possibilities, we used bank vole PrPC to propagate both hamster or mouse prions (which have distinct cofactor and glycosylation preferences) with a single, common substrate. We performed reconstituted sPMCA reactions using either (1) phospholipid or RNA cofactor molecules, or (2) di- or un-glycosylated bank vole PrPC substrate. We found that prion strains from either species are capable of propagating efficiently using bank vole PrPC substrates when reactions contained the same PrPC glycoform or cofactor molecule preferred by the PrPSc seed in its host species. Thus, we conclude that it is the conformation of the input PrPSc seed, not the amino acid sequence of the PrPC substrate, that primarily determines species-specific cofactor and glycosylation preferences. These results support the hypothesis that strain-specific patterns of prion neurotropism are generated by selection of differentially distributed cofactors molecules and/or PrPC glycoforms during prion replication.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Cassandra M. Burke
- Departments of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, New Hampshire, United States of America
| | - Daniel J. Walsh
- Departments of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, New Hampshire, United States of America
| | - Kenneth M. K. Mark
- Departments of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, New Hampshire, United States of America
| | - Nathan R. Deleault
- Departments of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, New Hampshire, United States of America
| | - Koren A. Nishina
- Departments of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, New Hampshire, United States of America
| | - Umberto Agrimi
- Department of Veterinary Public Health and Food Safety, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Michele A. Di Bari
- Department of Veterinary Public Health and Food Safety, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Surachai Supattapone
- Departments of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, New Hampshire, United States of America
- Department of Medicine, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, New Hampshire, United States of America
| |
Collapse
|
14
|
Nonno R, Notari S, Di Bari MA, Cali I, Pirisinu L, d'Agostino C, Cracco L, Kofskey D, Vanni I, Lavrich J, Parchi P, Agrimi U, Gambetti P. Variable Protease-Sensitive Prionopathy Transmission to Bank Voles. Emerg Infect Dis 2019; 25:73-81. [PMID: 30561322 PMCID: PMC6302590 DOI: 10.3201/eid2501.180807] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Variably protease-sensitive prionopathy (VPSPr), a recently described human sporadic prion disease, features a protease-resistant, disease-related prion protein (resPrPD) displaying 5 fragments reminiscent of Gerstmann-Sträussler-Scheinker disease. Experimental VPSPr transmission to human PrP-expressing transgenic mice, although replication of the VPSPr resPrPD profile succeeded, has been incomplete because of second passage failure. We bioassayed VPSPr in bank voles, which are susceptible to human prion strains. Transmission was complete; first-passage attack rates were 5%-35%, and second-passage rates reached 100% and survival times were 50% shorter. We observed 3 distinct phenotypes and resPrPD profiles; 2 imitated sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease resPrPD, and 1 resembled Gerstmann-Sträussler-Scheinker disease resPrPD. The first 2 phenotypes may be related to the presence of minor PrPD components in VPSPr. Full VPSPr transmission confirms permissiveness of bank voles to human prions and suggests that bank vole PrP may efficiently reveal an underrepresented native strain but does not replicate the complex VPSPr PrPD profile.
Collapse
|
15
|
Moda F, Bolognesi ML, Legname G. Novel screening approaches for human prion diseases drug discovery. Expert Opin Drug Discov 2019; 14:983-993. [PMID: 31271065 DOI: 10.1080/17460441.2019.1637851] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
Introduction: Human prion diseases are rare fatal neurodegenerative diseases caused by the misfolding and aggregation of the prion protein in the form of infectious prions. So far, these diseases are incurable. One of the major difficulties in identifying suitable drugs is the availability of robust preclinical screening methods. All molecules identified have been screened using cell-based assays and in vivo murine models. The existence of a continuum of prion strains has hampered the identification of efficacious molecules modulating the progression of different forms of the disease. Areas covered: The advent of new in vitro screening methodologies is allowing for novel strategies to develop new compounds that could interfere with a broad range of diseases. In particular, two innovative techniques named Real Time Quaking Induced Conversion (RT-QuIC) and Protein Misfolding Cyclic Amplification (PMCA) have opened new venues for testing compounds in a rapid a reproducible way. These are discussed within. Expert opinion: For human prion diseases, one major hurdle has been a well-defined screening methodology. In other animal species, cell-based assays have been employed that could replicate animal prions indefinitely. Such a tool for human prion diseases is still missing. Therefore, the advent of RT-QuIC and PMCA has proven instrumental to overcome this limitation.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Fabio Moda
- Division of Neurology 5 - Neuropathology, Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Carlo Besta , Milano , Italy
| | - Maria Laura Bolognesi
- Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology, Alma Mater Studiorum - University of Bologna , Bologna , Italy
| | - Giuseppe Legname
- Laboratory of Prion Biology, Department of Neuroscience, Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati (SISSA) , Trieste , Italy
| |
Collapse
|
16
|
Di Fede G, Giaccone G, Salmona M, Tagliavini F. Translational Research in Alzheimer's and Prion Diseases. J Alzheimers Dis 2019; 62:1247-1259. [PMID: 29172000 PMCID: PMC5869996 DOI: 10.3233/jad-170770] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Translational neuroscience integrates the knowledge derived by basic neuroscience with the development of new diagnostic and therapeutic tools that may be applied to clinical practice in neurological diseases. This information can be used to improve clinical trial designs and outcomes that will accelerate drug development, and to discover novel biomarkers which can be efficiently employed to early recognize neurological disorders and provide information regarding the effects of drugs on the underlying disease biology. Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and prion disease are two classes of neurodegenerative disorders characterized by incomplete knowledge of the molecular mechanisms underlying their occurrence and the lack of valid biomarkers and effective treatments. For these reasons, the design of therapies that prevent or delay the onset, slow the progression, or improve the symptoms associated to these disorders is urgently needed. During the last few decades, translational research provided a framework for advancing development of new diagnostic devices and promising disease-modifying therapies for patients with prion encephalopathies and AD. In this review, we provide present evidence of how supportive can be the translational approach to the study of dementias and show some results of our preclinical studies which have been translated to the clinical application following the ‘bed-to-bench-and-back’ research model.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Giuseppe Di Fede
- IRCCS Foundation "Carlo Besta" Neurological Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Giorgio Giaccone
- IRCCS Foundation "Carlo Besta" Neurological Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Mario Salmona
- IRCCS Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche "Mario Negri", Milan, Italy
| | | |
Collapse
|
17
|
Burke CM, Walsh DJ, Steele AD, Agrimi U, Di Bari MA, Watts JC, Supattapone S. Full restoration of specific infectivity and strain properties from pure mammalian prion protein. PLoS Pathog 2019; 15:e1007662. [PMID: 30908557 PMCID: PMC6448948 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1007662] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2018] [Revised: 04/04/2019] [Accepted: 02/27/2019] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
The protein-only hypothesis predicts that infectious mammalian prions are composed solely of PrPSc, a misfolded conformer of the normal prion protein, PrPC. However, protein-only PrPSc preparations lack significant levels of prion infectivity, leading to the alternative hypothesis that cofactor molecules are required to form infectious prions. Here, we show that prions with parental strain properties and full specific infectivity can be restored from protein-only PrPSc in vitro. The restoration reaction is rapid, potent, and requires bank vole PrPC substrate, post-translational modifications, and cofactor molecules. To our knowledge, this represents the first report in which the essential properties of an infectious mammalian prion have been restored from pure PrP without adaptation. These findings provide evidence for a unified hypothesis of prion infectivity in which the global structure of protein-only PrPSc accurately stores latent infectious and strain information, but cofactor molecules control a reversible switch that unmasks biological infectivity.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Cassandra M. Burke
- Departments of Biochemistry and Cell Biology at Darthmouth, Hanover, New Hampshire, United States of America
| | - Daniel J. Walsh
- Departments of Biochemistry and Cell Biology at Darthmouth, Hanover, New Hampshire, United States of America
| | - Alexander D. Steele
- Departments of Biochemistry and Cell Biology at Darthmouth, Hanover, New Hampshire, United States of America
| | - Umberto Agrimi
- Department of Veterinary Public Health and Food Safety, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Michele Angelo Di Bari
- Department of Veterinary Public Health and Food Safety, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Joel C. Watts
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases and Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Surachai Supattapone
- Departments of Biochemistry and Cell Biology at Darthmouth, Hanover, New Hampshire, United States of America
- Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, New Hampshire, United States of America
| |
Collapse
|
18
|
Bastian FO. Combined Creutzfeldt-Jakob/ Alzheimer's Disease Cases are Important in Search for Microbes in Alzheimer's Disease. J Alzheimers Dis 2018; 56:867-873. [PMID: 28059790 DOI: 10.3233/jad-160999] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
The question whether Alzheimer's disease is infectious as brought up in the recent editorial published in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease is complicated by the controversy whether the causal agent is a microbe or a misfolded host protein (amyloid). The replicating amyloid (prion) theory, based upon data from studies of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) and other transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs), has been challenged since the prion can be separated from TSE infectivity, and spiroplasma, a wall-less bacterium, has been shown to be involved in the pathogenesis of CJD. Further support for a microbial cause for AD comes from occurrence of mixed CJD/AD cases involving up to 15% of AD brains submitted to brain banks. The association of CJD with AD suggests a common etiology rather than simply being a medical curiosity. A co-infection with the transmissible agent of CJD, which we propose to be a Spiroplasma sp., would explain the diversity of bacteria shown to be associated with cases of AD.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Frank O Bastian
- School of Animal Science, Louisiana State University Agricultural Center, Baton Rouge, LA, USA.,Tulane Medical School, New Orleans, LA, USA.,Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX, USA
| |
Collapse
|
19
|
Villar-Piqué A, Schmitz M, Candelise N, Ventura S, Llorens F, Zerr I. Molecular and Clinical Aspects of Protein Aggregation Assays in Neurodegenerative Diseases. Mol Neurobiol 2018; 55:7588-7605. [DOI: 10.1007/s12035-018-0926-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2017] [Accepted: 01/24/2018] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
|
20
|
Abstract
Protein amplification techniques exploit the ability of PrPTSE to induce a conformational change in prion protein (PrP) in a continuous fashion, so that the small amount of PrPTSE found in tissues and biologic fluids in prion diseases can be amplified to a point where they are detectable by conventional laboratory techniques. The most widely used protein aggregation assays are protein misfolding cyclic amplification assay (PMCA) and real-time quaking-induced conversion (RT-QuIC). These assays have been used extensively in both animal and human prion disease in studies ranging from the development of diagnostics, understanding disease transmission potential, to investigating mechanisms underlying neurodegeneration. In human prion disease, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) RT-QuIC analysis has been shown to be a highly sensitive and specific test for sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (sCJD) and has now been included in the diagnostic criteria. It is also a useful investigation for some genetic forms of prion disease where other cerebrospinal fluid tests may be negative. PMCA shows great potential for the diagnosis of variant CJD (vCJD) and has the ability to distinguish vCJD from sCJD, which may become increasingly important with emergence of a patient with neuropathologically confirmed vCJD associated with PRNP codon129MV, which indicates that a new wave of vCJD cases is likely and that these may be difficult to distinguish from sCJD.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Alison J E Green
- National CJD Research and Surveillance Unit, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom.
