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Casciano F, Zauli E, Celeghini C, Caruso L, Gonelli A, Zauli G, Pignatelli A. Retinal Alterations Predict Early Prodromal Signs of Neurodegenerative Disease. Int J Mol Sci 2024; 25:1689. [PMID: 38338966 PMCID: PMC10855697 DOI: 10.3390/ijms25031689] [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: 12/21/2023] [Revised: 01/25/2024] [Accepted: 01/27/2024] [Indexed: 02/12/2024] Open
Abstract
Neurodegenerative diseases are an increasingly common group of diseases that occur late in life with a significant impact on personal, family, and economic life. Among these, Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Parkinson's disease (PD) are the major disorders that lead to mild to severe cognitive and physical impairment and dementia. Interestingly, those diseases may show onset of prodromal symptoms early after middle age. Commonly, the evaluation of these neurodegenerative diseases is based on the detection of biomarkers, where functional and structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) have shown a central role in revealing early or prodromal phases, although it can be expensive, time-consuming, and not always available. The aforementioned diseases have a common impact on the visual system due to the pathophysiological mechanisms shared between the eye and the brain. In Parkinson's disease, α-synuclein deposition in the retinal cells, as well as in dopaminergic neurons of the substantia nigra, alters the visual cortex and retinal function, resulting in modifications to the visual field. Similarly, the visual cortex is modified by the neurofibrillary tangles and neuritic amyloid β plaques typically seen in the Alzheimer's disease brain, and this may reflect the accumulation of these biomarkers in the retina during the early stages of the disease, as seen in postmortem retinas of AD patients. In this light, the ophthalmic evaluation of retinal neurodegeneration could become a cost-effective method for the early diagnosis of those diseases, overcoming the limitations of functional and structural imaging of the deep brain. This analysis is commonly used in ophthalmic practice, and interest in it has risen in recent years. This review will discuss the relationship between Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease with retinal degeneration, highlighting how retinal analysis may represent a noninvasive and straightforward method for the early diagnosis of these neurodegenerative diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fabio Casciano
- Department of Translational Medicine and LTTA Centre, University of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy
| | - Enrico Zauli
- Department of Translational Medicine, University of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy
| | - Claudio Celeghini
- Department of Translational Medicine, University of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy
| | - Lorenzo Caruso
- Department of Environment and Prevention Sciences, University of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy
| | - Arianna Gonelli
- Department of Translational Medicine, University of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy
| | - Giorgio Zauli
- Research Department, King Khaled Eye Specialistic Hospital, Riyadh 12329, Saudi Arabia
| | - Angela Pignatelli
- Department of Neuroscience and Rehabilitation, University of Ferrara, 44124 Ferrara, Italy
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The interactions of amyloid β aggregates with phospholipid membranes and the implications for neurodegeneration. Biochem Soc Trans 2023; 51:147-159. [PMID: 36629697 DOI: 10.1042/bst20220434] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2022] [Revised: 12/20/2022] [Accepted: 12/22/2022] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
Abstract
Misfolding, aggregation and accumulation of Amyloid-β peptides (Aβ) in neuronal tissue and extracellular matrix are hallmark features of Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathology. Soluble Aβ oligomers are involved in neuronal toxicity by interacting with the lipid membrane, compromising its integrity, and affecting the function of receptors. These facts indicate that the interaction between Aβ oligomers and cell membranes may be one of the central molecular level factors responsible for the onset of neurodegeneration. The present review provides a structural understanding of Aβ neurotoxicity via membrane interactions and contributes to understanding early events in Alzheimer's disease.
