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Li A, Yi J, Li X, Dong L, Ostrow LW, Ma J, Zhou J. Distinct transcriptomic profile of satellite cells contributes to preservation of neuromuscular junctions in extraocular muscles of ALS mice. eLife 2024; 12:RP92644. [PMID: 38661532 PMCID: PMC11045223 DOI: 10.7554/elife.92644] [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] [Indexed: 04/26/2024] Open
Abstract
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a fatal neuromuscular disorder characterized by progressive weakness of almost all skeletal muscles, whereas extraocular muscles (EOMs) are comparatively spared. While hindlimb and diaphragm muscles of end-stage SOD1G93A (G93A) mice (a familial ALS mouse model) exhibit severe denervation and depletion of Pax7+satellite cells (SCs), we found that the pool of SCs and the integrity of neuromuscular junctions (NMJs) are maintained in EOMs. In cell sorting profiles, SCs derived from hindlimb and diaphragm muscles of G93A mice exhibit denervation-related activation, whereas SCs from EOMs of G93A mice display spontaneous (non-denervation-related) activation, similar to SCs from wild-type mice. Specifically, cultured EOM SCs contain more abundant transcripts of axon guidance molecules, including Cxcl12, along with more sustainable renewability than the diaphragm and hindlimb counterparts under differentiation pressure. In neuromuscular co-culture assays, AAV-delivery of Cxcl12 to G93A-hindlimb SC-derived myotubes enhances motor neuron axon extension and innervation, recapitulating the innervation capacity of EOM SC-derived myotubes. G93A mice fed with sodium butyrate (NaBu) supplementation exhibited less NMJ loss in hindlimb and diaphragm muscles. Additionally, SCs derived from G93A hindlimb and diaphragm muscles displayed elevated expression of Cxcl12 and improved renewability following NaBu treatment in vitro. Thus, the NaBu-induced transcriptomic changes resembling the patterns of EOM SCs may contribute to the beneficial effects observed in G93A mice. More broadly, the distinct transcriptomic profile of EOM SCs may offer novel therapeutic targets to slow progressive neuromuscular functional decay in ALS and provide possible 'response biomarkers' in pre-clinical and clinical studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ang Li
- Department of Kinesiology, College of Nursing and Health Innovation, The University of Texas at ArlingtonArlingtonUnited States
| | - Jianxun Yi
- Department of Kinesiology, College of Nursing and Health Innovation, The University of Texas at ArlingtonArlingtonUnited States
| | - Xuejun Li
- Department of Kinesiology, College of Nursing and Health Innovation, The University of Texas at ArlingtonArlingtonUnited States
| | - Li Dong
- Department of Kinesiology, College of Nursing and Health Innovation, The University of Texas at ArlingtonArlingtonUnited States
| | - Lyle W Ostrow
- Department of Neurology, Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple UniversityPhiladelphiaUnited States
| | - Jianjie Ma
- Department of Surgery, Division of Surgical Sciences, University of VirginiaCharlottesvilleUnited States
| | - Jingsong Zhou
- Department of Kinesiology, College of Nursing and Health Innovation, The University of Texas at ArlingtonArlingtonUnited States
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Kassahun Bekele B, Kwizera L, Abdul Razzak R, Alfadul ES, Anand A, Wojtara M, Nazir A, Uwishema O. ALS in Africa: current knowledge and exciting opportunities for future study - short communication. Ann Med Surg (Lond) 2023; 85:5827-5830. [PMID: 37915644 PMCID: PMC10617860 DOI: 10.1097/ms9.0000000000001319] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/11/2023] [Accepted: 09/07/2023] [Indexed: 11/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a neurodegenerative disease that can present with motor and extra-motor manifestations. Its global prevalence is 4.42 per 1 000 000, and it has a high mortality rate. In sub-Saharan Africa alone, 15 per 100 000 develop ALS mainly between their 40s and 60s and only one-fourth of them have access to treatment. ALS was found to be not only affected by genetic variation but also by the patient's mood and lifestyle. In Africa, males and younger people tend to be affected with ALS and rarely present with bulbar onset. ALS diagnosis is very challenging due to the lack of ALS-specific biomarkers and the sharing of some clinical features with other syndromes. ALS treatment is mainly riluzole and supportive treatment via nasogastric tube and ventilatory support. The access to treatment in Africa is very limited, thus a very bad prognosis with a median survival time of 14 months post-diagnosis. Further research is needed to assess the real situation in Africa and to try to closely monitor patients suffering from ALS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bezawit Kassahun Bekele
- Oli Health Magazine Organization, Research and Education
- Addis Ababa University, School of Medicine, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
- George Washington University, Milken Institute of Public Health, Washington DC
| | - Lambert Kwizera
- Oli Health Magazine Organization, Research and Education
- AgriConsult Group Rwanda, Kigali, Rwanda
| | - Rawane Abdul Razzak
- Oli Health Magazine Organization, Research and Education
- Faculty of Medical Sciences, Lebanese University, Hadath, Beirut, Lebanon
| | - Esraa S.A. Alfadul
- Oli Health Magazine Organization, Research and Education
- Faculty of Medicine, University of Khartoum, Khartoum, Sudan
| | - Ayush Anand
- Oli Health Magazine Organization, Research and Education
- BP Koirala Institute of Health Sciences, Dharan, Nepal
| | - Magda Wojtara
- Oli Health Magazine Organization, Research and Education
- University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, Michigan
| | - Abubakar Nazir
- Oli Health Magazine Organization, Research and Education
- Department of Medicine, King Edward Medical University, Pakistan
| | - Olivier Uwishema
- Oli Health Magazine Organization, Research and Education
- Clinton Global Initiative University, New York, New York, USA
- Faculty of Medicine, Karadeniz Technical University, Trabzon, Turkey
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3
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Sécher T, Heuzé-Vourc'h N. Barriers for orally inhaled therapeutic antibodies. Expert Opin Drug Deliv 2023; 20:1071-1084. [PMID: 37609943 DOI: 10.1080/17425247.2023.2249821] [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: 05/12/2023] [Revised: 07/17/2023] [Accepted: 08/16/2023] [Indexed: 08/24/2023]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Respiratory diseases represent a worldwide health issue. The recent Sars-CoV-2 pandemic, the burden of lung cancer, and inflammatory respiratory diseases urged the development of innovative therapeutic solutions. In this context, therapeutic antibodies (Abs) offer a tremendous opportunity to benefit patients with respiratory diseases. Delivering Ab through the airways has been demonstrated to be relevant to improve their therapeutic index. However, few inhaled Abs are on the market. AREAS COVERED This review describes the different barriers that may alter the fate of inhaled therapeutic Abs in the lungs at steady state. It addresses both physical and biological barriers and discusses the importance of taking into consideration the pathological changes occurring during respiratory disease, which may reinforce these barriers. EXPERT OPINION The pulmonary route remains rare for delivering therapeutic Abs, with few approved inhaled molecules, despite promising evidence. Efforts must focus on the intertwined barriers associated with lung diseases to develop appropriate Ab-formulation-device combo, ensuring optimal Ab deposition in the respiratory tract. Finally, randomized controlled clinical trials should be carried out to establish inhaled Ab therapy as prominent against respiratory diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Sécher
- INSERM, Centre d'Etude des Pathologies Respiratoires, Tours, France
- Université de Tours, Tours, France
| | - Nathalie Heuzé-Vourc'h
- INSERM, Centre d'Etude des Pathologies Respiratoires, Tours, France
- Université de Tours, Tours, France
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Han N, Yao X, Wang Y, Huang W, Niu M, Zhu P, Mao Y. Recent Progress of Biomaterials-Based Epidermal Electronics for Healthcare Monitoring and Human-Machine Interaction. BIOSENSORS 2023; 13:393. [PMID: 36979605 PMCID: PMC10046871 DOI: 10.3390/bios13030393] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2023] [Revised: 03/08/2023] [Accepted: 03/14/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Epidermal electronics offer an important platform for various on-skin applications including electrophysiological signals monitoring and human-machine interactions (HMI), due to their unique advantages of intrinsic softness and conformal interfaces with skin. The widely used nondegradable synthetic materials may produce massive electronic waste to the ecosystem and bring safety issues to human skin. However, biomaterials extracted from nature are promising to act as a substitute material for the construction of epidermal electronics, owing to their diverse characteristics of biocompatibility, biodegradability, sustainability, low cost and natural abundance. Therefore, the development of natural biomaterials holds great prospects for advancement of high-performance sustainable epidermal electronics. Here, we review the recent development on different types of biomaterials including proteins and polysaccharides for multifunctional epidermal electronics. Subsequently, the applications of biomaterials-based epidermal electronics in electrophysiological monitoring and HMI are discussed, respectively. Finally, the development situation and future prospects of biomaterials-based epidermal electronics are summarized. We expect that this review can provide some inspirations for the development of future, sustainable, biomaterials-based epidermal electronics.
