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Yunoki S, Kishimoto M, Mandai Y, Hiraoka Y, Kondo E. High-speed spinning of collagen microfibers comprising aligned fibrils for creating artificial tendons. Biomed Mater 2024. [PMID: 38729187 DOI: 10.1088/1748-605x/ad49f6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/12/2024]
Abstract
Bundles of engineered collagen microfibers are promising synthetic tendons as substitutes for autogenous grafts. The purpose of this study was to develop high-speed and continuous spinning of collagen microfibers that involves stretching of collagen stream. Our study revealed the "critical fibrillogenesis concentration (CFC)" of neutralized collagen solutions, which is defined as the upper limit of the collagen concentration at which neutralized collagen molecules remain stable as long as they are cooled (≤10°C). Neutralized collagen solutions at collagen concentrations slightly below the CFC formed cord-like collagen gels comprising longitudinally aligned fibrils when extruded from nozzles into an ethanol bath. Dry collagen microfibers with a controlled diameter ranging from 122 ± 2 to 31.2 ± 1.7 μm can be spun from the cord-like gels using nozzles of various sizes. The spinning process was improved by including stretching of collagen stream to further reduce diameter and increase linear velocity. We extruded a collagen solution through a 182-μm-diameter nozzle while simultaneously stretching it in an ethanol bath during gelation and fiber formation. This process resembles the stretching of a melted thermoplastic resin because it solidifies during melt spinning. The mechanical properties of the stretched collagen microfibers were comparable to the highest literature values obtained using microfluidic wet spinning, as they exhibited longitudinally aligned fibrils both on their surface and in their core. Previous wet spinning methods were unable to generate collagen microfibers with a consistent tendon-like fibrillar arrangement throughout the samples. Although the tangent modulus (101 ± 16 MPa) and stress at break of the swollen bundles of stretched microfibers (10.5 ± 0.5 MPa) were lower than those of ACL, they were within the same order of magnitude. We developed a spinning technique that produces narrow collagen microfibers with a tendon-like arrangement that can serve as artificial fiber units for collagen-based synthetic tendons.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shunji Yunoki
- Hokkaido University, kita-21, Nishi-11, Kita-ku, Sapporo, 001-0021, JAPAN
| | - Masanori Kishimoto
- Biomedical Department, Nitta Gelatin Inc, 2-22, Futamata, Yao, Osaka, 581-0024, JAPAN
| | - Yoshinobu Mandai
- Biomedical Department, Nitta Gelatin Inc, 2-22, Futamata, Yao, Osaka, 581-0024, JAPAN
| | - Yosuke Hiraoka
- Biomedical Department, Nitta Gelatin Inc, 2-22, Futamata, Yao, Osaka, 581-0024, JAPAN
| | - Eiji Kondo
- Centre for Sports Medicine, Hokkaido University Hospital, Kita-14, Nishi-5, Kita-ku, Sapporo, 060-8648, JAPAN
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2
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Pesch V, Flores-Fernandez JM, Reithofer S, Ma L, Özdüzenciler P, Busch Y, Sriraman A, Wang Y, Amidian S, Kroepel CVM, Müller L, Lien Y, Rudtke O, Frieg B, Schröder GF, Wille H, Tamgüney G. Vaccination with structurally adapted fungal protein fibrils induces immunity to Parkinson's disease. Brain 2024; 147:1644-1652. [PMID: 38428032 PMCID: PMC11068327 DOI: 10.1093/brain/awae061] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/14/2023] [Revised: 01/05/2024] [Accepted: 02/10/2024] [Indexed: 03/03/2024] Open
Abstract
The pathological misfolding and aggregation of soluble α-synuclein into toxic oligomers and insoluble amyloid fibrils causes Parkinson's disease, a progressive age-related neurodegenerative disease for which there is no cure. HET-s is a soluble fungal protein that can form assembled amyloid fibrils in its prion state. We engineered HET-s(218-298) to form four different fibrillar vaccine candidates, each displaying a specific conformational epitope present on the surface of α-synuclein fibrils. Vaccination with these four vaccine candidates prolonged the survival of immunized TgM83+/- mice challenged with α-synuclein fibrils by 8% when injected into the brain to model brain-first Parkinson's disease or by 21% and 22% when injected into the peritoneum or gut wall, respectively, to model body-first Parkinson's disease. Antibodies from fully immunized mice recognized α-synuclein fibrils and brain homogenates from patients with Parkinson's disease, dementia with Lewy bodies and multiple system atrophy. Conformation-specific vaccines that mimic epitopes present only on the surface of pathological fibrils but not on soluble monomers, hold great promise for protection against Parkinson's disease, related synucleinopathies and other amyloidogenic protein misfolding disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Verena Pesch
- Institut für Biologische Informationsprozesse, Strukturbiochemie (IBI-7), Forschungszentrum Jülich, 52425 Jülich, Germany
| | - José Miguel Flores-Fernandez
- Department of Biochemistry and Centre for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 2M8, Canada
| | - Sara Reithofer
- Institut für Biologische Informationsprozesse, Strukturbiochemie (IBI-7), Forschungszentrum Jülich, 52425 Jülich, Germany
| | - Liang Ma
- Institut für Biologische Informationsprozesse, Strukturbiochemie (IBI-7), Forschungszentrum Jülich, 52425 Jülich, Germany
| | - Pelin Özdüzenciler
- Institut für Biologische Informationsprozesse, Strukturbiochemie (IBI-7), Forschungszentrum Jülich, 52425 Jülich, Germany
| | - Yannick Busch
- Institut für Biologische Informationsprozesse, Strukturbiochemie (IBI-7), Forschungszentrum Jülich, 52425 Jülich, Germany
| | - Aishwarya Sriraman
- Department of Biochemistry and Centre for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 2M8, Canada
| | - YongLiang Wang
- Department of Biochemistry and Centre for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 2M8, Canada
- Department of Cell Biology and Anatomy, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada
| | - Sara Amidian
- Department of Biochemistry and Centre for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 2M8, Canada
| | - Chiara V M Kroepel
- Institut für Biologische Informationsprozesse, Strukturbiochemie (IBI-7), Forschungszentrum Jülich, 52425 Jülich, Germany
| | - Laura Müller
- Institut für Biologische Informationsprozesse, Strukturbiochemie (IBI-7), Forschungszentrum Jülich, 52425 Jülich, Germany
| | - Yi Lien
- Institut für Biologische Informationsprozesse, Strukturbiochemie (IBI-7), Forschungszentrum Jülich, 52425 Jülich, Germany
| | - Olivia Rudtke
- Institut für Biologische Informationsprozesse, Strukturbiochemie (IBI-7), Forschungszentrum Jülich, 52425 Jülich, Germany
| | - Benedikt Frieg
- Institut für Biologische Informationsprozesse, Strukturbiochemie (IBI-7), Forschungszentrum Jülich, 52425 Jülich, Germany
| | - Gunnar F Schröder
- Institut für Biologische Informationsprozesse, Strukturbiochemie (IBI-7), Forschungszentrum Jülich, 52425 Jülich, Germany
- Physics Department, Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf, 40225 Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Holger Wille
- Department of Biochemistry and Centre for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 2M8, Canada
- Neuroscience and Mental Health Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 2M8, Canada
| | - Gültekin Tamgüney
- Institut für Biologische Informationsprozesse, Strukturbiochemie (IBI-7), Forschungszentrum Jülich, 52425 Jülich, Germany
- Institut für Physikalische Biologie, Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf, 40225 Düsseldorf, Germany
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3
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McFarland R, Reichow S. Dynamic fibrillar assembly of αB-crystallin induced by perturbation of the conserved NT-IXI motif resolved by cryo-EM. bioRxiv 2024:2024.03.22.586355. [PMID: 38585788 PMCID: PMC10996541 DOI: 10.1101/2024.03.22.586355] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/09/2024]
Abstract
αB-crystallin is an archetypical member of the small heat-shock proteins (sHSPs) vital for cellular proteostasis and mitigating protein misfolding diseases. Gaining insights into the principles defining their molecular organization and chaperone function have been hindered by intrinsic dynamic properties and limited high-resolution structural analysis. To disentangle the mechanistic underpinnings of these dynamical properties, we mutated a conserved IXI-motif located within the N-terminal (NT) domain of human αB-crystallin. This resulted in a profound structural transformation, from highly polydispersed caged-like native assemblies into a comparatively well-ordered helical fibril state amenable to high-resolution cryo-EM analysis. The reversible nature of the induced fibrils facilitated interrogation of functional effects due to perturbation of the NT-IXI motif in both the native-like oligomer and fibril states. Together, our investigations unveiled several features thought to be key mechanistic attributes to sHSPs and point to a critical significance of the NT-IXI motif in αB-crystallin assembly, dynamics and chaperone activity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Russell McFarland
- Department of Chemical Physiology and Biochemistry, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, Oregon 97239, USA
- Vollum Institute, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, Oregon 97239, USA
- Department of Chemistry, Portland State University, Portland, Oregon 97201, USA
- Current: Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Genetics, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, Colorado 80045
| | - Steve Reichow
- Department of Chemical Physiology and Biochemistry, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, Oregon 97239, USA
- Vollum Institute, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, Oregon 97239, USA
- Department of Chemistry, Portland State University, Portland, Oregon 97201, USA
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4
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John T, Rampioni A, Poger D, Mark AE. Molecular Insights into the Dynamics of Amyloid Fibril Growth: Elongation and Lateral Assembly of GNNQQNY Protofibrils. ACS Chem Neurosci 2024; 15:716-723. [PMID: 38235697 DOI: 10.1021/acschemneuro.3c00754] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/19/2024] Open
Abstract
The self-assembly of peptides and proteins into β-sheet rich amyloid fibrils is linked to both functional and pathological states. In this study, the growth of fibrillar structures of the short peptide GNNQQNY, a fragment from the yeast prion Sup35 protein, was examined. Molecular dynamics simulations were used to study alternative mechanisms of fibril growth, including elongation through binding of monomers as well as fibril self-assembly into larger, more mature structures. It was found that after binding, monomers diffused along preformed fibrils toward the ends, supporting the mechanism of fibril growth via elongation. Lateral assembly of protofibrils was found to occur readily, suggesting that this could be the key to transitioning from isolated fibrils to mature multilayer structures. Overall, the work provides mechanistic insights into the competitive pathways that govern amyloid fibril growth.