| | - Gianluigi Zanusso
- Department of Neurosciences, Biomedicine and Movement Sciences, University of Verona, Verona, Italy
| |
Collapse
|
21
|
Carlson GA. Prion Protein and Genetic Susceptibility to Diseases Caused by Its Misfolding. PROGRESS IN MOLECULAR BIOLOGY AND TRANSLATIONAL SCIENCE 2017; 150:123-145. [PMID: 28838658 DOI: 10.1016/bs.pmbts.2017.06.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/17/2023]
Abstract
Early genetic studies on scrapie, an infectious neurodegenerative disease of sheep that was adapted to mice, provided evidence in support of the hypothesis that the agent was a slow virus with a nucleic acid genome independent of the host. Particularly compelling support for an independent genome came from the existence of strains of scrapie agent, some of which were true breeding, while others appeared to mutate under selective pressure. Kuru, a neurodegenerative disease in the remote highlands of Papua New Guinea, had pathological changes similar to those in scrapie and also proved to be transmissible. Genetic studies with the tools of molecular biology and transgenic mice forced a reevaluation of earlier work and supported the prion hypothesis of a novel pathogen devoid of nucleic acid. In this chapter, I discuss the contributions of classical and molecular genetics to understanding PrP prion diseases and to determining that heritable information is enciphered in protein conformation.
Collapse
|
22
|
Moda F. Protein Misfolding Cyclic Amplification of Infectious Prions. PROGRESS IN MOLECULAR BIOLOGY AND TRANSLATIONAL SCIENCE 2017; 150:361-374. [PMID: 28838669 DOI: 10.1016/bs.pmbts.2017.06.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
Transmissible spongiform encephalopathies, or prion diseases, are a group of incurable disorders caused by the accumulation of an abnormally folded prion protein (PrPSc) in the brain. According to the "protein-only" hypothesis, PrPSc is the infectious agent able to propagate the disease by acting as a template for the conversion of the correctly folded prion protein (PrPC) into the pathological isoform. Recently, the mechanism of PrPC conversion has been mimicked in vitro using an innovative technique named protein misfolding cyclic amplification (PMCA). This technology represents a great tool for studying diverse aspects of prion biology in the field of basic research and diagnosis. Moreover, PMCA can be expanded for the study of the misfolding process associated to other neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, and frontotemporal lobar degeneration.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Fabio Moda
- IRCCS Foundation Carlo Besta Neurological Institute, Milan, Italy.
| |
Collapse
|
23
|
Redaelli V, Bistaffa E, Zanusso G, Salzano G, Sacchetto L, Rossi M, De Luca CMG, Di Bari M, Portaleone SM, Agrimi U, Legname G, Roiter I, Forloni G, Tagliavini F, Moda F. Detection of prion seeding activity in the olfactory mucosa of patients with Fatal Familial Insomnia. Sci Rep 2017; 7:46269. [PMID: 28387370 PMCID: PMC5384244 DOI: 10.1038/srep46269] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2017] [Accepted: 03/14/2017] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Fatal Familial Insomnia (FFI) is a genetic prion disease caused by a point mutation in the prion protein gene (PRNP) characterized by prominent thalamic atrophy, diffuse astrogliosis and moderate deposition of PrPSc in the brain. Here, for the first time, we demonstrate that the olfactory mucosa (OM) of patients with FFI contains trace amount of PrPSc detectable by PMCA and RT-QuIC. Quantitative PMCA analysis estimated a PrPSc concentration of about 1 × 10-14 g/ml. In contrast, PrPSc was not detected in OM samples from healthy controls and patients affected by other neurodegenerative disorders, including Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease and frontotemporal dementia. These results indicate that the detection limit of these assays is in the order of a single PrPSc oligomer/molecule with a specificity of 100%.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Veronica Redaelli
- IRCCS Foundation Carlo Besta Neurological Institute, Department of Neurology 5 and Neuropathology, Milan, Italy
| | - Edoardo Bistaffa
- IRCCS Foundation Carlo Besta Neurological Institute, Department of Neurology 5 and Neuropathology, Milan, Italy.,Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati (SISSA), Department of Neuroscience, Trieste, Italy
| | - Gianluigi Zanusso
- University of Verona, Department of Neurosciences, Biomedicine and Movement Sciences, Verona, Italy
| | - Giulia Salzano
- Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati (SISSA), Department of Neuroscience, Trieste, Italy
| | - Luca Sacchetto
- University of Verona, Otolaryngology department, Verona, Italy
| | - Martina Rossi
- IRCCS Foundation Carlo Besta Neurological Institute, Department of Neurology 5 and Neuropathology, Milan, Italy.,Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati (SISSA), Department of Neuroscience, Trieste, Italy
| | - Chiara Maria Giulia De Luca
- IRCCS Foundation Carlo Besta Neurological Institute, Department of Neurology 5 and Neuropathology, Milan, Italy
| | - Michele Di Bari
- Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Department of Veterinary Public Health and Food Safety, Rome, Italy
| | - Sara Maria Portaleone
- Otolaryngology Unit, San Paolo Hospital, Department of Health Sciences, University of Milan, Milan, Italy
| | - Umberto Agrimi
- Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Department of Veterinary Public Health and Food Safety, Rome, Italy
| | - Giuseppe Legname
- Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati (SISSA), Department of Neuroscience, Trieste, Italy.,ELETTRA Laboratory, Sincrotrone Trieste S.C.p.A., Trieste, Italy
| | | | - Gianluigi Forloni
- IRCCS Foundation Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche Mario Negri, Department of Neuroscience, Milan, Italy
| | - Fabrizio Tagliavini
- IRCCS Foundation Carlo Besta Neurological Institute, Department of Neurology 5 and Neuropathology, Milan, Italy
| | - Fabio Moda
- IRCCS Foundation Carlo Besta Neurological Institute, Department of Neurology 5 and Neuropathology, Milan, Italy
| |
Collapse
|
24
|
Abstract
Protein misfolding cyclic amplification (PMCA) amplifies infectious prions in vitro. Over the past decade, PMCA has become an essential tool in prion research. The current chapter describes in detail the PMCA format with beads (PMCAb) and several methods that rely on PMCAb for assessing strain-specific prion amplification rates, for selective amplification of subtypes of PrPSc from a mixture, and a PMCAb approach that can replace animal titration of scrapie material. Development of PMCAb-based methodology is important for addressing a number of research topics including prion strain evolution, selection and adaptation, strain-typing, prion detection, and biochemical requirements for prion replication.