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Gulino R. Synaptic Dysfunction and Plasticity in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:ijms24054613. [PMID: 36902042 PMCID: PMC10003601 DOI: 10.3390/ijms24054613] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2023] [Revised: 02/23/2023] [Accepted: 02/24/2023] [Indexed: 03/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Recent evidence has supported the hypothesis that amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a multi-step disease, as the onset of symptoms occurs after sequential exposure to a defined number of risk factors. Despite the lack of precise identification of these disease determinants, it is known that genetic mutations may contribute to one or more of the steps leading to ALS onset, the remaining being linked to environmental factors and lifestyle. It also appears evident that compensatory plastic changes taking place at all levels of the nervous system during ALS etiopathogenesis may likely counteract the functional effects of neurodegeneration and affect the timing of disease onset and progression. Functional and structural events of synaptic plasticity probably represent the main mechanisms underlying this adaptive capability, causing a significant, although partial and transient, resiliency of the nervous system affected by a neurodegenerative disease. On the other hand, the failure of synaptic functions and plasticity may be part of the pathological process. The aim of this review was to summarize what it is known today about the controversial involvement of synapses in ALS etiopathogenesis, and an analysis of the literature, although not exhaustive, confirmed that synaptic dysfunction is an early pathogenetic process in ALS. Moreover, it appears that adequate modulation of structural and functional synaptic plasticity may likely support function sparing and delay disease progression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rosario Gulino
- Department of Biomedical and Biotechnological Sciences, Physiology Section, University of Catania, 95123 Catania, Italy
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Brain metabolic differences between pure bulbar and pure spinal ALS: a 2-[ 18F]FDG-PET study. J Neurol 2023; 270:953-959. [PMID: 36322237 PMCID: PMC9886651 DOI: 10.1007/s00415-022-11445-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2022] [Revised: 10/19/2022] [Accepted: 10/20/2022] [Indexed: 01/31/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND MRI studies reported that ALS patients with bulbar and spinal onset showed focal cortical changes in corresponding regions of the motor homunculus. We evaluated the capability of brain 2-[18F]FDG-PET to disclose the metabolic features characterizing patients with pure bulbar or spinal motor impairment. METHODS We classified as pure bulbar (PB) patients with bulbar onset and a normal score in the spinal items of the ALSFRS-R, and as pure spinal (PS) patients with spinal onset and a normal score in the bulbar items at the time of PET. Forty healthy controls (HC) were enrolled. We compared PB and PS, and each patient group with HC. Metabolic clusters showing a statistically significant difference between PB and PS were tested to evaluate their accuracy in discriminating the two groups. We performed a leave-one-out cross-validation (LOOCV) over the entire dataset. Four classifiers were considered: support vector machines (SVM), K-nearest neighbours, linear classifier, and decision tree. Then, we used a separate test set, including 10% of patients, with the remaining 90% composing the training set. RESULTS We included 63 PB, 271 PS, and 40 HC. PB showed a relative hypometabolism compared to PS in bilateral precentral gyrus in the regions of the motor cortex involved in the control of bulbar function. SVM showed the best performance, resulting in the lowest error rate in both LOOCV (4.19%) and test set (9.09 ± 2.02%). CONCLUSIONS Our data support the concept of the focality of ALS onset and the use of 2-[18F]FDG-PET as a biomarker for precision medicine-oriented clinical trials.