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Affiliation(s)
- Torsten John
- School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD 4072, Australia
| | - Aldo Rampioni
- Groningen Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology Institute, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 4, 9747 AG Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - David Poger
- School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD 4072, Australia
| | - Alan E Mark
- School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD 4072, Australia
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Pandey NK, Varkey J, Ajayan A, George G, Chen J, Langen R. Fluorescent protein tagging promotes phase separation and alters the aggregation pathway of huntingtin exon-1. J Biol Chem 2024; 300:105585. [PMID: 38141760 PMCID: PMC10825056 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2023.105585] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2023] [Revised: 12/11/2023] [Accepted: 12/13/2023] [Indexed: 12/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Fluorescent protein tags are convenient tools for tracking the aggregation states of amyloidogenic or phase separating proteins, but the effect of the tags is often not well understood. Here, we investigated the impact of a C-terminal red fluorescent protein (RFP) tag on the phase separation of huntingtin exon-1 (Httex1), an N-terminal portion of the huntingtin protein that aggregates in Huntington's disease. We found that the RFP-tagged Httex1 rapidly formed micron-sized, phase separated states in the presence of a crowding agent. The formed structures had a rounded appearance and were highly dynamic according to electron paramagnetic resonance and fluorescence recovery after photobleaching, suggesting that the phase separated state was largely liquid in nature. Remarkably, the untagged protein did not undergo any detectable liquid condensate formation under the same conditions. In addition to strongly promoting liquid-liquid phase separation, the RFP tag also facilitated fibril formation, as the tag-dependent liquid condensates rapidly underwent a liquid-to-solid transition. The rate of fibril formation under these conditions was significantly faster than that of the untagged protein. When expressed in cells, the RFP-tagged Httex1 formed larger aggregates with different antibody staining patterns compared to untagged Httex1. Collectively, these data reveal that the addition of a fluorescent protein tag significantly impacts liquid and solid phase separations of Httex1 in vitro and leads to altered aggregation in cells. Considering that the tagged Httex1 is commonly used to study the mechanisms of Httex1 misfolding and toxicity, our findings highlight the importance to validate the conclusions with untagged protein.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nitin K Pandey
- Physiology and Neuroscience, Zilkha Neurogenetic Institute, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California, USA
| | - Jobin Varkey
- Physiology and Neuroscience, Zilkha Neurogenetic Institute, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California, USA
| | - Anakha Ajayan
- Physiology and Neuroscience, Zilkha Neurogenetic Institute, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California, USA
| | - Gincy George
- Physiology and Neuroscience, Zilkha Neurogenetic Institute, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California, USA
| | - Jeannie Chen
- Physiology and Neuroscience, Zilkha Neurogenetic Institute, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California, USA
| | - Ralf Langen
- Physiology and Neuroscience, Zilkha Neurogenetic Institute, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California, USA; Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine, Zilkha Neurogenetic Institute, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California, USA.
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6
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Cook I, Leyh TS. Sterol-activated amyloid beta fibril formation. J Biol Chem 2023; 299:105445. [PMID: 37949224 PMCID: PMC10704437 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2023.105445] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/27/2023] [Revised: 10/23/2023] [Accepted: 11/03/2023] [Indexed: 11/12/2023] Open
Abstract
The metabolic processes that link Alzheimer's disease (AD) to elevated cholesterol levels in the brain are not fully defined. Amyloid beta (Aβ) plaque accumulation is believed to begin decades prior to symptoms and to contribute significantly to the disease. Cholesterol and its metabolites accelerate plaque formation through as-yet-undefined mechanisms. Here, the mechanism of cholesterol (CH) and cholesterol 3-sulfate (CS) induced acceleration of Aβ42 fibril formation is examined in quantitative ligand binding, Aβ42 fibril polymerization, and molecular dynamics studies. Equilibrium and pre-steady-state binding studies reveal that monomeric Aβ42•ligand complexes form and dissociate rapidly relative to oligomerization, that the ligand/peptide stoichiometry is 1-to-1, and that the peptide is likely saturated in vivo. Analysis of Aβ42 polymerization progress curves demonstrates that ligands accelerate polymer synthesis by catalyzing the conversion of peptide monomers into dimers that nucleate the polymerization reaction. Nucleation is accelerated ∼49-fold by CH, and ∼13,000-fold by CS - a minor CH metabolite. Polymerization kinetic models predict that at presumed disease-relevant CS and CH concentrations, approximately half of the polymerization nuclei will contain CS, small oligomers of neurotoxic dimensions (∼12-mers) will contain substantial CS, and fibril-formation lag times will decrease 13-fold relative to unliganded Aβ42. Molecular dynamics models, which quantitatively predict all experimental findings, indicate that the acceleration mechanism is rooted in ligand-induced stabilization of the peptide in non-helical conformations that readily form polymerization nuclei.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ian Cook
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York, USA
| | - Thomas S Leyh
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York, USA.