Collapse
|
25
|
Vanni I, Migliore S, Cosseddu GM, Di Bari MA, Pirisinu L, D’Agostino C, Riccardi G, Agrimi U, Nonno R. Isolation of a Defective Prion Mutant from Natural Scrapie. PLoS Pathog 2016; 12:e1006016. [PMID: 27880822 PMCID: PMC5120856 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1006016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/08/2016] [Accepted: 10/21/2016] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
It is widely known that prion strains can mutate in response to modification of the replication environment and we have recently reported that prion mutations can occur in vitro during amplification of vole-adapted prions by Protein Misfolding Cyclic Amplification on bank vole substrate (bvPMCA). Here we exploited the high efficiency of prion replication by bvPMCA to study the in vitro propagation of natural scrapie isolates. Although in vitro vole-adapted PrPSc conformers were usually similar to the sheep counterpart, we repeatedly isolated a PrPSc mutant exclusively when starting from extremely diluted seeds of a single sheep isolate. The mutant and faithful PrPSc conformers showed to be efficiently autocatalytic in vitro and were characterized by different PrP protease resistant cores, spanning aa ∼155–231 and ∼80–231 respectively, and by different conformational stabilities. The two conformers could thus be seen as different bona fide PrPSc types, putatively accounting for prion populations with different biological properties. Indeed, once inoculated in bank vole the faithful conformer was competent for in vivo replication while the mutant was unable to infect voles, de facto behaving like a defective prion mutant. Overall, our findings confirm that prions can adapt and evolve in the new replication environments and that the starting population size can affect their evolutionary landscape, at least in vitro. Furthermore, we report the first example of “authentic” defective prion mutant, composed of brain-derived PrPC and originating from a natural scrapie isolate. Our results clearly indicate that the defective mutant lacks of some structural characteristics, that presumably involve the central region ∼90–155, critical for infectivity but not for in vitro replication. Finally, we propose a molecular mechanism able to account for the discordant in vitro and in vivo behavior, suggesting possible new paths for investigating the molecular bases of prion infectivity. Prions are unique infectious agents, consisting of PrPSc, a self-propagating aggregated conformer of the host-encoded prion protein PrPC. Despite the absence of any nucleic acid information, prions exist as distinct strains that share the same amino acid sequence but differ in their conformation. Moreover, prions can mutate and are thus heterogeneous populations able to evolve and adapt to new replication environments. During in vitro amplification of sheep scrapie, we found that a prion mutant could be obtained from one natural isolate. The prion mutant identified was characterized in vivo and in vitro, showing unusual biochemical and biological features: a smaller than usual C-terminal proteinase resistant core of PrPSc, which spans aa ∼155–231, and the inability to propagate in vivo despite an efficient autocatalytic replication in vitro. With such a signature, we denoted the mutant as a “defective” prion mutant. We thus postulate a new hypothesis for the discrepancy between the in vitro and in vivo behavior of the defective mutant and suggest that the central PrPSc domain ∼90–160 might have a key role in prion replication. This work provides important new insights into the mechanism underpinning prion replication and has numerous implications for understanding the molecular requirements indispensable for prion infectivity.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ilaria Vanni
- Department of Veterinary Public Health and Food Safety, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Sergio Migliore
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale of Sicily "A. Mirri", Palermo, Italy
| | - Gian Mario Cosseddu
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell'Abruzzo e del Molise "G. Caporale", Teramo, Italy
| | - Michele Angelo Di Bari
- Department of Veterinary Public Health and Food Safety, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Laura Pirisinu
- Department of Veterinary Public Health and Food Safety, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Claudia D’Agostino
- Department of Veterinary Public Health and Food Safety, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Geraldina Riccardi
- Department of Veterinary Public Health and Food Safety, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Umberto Agrimi
- Department of Veterinary Public Health and Food Safety, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Romolo Nonno
- Department of Veterinary Public Health and Food Safety, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
- * E-mail:
| |
Collapse
|
26
|
Cervenakova L, Saá P, Yakovleva O, Vasilyeva I, de Castro J, Brown P, Dodd R. Are prions transported by plasma exosomes? Transfus Apher Sci 2016; 55:70-83. [PMID: 27499183 DOI: 10.1016/j.transci.2016.07.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Blood has been shown to contain disease-associated misfolded prion protein (PrP(TSE)) in animals naturally and experimentally infected with various transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE) agents, and in humans infected with variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD). Recently, we have demonstrated PrP(TSE) in extracellular vesicle preparations (EVs) containing exosomes from plasma of mice infected with mouse-adapted vCJD by Protein Misfolding Cyclic Amplification (PMCA). Here we report the detection of PrP(TSE) by PMCA in EVs from plasma of mice infected with Fukuoka-1 (FU), an isolate from a Gerstmann-Sträussler-Scheinker disease patient. We used Tga20 transgenic mice that over-express mouse cellular prion protein, to assay by intracranial injections the level of infectivity in a FU-infected brain homogenate from wild-type mice (FU-BH), and in blood cellular components (BCC), consisting of red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets, plasma EVs, and plasma EVs subjected to multiple rounds of PMCA. Only FU-BH and plasma EVs from FU-infected mice subjected to PMCA that contained PrP(TSE) transmitted disease to Tga20 mice. Plasma EVs not subjected to PMCA and BCC from FU-infected mice failed to transmit disease. These findings confirm the high sensitivity of PMCA for PrP(TSE) detection in plasma EVs and the efficiency of this in vitro method to produce highly infectious prions. The results of our study encourage further research to define the role of EVs and, more specifically exosomes, as blood-borne carriers of PrP(TSE).
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Larisa Cervenakova
- Scientific Affairs, American National Red Cross, Rockville, Maryland, USA.
| | - Paula Saá
- Scientific Affairs, American National Red Cross, Rockville, Maryland, USA
| | - Oksana Yakovleva
- Scientific Affairs, American National Red Cross, Rockville, Maryland, USA; The Laboratory of Bacterial and Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy Agents, DETTD, OBRR, CBER, US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Silver Spring, Maryland, USA
| | - Irina Vasilyeva
- Scientific Affairs, American National Red Cross, Rockville, Maryland, USA
| | - Jorge de Castro
- Scientific Affairs, American National Red Cross, Rockville, Maryland, USA; Meso Scale Diagnostics, LLC, Rockville, Maryland, USA
| | - Paul Brown
- National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
| | - Roger Dodd
- Scientific Affairs, American National Red Cross, Rockville, Maryland, USA
| |
Collapse
|
27
|
Massignan T, Cimini S, Stincardini C, Cerovic M, Vanni I, Elezgarai SR, Moreno J, Stravalaci M, Negro A, Sangiovanni V, Restelli E, Riccardi G, Gobbi M, Castilla J, Borsello T, Nonno R, Biasini E. A cationic tetrapyrrole inhibits toxic activities of the cellular prion protein. Sci Rep 2016; 6:23180. [PMID: 26976106 PMCID: PMC4791597 DOI: 10.1038/srep23180] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2015] [Accepted: 02/29/2016] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Prion diseases are rare neurodegenerative conditions associated with the conformational conversion of the cellular prion protein (PrPC) into PrPSc, a self-replicating isoform (prion) that accumulates in the central nervous system of affected individuals. The structure of PrPSc is poorly defined, and likely to be heterogeneous, as suggested by the existence of different prion strains. The latter represents a relevant problem for therapy in prion diseases, as some potent anti-prion compounds have shown strain-specificity. Designing therapeutics that target PrPC may provide an opportunity to overcome these problems. PrPC ligands may theoretically inhibit the replication of multiple prion strains, by acting on the common substrate of any prion replication reaction. Here, we characterized the properties of a cationic tetrapyrrole [Fe(III)-TMPyP], which was previously shown to bind PrPC, and inhibit the replication of a mouse prion strain. We report that the compound is active against multiple prion strains in vitro and in cells. Interestingly, we also find that Fe(III)-TMPyP inhibits several PrPC-related toxic activities, including the channel-forming ability of a PrP mutant, and the PrPC-dependent synaptotoxicity of amyloid-β (Aβ) oligomers, which are associated with Alzheimer’s Disease. These results demonstrate that molecules binding to PrPC may produce a dual effect of blocking prion replication and inhibiting PrPC-mediated toxicity.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Tania Massignan
- Department of Molecular Biochemistry and Pharmacology, IRCCS-Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche Mario Negri, 20156 Milan, Italy.,Dulbecco Telethon Institute, Laboratory of Prions and Amyloids, Centre for Integrative Biology (CIBIO), University of Trento, 38123 Trento, Italy
| | - Sara Cimini
- Department of Neuroscience, IRCCS-Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche Mario Negri, 20156 Milan, Italy
| | - Claudia Stincardini
- Dulbecco Telethon Institute, Laboratory of Prions and Amyloids, Centre for Integrative Biology (CIBIO), University of Trento, 38123 Trento, Italy
| | - Milica Cerovic
- Department of Neuroscience, IRCCS-Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche Mario Negri, 20156 Milan, Italy
| | - Ilaria Vanni
- Department of Food Safety and Veterinary Health, Istituto Superiore di Sanitá, 00161 Rome, Italy
| | - Saioa R Elezgarai
- Department of Molecular Biochemistry and Pharmacology, IRCCS-Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche Mario Negri, 20156 Milan, Italy.,Dulbecco Telethon Institute, Laboratory of Prions and Amyloids, Centre for Integrative Biology (CIBIO), University of Trento, 38123 Trento, Italy
| | - Jorge Moreno
- CIC bioGUNE, Parque tecnológico de Bizkaia, Derio 48160, Bizkaia, Spain
| | - Matteo Stravalaci
- Department of Molecular Biochemistry and Pharmacology, IRCCS-Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche Mario Negri, 20156 Milan, Italy
| | - Alessandro Negro
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Padova, 35121 Padova, Italy
| | - Valeria Sangiovanni
- Dulbecco Telethon Institute, Laboratory of Prions and Amyloids, Centre for Integrative Biology (CIBIO), University of Trento, 38123 Trento, Italy
| | - Elena Restelli
- Department of Neuroscience, IRCCS-Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche Mario Negri, 20156 Milan, Italy
| | - Geraldina Riccardi
- Department of Food Safety and Veterinary Health, Istituto Superiore di Sanitá, 00161 Rome, Italy
| | - Marco Gobbi
- Department of Molecular Biochemistry and Pharmacology, IRCCS-Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche Mario Negri, 20156 Milan, Italy
| | - Joaquín Castilla
- CIC bioGUNE, Parque tecnológico de Bizkaia, Derio 48160, Bizkaia, Spain.,IKERBASQUE, Basque Foundation for Science, Bilbao 48013, Bizkaia, Spain
| | - Tiziana Borsello
- Department of Neuroscience, IRCCS-Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche Mario Negri, 20156 Milan, Italy.,Department of Pharmacological and Biomolecular Sciences, Milan University, 20133 Milan Italy
| | - Romolo Nonno
- Department of Food Safety and Veterinary Health, Istituto Superiore di Sanitá, 00161 Rome, Italy
| | - Emiliano Biasini
- Department of Neuroscience, IRCCS-Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche Mario Negri, 20156 Milan, Italy.,Department of Food Safety and Veterinary Health, Istituto Superiore di Sanitá, 00161 Rome, Italy.,Dulbecco Telethon Institute, Laboratory of Prions and Amyloids, Centre for Integrative Biology (CIBIO), University of Trento, 38123 Trento, Italy
| |
Collapse
|
28
|
Kipkorir T, Tittman S, Botsios S, Manuelidis L. Highly infectious CJD particles lack prion protein but contain many viral-linked peptides by LC-MS/MS. J Cell Biochem 2015; 115:2012-21. [PMID: 24933657 PMCID: PMC7166504 DOI: 10.1002/jcb.24873] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2014] [Accepted: 06/10/2014] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