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Lépine S, Castellanos-Montiel MJ, Durcan TM. TDP-43 dysregulation and neuromuscular junction disruption in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Transl Neurodegener 2022; 11:56. [PMID: 36575535 PMCID: PMC9793560 DOI: 10.1186/s40035-022-00331-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/26/2022] [Accepted: 11/29/2022] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a disease characterized by upper and lower motor neuron (MN) loss with a signature feature of cytoplasmic aggregates containing TDP-43, which are detected in nearly all patients. Mutations in the gene that encodes TDP-43 (TARBDP) are known to result in both familial and sporadic ALS. In ALS, disruption of neuromuscular junctions (NMJs) constitutes a critical event in disease pathogenesis, leading to denervation atrophy, motor impairments and disability. Morphological defects and impaired synaptic transmission at NMJs have been reported in several TDP-43 animal models and in vitro, linking TDP-43 dysregulation to the loss of NMJ integrity in ALS. Through the lens of the dying-back and dying-forward hypotheses of ALS, this review discusses the roles of TDP-43 related to synaptic function, with a focus on the potential molecular mechanisms occurring within MNs, skeletal muscles and glial cells that may contribute to NMJ disruption in ALS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah Lépine
- grid.14709.3b0000 0004 1936 8649The Neuro’s Early Drug Discovery Unit (EDDU), Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Montreal Neurological Institute-Hospital, McGill University, 3801 University Street, Montreal, QC H3A 2B4 Canada ,grid.14709.3b0000 0004 1936 8649Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, McGill University, 3605 De La Montagne, Montreal, QC H3G 2M1 Canada
| | - Maria José Castellanos-Montiel
- grid.14709.3b0000 0004 1936 8649The Neuro’s Early Drug Discovery Unit (EDDU), Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Montreal Neurological Institute-Hospital, McGill University, 3801 University Street, Montreal, QC H3A 2B4 Canada
| | - Thomas Martin Durcan
- grid.14709.3b0000 0004 1936 8649The Neuro’s Early Drug Discovery Unit (EDDU), Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Montreal Neurological Institute-Hospital, McGill University, 3801 University Street, Montreal, QC H3A 2B4 Canada
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Li A, Yi J, Li X, Dong L, Ostrow LW, Ma J, Zhou J. Deficient Sarcolemma Repair in ALS: A Novel Mechanism with Therapeutic Potential. Cells 2022; 11:cells11203263. [PMID: 36291129 PMCID: PMC9600524 DOI: 10.3390/cells11203263] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/06/2022] [Revised: 10/07/2022] [Accepted: 10/14/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
The plasma membrane (sarcolemma) of skeletal muscle myofibers is susceptible to injury caused by physical and chemical stresses during normal daily movement and/or under disease conditions. These acute plasma membrane disruptions are normally compensated by an intrinsic membrane resealing process involving interactions of multiple intracellular proteins including dysferlin, annexin, caveolin, and Mitsugumin 53 (MG53)/TRIM72. There is new evidence for compromised muscle sarcolemma repair mechanisms in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). Mitochondrial dysfunction in proximity to neuromuscular junctions (NMJs) increases oxidative stress, triggering MG53 aggregation and loss of its function. Compromised membrane repair further worsens sarcolemma fragility and amplifies oxidative stress in a vicious cycle. This article is to review existing literature supporting the concept that ALS is a disease of oxidative-stress induced disruption of muscle membrane repair that compromise the integrity of the NMJs and hence augmenting muscle membrane repair mechanisms could represent a viable therapeutic strategy for ALS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ang Li
- Department of Kinesiology, College of Nursing and Health Innovation, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX 76019, USA
| | - Jianxun Yi
- Department of Kinesiology, College of Nursing and Health Innovation, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX 76019, USA
| | - Xuejun Li
- Department of Kinesiology, College of Nursing and Health Innovation, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX 76019, USA
| | - Li Dong
- Department of Kinesiology, College of Nursing and Health Innovation, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX 76019, USA
| | - Lyle W. Ostrow
- Department of Neurology, Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University, Philadelphia, PA 19122, USA
- Correspondence: (L.W.O.); (J.M.); (J.Z.)
| | - Jianjie Ma
- Department of Surgery, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22903, USA
- Correspondence: (L.W.O.); (J.M.); (J.Z.)
| | - Jingsong Zhou
- Department of Kinesiology, College of Nursing and Health Innovation, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX 76019, USA
- Correspondence: (L.W.O.); (J.M.); (J.Z.)
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Bauer US, Fiskum V, Nair RR, van de Wijdeven R, Kentros C, Sandvig I, Sandvig A. Validation of Functional Connectivity of Engineered Neuromuscular Junction With Recombinant Monosynaptic Pseudotyped ΔG-Rabies Virus Tracing. Front Integr Neurosci 2022; 16:855071. [PMID: 35669734 PMCID: PMC9163662 DOI: 10.3389/fnint.2022.855071] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2022] [Accepted: 05/02/2022] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Current preclinical models of neurodegenerative disease, such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), can significantly benefit from in vitro neuroengineering approaches that enable the selective study and manipulation of neurons, networks, and functional units of interest. Custom-designed compartmentalized microfluidic culture systems enable the co-culture of different relevant cell types in interconnected but fluidically isolated microenvironments. Such systems can thus be applied for ALS disease modeling, as they enable the recapitulation and study of neuromuscular junctions (NMJ) through co-culturing of motor neurons and muscle cells in separate, but interconnected compartments. These in vitro systems are particularly relevant for investigations of mechanistic aspects of the ALS pathological cascade in engineered NMJ, as progressive loss of NMJ functionality may constitute one of the hallmarks of disease related pathology at early onset, in line with the dying back hypothesis. In such models, ability to test whether motor neuron degeneration in ALS starts at the nerve terminal or at the NMJ and retrogradely progresses to the motor neuron cell body largely relies on robust methods for verification of engineered NMJ functionality. In this study, we demonstrate the functionality of engineered NMJs within a microfluidic chip with a differentially perturbable microenvironment using a designer pseudotyped ΔG-rabies virus for retrograde monosynaptic tracing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ulrich Stefan Bauer
- Department of Neuromedicine and Movement Science, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Trondheim, Norway
| | - Vegard Fiskum
- Department of Neuromedicine and Movement Science, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Trondheim, Norway
| | - Rajeevkumar Raveendran Nair
- Centre for Neural Computation, Kavli Institute for Systems Neuroscience, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Trondheim, Norway
| | - Rosanne van de Wijdeven
- Department of Cancer Research and Molecular Medicine, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Trondheim, Norway
| | - Clifford Kentros
- Centre for Neural Computation, Kavli Institute for Systems Neuroscience, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Trondheim, Norway
- Institute of Neuroscience, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR, United States
| | - Ioanna Sandvig
- Department of Neuromedicine and Movement Science, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Trondheim, Norway
| | - Axel Sandvig
- Department of Neuromedicine and Movement Science, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Trondheim, Norway
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Umeå University Hospital, Umeå, Sweden
- Department of Community Medicine and Rehabilitation, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
- *Correspondence: Axel Sandvig,
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Ding Q, Kesavan K, Lee KM, Wimberger E, Robertson T, Gill M, Power D, Chang J, Fard AT, Mar JC, Henderson RD, Heggie S, McCombe PA, Jeffree RL, Colditz MJ, Hilliard MA, Ng DCH, Steyn FJ, Phillips WD, Wolvetang EJ, Ngo ST, Noakes PG. Impaired signaling for neuromuscular synaptic maintenance is a feature of Motor Neuron Disease. Acta Neuropathol Commun 2022; 10:61. [PMID: 35468848 PMCID: PMC9040261 DOI: 10.1186/s40478-022-01360-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/06/2022] [Accepted: 04/06/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
A central event in the pathogenesis of motor neuron disease (MND) is the loss of neuromuscular junctions (NMJs), yet the mechanisms that lead to this event in MND remain to be fully elucidated. Maintenance of the NMJ relies upon neural agrin (n-agrin) which, when released from the nerve terminal, activates the postsynaptic Muscle Specific Kinase (MuSK) signaling complex to stabilize clusters of acetylcholine receptors. Here, we report that muscle from MND patients has an increased proportion of slow fibers and muscle fibers with smaller diameter. Muscle cells cultured from MND biopsies failed to form large clusters of acetylcholine receptors in response to either non-MND human motor axons or n-agrin. Furthermore, levels of expression of MuSK, and MuSK-complex components: LRP4, Caveolin-3, and Dok7 differed between muscle cells cultured from MND patients compared to those from non-MND controls. To our knowledge, this is the first time a fault in the n-agrin-LRP4-MuSK signaling pathway has been identified in muscle from MND patients. Our results highlight the n-agrin-LRP4-MuSK signaling pathway as a potential therapeutic target to prolong muscle function in MND.