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Belousov MV, Kosolapova AO, Fayoud H, Sulatsky MI, Sulatskaya AI, Romanenko MN, Bobylev AG, Antonets KS, Nizhnikov AA. OmpC and OmpF Outer Membrane Proteins of Escherichia coli and Salmonella enterica Form Bona Fide Amyloids. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:15522. [PMID: 37958507 PMCID: PMC10649029 DOI: 10.3390/ijms242115522] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/06/2023] [Revised: 10/11/2023] [Accepted: 10/20/2023] [Indexed: 11/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Outer membrane proteins (Omps) of Gram-negative bacteria represent porins involved in a wide range of virulence- and pathogenesis-related cellular processes, including transport, adhesion, penetration, and the colonization of host tissues. Most outer membrane porins share a specific spatial structure called the β-barrel that provides their structural integrity within the membrane lipid bilayer. Recent data suggest that outer membrane proteins from several bacterial species are able to adopt the amyloid state alternative to their β-barrel structure. Amyloids are protein fibrils with a specific spatial structure called the cross-β that gives them an unusual resistance to different physicochemical influences. Various bacterial amyloids are known to be involved in host-pathogen and host-symbiont interactions and contribute to colonization of host tissues. Such an ability of outer membrane porins to adopt amyloid state might represent an important mechanism of bacterial virulence. In this work, we investigated the amyloid properties of the OmpC and OmpF porins from two species belonging to Enterobacteriaceae family, Escherichia coli, and Salmonella enterica. We demonstrated that OmpC and OmpF of E. coli and S. enterica form toxic fibrillar aggregates in vitro. These aggregates exhibit birefringence upon binding Congo Red dye and show characteristic reflections under X-ray diffraction. Thus, we confirmed amyloid properties for OmpC of E. coli and demonstrated bona fide amyloid properties for three novel proteins: OmpC of S. enterica and OmpF of E. coli and S. enterica in vitro. All four studied porins were shown to form amyloid fibrils at the surface of E. coli cells in the curli-dependent amyloid generator system. Moreover, we found that overexpression of recombinant OmpC and OmpF in the E. coli BL21 strain leads to the formation of detergent- and protease-resistant amyloid-like aggregates and enhances the birefringence of bacterial cultures stained with Congo Red. We also detected detergent- and protease-resistant aggregates comprising OmpC and OmpF in S. enterica culture. These data are important in the context of understanding the structural dualism of Omps and its relation to pathogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mikhail V. Belousov
- All-Russia Research Institute for Agricultural Microbiology, 196608 St. Petersburg, Russia; (M.V.B.); (A.O.K.); (H.F.); (M.N.R.); (K.S.A.)
- Faculty of Biology, St. Petersburg State University, 199034 St. Petersburg, Russia
| | - Anastasiia O. Kosolapova
- All-Russia Research Institute for Agricultural Microbiology, 196608 St. Petersburg, Russia; (M.V.B.); (A.O.K.); (H.F.); (M.N.R.); (K.S.A.)
- Faculty of Biology, St. Petersburg State University, 199034 St. Petersburg, Russia
| | - Haidar Fayoud
- All-Russia Research Institute for Agricultural Microbiology, 196608 St. Petersburg, Russia; (M.V.B.); (A.O.K.); (H.F.); (M.N.R.); (K.S.A.)
- Faculty of Biology, St. Petersburg State University, 199034 St. Petersburg, Russia
| | - Maksim I. Sulatsky
- Institute of Cytology, Russian Academy of Sciences, 194064 St. Petersburg, Russia; (M.I.S.); (A.I.S.)
| | - Anna I. Sulatskaya
- Institute of Cytology, Russian Academy of Sciences, 194064 St. Petersburg, Russia; (M.I.S.); (A.I.S.)
| | - Maria N. Romanenko
- All-Russia Research Institute for Agricultural Microbiology, 196608 St. Petersburg, Russia; (M.V.B.); (A.O.K.); (H.F.); (M.N.R.); (K.S.A.)
- Faculty of Biology, St. Petersburg State University, 199034 St. Petersburg, Russia
| | - Alexander G. Bobylev
- Institute of Theoretical and Experimental Biophysics, Russian Academy of Sciences, 142290 Pushchino, Russia;
| | - Kirill S. Antonets
- All-Russia Research Institute for Agricultural Microbiology, 196608 St. Petersburg, Russia; (M.V.B.); (A.O.K.); (H.F.); (M.N.R.); (K.S.A.)
- Faculty of Biology, St. Petersburg State University, 199034 St. Petersburg, Russia
| | - Anton A. Nizhnikov
- All-Russia Research Institute for Agricultural Microbiology, 196608 St. Petersburg, Russia; (M.V.B.); (A.O.K.); (H.F.); (M.N.R.); (K.S.A.)
- Faculty of Biology, St. Petersburg State University, 199034 St. Petersburg, Russia
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8
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Lipiński WP, Zehnder J, Abbas M, Güntert P, Spruijt E, Wiegand T. Fibrils Emerging from Droplets: Molecular Guiding Principles behind Phase Transitions of a Short Peptide-Based Condensate Studied by Solid-State NMR. Chemistry 2023; 29:e202301159. [PMID: 37310801 DOI: 10.1002/chem.202301159] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2023] [Revised: 06/10/2023] [Accepted: 06/13/2023] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Biochemical reactions occurring in highly crowded cellular environments require different means of control to ensure productivity and specificity. Compartmentalization of reagents by liquid-liquid phase separation is one of these means. However, extremely high local protein concentrations of up to 400 mg/ml can result in pathological aggregation into fibrillar amyloid structures, a phenomenon that has been linked to various neurodegenerative diseases. Despite its relevance, the process of liquid-to-solid transition inside condensates is still not well understood at the molecular level. We thus herein use small peptide derivatives that can undergo both liquid-liquid and subsequent liquid-to-solid phase transition as model systems to study both processes. Using solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM), we compare the structure of condensed states of leucine, tryptophan and phenylalanine containing derivatives, distinguishing between liquid-like condensates, amorphous aggregates and fibrils, respectively. A structural model for the fibrils formed by the phenylalanine derivative was obtained by an NMR-based structure calculation. The fibrils are stabilised by hydrogen bonds and side-chain π-π interactions, which are likely much less pronounced or absent in the liquid and amorphous state. Such noncovalent interactions are equally important for the liquid-to-solid transition of proteins, particularly those related to neurodegenerative diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wojciech P Lipiński
- Radboud University, Institute of Molecules and Materials (IMM), Heyendaalseweg 135, 6525 AJ, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
| | - Johannes Zehnder
- Physical Chemistry, ETH Zurich, Vladimir-Prelog-Weg 2, 8093, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Manzar Abbas
- Radboud University, Institute of Molecules and Materials (IMM), Heyendaalseweg 135, 6525 AJ, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
| | - Peter Güntert
- Physical Chemistry, ETH Zurich, Vladimir-Prelog-Weg 2, 8093, Zurich, Switzerland
- Institute of Biophysical Chemistry Center for Biomolecular Magnetic Resonance, Goethe University Frankfurt am Main, Max-von-Laue-Str. 9, 60438, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
- Department of Chemistry, Tokyo Metropolitan University, 1-1 Minamiosawa, Hachioji-shi, 192-0397, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Evan Spruijt
- Radboud University, Institute of Molecules and Materials (IMM), Heyendaalseweg 135, 6525 AJ, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
| | - Thomas Wiegand
- Max Planck Institute for Chemical Energy Conversion, Stiftstr. 34-36, 45470, Mülheim an der Ruhr, Germany
- Institute of Technical and Macromolecular Chemistry, RWTH Aachen University, Worringerweg 2, 52074, Aachen, Germany
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9
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Zupancic JM, Smith MD, Trzeciakiewicz H, Skinner ME, Ferris SP, Makowski EK, Lucas MJ, McArthur N, Kane RS, Paulson HL, Tessier PM. Quantitative flow cytometric selection of tau conformational nanobodies specific for pathological aggregates. Front Immunol 2023; 14:1164080. [PMID: 37622125 PMCID: PMC10445546 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1164080] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/12/2023] [Accepted: 05/15/2023] [Indexed: 08/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Single-domain antibodies, also known as nanobodies, are broadly important for studying the structure and conformational states of several classes of proteins, including membrane proteins, enzymes, and amyloidogenic proteins. Conformational nanobodies specific for aggregated conformations of amyloidogenic proteins are particularly needed to better target and study aggregates associated with a growing class of associated diseases, especially neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases. However, there are few reported nanobodies with both conformational and sequence specificity for amyloid aggregates, especially for large and complex proteins such as the tau protein associated with Alzheimer's disease, due to difficulties in selecting nanobodies that bind to complex aggregated proteins. Here, we report the selection of conformational nanobodies that selectively recognize aggregated (fibrillar) tau relative to soluble (monomeric) tau. Notably, we demonstrate that these nanobodies can be directly isolated from immune libraries using quantitative flow cytometric sorting of yeast-displayed libraries against tau aggregates conjugated to quantum dots, and this process eliminates the need for secondary nanobody screening. The isolated nanobodies demonstrate conformational specificity for tau aggregates in brain samples from both a transgenic mouse model and human tauopathies. We expect that our facile approach will be broadly useful for isolating conformational nanobodies against diverse amyloid aggregates and other complex antigens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer M. Zupancic
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, United States
- Biointerfaces Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, United States
| | - Matthew D. Smith
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, United States
- Biointerfaces Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, United States
| | - Hanna Trzeciakiewicz
- Department of Translational Neuroscience, Michigan State University, Grand Rapids, MI, United States
| | - Mary E. Skinner
- Department of Neurology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, United States
| | - Sean P. Ferris