It is widely believed that host prion protein (PrP), without nucleic acid, converts itself into an infectious form (PrP‐res) that causes transmissible encephalopathies (TSEs), such as human sporadic CJD (sCJD), endemic sheep scrapie, and epidemic BSE. There are many detailed investigations of PrP, but proteomic studies of other proteins in verified infectious TSE particles have not been pursued, even though brain homogenates without PrP retain their complete infectious titer. To define proteins that may be integral to, process, or protect an agent genome, we developed a streamlined, high‐yield purification of infectious FU‐CJD mouse brain particles with minimal PrP. Proteinase K (PK) abolished all residual particle PrP, but did not reduce infectivity, and viral‐size particles lacking PrP were ∼70S (vs. 90–120S without PK). Furthermore, over 1,500 non‐PrP proteins were still present and positively identified in high titer FU‐CJD particles without detectable PrP by mass spectrometry (LC‐MS/MS); 114 of these peptides were linked to viral motifs in the environmental–viral database, and not evident in parallel uninfected controls. Host components were also identified in both PK and non‐PK treated particles from FU‐CJD mouse brain and human sCJD brain. This abundant cellular data had several surprises, including finding Huntingtin in the sCJD but not normal human brain samples. Similarly, the neural Wiskott–Aldrich sequence and multivesicular and endosome components associated with retromer APP (Alzheimer amyloid) processing were only in sCJD. These cellular findings suggest that new therapies directed at retromer–vesicular trafficking in other neurodegenerative diseases may also counteract late‐onset sCJD PrP amyloid pathology. J. Cell. Biochem. 115: 2012–2021, 2014. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Terry Kipkorir
- Section of Neuropathology, Department of Surgery, Yale University Medical School, 333 Cedar St, New Haven, Connecticut, 06510
| | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
29
|
Müller H, Brener O, Andreoletti O, Piechatzek T, Willbold D, Legname G, Heise H. Progress towards structural understanding of infectious sheep PrP-amyloid. Prion 2015; 8:344-58. [PMID: 25482596 PMCID: PMC4601355 DOI: 10.4161/19336896.2014.983754] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
The still elusive structural difference of non-infectious and infectious amyloid of the mammalian prion protein (PrP) is a major pending milestone in understanding protein-mediated infectivity in neurodegenerative diseases. Preparations of PrP-amyloid proven to be infectious have never been investigated with a high-resolution technique. All available models to date have been based on low-resolution data. Here, we establish protocols for the preparation of infectious samples of full-length recombinant (rec) PrP-amyloid in NMR-sufficient amounts by spontaneous fibrillation and seeded fibril growth from brain extract. We link biological and structural data of infectious recPrP-amyloid, derived from bioassays, atomic force microscopy, and solid-state NMR spectroscopy. Our data indicate a semi-mobile N-terminus, some residues with secondary chemical shifts typical of α-helical secondary structure in the middle part between ∼115 to ∼155, and a distinct β-sheet core C-terminal of residue ∼155. These findings are not in agreement with all current models for PrP-amyloid. We also provide evidence that samples seeded from brain extract may not differ in the overall arrangement of secondary structure elements, but rather in the flexibility of protein segments outside the β-core region. Taken together, our protocols provide an essential basis for the high-resolution characterization of non-infectious and infectious PrP-amyloid in the near future.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Henrik Müller
- a Institute of Complex Systems; ICS-6: Structural Biochemistry; Forschungszentrum Jülich (FZJ) ; Jülich , Germany
| | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
30
|
Orrú CD, Groveman BR, Raymond LD, Hughson AG, Nonno R, Zou W, Ghetti B, Gambetti P, Caughey B. Bank Vole Prion Protein As an Apparently Universal Substrate for RT-QuIC-Based Detection and Discrimination of Prion Strains. PLoS Pathog 2015; 11:e1004983. [PMID: 26086786 PMCID: PMC4472236 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1004983] [Citation(s) in RCA: 124] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/09/2015] [Accepted: 05/26/2015] [Indexed: 01/20/2023] Open
Abstract
Prions propagate as multiple strains in a wide variety of mammalian species. The detection of all such strains by a single ultrasensitive assay such as Real Time Quaking-induced Conversion (RT-QuIC) would facilitate prion disease diagnosis, surveillance and research. Previous studies have shown that bank voles, and transgenic mice expressing bank vole prion protein, are susceptible to most, if not all, types of prions. Here we show that bacterially expressed recombinant bank vole prion protein (residues 23-230) is an effective substrate for the sensitive RT-QuIC detection of all of the different prion types that we have tested so far – a total of 28 from humans, cattle, sheep, cervids and rodents, including several that have previously been undetectable by RT-QuIC or Protein Misfolding Cyclic Amplification. Furthermore, comparison of the relative abilities of different prions to seed positive RT-QuIC reactions with bank vole and not other recombinant prion proteins allowed discrimination of prion strains such as classical and atypical L-type bovine spongiform encephalopathy, classical and atypical Nor98 scrapie in sheep, and sporadic and variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in humans. Comparison of protease-resistant RT-QuIC conversion products also aided strain discrimination and suggested the existence of several distinct classes of prion templates among the many strains tested. Prion diseases are neurodegenerative disorders that propagate as multiple strains in a variety of mammalian species. The detection of all such prion types by a single ultrasensitive assay, such as the Real Time Quaking-induced Conversion (RT-QuIC) assay, would facilitate prion disease diagnosis, surveillance, and research. Here we show detection of minute amounts of 28 different prion types from humans, cattle, sheep, cervids and rodents, some of which were previously undetectable, using a single recombinant bank vole prion protein substrate. We also demonstrate the generation of prion type-dependent RT-QuIC conversion products which may help with prion strain discrimination and the characterization of distinct classes of prion templates. Finally, we describe a practical strategy for prion strain discrimination, e.g. classical and atypical L-type bovine spongiform encephalopathy; classical and atypical Nor98 sheep scrapie; and human sporadic and variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. Thus, our study provides a basis for wide-ranging prion detection and strain discrimination.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Christina D. Orrú
- Laboratory of Persistent Viral Diseases, Rocky Mountain Laboratories, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Hamilton, Montana, United States of America
| | - Bradley R. Groveman
- Laboratory of Persistent Viral Diseases, Rocky Mountain Laboratories, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Hamilton, Montana, United States of America
| | - Lynne D. Raymond
- Laboratory of Persistent Viral Diseases, Rocky Mountain Laboratories, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Hamilton, Montana, United States of America
| | - Andrew G. Hughson
- Laboratory of Persistent Viral Diseases, Rocky Mountain Laboratories, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Hamilton, Montana, United States of America
| | - Romolo Nonno
- Department of Veterinary Public Health and Food Safety, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Wenquan Zou
- Department of Pathology, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio, United States of America
| | - Bernardino Ghetti
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, Indiana, United States of America
| | - Pierluigi Gambetti
- Department of Pathology, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio, United States of America
| | - Byron Caughey
- Laboratory of Persistent Viral Diseases, Rocky Mountain Laboratories, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Hamilton, Montana, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| |
Collapse
|
31
|
Chianini F, Cosseddu GM, Steele P, Hamilton S, Hawthorn J, Síso S, Pang Y, Finlayson J, Eaton SL, Reid HW, Dagleish MP, Di Bari MA, D’Agostino C, Agrimi U, Terry L, Nonno R. Correlation between infectivity and disease associated prion protein in the nervous system and selected edible tissues of naturally affected scrapie sheep. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0122785. [PMID: 25807559 PMCID: PMC4373927 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0122785] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/19/2014] [Accepted: 02/12/2015] [Indexed: 01/19/2023] Open
Abstract
The transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs) or prion diseases are a group of fatal neurodegenerative disorders characterised by the accumulation of a pathological form of a host protein known as prion protein (PrP). The validation of abnormal PrP detection techniques is fundamental to allow the use of high-throughput laboratory based tests, avoiding the limitations of bioassays. We used scrapie, a prototype TSE, to examine the relationship between infectivity and laboratory based diagnostic tools. The data may help to optimise strategies to prevent exposure of humans to small ruminant TSE material via the food chain. Abnormal PrP distribution/accumulation was assessed by immunohistochemistry (IHC), Western blot (WB) and ELISA in samples from four animals. In addition, infectivity was detected using a sensitive bank vole bioassay with selected samples from two of the four sheep and protein misfolding cyclic amplification using bank vole brain as substrate (vPMCA) was also carried out in selected samples from one animal. Lymph nodes, oculomotor muscles, sciatic nerve and kidney were positive by IHC, WB and ELISA, although at levels 100-1000 fold lower than the brain, and contained detectable infectivity by bioassay. Tissues not infectious by bioassay were also negative by all laboratory tests including PMCA. Although discrepancies were observed in tissues with very low levels of abnormal PrP, there was an overall good correlation between IHC, WB, ELISA and bioassay results. Most importantly, there was a good correlation between the detection of abnormal PrP in tissues using laboratory tests and the levels of infectivity even when the titre was low. These findings provide useful information for risk modellers and represent a first step toward the validation of laboratory tests used to quantify prion infectivity, which would greatly aid TSE risk assessment policies.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Francesca Chianini
- Moredun Research Institute, Pentlands Science Park, Bush Loan, Penicuik, EH26 0PZ, United Kingdom
- * E-mail:
| | - Gian Mario Cosseddu
- Department of Food Safety and Veterinary Public Health, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Viale Regina Elena 299, 00161, Rome, Italy
| | - Philip Steele
- Moredun Research Institute, Pentlands Science Park, Bush Loan, Penicuik, EH26 0PZ, United Kingdom
| | - Scott Hamilton
- Moredun Research Institute, Pentlands Science Park, Bush Loan, Penicuik, EH26 0PZ, United Kingdom
| | - Jeremy Hawthorn
- Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA -Weybridge), New Haw, Addlestone, Surrey, KT15 3NB, United Kingdom
| | - Sílvia Síso
- Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA-Lasswade), Pentlands Science Park, Bush Loan, Penicuik, EH26 0PZ, United Kingdom
| | - Yvonne Pang
- Moredun Research Institute, Pentlands Science Park, Bush Loan, Penicuik, EH26 0PZ, United Kingdom
| | - Jeanie Finlayson
- Moredun Research Institute, Pentlands Science Park, Bush Loan, Penicuik, EH26 0PZ, United Kingdom
| | - Samantha L. Eaton
- Moredun Research Institute, Pentlands Science Park, Bush Loan, Penicuik, EH26 0PZ, United Kingdom
| | - Hugh W. Reid
- Moredun Research Institute, Pentlands Science Park, Bush Loan, Penicuik, EH26 0PZ, United Kingdom
| | - Mark P. Dagleish
- Moredun Research Institute, Pentlands Science Park, Bush Loan, Penicuik, EH26 0PZ, United Kingdom
| | - Michele Angelo Di Bari
- Department of Food Safety and Veterinary Public Health, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Viale Regina Elena 299, 00161, Rome, Italy
| | - Claudia D’Agostino
- Department of Food Safety and Veterinary Public Health, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Viale Regina Elena 299, 00161, Rome, Italy
| | - Umberto Agrimi
- Department of Food Safety and Veterinary Public Health, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Viale Regina Elena 299, 00161, Rome, Italy
| | - Linda Terry
- Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA -Weybridge), New Haw, Addlestone, Surrey, KT15 3NB, United Kingdom
| | - Romolo Nonno
- Department of Food Safety and Veterinary Public Health, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Viale Regina Elena 299, 00161, Rome, Italy
| |
Collapse
|
32
|
The standard scrapie cell assay: development, utility and prospects. Viruses 2015; 7:180-98. [PMID: 25602372 PMCID: PMC4306833 DOI: 10.3390/v7010180] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/05/2014] [Accepted: 01/06/2015] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Prion diseases are a family of fatal neurodegenerative diseases that involve the misfolding of a host protein, PrPC. Measuring prion infectivity is necessary for determining efficacy of a treatment or infectivity of a prion purification procedure; animal bioassays are, however, very expensive and time consuming. The Standard Scrapie Cell Assay (SSCA) provides an alternative approach. The SSCA facilitates quantitative in vitro analysis of prion strains, titres and biological properties. Given its robust nature and potential for high throughput, the SSCA has substantial utility for in vitro characterization of prions and can be deployed in a number of settings. Here we provide an overview on establishing the SSCA, its use in studies of disease dissemination and pathogenesis, potential pitfalls and a number of remaining challenges.