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Logan R, Dubel-Haag J, Schcolnicov N, Miller SJ. Novel Genetic Signatures Associated With Sporadic Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. Front Genet 2022; 13:851496. [PMID: 35401706 PMCID: PMC8986983 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2022.851496] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2022] [Accepted: 02/14/2022] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) is a complex polygenetic neurodegenerative disorder. Establishing a diagnosis for ALS is a challenging and lengthy process. By the time a diagnosis is made, the lifespan prognosis is only about two to 5 years. Genetic testing can be critical in assessing a patient’s risk for ALS, provided they have one of the known familial genes. However, the vast majority of ALS cases are sporadic and have no known associated genetic signatures. Our analysis of the whole genome sequencing data from ALS patients and healthy controls from the Answer ALS Consortium has uncovered twenty-three novel mutations in twenty-two protein-coding genes associated with sporadic ALS cases. The results show the majority of patients with the sporadic form of ALS have at least one or more mutation(s) in the 22 genes we have identified with probabilities of developing ALS ranging from 25–99%, depending on the number of mutations a patient has among the identified genes. Moreover, we have identified a subset of the ALS cohort that has >17 mutations in the 22 identified. In this case, a patient with this mutation profile has a 99% chance of developing ALS and could be classified as being at high risk for the disease. These genetic biomarkers can be used as an early ALS disease diagnostic tool with a rapid and non-invasive technique.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robert Logan
- Pluripotent Diagnostics Corp, Colorado Springs, CO, United States
- Department of Biology, Eastern Nazarene College, Quincy, MA, United States
| | | | | | - Sean J. Miller
- Pluripotent Diagnostics Corp, Colorado Springs, CO, United States
- *Correspondence: Sean J. Miller,
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12
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Ma JY, Liu XY, Zhang S, Fan DS. Ultra-early amplitude decrement after repetitive nerve stimulation supports early neuromuscular junction injury in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a prospective cross-sectional study. Neural Regen Res 2022; 17:655-660. [PMID: 34380907 PMCID: PMC8504376 DOI: 10.4103/1673-5374.320998] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The dying-back hypothesis holds that the damage to neuromuscular junctions and distal axons in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis occurs at the earliest stage of the disease. Previous basic studies have confirmed early damage to neuromuscular junctions, but it is difficult to obtain such evidence directly in clinical practice. In this prospective cross-sectional study, we recruited 22 patients with early amyotrophic lateral sclerosis with disease duration < 12 months and with clinical symptoms limited to the upper limbs. We also recruited 32 healthy controls. Repetitive nerve stimulation was performed, and patients were followed for 12 months. We found a significant change in the response to repetitive nerve stimulation in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis patients without spontaneous electromyographic activity. Patients that were prone to denervation had an increased decrement response of target muscles after repetitive nerve stimulation. These results suggest that changes in response to repetitive nerve stimulation may occur before denervation in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis patients. The damage to lower motor neurons is more obvious in patients with a higher percentage of repetitive never stimulation-related amplitude decrements. This study was approved by the Institutional Ethics Committee of Peking University Third Hospital (approval No. M2017198) on August 24, 2017.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jing-Yue Ma
- Department of Neurology, Peking University Third Hospital; Beijing Municipal Key Laboratory of Biomarker and Translational Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, Beijing, China
| | - Xiang-Yi Liu
- Department of Neurology, Peking University Third Hospital; Beijing Municipal Key Laboratory of Biomarker and Translational Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, Beijing, China
| | - Shuo Zhang
- Department of Neurology, Peking University Third Hospital; Beijing Municipal Key Laboratory of Biomarker and Translational Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, Beijing, China
| | - Dong-Sheng Fan
- Department of Neurology, Peking University Third Hospital; Beijing Municipal Key Laboratory of Biomarker and Translational Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, Beijing, China
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13
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Senolytics: A Novel Strategy for Neuroprotection in ALS? Int J Mol Sci 2021; 22:ijms222112078. [PMID: 34769512 PMCID: PMC8584291 DOI: 10.3390/ijms222112078] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2021] [Revised: 10/30/2021] [Accepted: 11/04/2021] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive motor neurodegenerative disease that currently has no cure and has few effective treatments. On a cellular level, ALS manifests through significant changes in the proper function of astrocytes, microglia, motor neurons, and other central nervous system (CNS) cells, leading to excess neuroinflammation and neurodegeneration. Damage to the upper and lower motor neurons results in neural and muscular dysfunction, leading to death most often due to respiratory paralysis. A new therapeutic strategy is targeting glial cells affected by senescence, which contribute to motor neuron degeneration. Whilst this new therapeutic approach holds much promise, it is yet to be trialled in ALS-relevant preclinical models and needs to be designed carefully to ensure selectivity. This review summarizes the pathways involved in ALS-related senescence, as well as known senolytic agents and their mechanisms of action, all of which may inform strategies for ALS-focused drug discovery efforts.
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14
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Al Ojaimi Y, Blin T, Lamamy J, Gracia M, Pitiot A, Denevault-Sabourin C, Joubert N, Pouget JP, Gouilleux-Gruart V, Heuzé-Vourc'h N, Lanznaster D, Poty S, Sécher T. Therapeutic antibodies - natural and pathological barriers and strategies to overcome them. Pharmacol Ther 2021; 233:108022. [PMID: 34687769 PMCID: PMC8527648 DOI: 10.1016/j.pharmthera.2021.108022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/26/2021] [Revised: 10/11/2021] [Accepted: 10/12/2021] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Antibody-based therapeutics have become a major class of therapeutics with over 120 recombinant antibodies approved or under review in the EU or US. This therapeutic class has experienced a remarkable expansion with an expected acceleration in 2021-2022 due to the extraordinary global response to SARS-CoV2 pandemic and the public disclosure of over a hundred anti-SARS-CoV2 antibodies. Mainly delivered intravenously, alternative delivery routes have emerged to improve antibody therapeutic index and patient comfort. A major hurdle for antibody delivery and efficacy as well as the development of alternative administration routes, is to understand the different natural and pathological barriers that antibodies face as soon as they enter the body up to the moment they bind to their target antigen. In this review, we discuss the well-known and more under-investigated extracellular and cellular barriers faced by antibodies. We also discuss some of the strategies developed in the recent years to overcome these barriers and increase antibody delivery to its site of action. A better understanding of the biological barriers that antibodies have to face will allow the optimization of antibody delivery near its target. This opens the way to the development of improved therapy with less systemic side effects and increased patients' adherence to the treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yara Al Ojaimi
- UMR 1253, iBrain, Inserm, 37000 Tours, France; University of Tours, 37000 Tours, France
| | - Timothée Blin
- University of Tours, 37000 Tours, France; UMR 1100, CEPR, Inserm, 37000 Tours, France
| | - Juliette Lamamy
- University of Tours, 37000 Tours, France; GICC, EA7501, 37000 Tours, France
| | - Matthieu Gracia
- Institut de Recherche en Cancérologie de Montpellier (IRCM), Inserm U1194, Université de Montpellier, Institut Régional du Cancer de Montpellier (ICM), Montpellier F-34298, France