- Department of Pathology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, United States
| | - Emily K. Makowski
- Biointerfaces Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, United States
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, United States
| | - Michael J. Lucas
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, United States
- Biointerfaces Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, United States
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, United States
| | - Nikki McArthur
- School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Ravi S. Kane
- School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Henry L. Paulson
- Department of Neurology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, United States
- Protein Folding Disease Initiative, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, United States
- Michigan Alzheimer’s Disease Center, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, United States
| | - Peter M. Tessier
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, United States
- Biointerfaces Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, United States
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, United States
- Protein Folding Disease Initiative, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, United States
- Michigan Alzheimer’s Disease Center, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, United States
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, United States
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10
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Barringer R, Parnell AE, Lafita A, Monzon V, Back CR, Madej M, Potempa J, Nobbs AH, Burston SG, Bateman A, Race PR. Domain shuffling of a highly mutable ligand-binding fold drives adhesin generation across the bacterial kingdom. Proteins 2023; 91:1007-1020. [PMID: 36912614 PMCID: PMC10952558 DOI: 10.1002/prot.26487] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/11/2022] [Revised: 02/27/2023] [Accepted: 02/28/2023] [Indexed: 03/14/2023]
Abstract
Bacterial fibrillar adhesins are specialized extracellular polypeptides that promote the attachment of bacteria to the surfaces of other cells or materials. Adhesin-mediated interactions are critical for the establishment and persistence of stable bacterial populations within diverse environmental niches and are important determinants of virulence. The fibronectin (Fn)-binding fibrillar adhesin CshA, and its paralogue CshB, play important roles in host colonization by the oral commensal and opportunistic pathogen Streptococcus gordonii. As paralogues are often catalysts for functional diversification, we have probed the early stages of structural and functional divergence in Csh proteins by determining the X-ray crystal structure of the CshB adhesive domain NR2 and characterizing its Fn-binding properties in vitro. Despite sharing a common fold, CshB_NR2 displays an ~1.7-fold reduction in Fn-binding affinity relative to CshA_NR2. This correlates with reduced electrostatic charge in the Fn-binding cleft. Complementary bioinformatic studies reveal that homologues of CshA/B_NR2 domains are widely distributed in both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, where they are found housed within functionally cryptic multi-domain polypeptides. Our findings are consistent with the classification of Csh adhesins and their relatives as members of the recently defined polymer adhesin domain (PAD) family of bacterial proteins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rob Barringer
- School of BiochemistryUniversity of Bristol, University WalkBristolBS8 1TDUK
| | - Alice E. Parnell
- School of BiochemistryUniversity of Bristol, University WalkBristolBS8 1TDUK
- BrisSynBio Synthetic Biology Research CentreUniversity of Bristol, Life Sciences BuildingTyndall AvenueBristolBS8 1TQUK
| | - Aleix Lafita
- European Molecular Biology LaboratoryEuropean Bioinformatics Institute (EMBL‐EBI)Wellcome Genome CampusHinxtonCB10 1SDUK
| | - Vivian Monzon
- European Molecular Biology LaboratoryEuropean Bioinformatics Institute (EMBL‐EBI)Wellcome Genome CampusHinxtonCB10 1SDUK
| | - Catherine R. Back
- School of BiochemistryUniversity of Bristol, University WalkBristolBS8 1TDUK
- BrisSynBio Synthetic Biology Research CentreUniversity of Bristol, Life Sciences BuildingTyndall AvenueBristolBS8 1TQUK
| | - Mariusz Madej
- Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics, and BiotechnologyJagiellonian UniversityKrakowPoland
| | - Jan Potempa
- Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics, and BiotechnologyJagiellonian UniversityKrakowPoland
- Department of Oral Immunology and Infectious DiseasesUniversity of Louisville School of DentistryLouisvilleKentuckyUSA
| | - Angela H. Nobbs
- Bristol Dental School, University of BristolLower Maudlin StreetBristolBS1 2LYUK
| | - Steven G. Burston
- School of BiochemistryUniversity of Bristol, University WalkBristolBS8 1TDUK
| | - Alex Bateman
- European Molecular Biology LaboratoryEuropean Bioinformatics Institute (EMBL‐EBI)Wellcome Genome CampusHinxtonCB10 1SDUK
| | - Paul R. Race
- School of BiochemistryUniversity of Bristol, University WalkBristolBS8 1TDUK
- BrisSynBio Synthetic Biology Research CentreUniversity of Bristol, Life Sciences BuildingTyndall AvenueBristolBS8 1TQUK
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11
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Stern AM, Yang Y, Jin S, Yamashita K, Meunier AL, Liu W, Cai Y, Ericsson M, Liu L, Goedert M, Scheres SHW, Selkoe DJ. Abundant Aβ fibrils in ultracentrifugal supernatants of aqueous extracts from Alzheimer's disease brains. Neuron 2023; 111:2012-2020.e4. [PMID: 37167969 PMCID: PMC10330525 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2023.04.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 19.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2022] [Revised: 03/21/2023] [Accepted: 04/07/2023] [Indexed: 05/13/2023]
Abstract
Soluble oligomers of amyloid β-protein (Aβ) have been defined as aggregates in supernatants following ultracentrifugation of aqueous extracts from Alzheimer's disease (AD) brains and are believed to be upstream initiators of synaptic dysfunction, but little is known about their structures. We now report the unexpected presence of Aβ fibrils in synaptotoxic high-speed supernatants from AD brains extracted by soaking in an aqueous buffer. The fibrils did not appear to form during preparation, and their counts by EM correlated with Aβ ELISA quantification. Cryo-EM structures of aqueous Aβ fibrils were identical to those from sarkosyl-insoluble homogenates. The fibrils in aqueous extracts were labeled by lecanemab, an Aβ aggregate-directed antibody reported to improve AD cognitive outcomes. Lecanemab provided protection against aqueous fibril synaptotoxicity. We conclude that fibrils are abundant in aqueous extracts from AD brains and have the same structures as those from plaques. These findings have implications for AD pathogenesis and drug design.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew M Stern
- Ann Romney Center for Neurologic Diseases, Department of Neurology, Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Yang Yang
- Medical Research Council Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge CB2 0QH, UK
| | - Shanxue Jin
- Ann Romney Center for Neurologic Diseases, Department of Neurology, Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Keitaro Yamashita
- Medical Research Council Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge CB2 0QH, UK
| | - Angela L Meunier
- Ann Romney Center for Neurologic Diseases, Department of Neurology, Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Wen Liu
- Ann Romney Center for Neurologic Diseases, Department of Neurology, Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Yuqi Cai
- Ann Romney Center for Neurologic Diseases, Department of Neurology, Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Maria Ericsson
- Harvard Medical School Electron Microscopy Facility, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Lei Liu
- Ann Romney Center for Neurologic Diseases, Department of Neurology, Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Michel Goedert
- Medical Research Council Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge CB2 0QH, UK
| | - Sjors H W Scheres
- Medical Research Council Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge CB2 0QH, UK
| | - Dennis J Selkoe
- Ann Romney Center for Neurologic Diseases, Department of Neurology, Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
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12
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Ishiyama S, Hasegawa T, Sugeno N, Kobayashi J, Yoshida S, Miki Y, Wakabayashi K, Fukuda M, Kawata Y, Nakamura T, Sato K, Ezura M, Kikuchi A, Takeda A, Aoki M. Sortilin acts as an endocytic receptor for α-synuclein fibril. FASEB J 2023; 37:e23017. [PMID: 37272890 DOI: 10.1096/fj.202201605rr] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/03/2022] [Revised: 04/19/2023] [Accepted: 05/22/2023] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
Cell-to-cell spreading of misfolded α-synuclein (αSYN) is supposed to play a key role in the pathological progression of Parkinson's disease (PD) and other synucleinopathies. Receptor-mediated endocytosis has been shown to contributes to the uptake of αSYN in both neuronal and glial cells. To determine the receptor involved in αSYN endocytosis on the cell surface, we performed unbiased, and comprehensive screening using a membrane protein library of the mouse whole brain combined with affinity chromatography and mass spectrometry. The candidate molecules hit in the initial screening were validated by co-immunoprecipitation using cultured cells; sortilin, a vacuolar protein sorting 10 protein family sorting receptor, exhibited the strongest binding to αSYN fibrils. Notably, the intracellular uptake of fibrillar αSYN was slightly but significantly altered, depending on the expression level of sortilin on the cell surface, and time-lapse image analyses revealed the concomitant internalization and endosomal sorting of αSYN fibrils and sortilin. Domain deletion in the extracellular portion of sortilin revealed that the ten conserved cysteines (10CC) segment of sortilin was involved in the binding and endocytosis of fibrillar αSYN; importantly, pretreatment with a 10CC domain-specific antibody significantly hindered αSYN fibril uptake. The presence of sortilin in the core structure of Lewy bodies and glial cytoplasmic inclusions in the brain of synucleinopathy patients was confirmed via immunohistochemistry, and the expression level of sortilin in mesencephalic dopaminergic neurons may be altered with disease progression. These results provide compelling evidence that sortilin acts as an endocytic receptor for pathogenic form of αSYN, and yields important insight for the development of disease-modifying targets for synucleinopathies.