Collapse
|
33
|
Detection of the disease-associated form of the prion protein in biological samples. Bioanalysis 2015; 7:253-61. [PMID: 25587841 DOI: 10.4155/bio.14.301] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs) are neurodegenerative diseases that occur in a variety of mammals. In TSEs, a chromosomally encoded protein (PrPC) undergoes a conformational change to the disease-associated form (PrPd). PrPd is capable of inducing a change in additional molecules of PrPC to the PrPd conformation. TSEs are inevitably fatal and cross-species transmission is known to occur, and there is potential for transmission via blood transfusion and organ transplantation in humans. Thus, there is interest in high-quality diagnostics for both humans and animals. This review summarizes methods of TSE detection currently in use in diagnostic settings and discusses recent advances in PrPd detection that afford substantial enhancements in sensitivity over currently approved methods for use in clinical settings.
Collapse
|
34
|
Saá P, Cervenakova L. Protein misfolding cyclic amplification (PMCA): Current status and future directions. Virus Res 2014; 207:47-61. [PMID: 25445341 DOI: 10.1016/j.virusres.2014.11.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2014] [Revised: 10/05/2014] [Accepted: 11/06/2014] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Abstract
Transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs) most commonly known as prion diseases are invariably fatal neurological disorders that affect humans and animals. These disorders differ from other neurodegenerative conformational diseases caused by the accumulation in the brain of misfolded proteins, sometimes with amyloid properties, in their ability to infect susceptible species by various routes. While the infectious properties of amyloidogenic proteins, other than misfolded prion protein (PrP(TSE)), are currently under scrutiny, their potential to transmit from cell to cell, one of the intrinsic properties of the prion, has been recently shown in vitro and in vivo. Over the decades, various cell culture and laboratory animal models have been developed to study TSEs. These assays have been widely used in a variety of applications but showed to be time consuming and entailed elevated costs. Novel economic and fast alternatives became available with the development of in vitro assays that are based on the property of conformationally abnormal PrP(TSE) to recruit normal cellular PrP(C) to misfold. These include the cell-free conversion assay, protein misfolding cyclic amplification (PMCA) and quaking induced conversion assay (QuIC), of which the PMCA has been the only technology shown to generate infectious prions. Moreover, it allows indefinite amplification of PrP(TSE) with strain-specific biochemical and biological properties of the original molecules and under certain conditions may give rise to new spontaneously generated prions. The method also allows addressing the species barrier phenomena and assessing possible risks of animal-to-animal and animal-to-human transmission. Additionally, its unprecedented sensitivity has made possible the detection of as little as one infectious dose of PrP(TSE) and the biochemical identification of this protein in different tissues and biological fluids, including blood, cerebral spinal fluid (CSF), semen, milk, urine and saliva during the pre-clinical and clinical phases of the disease. The mechanistic similarities between TSEs and other conformational disorders have resulted in the adaptation of the PMCA to the amplification and detection of various amyloidogenic proteins. Here we provide a compelling discussion of the different applications of this technology to the study of TSEs and other neurodegenerative diseases.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Paula Saá
- Transmissible Diseases Department, American National Red Cross, Biomedical Services, Holland Laboratory, 15601 Crabbs Branch Way, Rockville, MD 20855, United States.
| | - Larisa Cervenakova
- Transmissible Diseases Department, American National Red Cross, Biomedical Services, Holland Laboratory, 15601 Crabbs Branch Way, Rockville, MD 20855, United States
| |
Collapse
|
35
|
Protocol for further laboratory investigations into the distribution of infectivity of Atypical BSE. EFSA J 2014. [DOI: 10.2903/j.efsa.2014.3798] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/27/2023] Open
|
36
|
Singh N, Haldar S, Tripathi AK, McElwee MK, Horback K, Beserra A. Iron in neurodegenerative disorders of protein misfolding: a case of prion disorders and Parkinson's disease. Antioxid Redox Signal 2014; 21:471-84. [PMID: 24512387 PMCID: PMC4076993 DOI: 10.1089/ars.2014.5874] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
SIGNIFICANCE Intracellular and extracellular aggregation of a specific protein or protein fragments is the principal pathological event in several neurodegenerative conditions. We describe two such conditions: sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (sCJD), a rare but potentially infectious and invariably fatal human prion disorder, and Parkinson's disease (PD), a common neurodegenerative condition second only to Alzheimer's disease in prevalence. In sCJD, a cell surface glycoprotein known as the prion protein (PrP(C)) undergoes a conformational change to PrP-scrapie, a pathogenic and infectious isoform that accumulates in the brain parenchyma as insoluble aggregates. In PD, α-synuclein, a cytosolic protein, forms insoluble aggregates that accumulate in neurons of the substantia nigra and cause neurotoxicity. RECENT ADVANCES Although distinct processes are involved in the pathogenesis of sCJD and PD, both share brain iron dyshomeostasis as a common associated feature that is reflected in the cerebrospinal fluid in a disease-specific manner. CRITICAL ISSUES Since PrP(C) and α-synuclein play a significant role in maintaining cellular iron homeostasis, it is important to understand whether the aggregation of these proteins and iron dyshomeostasis are causally related. Here, we discuss recent information on the normal function of PrP(C) and α-synuclein in cellular iron metabolism and the cellular and biochemical processes that contribute to iron imbalance in sCJD and PD. FUTURE DIRECTIONS Improved understanding of the relationship between brain iron imbalance and protein aggregation is likely to help in the development of therapeutic strategies that can restore brain iron homeostasis and mitigate neurotoxicity.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Neena Singh
- 1 Department of Pathology, Case Western Reserve University , Cleveland, Ohio
| | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
37
|
Lacroux C, Comoy E, Moudjou M, Perret-Liaudet A, Lugan S, Litaise C, Simmons H, Jas-Duval C, Lantier I, Béringue V, Groschup M, Fichet G, Costes P, Streichenberger N, Lantier F, Deslys JP, Vilette D, Andréoletti O. Preclinical detection of variant CJD and BSE prions in blood. PLoS Pathog 2014; 10:e1004202. [PMID: 24945656 PMCID: PMC4055790 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1004202] [Citation(s) in RCA: 81] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2014] [Accepted: 05/01/2014] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
The emergence of variant Creutzfeldt Jakob Disease (vCJD) is considered a likely consequence of human dietary exposure to Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) agent. More recently, secondary vCJD cases were identified in patients transfused with blood products prepared from apparently healthy donors who later went on to develop the disease. As there is no validated assay for detection of vCJD/BSE infected individuals the prevalence of the disease in the population remains uncertain. In that context, the risk of vCJD blood borne transmission is considered as a serious concern by health authorities. In this study, appropriate conditions and substrates for highly efficient and specific in vitro amplification of vCJD/BSE agent using Protein Misfolding Cyclic Amplification (PMCA) were first identified. This showed that whatever the origin (species) of the vCJD/BSE agent, the ovine Q171 PrP substrates provided the best amplification performances. These results indicate that the homology of PrP amino-acid sequence between the seed and the substrate is not the crucial determinant of the vCJD agent propagation in vitro. The ability of this method to detect endogenous vCJD/BSE agent in the blood was then defined. In both sheep and primate models of the disease, the assay enabled the identification of infected individuals in the early preclinical stage of the incubation period. Finally, sample panels that included buffy coat from vCJD affected patients and healthy controls were tested blind. The assay identified three out of the four tested vCJD affected patients and no false positive was observed in 141 healthy controls. The negative results observed in one of the tested vCJD cases concurs with results reported by others using a different vCJD agent blood detection assay and raises the question of the potential absence of prionemia in certain patients.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Caroline Lacroux
- UMR INRA ENVT 1225, Interactions Hôtes Agents Pathogènes, Ecole Nationale Vétérinaire de Toulouse, Toulouse, France
| | - Emmanuel Comoy
- CEA, Institute of Emerging Diseases and Innovative Therapies (iMETI), Division of Prions and Related Diseases (SEPIA), Fontenay-aux-Roses, France
| | - Mohammed Moudjou
- UR892 Virologie et Immunologie Moléculaires Centre de Recherche de Jouy-en-Josas, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Armand Perret-Liaudet
- Hospices Civils de Lyon –Laboratoire Diagnostic Maladies à Prions; CNRS, INSERM, UCB Lyon1, Centre de Recherche en Neurosciences de Lyon, BioRan, Bron, France
| | - Séverine Lugan
- UMR INRA ENVT 1225, Interactions Hôtes Agents Pathogènes, Ecole Nationale Vétérinaire de Toulouse, Toulouse, France
| | - Claire Litaise
- UMR INRA ENVT 1225, Interactions Hôtes Agents Pathogènes, Ecole Nationale Vétérinaire de Toulouse, Toulouse, France
| | - Hugh Simmons
- VLA Weybridge, ASU, New Haw, Addlestone, Surrey, United Kingdom
| | | | - Isabelle Lantier
- INRA, UMR 1282 Infectiologie et Santé Publique, Nouzilly, France
| | - Vincent Béringue
- UR892 Virologie et Immunologie Moléculaires Centre de Recherche de Jouy-en-Josas, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Martin Groschup
- Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Greifswald, Insel Riems, Germany
| | - Guillaume Fichet