| | - Aubin Pitiot
- University of Tours, 37000 Tours, France; UMR 1100, CEPR, Inserm, 37000 Tours, France
| | | | - Nicolas Joubert
- University of Tours, 37000 Tours, France; GICC, EA7501, 37000 Tours, France
| | - Jean-Pierre Pouget
- Institut de Recherche en Cancérologie de Montpellier (IRCM), Inserm U1194, Université de Montpellier, Institut Régional du Cancer de Montpellier (ICM), Montpellier F-34298, France
| | | | | | - Débora Lanznaster
- UMR 1253, iBrain, Inserm, 37000 Tours, France; University of Tours, 37000 Tours, France
| | - Sophie Poty
- Institut de Recherche en Cancérologie de Montpellier (IRCM), Inserm U1194, Université de Montpellier, Institut Régional du Cancer de Montpellier (ICM), Montpellier F-34298, France
| | - Thomas Sécher
- University of Tours, 37000 Tours, France; UMR 1100, CEPR, Inserm, 37000 Tours, France
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15
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Yi J, Li A, Li X, Park K, Zhou X, Yi F, Xiao Y, Yoon D, Tan T, Ostrow LW, Ma J, Zhou J. MG53 Preserves Neuromuscular Junction Integrity and Alleviates ALS Disease Progression. Antioxidants (Basel) 2021; 10:antiox10101522. [PMID: 34679657 PMCID: PMC8532806 DOI: 10.3390/antiox10101522] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2021] [Revised: 09/10/2021] [Accepted: 09/23/2021] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Respiratory failure from progressive respiratory muscle weakness is the most common cause of death in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Defects in neuromuscular junctions (NMJs) and progressive NMJ loss occur at early stages, thus stabilizing and preserving NMJs represents a potential therapeutic strategy to slow ALS disease progression. Here we demonstrate that NMJ damage is repaired by MG53, an intrinsic muscle protein involved in plasma membrane repair. Compromised diaphragm muscle membrane repair and NMJ integrity are early pathological events in ALS. Diaphragm muscles from ALS mouse models show increased susceptibility to injury and intracellular MG53 aggregation, which is also a hallmark of human muscle samples from ALS patients. We show that systemic administration of recombinant human MG53 protein in ALS mice protects against injury to diaphragm muscle, preserves NMJ integrity, and slows ALS disease progression. As MG53 is present in circulation in rodents and humans under physiological conditions, our findings provide proof-of-concept data supporting MG53 as a potentially safe and effective therapy to mitigate ALS progression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jianxun Yi
- Department of Kinesiology, College of Nursing and Health Innovation, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX 76019, USA; (J.Y.); (A.L.); (X.L.)
- Department of Physiology, Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences, Kansas City, MO 64106, USA; (Y.X.); (D.Y.)
| | - Ang Li
- Department of Kinesiology, College of Nursing and Health Innovation, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX 76019, USA; (J.Y.); (A.L.); (X.L.)
- Department of Physiology, Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences, Kansas City, MO 64106, USA; (Y.X.); (D.Y.)
| | - Xuejun Li
- Department of Kinesiology, College of Nursing and Health Innovation, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX 76019, USA; (J.Y.); (A.L.); (X.L.)
- Department of Physiology, Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences, Kansas City, MO 64106, USA; (Y.X.); (D.Y.)
| | - Kiho Park
- Department of Surgery, Davis Heart and Lung Research Institute, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA; (K.P.); (X.Z.); (F.Y.); (T.T.)
| | - Xinyu Zhou
- Department of Surgery, Davis Heart and Lung Research Institute, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA; (K.P.); (X.Z.); (F.Y.); (T.T.)
| | - Frank Yi
- Department of Surgery, Davis Heart and Lung Research Institute, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA; (K.P.); (X.Z.); (F.Y.); (T.T.)
| | - Yajuan Xiao
- Department of Physiology, Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences, Kansas City, MO 64106, USA; (Y.X.); (D.Y.)
| | - Dosuk Yoon
- Department of Physiology, Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences, Kansas City, MO 64106, USA; (Y.X.); (D.Y.)
| | - Tao Tan
- Department of Surgery, Davis Heart and Lung Research Institute, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA; (K.P.); (X.Z.); (F.Y.); (T.T.)
| | - Lyle W. Ostrow
- Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA;
| | - Jianjie Ma
- Department of Surgery, Davis Heart and Lung Research Institute, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA; (K.P.); (X.Z.); (F.Y.); (T.T.)
- Correspondence: (J.M.); (J.Z.)
| | - Jingsong Zhou
- Department of Kinesiology, College of Nursing and Health Innovation, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX 76019, USA; (J.Y.); (A.L.); (X.L.)
- Department of Physiology, Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences, Kansas City, MO 64106, USA; (Y.X.); (D.Y.)
- Correspondence: (J.M.); (J.Z.)
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16
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An Overview of the Nrf2/ARE Pathway and Its Role in Neurodegenerative Diseases. Int J Mol Sci 2021; 22:ijms22179592. [PMID: 34502501 PMCID: PMC8431732 DOI: 10.3390/ijms22179592] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 20.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2021] [Revised: 08/28/2021] [Accepted: 09/01/2021] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Nrf2 is a basic region leucine-zipper transcription factor that plays a pivotal role in the coordinated gene expression of antioxidant and detoxifying enzymes, promoting cell survival in adverse environmental or defective metabolic conditions. After synthesis, Nrf2 is arrested in the cytoplasm by the Kelch-like ECH-associated protein 1 suppressor (Keap1) leading Nrf2 to ubiquitin-dependent degradation. One Nrf2 activation mechanism relies on disconnection from the Keap1 homodimer through the oxidation of cysteine at specific sites of Keap1. Free Nrf2 enters the nucleus, dimerizes with small musculoaponeurotic fibrosarcoma proteins (sMafs), and binds to the antioxidant response element (ARE) sequence of the target genes. Since oxidative stress, next to neuroinflammation and mitochondrial dysfunction, is one of the hallmarks of neurodegenerative pathologies, a molecular intervention into Nrf2/ARE signaling and the enhancement of the transcriptional activity of particular genes are targets for prevention or delaying the onset of age-related and inherited neurogenerative diseases. In this study, we review evidence for the Nrf2/ARE-driven pathway dysfunctions leading to various neurological pathologies, such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and Huntington’s diseases, as well as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and the beneficial role of natural and synthetic molecules that are able to interact with Nrf2 to enhance its protective efficacy.
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17
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The Neuromuscular Junction: Roles in Aging and Neuromuscular Disease. Int J Mol Sci 2021; 22:ijms22158058. [PMID: 34360831 PMCID: PMC8347593 DOI: 10.3390/ijms22158058] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2021] [Revised: 07/20/2021] [Accepted: 07/22/2021] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
The neuromuscular junction (NMJ) is a specialized synapse that bridges the motor neuron and the skeletal muscle fiber and is crucial for conversion of electrical impulses originating in the motor neuron to action potentials in the muscle fiber. The consideration of contributing factors to skeletal muscle injury, muscular dystrophy and sarcopenia cannot be restricted only to processes intrinsic to the muscle, as data show that these conditions incur denervation-like findings, such as fragmented NMJ morphology and corresponding functional changes in neuromuscular transmission. Primary defects in the NMJ also influence functional loss in motor neuron disease, congenital myasthenic syndromes and myasthenia gravis, resulting in skeletal muscle weakness and heightened fatigue. Such findings underscore the role that the NMJ plays in neuromuscular performance. Regardless of cause or effect, functional denervation is now an accepted consequence of sarcopenia and muscle disease. In this short review, we provide an overview of the pathologic etiology, symptoms, and therapeutic strategies related to the NMJ. In particular, we examine the role of the NMJ as a disease modifier and a potential therapeutic target in neuromuscular injury and disease.