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Grants
- 17dm0107071 Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development
- 18dm0107071 Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development
- 17dm0107072 Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development
- 18dm0107072 Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development
- 18dm0107073 Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development
- 20K07896 Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology
- 23K06823 Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology
- 20K07862 Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology
- 19K16998 Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology
- 23K14769 Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology
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Affiliation(s)
- Shun Ishiyama
- Division of Neurology, Department of Neuroscience & Sensory Organs, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Sendai, Japan
| | - Takafumi Hasegawa
- Division of Neurology, Department of Neuroscience & Sensory Organs, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Sendai, Japan
| | - Naoto Sugeno
- Division of Neurology, Department of Neuroscience & Sensory Organs, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Sendai, Japan
| | - Junpei Kobayashi
- Division of Neurology, Department of Neuroscience & Sensory Organs, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Sendai, Japan
| | - Shun Yoshida
- Division of Neurology, Department of Neuroscience & Sensory Organs, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Sendai, Japan
- Department of Neurology, National Hospital Organization Yonezawa Hospital, Yonezawa, Japan
| | - Yasuo Miki
- Department of Neuropathology, Institute of Brain Science, Hirosaki University Graduate School of Medicine, Hirosaki, Japan
| | - Koichi Wakabayashi
- Department of Neuropathology, Institute of Brain Science, Hirosaki University Graduate School of Medicine, Hirosaki, Japan
| | - Mitsunori Fukuda
- Laboratory of Membrane Trafficking Mechanisms, Department of Integrative Life Sciences, Graduate School of Life Sciences, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan
| | - Yasushi Kawata
- Department of Chemistry and Biotechnology, Graduate School of Engineering, Tottori University, Tottori, Japan
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Institute of Regenerative Medicine and Biofunction, Graduate School of Medical Science, Tottori University, Tottori, Japan
| | - Takaaki Nakamura
- Division of Neurology, Department of Neuroscience & Sensory Organs, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Sendai, Japan
| | - Kazuki Sato
- Division of Neurology, Department of Neuroscience & Sensory Organs, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Sendai, Japan
| | - Michinori Ezura
- Division of Neurology, Department of Neuroscience & Sensory Organs, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Sendai, Japan
- Department of Neurology, Southern Tohoku General Hospital, Koriyama, Japan
| | - Akio Kikuchi
- Division of Neurology, Department of Neuroscience & Sensory Organs, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Sendai, Japan
- Department of Occupational Therapy, Yamagata Prefectural University of Health Sciences, Yamagata, Japan
| | - Atsushi Takeda
- Department of Neurology, National Hospital Organization Sendai-Nishitaga Hospital, Sendai, Japan
| | - Masashi Aoki
- Division of Neurology, Department of Neuroscience & Sensory Organs, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Sendai, Japan
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13
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Holden MR, Krzesinski BJ, Weismiller HA, Shady JR, Margittai M. MAP2 caps tau fibrils and inhibits aggregation. J Biol Chem 2023; 299:104891. [PMID: 37286038 PMCID: PMC10404690 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2023.104891] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/05/2023] [Revised: 05/13/2023] [Accepted: 05/30/2023] [Indexed: 06/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Fibrils of the microtubule-associated protein tau are intimately linked to the pathology of Alzheimer's disease (AD) and related neurodegenerative disorders. A current paradigm for pathology spreading in the human brain is that short tau fibrils transfer between neurons and then recruit naive tau monomers onto their tips, perpetuating the fibrillar conformation with high fidelity and speed. Although it is known that the propagation could be modulated in a cell-specific manner and thereby contribute to phenotypic diversity, there is still limited understanding of how select molecules are involved in this process. MAP2 is a neuronal protein that shares significant sequence homology with the repeat-bearing amyloid core region of tau. There is discrepancy about MAP2's involvement in pathology and its relationship with tau fibrillization. Here, we employed the entire repeat regions of 3R and 4R MAP2, to investigate their modulatory role in tau fibrillization. We find that both proteins block the spontaneous and seeded aggregation of 4R tau, with 4R MAP2 being slightly more potent. The inhibition of tau seeding is observed in vitro, in HEK293 cells, and in AD brain extracts, underscoring its broader scope. MAP2 monomers specifically bind to the end of tau fibrils, preventing recruitment of further tau and MAP2 monomers onto the fibril tip. The findings uncover a new function for MAP2 as a tau fibril cap that could play a significant role in modulating tau propagation in disease and may hold promise as a potential intrinsic protein inhibitor.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael R Holden
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Denver, Denver, Colorado, USA
| | - Brad J Krzesinski
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Denver, Denver, Colorado, USA
| | - Hilary A Weismiller
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Denver, Denver, Colorado, USA
| | - Justin R Shady
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Denver, Denver, Colorado, USA
| | - Martin Margittai
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Denver, Denver, Colorado, USA.