- UR892 Virologie et Immunologie Moléculaires Centre de Recherche de Jouy-en-Josas, Jouy-en-Josas, France
- Franklab, Montigny-le-Bretonneux, France
| | - Pierrette Costes
- UMR INRA ENVT 1225, Interactions Hôtes Agents Pathogènes, Ecole Nationale Vétérinaire de Toulouse, Toulouse, France
| | - Nathalie Streichenberger
- UR892 Virologie et Immunologie Moléculaires Centre de Recherche de Jouy-en-Josas, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Frederic Lantier
- INRA, UMR 1282 Infectiologie et Santé Publique, Nouzilly, France
| | - Jean Philippe Deslys
- CEA, Institute of Emerging Diseases and Innovative Therapies (iMETI), Division of Prions and Related Diseases (SEPIA), Fontenay-aux-Roses, France
| | - Didier Vilette
- UMR INRA ENVT 1225, Interactions Hôtes Agents Pathogènes, Ecole Nationale Vétérinaire de Toulouse, Toulouse, France
| | - Olivier Andréoletti
- UMR INRA ENVT 1225, Interactions Hôtes Agents Pathogènes, Ecole Nationale Vétérinaire de Toulouse, Toulouse, France
- * E-mail:
| |
Collapse
|
38
|
Abstract
Recently, synthetic prions with a high level of specific infectivity have been produced from chemically defined components in vitro. A major insight arising from these studies is that various classes of host-encoded cofactor molecules such as phosphatidylethanolamine and RNA molecules are required to form and maintain the specific conformation of infectious prions. Synthetic mouse prions formed with phosphatidylethanolamine exhibit levels of specific infectivity ∼1 million-fold greater than "protein-only" prions (Deleault, N. R., Walsh, D. J., Piro, J. R., Wang, F., Wang, X., Ma, J., Rees, J. R., and Supattapone, S. (2012) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 109, E1938-E1946). Moreover, cofactor molecules also appear to regulate prion strain properties by limiting the potential conformations of the prion protein (see Deleault et al. above). The production of fully infectious synthetic prions provides new opportunities to study the mechanism of prion infectivity directly by structural and biochemical methods.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Surachai Supattapone
- From the Departments of Biochemistry and Medicine, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, New Hampshire 03755
| |
Collapse
|
39
|
Watts JC, Giles K, Patel S, Oehler A, DeArmond SJ, Prusiner SB. Evidence that bank vole PrP is a universal acceptor for prions. PLoS Pathog 2014; 10:e1003990. [PMID: 24699458 PMCID: PMC3974871 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1003990] [Citation(s) in RCA: 78] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/27/2013] [Accepted: 01/28/2014] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Bank voles are uniquely susceptible to a wide range of prion strains isolated from many different species. To determine if this enhanced susceptibility to interspecies prion transmission is encoded within the sequence of the bank vole prion protein (BVPrP), we inoculated Tg(M109) and Tg(I109) mice, which express BVPrP containing either methionine or isoleucine at polymorphic codon 109, with 16 prion isolates from 8 different species: humans, cattle, elk, sheep, guinea pigs, hamsters, mice, and meadow voles. Efficient disease transmission was observed in both Tg(M109) and Tg(I109) mice. For instance, inoculation of the most common human prion strain, sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (sCJD) subtype MM1, into Tg(M109) mice gave incubation periods of ∼200 days that were shortened slightly on second passage. Chronic wasting disease prions exhibited an incubation time of ∼250 days, which shortened to ∼150 days upon second passage in Tg(M109) mice. Unexpectedly, bovine spongiform encephalopathy and variant CJD prions caused rapid neurological dysfunction in Tg(M109) mice upon second passage, with incubation periods of 64 and 40 days, respectively. Despite the rapid incubation periods, other strain-specified properties of many prion isolates—including the size of proteinase K–resistant PrPSc, the pattern of cerebral PrPSc deposition, and the conformational stability—were remarkably conserved upon serial passage in Tg(M109) mice. Our results demonstrate that expression of BVPrP is sufficient to engender enhanced susceptibility to a diverse range of prion isolates, suggesting that BVPrP may be a universal acceptor for prions. Prions are infectious proteins that cause devastating neurodegenerative diseases in both humans and animals. Unlike other rodents, bank voles are highly susceptible to prions from many different species, suggesting that bank voles do not impose a “species barrier,” which normally restricts the transmission of prions from one species to another. We were curious as to whether the unprecedented promiscuity of bank voles for prions is due to the specific prion protein sequence expressed, or to some other factor inherent to bank vole physiology. To answer this question, we inoculated transgenic mice that express bank vole prion protein [Tg(BVPrP) mice] with a diverse set of prions deriving from eight different species. Like bank voles, Tg(BVPrP) mice were highly susceptible to prions from all species tested, demonstrating that the BVPrP sequence mediates the enhanced susceptibility of bank voles to prions. Because the amino acid sequences of mouse and BVPrP differ at only eight positions, our results demonstrate that alterations to a small subset of residues within PrP can have a profound effect on the susceptibility of an organism to prions from another species.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Joel C Watts
- Institute for Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California, United States of America; Department of Neurology, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California, United States of America
| | - Kurt Giles
- Institute for Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California, United States of America; Department of Neurology, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California, United States of America
| | - Smita Patel
- Institute for Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California, United States of America
| | - Abby Oehler
- Department of Pathology, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California, United States of America
| | - Stephen J DeArmond
- Institute for Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California, United States of America; Department of Pathology, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California, United States of America
| | - Stanley B Prusiner
- Institute for Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California, United States of America; Department of Neurology, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California, United States of America
| |
Collapse
|
40
|
Vanni I, Di Bari MA, Pirisinu L, D'Agostino C, Agrimi U, Nonno R. In vitro replication highlights the mutability of prions. Prion 2014; 8:154-60. [PMID: 24618479 PMCID: PMC7030905 DOI: 10.4161/pri.28468] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Prions exist as strains, which are thought to reflect PrPSc conformational variants. Prion strains can mutate and it has been proposed that prion mutability depends on an intrinsic heterogeneity of prion populations that would behave as quasispecies. We investigated in vitro prion mutability of 2 strains, by following PrPSc variations of populations serially propagated in PMCA under constant environmental pressure. Each strain was propagated either at low dilution of the seed, i.e., by large population passages, or at limiting dilution, mimicking bottleneck events. In both strains, PrPSc conformational variants were identified only after large population passages, while repeated bottleneck events caused a rapid decline in amplification rates. These findings support the view that mutability is an intrinsic property of prions.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ilaria Vanni
- Department of Veterinary Public Health and Food Safety; Istituto Superiore di Sanità; Rome, Italy
| | - Michele Angelo Di Bari
- Department of Veterinary Public Health and Food Safety; Istituto Superiore di Sanità; Rome, Italy
| | - Laura Pirisinu
- Department of Veterinary Public Health and Food Safety; Istituto Superiore di Sanità; Rome, Italy
| | - Claudia D'Agostino
- Department of Veterinary Public Health and Food Safety; Istituto Superiore di Sanità; Rome, Italy
| | - Umberto Agrimi
- Department of Veterinary Public Health and Food Safety; Istituto Superiore di Sanità; Rome, Italy
| | - Romolo Nonno
- Department of Veterinary Public Health and Food Safety; Istituto Superiore di Sanità; Rome, Italy
| |
Collapse
|
41
|
Highly infectious prions generated by a single round of microplate-based protein misfolding cyclic amplification. mBio 2013; 5:e00829-13. [PMID: 24381300 PMCID: PMC3884057 DOI: 10.1128/mbio.00829-13] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Measurements of the presence of prions in biological tissues or fluids rely more and more on cell-free assays. Although protein misfolding cyclic amplification (PMCA) has emerged as a valuable, sensitive tool, it is currently hampered by its lack of robustness and rapidity for high-throughput purposes. Here, we made a number of improvements making it possible to amplify the maximum levels of scrapie prions in a single 48-h round and in a microplate format. The amplification rates and the infectious titer of the PMCA-formed prions appeared similar to those derived from the in vivo laboratory bioassays. This enhanced technique also amplified efficiently prions from different species, including those responsible for human variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. This new format should help in developing ultrasensitive, high-throughput prion assays for cognitive, diagnostic, and therapeutic applications. IMPORTANCE The method developed here allows large-scale, fast, and reliable cell-free amplification of subinfectious levels of prions from different species. The sensitivity and rapidity achieved approach or equal those of other recently developed prion-seeded conversion assays. Our simplified assay may be amenable to high-throughput, automated purposes and serve in a complementary manner with other recently developed assays for urgently needed antemortem diagnostic tests, by using bodily fluids containing small amounts of prion infectivity. Such a combination of assays is of paramount importance to reduce the transfusion risk in the human population and to identify asymptomatic carriers of variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.