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Ronchi S, Buccino AP, Prack G, Kumar SS, Schröter M, Fiscella M, Hierlemann A. Electrophysiological Phenotype Characterization of Human iPSC-Derived Neuronal Cell Lines by Means of High-Density Microelectrode Arrays. Adv Biol (Weinh) 2021; 5:e2000223. [PMID: 33729694 PMCID: PMC7610355 DOI: 10.1002/adbi.202000223] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2020] [Revised: 11/30/2020] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Recent advances in the field of cellular reprogramming have opened a route to studying the fundamental mechanisms underlying common neurological disorders. High-density microelectrode-arrays (HD-MEAs) provide unprecedented means to study neuronal physiology at different scales, ranging from network through single-neuron to subcellular features. In this work, HD-MEAs are used in vitro to characterize and compare human induced-pluripotent-stem-cell-derived dopaminergic and motor neurons, including isogenic neuronal lines modeling Parkinson's disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Reproducible electrophysiological network, single-cell and subcellular metrics are used for phenotype characterization and drug testing. Metrics, such as burst shape and axonal velocity, enable the distinction of healthy and diseased neurons. The HD-MEA metrics can also be used to detect the effects of dosing the drug retigabine to human motor neurons. Finally, it is shown that the ability to detect drug effects and the observed culture-to-culture variability critically depend on the number of available recording electrodes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Silvia Ronchi
- Department of Biosystems Science and Engineering, ETH Zürich, Mattenstrasse 26, Basel, 4058, Switzerland
| | - Alessio Paolo Buccino
- Department of Biosystems Science and Engineering, ETH Zürich, Mattenstrasse 26, Basel, 4058, Switzerland
| | - Gustavo Prack
- Department of Biosystems Science and Engineering, ETH Zürich, Mattenstrasse 26, Basel, 4058, Switzerland
| | - Sreedhar Saseendran Kumar
- Department of Biosystems Science and Engineering, ETH Zürich, Mattenstrasse 26, Basel, 4058, Switzerland
| | - Manuel Schröter
- Department of Biosystems Science and Engineering, ETH Zürich, Mattenstrasse 26, Basel, 4058, Switzerland
| | - Michele Fiscella
- Department of Biosystems Science and Engineering, ETH Zürich, Mattenstrasse 26, Basel, 4058, Switzerland
- MaxWell Biosystems AG, Albisriederstrasse 253, Zürich, 8047, Switzerland
| | - Andreas Hierlemann
- Department of Biosystems Science and Engineering, ETH Zürich, Mattenstrasse 26, Basel, 4058, Switzerland
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Sun L, Zhao W, Yan M, Yang B, Xiong P, Zhao S. The efficacy and safety of Chinese herbal compound combined with western medicine for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: A protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis. Medicine (Baltimore) 2020; 99:e21933. [PMID: 33120727 PMCID: PMC7581109 DOI: 10.1097/md.0000000000021933] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) compound formulations are selected according to different populations, with strong targeting and less adverse reactions. As a complex disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) has limited efficacy in the use of conventional treatment regiments, short life cycle, high cost, many side effects, and low quality of life. It is urgent to seek new alternative therapies. Clinical practice shows that Chinese herbal compound combined with western medicine has certain therapeutic advantages, but there is no evidence of evidence-based medicine. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of Chinese herbal compound combined with western medicine in the treatment of ALS. METHODS Use computer to retrieve English database (PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, the Cochrane Library) and Chinese database (CNKI, Wanfang Database, Weipu database, and China Biomedical Literature Service System), moreover manually retrieve Baidu academic and Google academic from the establishment of the database to 2020 July for randomized controlled clinical study on ALS treated with compound Chinese medicine with western medicine therapy, 2 researchers independently conducted data extraction and literature quality evaluation on the quality of the included studies, and meta-analysis of the included literature was carried out using RevMan5.3 software. RESULTS This study evaluated the efficacy and safety of TCM combined with western medicine in the treatment of ALS by means of effective rate, improved Norris scale, ALS Functional Rating Scale, TCM syndrome score, and adverse reaction incidence. CONCLUSION This study will provide reliable evidence for the clinical application of Chinese herbal compound combined with western medicine in the treatment of ALS.OSF registration number: DOI 10.17605/OSF.IO/R5XG4.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lei Sun
- Shaanxi University of Chinese Medicine, Xixian New Area
| | - Wenjuan Zhao
- Affiliated Hospital of Shaanxi University of Chinese Medicine, Xianyang
| | - Mingliang Yan
- Yan’an Municipal Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Yan’an, Shaanxi Province, China
| | - Bin Yang
- Affiliated Hospital of Shaanxi University of Chinese Medicine, Xianyang
| | - Peng Xiong
- Affiliated Hospital of Shaanxi University of Chinese Medicine, Xianyang
| | - Shengjie Zhao
- Affiliated Hospital of Shaanxi University of Chinese Medicine, Xianyang
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20
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Badu-Mensah A, Guo X, McAleer CW, Rumsey JW, Hickman JJ. Functional skeletal muscle model derived from SOD1-mutant ALS patient iPSCs recapitulates hallmarks of disease progression. Sci Rep 2020; 10:14302. [PMID: 32868812 PMCID: PMC7459299 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-70510-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2020] [Accepted: 07/30/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Recent findings suggest a pathologic role of skeletal muscle in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) onset and progression. However, the exact mechanism by which this occurs remains elusive due to limited human-based studies. To this end, phenotypic ALS skeletal muscle models were developed from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) derived from healthy individuals (WT) and ALS patients harboring mutations in the superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1) gene. Although proliferative, SOD1 myoblasts demonstrated delayed and reduced fusion efficiency compared to WT. Additionally, SOD1 myotubes exhibited significantly reduced length and cross-section. Also, SOD1 myotubes had loosely arranged myosin heavy chain and reduced acetylcholine receptor expression per immunocytochemical analysis. Functional analysis indicated considerably reduced contractile force and synchrony in SOD1 myotubes. Mitochondrial assessment indicated reduced inner mitochondrial membrane potential (ΔΨm) and metabolic plasticity in the SOD1-iPSC derived myotubes. This work presents the first well-characterized in vitro iPSC-derived muscle model that demonstrates SOD1 toxicity effects on human muscle regeneration, contractility and metabolic function in ALS. Current findings align with previous ALS patient biopsy studies and suggest an active contribution of skeletal muscle in NMJ dysfunction. Further, the results validate this model as a human-relevant platform for ALS research and drug discovery studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Agnes Badu-Mensah
- NanoScience Technology Center, University of Central Florida, 12424 Research Parkway, Suite 400, Orlando, FL, 32826, USA.,College of Medicine, Burnett School of Biomedical Sciences, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL, 32816, USA
| | - Xiufang Guo
- NanoScience Technology Center, University of Central Florida, 12424 Research Parkway, Suite 400, Orlando, FL, 32826, USA
| | | | - John W Rumsey
- Hesperos Inc., 12501 Research Pkwy, Suite 100, Orlando, FL, 32826, USA
| | - James J Hickman
- NanoScience Technology Center, University of Central Florida, 12424 Research Parkway, Suite 400, Orlando, FL, 32826, USA. .,Hesperos Inc., 12501 Research Pkwy, Suite 100, Orlando, FL, 32826, USA.