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14
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Hnath B, Chen J, Reynolds J, Choi E, Wang J, Zhang D, Sha CM, Dokholyan NV. Big versus small: The impact of aggregate size in disease. Protein Sci 2023:e4686. [PMID: 37243896 DOI: 10.1002/pro.4686] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2023] [Revised: 05/17/2023] [Accepted: 05/24/2023] [Indexed: 05/29/2023]
Abstract
Protein aggregation results in an array of different size soluble oligomers and larger insoluble fibrils. Insoluble fibrils were originally thought to cause neuronal cell deaths in neurodegenerative diseases due to their prevalence in tissue samples and disease models. Despite recent studies demonstrating the toxicity associated with soluble oligomers, many therapeutic strategies still focus on fibrils or consider all types of aggregates as one group. Oligomers and fibrils require different modeling and therapeutic strategies, targeting the toxic species is crucial for successful study and therapeutic development. Here, we review the role of different-size aggregates in disease, and how factors contributing to aggregation (mutations, metals, post-translational modifications, and lipid interactions) may promote oligomers opposed to fibrils. We review two different computational modeling strategies (molecular dynamics and kinetic modeling) and how they are used to model both oligomers and fibrils. Finally, we outline the current therapeutic strategies targeting aggregating proteins and their strengths and weaknesses for targeting oligomers versus fibrils. Altogether, we aim to highlight the importance of distinguishing the difference between oligomers and fibrils and determining which species is toxic when modeling and creating therapeutics for protein aggregation in disease. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brianna Hnath
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Penn State University, University Park, PA, USA
- Department of Pharmacology, Penn State College of Medicine, Hershey, PA, USA
| | - Jiaxing Chen
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Penn State University, University Park, PA, USA
| | - Joshua Reynolds
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Penn State University, University Park, PA, USA
- Department of Pharmacology, Penn State College of Medicine, Hershey, PA, USA
| | - Esther Choi
- Department of Pharmacology, Penn State College of Medicine, Hershey, PA, USA
- Medical Scientist Training Program, Penn State College of Medicine, Hershey, PA, USA
| | - Jian Wang
- Department of Pharmacology, Penn State College of Medicine, Hershey, PA, USA
| | - Dongyan Zhang
- Department of Pharmacology, Penn State College of Medicine, Hershey, PA, USA
| | - Congzhou M Sha
- Department of Pharmacology, Penn State College of Medicine, Hershey, PA, USA
- Medical Scientist Training Program, Penn State College of Medicine, Hershey, PA, USA
- Department of Engineering Science and Mechanics, Penn State University, University Park, PA, USA
| | - Nikolay V Dokholyan
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Penn State University, University Park, PA, USA
- Department of Pharmacology, Penn State College of Medicine, Hershey, PA, USA
- Department of Engineering Science and Mechanics, Penn State University, University Park, PA, USA
- Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, Penn State College of Medicine, Hershey, PA, USA
- Department of Chemistry, Penn State University, University Park, PA, USA
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15
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Anderl WJ, Pearson N, Converse MI, Yu SM, Monson KL. Strain-induced collagen denaturation is rate dependent in failure of cerebral arteries. Acta Biomater 2023; 164:282-292. [PMID: 37116635 DOI: 10.1016/j.actbio.2023.04.032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/29/2022] [Revised: 04/06/2023] [Accepted: 04/21/2023] [Indexed: 04/30/2023]
Abstract
While soft tissues are commonly damaged by mechanical loading, the manifestation of this damage at the microstructural level is not fully understood. Specifically, while rate-induced stiffening has been previously observed in cerebral arteries, associated changes in microstructural damage patterns following high-rate loading are largely undefined. In this study, we stretched porcine middle cerebral arteries to failure at 0.01 and >150 s-1, both axially and circumferentially, followed by probing for denatured tropocollagen using collagen hybridizing peptide (CHP). We found that collagen fibrils aligned with the loading direction experienced less denaturation following failure tests at high than low rates. Others have demonstrated similar rate dependence in tropocollagen denaturation during soft tissue failure, but this is the first study to quantify this behavior using CHP and to report it for cerebral arteries. These findings may have significant implications for traumatic brain injury and intracranial balloon angioplasty. We additionally observed possible tropocollagen denaturation in vessel layers primarily composed of fibrils transversely aligned to the loading axis. To our knowledge, this is the first observation of collagen denaturation due to transverse loading, but further research is needed to confirm this finding. STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE: Previous work shows that collagen hybridizing peptide (CHP) can be used to identify collagen molecule unfolding and denaturation in mechanically overloaded soft tissues, including the cerebral arteries. But experiments have not explored collagen damage at rates relevant to traumatic brain injury. In this work, we quantified collagen damage in cerebral arteries stretched to failure at both high and low rates. We found that the collagen molecule is less damaged at high than at low rates, suggesting that damage mechanisms of either the collagen molecule or other elements of the collagen superstructure are rate dependent. This work implies that arteries failed at high rates, such as in traumatic brain injury, will have different molecular-level damage patterns than arteries failed at low rates. Consequently, improved understanding of damage characteristics may be expanded in the future to better inform clinically relevant cases of collagen damage such as angioplasty and injury healing.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Noah Pearson
- DepSSSartment of Mechanical Engineering, University of Utah
| | | | - S Michael Yu
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Utah; Department of Molecular Pharmaceutics, University of Utah
| | - Kenneth L Monson
- DepSSSartment of Mechanical Engineering, University of Utah; Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Utah.
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16
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Abstract
The folding of collagen is a hierarchical process that starts with three peptides associating into the characteristic triple helical fold. Depending on the specific collagen in question, these triple helices then assemble into bundles reminiscent of α-helical coiled-coils. Unlike α-helices, however, the bundling of collagen triple helices is very poorly understood with almost no direct experimental data available. In order to shed light on this critical step of collagen hierarchical assembly, we have examined the collagenous region of complement component 1q. Thirteen synthetic peptides were prepared to dissect the critical regions allowing for its octadecameric self-assembly. We find that short peptides (under 40 amino acids) are able to self-assemble into specific (ABC)6 octadecamers. This requires the ABC heterotrimeric composition as the self-assembly subunit, but does not require disulfide bonds. Self-assembly into this octadecamer is aided by short noncollagenous sequences at the N-terminus, although they are not entirely required. The mechanism of self-assembly appears to begin with the very slow formation of the ABC heterotrimeric helix, followed by rapid bundling of triple helices into progressively larger oligomers, terminating in the formation of the (ABC)6 octadecamer. Cryo-electron microscopy reveals the (ABC)6 assembly as a remarkable, hollow, crown-like structure with an open channel approximately 18 Å at the narrow end and 30 Å at the wide end. This work helps to illuminate the structure and assembly mechanism of a critical protein in the innate immune system and lays the groundwork for the de novo design of higher order collagen mimetic peptide assemblies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Le Tracy Yu
- Department of Chemistry, Rice University, 6100 Main Street, Houston, TX 77005, United States
| | - Maria C. Hancu
- Department of Chemistry, Rice University, 6100 Main Street, Houston, TX 77005, United States
| | - Mark A. B. Kreutzberger
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, University of Virginia Box 800733, Charlottesville, VA 22908, United States
| | - Amy Henrickson
- Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, Alberta T1K 3M4, Canada
| | - Borries Demeler
- Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, Alberta T1K 3M4, Canada
| | - Edward H. Egelman
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, University of Virginia Box 800733, Charlottesville, VA 22908, United States
| | - Jeffrey D. Hartgerink
- Department of Chemistry, Rice University, 6100 Main Street, Houston, TX 77005, United States
- Department of Bioengineering, Rice University, 6100 Main Street, Houston, TX 77005, United States
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17
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Di Rocco G, Bernini F, Battistuzzi G, Ranieri A, Bortolotti CA, Borsari M, Sola M. Hydrogen peroxide induces heme degradation and protein aggregation in human neuroglobin: roles of the disulfide bridge and hydrogen-bonding in the distal heme cavity. FEBS J 2023; 290:148-161. [PMID: 35866372 PMCID: PMC10087938 DOI: 10.1111/febs.16581] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2022] [Revised: 07/05/2022] [Accepted: 07/20/2022] [Indexed: 01/14/2023]