Collapse
|
42
|
Haldar S, Beveridge ’AJ, Wong J, Singh A, Galimberti D, Borroni B, Zhu X, Blevins J, Greenlee J, Perry G, Mukhopadhyay CK, Schmotzer C, Singh N. A low-molecular-weight ferroxidase is increased in the CSF of sCJD cases: CSF ferroxidase and transferrin as diagnostic biomarkers for sCJD. Antioxid Redox Signal 2013; 19:1662-75. [PMID: 23379482 PMCID: PMC3809602 DOI: 10.1089/ars.2012.5032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/23/2012] [Revised: 02/01/2013] [Accepted: 02/04/2013] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
AIMS Most biomarkers used for the premortem diagnosis of sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) are surrogate in nature, and provide suboptimal sensitivity and specificity. RESULTS We report that CJD-associated brain iron dyshomeostasis is reflected in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), providing disease-specific diagnostic biomarkers. Analysis of 290 premortem CSF samples from confirmed cases of CJD, Alzheimer's disease, and other dementias (DMs), and 52 non-DM (ND) controls revealed a significant difference in ferroxidase (Frx) activity and transferrin (Tf) levels in sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (sCJD) relative to other DM and ND controls. A combination of CSF Frx and Tf discriminated sCJD from other DMs with a sensitivity of 86.8%, specificity of 92.5%, accuracy of 88.9%, and area-under-the receiver-operating-characteristic (ROC) curve of 0.94. This combination provided a similar diagnostic accuracy in discriminating CJD from rapidly progressing cases who died within 6 months of sample collection. Surprisingly, ceruloplasmin and amyloid precursor protein, the major brain Frxs, displayed minimal activity in the CSF. Most of the Frx activity was concentrated in the <3-kDa fraction in normal and diseased CSF, and resisted heat and proteinase-K treatment. INNOVATION (i) A combination of CSF Frx and Tf provides disease-specific premortem diagnostic biomarkers for sCJD. (ii) A novel, nonenzymatic, nonprotein Frx predominates in human CSF that is distinct from the currently known CSF Frxs. CONCLUSION The underlying cause of iron imbalance is distinct in sCJD relative to other DMs associated with the brain iron imbalance. Thus, change in the CSF levels of iron-management proteins can provide disease-specific biomarkers and insight into the cause of iron imbalance in neurodegenerative conditions.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Swati Haldar
- Department of Pathology, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio
| | - ’Alim J. Beveridge
- Department of Organizational Behavior, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio
| | - Joseph Wong
- Case Medical School, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio
| | - Ajay Singh
- Department of Pathology, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio
| | - Daniela Galimberti
- Department of Pathophysiology and Transplantation, Centro Dino Ferrari, Fondazione Cà Granda, IRCCS Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, University of Milan, Milan, Italy
| | - Barbara Borroni
- Neurology Unit, Centre for Neurodegenerative Disorders, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy
| | - Xiongwei Zhu
- Department of Pathology, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio
| | - Janis Blevins
- Department of Pathology, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio
| | - Justin Greenlee
- Virus and Prion Research Unit, National Animal Disease Center, ARS, USDA, Ames, Iowa
| | - George Perry
- College of Sciences, The University of Texas at San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas
| | | | | | - Neena Singh
- Department of Pathology, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio
| |
Collapse
|
43
|
Red-backed vole brain promotes highly efficient in vitro amplification of abnormal prion protein from macaque and human brains infected with variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease agent. PLoS One 2013; 8:e78710. [PMID: 24205298 PMCID: PMC3813480 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0078710] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/22/2013] [Accepted: 09/16/2013] [Indexed: 12/01/2022] Open
Abstract
Rapid antemortem tests to detect individuals with transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSE) would contribute to public health. We investigated a technique known as protein misfolding cyclic amplification (PMCA) to amplify abnormal prion protein (PrPTSE) from highly diluted variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD)-infected human and macaque brain homogenates, seeking to improve the rapid detection of PrPTSE in tissues and blood. Macaque vCJD PrPTSE did not amplify using normal macaque brain homogenate as substrate (intraspecies PMCA). Next, we tested interspecies PMCA with normal brain homogenate of the southern red-backed vole (RBV), a close relative of the bank vole, seeded with macaque vCJD PrPTSE. The RBV has a natural polymorphism at residue 170 of the PrP-encoding gene (N/N, S/S, and S/N). We investigated the effect of this polymorphism on amplification of human and macaque vCJD PrPTSE. Meadow vole brain (170N/N PrP genotype) was also included in the panel of substrates tested. Both humans and macaques have the same 170S/S PrP genotype. Macaque PrPTSE was best amplified with RBV 170S/S brain, although 170N/N and 170S/N were also competent substrates, while meadow vole brain was a poor substrate. In contrast, human PrPTSE demonstrated a striking narrow selectivity for PMCA substrate and was successfully amplified only with RBV 170S/S brain. These observations suggest that macaque PrPTSE was more permissive than human PrPTSE in selecting the competent RBV substrate. RBV 170S/S brain was used to assess the sensitivity of PMCA with PrPTSE from brains of humans and macaques with vCJD. PrPTSE signals were reproducibly detected by Western blot in dilutions through 10-12 of vCJD-infected 10% brain homogenates. This is the first report showing PrPTSE from vCJD-infected human and macaque brains efficiently amplified with RBV brain as the substrate. Based on our estimates, PMCA showed a sensitivity that might be sufficient to detect PrPTSE in vCJD-infected human and macaque blood.
Collapse
|
44
|
Zhang Z, Zhang Y, Wang F, Wang X, Xu Y, Yang H, Yu G, Yuan C, Ma J. De novo generation of infectious prions with bacterially expressed recombinant prion protein. FASEB J 2013; 27:4768-75. [PMID: 23970796 DOI: 10.1096/fj.13-233965] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Abstract
The prion hypothesis is strongly supported by the fact that prion infectivity and the pathogenic conformer of prion protein (PrP) are simultaneously propagated in vitro by the serial protein misfolding cyclic amplification (sPMCA). However, due to sPMCA's enormous amplification power, whether an infectious prion can be formed de novo with bacterially expressed recombinant PrP (rPrP) remains to be satisfactorily resolved. To address this question, we performed unseeded sPMCA with rPrP in a laboratory that has never been exposed to any native prions. Two types of proteinase K (PK)-resistant and self-perpetuating recombinant PrP conformers (rPrP-res) with PK-resistant cores of 17 or 14 kDa were generated. A bioassay revealed that rPrP-res(17kDa) was highly infectious, causing prion disease in wild-type mice with an average survival time of about 172 d. In contrast, rPrP-res(14kDa) completely failed to induce any disease. Our findings reveal that sPMCA is sufficient to initiate various self-perpetuating PK-resistant rPrP conformers, but not all of them possess in vivo infectivity. Moreover, generating an infectious prion in a prion-free environment establishes that an infectious prion can be formed de novo with bacterially expressed rPrP.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Zhihong Zhang
- 2Department of Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry, 1645 Neil Ave., Rm. 457A Hamilton Hall, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA.
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
45
|
Identification of misfolded proteins in body fluids for the diagnosis of prion diseases. Int J Cell Biol 2013; 2013:839329. [PMID: 24027585 PMCID: PMC3763259 DOI: 10.1155/2013/839329] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/21/2013] [Revised: 07/10/2013] [Accepted: 07/11/2013] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE) or prion diseases are fatal rare neurodegenerative disorders affecting man and animals and caused by a transmissible infectious agent. TSE diseases are characterized by spongiform brain lesions with neuronal loss and the abnormal deposition in the CNS, and to less extent in other tissues, of an insoluble and protease resistant form of the cellular prion protein (PrPC), named PrPTSE. In man, TSE diseases affect usually people over 60 years of age with no evident disease-associated risk factors. In some cases, however, TSE diseases are unequivocally linked to infectious episodes related to the use of prion-contaminated medicines, medical devices, or meat products as in the variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD). Clinical signs occur months or years after infection, and during this silent period PrPTSE, the only reliable marker of infection, is not easily measurable in blood or other accessible tissues or body fluids causing public health concerns. To overcome the limit of PrPTSE detection, several highly sensitive assays have been developed, but attempts to apply these techniques to blood of infected hosts have been unsuccessful or not yet validated. An update on the latest advances for the detection of misfolded prion protein in body fluids is provided.