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Berntsson E, Vosough F, Svantesson T, Pansieri J, Iashchishyn IA, Ostojić L, Dong X, Paul S, Jarvet J, Roos PM, Barth A, Morozova-Roche LA, Gräslund A, Wärmländer SKTS. Residue-specific binding of Ni(II) ions influences the structure and aggregation of amyloid beta (Aβ) peptides. Sci Rep 2023; 13:3341. [PMID: 36849796 PMCID: PMC9971182 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-29901-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2022] [Accepted: 02/13/2023] [Indexed: 03/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common cause of dementia worldwide. AD brains display deposits of insoluble amyloid plaques consisting mainly of aggregated amyloid-β (Aβ) peptides, and Aβ oligomers are likely a toxic species in AD pathology. AD patients display altered metal homeostasis, and AD plaques show elevated concentrations of metals such as Cu, Fe, and Zn. Yet, the metal chemistry in AD pathology remains unclear. Ni(II) ions are known to interact with Aβ peptides, but the nature and effects of such interactions are unknown. Here, we use numerous biophysical methods-mainly spectroscopy and imaging techniques-to characterize Aβ/Ni(II) interactions in vitro, for different Aβ variants: Aβ(1-40), Aβ(1-40)(H6A, H13A, H14A), Aβ(4-40), and Aβ(1-42). We show for the first time that Ni(II) ions display specific binding to the N-terminal segment of full-length Aβ monomers. Equimolar amounts of Ni(II) ions retard Aβ aggregation and direct it towards non-structured aggregates. The His6, His13, and His14 residues are implicated as binding ligands, and the Ni(II)·Aβ binding affinity is in the low µM range. The redox-active Ni(II) ions induce formation of dityrosine cross-links via redox chemistry, thereby creating covalent Aβ dimers. In aqueous buffer Ni(II) ions promote formation of beta sheet structure in Aβ monomers, while in a membrane-mimicking environment (SDS micelles) coil-coil helix interactions appear to be induced. For SDS-stabilized Aβ oligomers, Ni(II) ions direct the oligomers towards larger sizes and more diverse (heterogeneous) populations. All of these structural rearrangements may be relevant for the Aβ aggregation processes that are involved in AD brain pathology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elina Berntsson
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Arrhenius Laboratories, Stockholm University, 106 91, Stockholm, Sweden. .,Department of Chemistry and Biotechnology, Tallinn University of Technology, Tallinn, Estonia.
| | - Faraz Vosough
- grid.10548.380000 0004 1936 9377Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Arrhenius Laboratories, Stockholm University, 106 91 Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Teodor Svantesson
- grid.10548.380000 0004 1936 9377Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Arrhenius Laboratories, Stockholm University, 106 91 Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Jonathan Pansieri
- grid.12650.300000 0001 1034 3451Department of Medical Biochemistry and Biophysics, Umeå University, 901 87 Umeå, Sweden
| | - Igor A. Iashchishyn
- grid.12650.300000 0001 1034 3451Department of Medical Biochemistry and Biophysics, Umeå University, 901 87 Umeå, Sweden
| | - Lucija Ostojić
- grid.12650.300000 0001 1034 3451Department of Medical Biochemistry and Biophysics, Umeå University, 901 87 Umeå, Sweden
| | - Xiaolin Dong
- grid.10548.380000 0004 1936 9377Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Arrhenius Laboratories, Stockholm University, 106 91 Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Suman Paul
- grid.10548.380000 0004 1936 9377Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Arrhenius Laboratories, Stockholm University, 106 91 Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Jüri Jarvet
- grid.10548.380000 0004 1936 9377Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Arrhenius Laboratories, Stockholm University, 106 91 Stockholm, Sweden ,grid.177284.f0000 0004 0410 6208The National Institute of Chemical Physics and Biophysics, Tallinn, Estonia
| | - Per M. Roos
- grid.4714.60000 0004 1937 0626Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Nobels Väg 13, 171 77 Stockholm, Sweden ,Department of Clinical Physiology, Capio St. Göran Hospital, St. Göransplan 1, 112 19 Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Andreas Barth
- grid.10548.380000 0004 1936 9377Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Arrhenius Laboratories, Stockholm University, 106 91 Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Ludmilla A. Morozova-Roche
- grid.12650.300000 0001 1034 3451Department of Medical Biochemistry and Biophysics, Umeå University, 901 87 Umeå, Sweden
| | - Astrid Gräslund
- grid.10548.380000 0004 1936 9377Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Arrhenius Laboratories, Stockholm University, 106 91 Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Sebastian K. T. S. Wärmländer
- grid.10548.380000 0004 1936 9377Chemistry Section, Arrhenius Laboratories, Stockholm University, 106 91, Stockholm, Sweden
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