Abstract
In the present study, human neuroglobin (hNgb) was found to undergo H2 O2 -induced breakdown of the heme center at a much slower rate than other globins, namely in the timescale of hours against minutes. We investigated how the rate of the process is affected by the Cys46/Cys55 disulfide bond and the network of non-covalent interactions in the distal heme side involving Tyr44, Lys67, the His64 heme iron axial ligand and the heme propionate-7. The rate is increased by the Tyr44 to Ala and Phe mutations; however the rate is lowered by Lys67 to Ala swapping. The absence of the disulfide bridge slows down the reaction further. Therefore, the disulfide bond-controlled accessibility of the heme site and the residues at position 44 and 67 affect the activation barrier of the reaction. Wild-type and mutated species form β-amyloid aggregates in the presence of H2 O2 producing globular structures. Furthermore, the C46A/C55A, Y44A, Y44F and Y44F/C46A/C55A variants yield potentially harmful fibrils. Finally, the nucleation and growth kinetics for the aggregation of the amyloid structures can be successfully described by the Finke-Watzky model.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giulia Di Rocco
- Department of Life Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Italy
| | - Fabrizio Bernini
- Department of Chemical and Geological Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Italy
| | - Gianantonio Battistuzzi
- Department of Chemical and Geological Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Italy
| | - Antonio Ranieri
- Department of Life Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Italy
| | | | - Marco Borsari
- Department of Chemical and Geological Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Italy
| | - Marco Sola
- Department of Chemical and Geological Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Italy
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18
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Ramirez E, Min S, Ganegamage SK, Shimanaka K, Sosa MG, Dettmer U, Rochet JC, Fortin JS. Discovery of 4-aminoindole carboxamide derivatives to curtail alpha-synuclein and tau isoform 2N4R oligomer formation. Results Chem 2023; 5:100938. [PMID: 37346091 PMCID: PMC10284320 DOI: 10.1016/j.rechem.2023.100938] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/23/2023] Open
Abstract
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a multifactorial, chronic neurodegenerative disease characterized by the presence of extracellular β-amyloid (Aβ) plaques, intraneuronal neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs), activated microglial cells, and an inflammatory state (involving reactive oxygen species production) in the brain. NFTs are comprised of misfolded and hyperphosphorylated forms of the microtubule-binding protein tau. Interestingly, the trimeric form of the 2N4R splice isoform of tau has been found to be more toxic than the trimeric 1N4R isoform in neuron precursor cells. Few drug discovery programs have focused on specific tau isoforms. The present drug discovery project is centered on the anti-aggregation effect of a series of seventeen 4- or 5-aminoindole carboxamides on the 2N4R isoform of tau. The selection of the best compounds was performed using α-synuclein (α-syn). The anti-oligomer and -fibril activities of newly synthesized aminoindole carboxamide derivatives were evaluated with biophysical methods, such as thioflavin T fluorescence assays, photo-induced cross-linking of unmodified proteins, and transmission electron microscopy. To evaluate the reduction of inclusions and cytoprotective effects, M17D neuroblastoma cells expressing inclusion-forming α-syn were treated with the best amide representatives. The 4-aminoindole carboxamide derivatives exhibited a better anti-fibrillar activity compared to their 5-aminoindole counterparts. The amide derivatives 2, 8, and 17 exerted anti-oligomer and anti-fibril activities on α-syn and the 2N4R isoform of tau. At a concentration of 40 μM, compound 8 reduced inclusion formation in M17D neuroblastoma cells expressing inclusion-prone αSynuclein3K::YFP. Our results demonstrate the potential of 4-aminoindole carboxamide derivatives with regard to inhibiting the oligomer formation of α-syn and tau (2N4R isoform) for further optimization prior to pre-clinical studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eduardo Ramirez
- Department of Basic Medical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, Purdue University
| | - Sehong Min
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, College of Pharmacy, Purdue University
| | | | - Kazuma Shimanaka
- Ann Romney Center for Neurologic Diseases, Department of Neurology, Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, United States
| | - Magaly Guzman Sosa
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, College of Pharmacy, Purdue University
| | - Ulf Dettmer
- Ann Romney Center for Neurologic Diseases, Department of Neurology, Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, United States
| | - Jean-Christophe Rochet
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, College of Pharmacy, Purdue University
| | - Jessica S Fortin
- Department of Basic Medical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, Purdue University
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19
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Roth J, Hoop CL, Williams JK, Hayes R, Baum J. Probing the effect of glycosaminoglycan depletion on integrin interactions with collagen I fibrils in the native extracellular matrix environment. Protein Sci 2023; 32:e4508. [PMID: 36369695 PMCID: PMC9793976 DOI: 10.1002/pro.4508] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2022] [Revised: 09/18/2022] [Accepted: 09/23/2022] [Indexed: 11/14/2022]
Abstract
Fibrillar collagen-integrin interactions in the extracellular matrix (ECM) regulate a multitude of cellular processes and cell signalling. Collagen I fibrils serve as the molecular scaffolding for connective tissues throughout the human body and are the most abundant protein building blocks in the ECM. The ECM environment is diverse, made up of several ECM proteins, enzymes, and proteoglycans. In particular, glycosaminoglycans (GAGs), anionic polysaccharides that decorate proteoglycans, become depleted in the ECM with natural aging and their mis-regulation has been linked to cancers and other diseases. The impact of GAG depletion in the ECM environment on collagen I protein interactions and on mechanical properties is not well understood. Here, we integrate ELISA protein binding assays with liquid high-resolution atomic force microscopy (AFM) to assess the effects of GAG depletion on the interaction of collagen I fibrils with the integrin α2I domain using separate rat tails. ELISA binding assays demonstrate that α2I preferentially binds to GAG-depleted collagen I fibrils in comparison to native fibrils. By amplitude modulated AFM in air and in solution, we find that GAG-depleted collagen I fibrils retain structural features of the native fibrils, including their characteristic D-banding pattern, a key structural motif. AFM fast force mapping in solution shows that GAG depletion reduces the stiffness of individual fibrils, lowering the indentation modulus by half compared to native fibrils. Together these results shed new light on how GAGs influence collagen I fibril-integrin interactions and may aid in strategies to treat diseases that result from GAG mis-regulation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonathan Roth
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical BiologyRutgers, The State University of New JerseyPiscatawayNew JerseyUSA
| | - Cody L. Hoop
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical BiologyRutgers, The State University of New JerseyPiscatawayNew JerseyUSA
| | - Jonathan K. Williams
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical BiologyRutgers, The State University of New JerseyPiscatawayNew JerseyUSA
- Drug Product DevelopmentBristol Myers SquibbNew BrunswickNew JerseyUSA
| | - Robert Hayes
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical BiologyRutgers, The State University of New JerseyPiscatawayNew JerseyUSA
| | - Jean Baum
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical BiologyRutgers, The State University of New JerseyPiscatawayNew JerseyUSA
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20
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Gao J, Fu J, Gao X, Yang D. Molecular Mechanism of Cyanidin-3-O-Glucoside Disassembling Aβ Fibril In Silico. Nutrients 2022; 15. [PMID: 36615767 DOI: 10.3390/nu15010109] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2022] [Revised: 12/18/2022] [Accepted: 12/23/2022] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
The deposition of β-amyloid (Aβ) in the brain leads to neurotoxic effects and subsequent Alzheimer's disease (AD). While AD is becoming more and more prevalent in modern society, therapeutic efforts targeting Aβ could be a promising solution. Currently, two natural products are reported to disintegrate preformed Aβ fibril in vitro. Meanwhile, the chemical driving force behind this phenomenon remains unknown. Taking cyanidin-3-O-glucoside (Cy-3G) as an example, here we studied its interaction with different Aβ polymorphs in silico. Negative charges on different Aβ polymorphs draw the interaction with the flavylium cation on Cy-3G. Our results show that Aβ in a single peptide form in solution exposed more hydrophobic solvent accessible surface area than its fibril structure (per protomer), and Cy-3G interacts more intensively with the single peptide form than fibril as indicated by more hydrogen bonding formed and more amino acid residues involved in their hydrophobic interactions. Thus, the single Aβ peptide aggregation into fibril and fibril dissociation into single peptide equilibrium could be disturbed by the preferential binding of Cy-3G to the monomeric Aβ peptide, which leads to the disassembly of the pathogenic Aβ fibril. This study offers a novel perspective of Cy-3G alleviated AD syndrome beyond its dogmatic antioxidant activity.