Collapse
|
46
|
Gonzalez-Montalban N, Lee YJ, Makarava N, Savtchenko R, Baskakov IV. Changes in prion replication environment cause prion strain mutation. FASEB J 2013; 27:3702-10. [PMID: 23729586 DOI: 10.1096/fj.13-230466] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Abstract
Interspecies prion transmission often leads to stable changes in physical and biological features of prion strains, a phenomenon referred to as a strain mutation. It remains unknown whether changes in the replication environment in the absence of changes in PrP primary structure can be a source of strain mutations. To approach this question, RNA content was altered in the course of amplification of hamster strains in serial protein misfolding cyclic amplification (sPMCAb). On adaptation to an RNA-depleted environment and then readaptation to an environment containing RNA, strain 263K gave rise to a novel PrP(Sc) conformation referred to as 263K(R+), which is characterized by very low conformational stability, high sensitivity to proteolytic digestion, and a replication rate of 10(6)-fold/PMCAb round, which exceeded that of 263K by almost 10(4)-fold. A series of PMCAb experiments revealed that 263K(R+) was lacking in brain-derived 263K material, but emerged de novo as a result of changes in RNA content. A similar transformation was also observed for strain Hyper, suggesting that this phenomenon was not limited to 263K. The current work demonstrates that dramatic PrP(Sc) transformations can be induced by changes in the prion replication environment and without changes in PrP primary structure.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Nuria Gonzalez-Montalban
- Center for Biomedical Engineering and Technology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, 725 W. Lombard St., Baltimore, MD 21201, USA
| | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
47
|
Konold T, Moore SJ, Bellworthy SJ, Terry LA, Thorne L, Ramsay A, Salguero FJ, Simmons MM, Simmons HA. Evidence of effective scrapie transmission via colostrum and milk in sheep. BMC Vet Res 2013; 9:99. [PMID: 23651710 PMCID: PMC3750761 DOI: 10.1186/1746-6148-9-99] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2013] [Accepted: 04/30/2013] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Evidence for scrapie transmission from VRQ/VRQ ewes to lambs via milk was first reported in 2008 but in that study there were concerns that lateral transmission may have contributed to the high transmission rate observed since five control lambs housed with the milk recipients also became infected. This report provides further information obtained from two follow-up studies, one where milk recipients were housed separately after milk consumption to confirm the validity of the high scrapie transmission rate via milk and the second to assess any difference in infectivity from colostrum and subsequent milk. Protein misfolding cyclic amplification (PMCA) was also used to detect prion protein in milk samples as a comparison with the infectivity data and extended to milk samples from ewes without a VRQ allele. Results Seven pairs of lambs fed colostrum and milk individually from seven scrapie-affected sheep (pre-clinical or clinical) presented with disease-associated prion protein, PrPd, in rectal lymphoid tissue at 4–5 months of age. Five further pairs of lambs fed either colostrum or subsequent milk from five pre-clinical scrapie-affected sheep equally presented with PrPd in lymphoid tissue by 9 months of age. Nine sheep were lost due to intercurrent diseases but all remaining milk or colostrum recipients, including those in the original study with the lateral transmission controls, developed clinical signs of scrapie from 19 months of age and scrapie was confirmed by brain examination. Unexposed control sheep totalling 19 across all three studies showed no evidence of infection. Scrapie PrP was amplified repeatedly by PMCA in all tested milk samples from scrapie-affected VRQ/VRQ sheep, and in one scrapie-affected ARQ/ARQ sheep. By contrast, milk samples from five VRQ/VRQ and 11 ARQ/ARQ scrapie-free sheep did not have detectable scrapie PrP on repeated tests. Conclusions Feeding of milk from scrapie-affected sheep results in a high transmission rate in VRQ/VRQ sheep and both colostrum and milk transmit scrapie. Detection of scrapie prion protein in individual milk samples from scrapie-affected ewes confirms PMCA as a valuable in vitro test.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Timm Konold
- Specialist Scientific Support Department, Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency Weybridge, New Haw Addlestone, Surrey KT15 3NB, UK.
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
48
|
Abstract
Transmissible encephalopathies (TSEs) are believed by many to arise by spontaneous conversion of host prion protein (PrP) into an infectious amyloid (PrP-res, PrP (Sc) ) without nucleic acid. Many TSE agents reside in the environment, with infection controlled by public health measures. These include the disappearance of kuru with the cessation of ritual cannibalism, the dramatic reduction of epidemic bovine encephalopathy (BSE) by removal of contaminated feed, and the lack of endemic scrapie in geographically isolated Australian sheep with susceptible PrP genotypes. While prion protein modeling has engendered an intense focus on common types of protein misfolding and amyloid formation in diverse organisms and diseases, the biological characteristics of infectious TSE agents, and their recognition by the host as foreign entities, raises several fundamental new directions for fruitful investigation such as: (1) unrecognized microbial agents in the environmental metagenome that may cause latent neurodegenerative disease, (2) the evolutionary social and protective functions of different amyloid proteins in diverse organisms from bacteria to mammals, and (3) amyloid formation as a beneficial innate immune response to stress (infectious and non-infectious). This innate process however, once initiated, can become unstoppable in accelerated neuronal aging.
Collapse
|
49
|
Di Bari MA, Nonno R, Castilla J, D'Agostino C, Pirisinu L, Riccardi G, Conte M, Richt J, Kunkle R, Langeveld J, Vaccari G, Agrimi U. Chronic wasting disease in bank voles: characterisation of the shortest incubation time model for prion diseases. PLoS Pathog 2013; 9:e1003219. [PMID: 23505374 PMCID: PMC3591354 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1003219] [Citation(s) in RCA: 77] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2012] [Accepted: 01/12/2013] [Indexed: 01/17/2023] Open
Abstract
In order to assess the susceptibility of bank voles to chronic wasting disease (CWD), we inoculated voles carrying isoleucine or methionine at codon 109 (Bv109I and Bv109M, respectively) with CWD isolates from elk, mule deer and white-tailed deer. Efficient transmission rate (100%) was observed with mean survival times ranging from 156 to 281 days post inoculation. Subsequent passages in Bv109I allowed us to isolate from all CWD sources the same vole-adapted CWD strain (Bv(109I)CWD), typified by unprecedented short incubation times of 25-28 days and survival times of ∼35 days. Neuropathological and molecular characterisation of Bv(109I)CWD showed that the classical features of mammalian prion diseases were all recapitulated in less than one month after intracerebral inoculation. Bv(109I)CWD was characterised by a mild and discrete distribution of spongiosis and relatively low levels of protease-resistant PrP(Sc) (PrP(res)) in the same brain regions. Despite the low PrP(res) levels and the short time lapse available for its accumulation, end-point titration revealed that brains from terminally-ill voles contained up to 10(8,4) i.c. ID50 infectious units per gram. Bv(109I)CWD was efficiently replicated by protein misfolding cyclic amplification (PMCA) and the infectivity faithfully generated in vitro, as demonstrated by the preservation of the peculiar Bv(109I)CWD strain features on re-isolation in Bv109I. Overall, we provide evidence that the same CWD strain was isolated in Bv109I from the three-cervid species. Bv(109I)CWD showed unique characteristics of "virulence", low PrP(res) accumulation and high infectivity, thus providing exceptional opportunities to improve basic knowledge of the relationship between PrP(Sc), neurodegeneration and infectivity.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Michele Angelo Di Bari
- Department of Veterinary Public Health and Food Safety, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy.
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
50
|
Sturm R, Kreitinger G, Booth C, Smith L, Pedersen J, Li L. Absolute quantification of prion protein (90-231) using stable isotope-labeled chymotryptic peptide standards in a LC-MRM AQUA workflow. JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR MASS SPECTROMETRY 2012; 23:1522-33. [PMID: 22714949 PMCID: PMC3579656 DOI: 10.1007/s13361-012-0411-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/26/2012] [Revised: 05/08/2012] [Accepted: 05/10/2012] [Indexed: 05/12/2023]
Abstract
Substantial evidence indicates that the disease-associated conformer of the prion protein (PrP(TSE)) constitutes the etiologic agent in prion diseases. These diseases affect multiple mammalian species. PrP(TSE) has the ability to convert the conformation of the normal prion protein (PrP(C)) into a β-sheet rich form resistant to proteinase K digestion. Common immunological techniques lack the sensitivity to detect PrP(TSE) at subfemtomole levels, whereas animal bioassays, cell culture, and in vitro conversion assays offer higher sensitivity but lack the high-throughput the immunological assays offer. Mass spectrometry is an attractive alternative to the above assays as it offers high-throughput, direct measurement of a protein's signature peptide, often with subfemtomole sensitivities. Although a liquid chromatography-multiple reaction monitoring (LC-MRM) method has been reported for PrP(TSE), the chemical composition and lack of amino acid sequence conservation of the signature peptide may compromise its accuracy and make it difficult to apply to multiple species. Here, we demonstrate that an alternative protease (chymotrypsin) can produce signature peptides suitable for a LC-MRM absolute quantification (AQUA) experiment. The new method offers several advantages, including: (1) a chymotryptic signature peptide lacking chemically active residues (Cys, Met) that can confound assay accuracy; (2) low attomole limits of detection and quantitation (LOD and LOQ); and (3) a signature peptide retaining the same amino acid sequence across most mammals naturally susceptible to prion infection as well as important laboratory models. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first report on the use of a non-tryptic peptide in a LC-MRM AQUA workflow.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Robert Sturm
- School of Pharmacy and Department of Chemistry, University of Wisconsin-Madison
| | - Gloria Kreitinger
- School of Pharmacy and Department of Chemistry, University of Wisconsin-Madison
| | - Clarissa Booth
- Molecular and Environmental Toxicology Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison
| | - Lloyd Smith
- School of Pharmacy and Department of Chemistry, University of Wisconsin-Madison
| | - Joel Pedersen
- Molecular and Environmental Toxicology Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison
- Department of Soil Science, University of Wisconsin-Madison
| | - Lingjun Li
- School of Pharmacy and Department of Chemistry, University of Wisconsin-Madison
| |
Collapse
|