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21
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Demy DL, Campanari ML, Munoz-Ruiz R, Durham HD, Gentil BJ, Kabashi E. Functional Characterization of Neurofilament Light Splicing and Misbalance in Zebrafish. Cells 2020; 9:E1238. [PMID: 32429483 PMCID: PMC7291018 DOI: 10.3390/cells9051238] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/17/2020] [Revised: 05/08/2020] [Accepted: 05/14/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Neurofilaments (NFs), a major cytoskeletal component of motor neurons, play a key role in the differentiation, establishment and maintenance of their morphology and mechanical strength. The de novo assembly of these neuronal intermediate filaments requires the presence of the neurofilament light subunit (NEFL), whose expression is reduced in motor neurons in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). This study used zebrafish as a model to characterize the NEFL homologue neflb, which encodes two different isoforms via a splicing of the primary transcript (neflbE4 and neflbE3). In vivo imaging showed that neflb is crucial for proper neuronal development, and that disrupting the balance between its two isoforms specifically affects the NF assembly and motor axon growth, with resultant motor deficits. This equilibrium is also disrupted upon the partial depletion of TDP-43 (TAR DNA-binding protein 43), an RNA-binding protein encoded by the gene TARDBP that is mislocalized into cytoplasmic inclusions in ALS. The study supports the interaction of the NEFL expression and splicing with TDP-43 in a common pathway, both biologically and pathogenetically.
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Affiliation(s)
- Doris Lou Demy
- Institut Imagine, UMR-1163 INSERM et Université Paris Descartes, Hôpital Universitaire Necker-Enfants Malades, 24, boulevard du Montparnasse, 75015 Paris, France; (D.L.D.); (M.L.C.); (R.M.-R.)
- Sorbonne Universités Paris VI, UMR INSERM U 1127, CNRS 1127 UPMC, Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle épinière—ICM, 75015 Paris, France
| | - Maria Letizia Campanari
- Institut Imagine, UMR-1163 INSERM et Université Paris Descartes, Hôpital Universitaire Necker-Enfants Malades, 24, boulevard du Montparnasse, 75015 Paris, France; (D.L.D.); (M.L.C.); (R.M.-R.)
- Sorbonne Universités Paris VI, UMR INSERM U 1127, CNRS 1127 UPMC, Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle épinière—ICM, 75015 Paris, France
| | - Raphael Munoz-Ruiz
- Institut Imagine, UMR-1163 INSERM et Université Paris Descartes, Hôpital Universitaire Necker-Enfants Malades, 24, boulevard du Montparnasse, 75015 Paris, France; (D.L.D.); (M.L.C.); (R.M.-R.)
- Sorbonne Universités Paris VI, UMR INSERM U 1127, CNRS 1127 UPMC, Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle épinière—ICM, 75015 Paris, France
| | - Heather D. Durham
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery and Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University, Montreal, QC H3A 2B4, Canada; (H.D.D.); (B.J.G.)
| | - Benoit J. Gentil
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery and Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University, Montreal, QC H3A 2B4, Canada; (H.D.D.); (B.J.G.)
- Department of Kinesiology and Physical Education McGill University, Montreal, QC H3A 2B4, Canada
| | - Edor Kabashi
- Institut Imagine, UMR-1163 INSERM et Université Paris Descartes, Hôpital Universitaire Necker-Enfants Malades, 24, boulevard du Montparnasse, 75015 Paris, France; (D.L.D.); (M.L.C.); (R.M.-R.)
- Sorbonne Universités Paris VI, UMR INSERM U 1127, CNRS 1127 UPMC, Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle épinière—ICM, 75015 Paris, France
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22
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Pensato V, Magri S, Dalla Bella E, Tannorella P, Bersano E, Sorarù G, Gatti M, Ticozzi N, Taroni F, Lauria G, Mariotti C, Gellera C. Sorting Rare ALS Genetic Variants by Targeted Re-Sequencing Panel in Italian Patients: OPTN, VCP, and SQSTM1 Variants Account for 3% of Rare Genetic Forms. J Clin Med 2020; 9:jcm9020412. [PMID: 32028661 PMCID: PMC7073901 DOI: 10.3390/jcm9020412] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/23/2019] [Revised: 01/25/2020] [Accepted: 01/29/2020] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is an adult-onset progressive neurodegenerative disease due to motor neuron loss variably associated with frontotemporal dementia (FTD). Next generation sequencing technology revealed an increasing number of rare and novel genetic variants and interpretation of their pathogenicity represents a major challange in the diagnosis of ALS. We selected 213 consecutive patients with sporadic or familial (16%) ALS, tested negative for SOD1, FUS, TARDBP, and C9orf72 mutations. To reveal rare forms of genetic ALS, we performed a comprehensive multi-gene panel screening including 46 genes associated with ALS, hereditary motor neuronopathies, spastic paraplegia, and FTD. Our study allowed the identification of pathogenic or likely pathogenic variants in 4.2% of patients. The genes with the highest percentage of pathogenic variants were OPTN (1%), VCP (1%) SQSTM1(1%), SETX (0.4%), FIG4 (0.4%), and GARS1 (0.4%) genes. We also found 49 novel or rare gene variants of unknown significance in 30 patients (14%), 44 unlikely pathogenic variants (39%), and 48 variants in ALS susceptibility genes. The results of our study suggest the screening of OPTN, VCP, and SQSTM1 genes in routine diagnostic investigations for both sporadic and familial cases, and confirm the importance of diagnosis and couselling for patients and their relative family members.
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Affiliation(s)
- Viviana Pensato
- Unit of Medical Genetics and Neurogenetics, Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Carlo Besta, 20133 Milan, Italy; (V.P.); (S.M.); (P.T.); (M.G.); (F.T.); (C.G.)
- 3rd Neurology Unit, Motor Neuron Diseases Centre, Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Carlo Besta, 20133 Milan, Italy (E.B.); (G.L.)
| | - Stefania Magri
- Unit of Medical Genetics and Neurogenetics, Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Carlo Besta, 20133 Milan, Italy; (V.P.); (S.M.); (P.T.); (M.G.); (F.T.); (C.G.)
| | - Eleonora Dalla Bella
- 3rd Neurology Unit, Motor Neuron Diseases Centre, Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Carlo Besta, 20133 Milan, Italy (E.B.); (G.L.)
| | - Pierpaola Tannorella
- Unit of Medical Genetics and Neurogenetics, Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Carlo Besta, 20133 Milan, Italy; (V.P.); (S.M.); (P.T.); (M.G.); (F.T.); (C.G.)
| | - Enrica Bersano
- 3rd Neurology Unit, Motor Neuron Diseases Centre, Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Carlo Besta, 20133 Milan, Italy (E.B.); (G.L.)
| | - Gianni Sorarù
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Padova, 35122 Padova, Italy;
| | - Marta Gatti
- Unit of Medical Genetics and Neurogenetics, Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Carlo Besta, 20133 Milan, Italy; (V.P.); (S.M.); (P.T.); (M.G.); (F.T.); (C.G.)
| | - Nicola Ticozzi
- Department of Neurology and Laboratory of Neuroscience, IRCCS Istituto Auxologico Italiano, 20149 Milan, Italy;
- Department of Pathophysiology and Transplantation, ‘Dino Ferrari’ Center, Università degli Studi di Milano, 20122 Milan, Italy
| | - Franco Taroni
- Unit of Medical Genetics and Neurogenetics, Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Carlo Besta, 20133 Milan, Italy; (V.P.); (S.M.); (P.T.); (M.G.); (F.T.); (C.G.)
| | - Giuseppe Lauria
- 3rd Neurology Unit, Motor Neuron Diseases Centre, Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Carlo Besta, 20133 Milan, Italy (E.B.); (G.L.)
- Department of Biomedical and Clinical Sciences “Luigi Sacco”, University of Milan, 20157 Milan, Italy
| | - Caterina Mariotti
- Unit of Medical Genetics and Neurogenetics, Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Carlo Besta, 20133 Milan, Italy; (V.P.); (S.M.); (P.T.); (M.G.); (F.T.); (C.G.)
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +39-02-2394-2269
| | - Cinzia Gellera
- Unit of Medical Genetics and Neurogenetics, Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Carlo Besta, 20133 Milan, Italy; (V.P.); (S.M.); (P.T.); (M.G.); (F.T.); (C.G.)
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Arrigoni C, Lopa S, Candrian C, Moretti M. Organs-on-a-chip as model systems for multifactorial musculoskeletal diseases. Curr Opin Biotechnol 2020; 63:79-88. [PMID: 31927146 DOI: 10.1016/j.copbio.2019.12.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/18/2019] [Revised: 12/04/2019] [Accepted: 12/08/2019] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Multifactorial diseases affecting musculoskeletal tissues are characterized by the interactions between multiple tissues, such as muscle and nerves in neuromuscular diseases, or multiple cellular components in a tissue, as in the case of bone tumors, interacting with bone cells. For these diseases also the influence of different biophysical and biochemical stimuli, such as mechanical overload and inflammatory molecules in osteoarthritis, play a key role. To investigate these complex phenomena, organ-on-a-chip systems have been developed, taking into account specific disease characteristics such as being directly derived from patients, the presence of specifically mutated cells, or a combination of relevant biophysical and/or biochemical stimuli. Depending on the envisaged application, different issues remain to be addressed. In particular, improving automation and output sensors are key for drug screening applications, while refining model microarchitecture to enhance physiological fidelity is needed for more basic science studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chiara Arrigoni
- Regenerative Medicine Technologies Laboratory, Ente Ospedaliero Cantonale (EOC), via Tesserete 46, 6900 Lugano, Switzerland
| | - Silvia Lopa
- IRCCS Istituto Ortopedico Galeazzi, Cell and Tissue Engineering Laboratory, via R. Galeazzi 4, 20161 Milano, Italy
| | - Christian Candrian
- Unità di Ortopedia e Traumatologia, Ospedale Regionale di Lugano, Ente Ospedaliero Cantonale (EOC), via Tesserete 46, 6900 Lugano, Switzerland
| | - Matteo Moretti
- Regenerative Medicine Technologies Laboratory, Ente Ospedaliero Cantonale (EOC), via Tesserete 46, 6900 Lugano, Switzerland; IRCCS Istituto Ortopedico Galeazzi, Cell and Tissue Engineering Laboratory, via R. Galeazzi 4, 20161 Milano, Italy
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Miyata M, Kakeda S, Hashimoto T, Ide S, Okada K, Adachi H, Korogi Y. Facial nerve atrophy in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: Evaluation with fast imaging employing steady-state acquisition (FIESTA). J Magn Reson Imaging 2019; 51:757-766. [PMID: 31400058 DOI: 10.1002/jmri.26890] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/14/2019] [Accepted: 07/22/2019] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND In amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), motor neurons in the brainstem markedly deplete, whereas sensory neurons are less severely affected. PURPOSE To determine whether facial nerve (FN) measurement on 3D fast imaging employing steady-state acquisition (FIESTA) is useful for ALS diagnosis. STUDY TYPE Retrospective. SUBJECTS Fifteen ALS patients and 16 controls. FIELD STRENGTH/SEQUENCE 3T FIESTA MR. ASSESSMENT The cross-sectional area of the FN and cochlear nerve (CN) were measured, and the FN/CN ratio (FCR) was assessed. For qualitative assessment, the FN cross-sectional area was compared with that of the CN and the following scores were assigned: score 1 (large), the FN is larger than the CN; score 2 (almost equal), the size difference between the FN and CN is within 10%; score 3 (small), the FN is smaller than the CN (10-50%); score 4 (significantly small), size of the FN is less than half the size of the CN. STATISTICAL TESTS The differences in FCR between the ALS patients and the controls were tested using the Wilcoxon Mann-Whitney U-test. For the qualitative and quantitative assessments, we performed a receiver operating characteristic analysis for the diagnosis of ALS with an abnormal finding as score 3 or 4. RESULTS The mean FCR was significantly smaller for ALS patients (0.71 ± 0.17) than for controls (0.95 ± 0.08) (P < 0.001) and the area under the curve was 0.93. When an FN score was 3 or 4, indicative of FN atrophy, the sensitivity and specificity values of FIESTA for discriminating ALS patients from controls were 93.3% (14/15) and 90.0% (18/20), respectively. DATA CONCLUSION The FN atrophy revealed on FIESTA, which may reflect lower motor neuron impairment in ALS, allowed us to distinguish ALS patients from controls with a high degree of accuracy. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE 3 Technical Efficacy: Stage 2 J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2020;51:757-766.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mari Miyata
- Department of Radiology, University of Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Medicine, Kitakyushu, Japan
| | - Shingo Kakeda
- Department of Diagnostic Radiology, Hirosaki University Graduate School of Medicine 5 Zaifu-cho, Hirosaki, Aomori, Japan
| | - Tomoyo Hashimoto
- Department of Neurology, University of Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Medicine, Kitakyushu, Japan
| | - Satoru Ide
- Department of Radiology, University of Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Medicine, Kitakyushu, Japan
| | - Kazumasa Okada
- Department of Neurology, University of Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Medicine, Kitakyushu, Japan
| | - Hiroaki Adachi
- Department of Neurology, University of Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Medicine, Kitakyushu, Japan
| | - Yukunori Korogi
- Department of Radiology, University of Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Medicine, Kitakyushu, Japan
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