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21
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Pancoe SX, Wang YJ, Shimogawa M, Perez RM, Giannakoulias S, Petersson EJ. Effects of Mutations and Post-Translational Modifications on α-Synuclein In Vitro Aggregation. J Mol Biol 2022; 434:167859. [PMID: 36270580 PMCID: PMC9922159 DOI: 10.1016/j.jmb.2022.167859] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2022] [Revised: 10/10/2022] [Accepted: 10/11/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
Fibrillar aggregates of the α-synuclein (αS) protein are the hallmark of Parkinson's Disease and related neurodegenerative disorders. Characterization of the effects of mutations and post-translational modifications (PTMs) on the αS aggregation rate can provide insight into the mechanism of fibril formation, which remains elusive in spite of intense study. A comprehensive collection (375 examples) of mutant and PTM aggregation rate data measured using the fluorescent probe thioflavin T is presented, as well as a summary of the effects of fluorescent labeling on αS aggregation (20 examples). A curated set of 131 single mutant de novo aggregation experiments are normalized to wild type controls and analyzed in terms of structural data for the monomer and fibrillar forms of αS. These tabulated data serve as a resource to the community to help in interpretation of aggregation experiments and to potentially be used as inputs for computational models of aggregation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Samantha X Pancoe
- Department of Chemistry, University of Pennsylvania, 231 South 34th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Yanxin J Wang
- Department of Chemistry, University of Pennsylvania, 231 South 34th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Marie Shimogawa
- Department of Chemistry, University of Pennsylvania, 231 South 34th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Ryann M Perez
- Department of Chemistry, University of Pennsylvania, 231 South 34th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Sam Giannakoulias
- Department of Chemistry, University of Pennsylvania, 231 South 34th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - E James Petersson
- Department of Chemistry, University of Pennsylvania, 231 South 34th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
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22
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Li Y, Yu Y, Ma G. Modulation Effects of Fe 3+, Zn 2+, and Cu 2+ Ions on the Amyloid Fibrillation of α-Synuclein: Insights from a FTIR Investigation. Molecules 2022; 27:molecules27238383. [PMID: 36500474 PMCID: PMC9740228 DOI: 10.3390/molecules27238383] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2022] [Revised: 11/17/2022] [Accepted: 11/24/2022] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Amyloid fibrillation of α-synuclein is implicated in the pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease and heavy metal ions such as Fe3+, Zn2+, and Cu2+ are known to be involved in the process. In this work, we explored the use of FTIR spectroscopy to look into the modulation effects of Fe3+, Zn2+, and Cu2+ on the amyloid fibrillation of α-synuclein. We performed a curve-fitting analysis on the FTIR amide I bands of these α-synuclein fibril systems, namely, the pristine fibril and the fibrils prepared in the presence of Fe3+, Zn2+, and Cu2+. We found that the α-synuclein fibrils under the influences of metal ions all possessed a parallel β-sheet structure, turn structure, and disordered structure, similar to that of pristine α-synuclein fibril. We also observed metal-induced increases in the proportions of the β-sheet secondary structure within the α-synuclein fibrils, with Fe3+ being the most effective inducer. We performed second derivative analysis of the side chain carboxylic groups of α-synuclein fibrils and found that the side chain microenvironment of the α-synuclein fibrils was more influenced by Fe3+ than Zn2+, and Cu2+. In addition, our atomic force microscopic study revealed that the morphologies of α-synuclein fibrils under the influence of Fe3+ was quite different from that of the Zn2+ and Cu2+ systems. Our FTIR results suggested that the modulation effects of Fe3+, Zn2+, and Cu2+ on α-synuclein fibrillation occurred at both secondary and quaternary structural levels. At last, we proposed a mechanistic hypothesis to interpret how metal ions could affect the morphology of α-synuclein amyloid fibril based on the conformational plasticity properties of intrinsically disordered proteins.
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23
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Jasmani L, Jamaluddin NAN, Rusli R, Adnan S, Zakaria S. Different Preparation Method of Nanocellulose from Macaranga gigantea and Its Preliminary Study on Packaging Film Potential. Polymers (Basel) 2022; 14:polym14214591. [PMID: 36365585 PMCID: PMC9658820 DOI: 10.3390/polym14214591] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/19/2022] [Revised: 10/19/2022] [Accepted: 10/24/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Nanocellulose is a versatile cellulosic nanomaterial that can be used in many application areas. Applying different preparation strategies leads to different types of nanocellulose. In this study, nanocrystalline cellulose (NCC) and nanofibrillated cellulose (NFC) were prepared from lesser known wood species, viz., Macaranga gigantea, using sulfuric acid hydrolysis and enzymatic pretreatment with ultrafine grinding approaches, respectively. The respective nanocellulose was characterized by means of Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), atomic force microscopy (AFM). It was then converted into a thin film to assess its performance which includes tensile test, transparency, air permeance, water vapor transmission rate (WVTR), and water vapor permeability (WVP) properties. NCC and NFC produced from the raw material of Macaranga had average widths of 6.38 ± 3.92 nm and 13.17 ± 12.71 nm, respectively. Peaks in FTIR spectra showed the conversion of Macaranga wood to nanocellulose by the presence of cellulose fingerprint as well as absence of lignin and hemicellulose after alkaline treatment. The successful conversion was also supported by XRD analysis which displayed the increased crystallinity value from 54% to 70%. TGA decomposition pattern at 200-490 °C revealed the thermal stability of the samples. The thin film produced from nanocelluloses had WVTR values of 4.58 and 12.14 g/(day·m2) for NFC and NCC, respectively, comparable to those of films from polyester and oriented polypropylene. Nanocellulose-based thin film has the potential to be used as sustainable and biodegradable packaging.
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Affiliation(s)
- Latifah Jasmani
- Forest Products Division, Forest Research Institute Malaysia (FRIM), Kepong 52109, Selangor, Malaysia
- Correspondence:
| | | | - Rafeadah Rusli
- Forest Products Division, Forest Research Institute Malaysia (FRIM), Kepong 52109, Selangor, Malaysia
| | - Sharmiza Adnan
- Forest Products Division, Forest Research Institute Malaysia (FRIM), Kepong 52109, Selangor, Malaysia
| | - Sarani Zakaria
- Faculty of Science and Technology, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), Bangi 43600, Selangor, Malaysia
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24
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Chiang WC, Fang YS, Lye YS, Weng TY, Ganesan K, Huang SH, Chang LY, Chou SC, Chen YR. Hyperphosphorylation-Mimetic TDP-43 Drives Amyloid Formation and Possesses Neuronal Toxicity at the Oligomeric Stage. ACS Chem Neurosci 2022; 13:2599-2612. [PMID: 36007056 DOI: 10.1021/acschemneuro.1c00873] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/20/2023] Open
Abstract
TDP-43 proteinopathies cover a range of neurodegenerative diseases, including frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD) and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Hyperphosphorylated TDP-43 was found within the inclusion bodies in disease lesions; however, the role of hyperphosphorylation and the toxic species are still ambiguous. To characterize the hyperphosphorylation effect of TDP-43, here, we employed five serine mutations implicated in the diseases at serine locations 379, 403, 404, 409, and 410 in the C-terminus to aspartate (S5D) and to alanine (S5A). We systematically characterized the conformation, liquid-liquid phase separation, oligomerization, and fibrillization of TDP-43 variants. Results revealed that the recombinant TDP-43 variants readily formed structurally similar spherical oligomers, as evidenced by circular dichroism spectroscopy, fluorescence spectroscopy, the TDP-43 oligomer-specific antibody assay, dynamic light scattering, and transmission electron microscopy. After incubation, only the phosphor-mimic S5D TDP-43 formed thioflavin-positive amyloid fibrils, whereas wild-type and S5A TDP-43 formed amorphous aggregates. We also examined membrane disruption, the cytotoxicity of human neuroblastoma, and the synaptic loss of primary neurons induced by oligomers and large aggregates of TDP-43. The results showed that all oligomeric TDP-43 variants were toxic regardless of hyperphosphorylation, but the fibrils and amorphous aggregates were not. Overall, our results demonstrated the hyperphosphorylation effect on fibril formation and the toxicity attributed from TDP-43 oligomers. This study facilitates the understanding and therapeutic development for TDP-43 proteinopathies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wan-Chin Chiang
- Genomics Research Center, Academia Sinica, 128, Academia Rd., Sec. 2, Nankang District, Taipei 11529, Taiwan
| | - Yu-Sheng Fang
- Genomics Research Center, Academia Sinica, 128, Academia Rd., Sec. 2, Nankang District, Taipei 11529, Taiwan.,Institute of Bioinformatics and Structural Biology, National Tsing Hua University, 101, Kuang-Fu Rd., Sec. 2., Hsinchu 30013, Taiwan
| | - Yuh Shen Lye
- Genomics Research Center, Academia Sinica, 128, Academia Rd., Sec. 2, Nankang District, Taipei 11529, Taiwan.,Taiwan International Graduate Program in Interdisciplinary Neuroscience, National Cheng Kung University and Academia Sinica, Taipei 11529, Taiwan
| | - Tzu-Yu Weng
- Genomics Research Center, Academia Sinica, 128, Academia Rd., Sec. 2, Nankang District, Taipei 11529, Taiwan
| | - Kiruthika Ganesan
- Genomics Research Center, Academia Sinica, 128, Academia Rd., Sec. 2, Nankang District, Taipei 11529, Taiwan
| | - Shih-Han Huang
- Genomics Research Center, Academia Sinica, 128, Academia Rd., Sec. 2, Nankang District, Taipei 11529, Taiwan
| | - Lan-Yun Chang
- Genomics Research Center, Academia Sinica, 128, Academia Rd., Sec. 2, Nankang District, Taipei 11529, Taiwan
| | - Shih-Chieh Chou
- Genomics Research Center, Academia Sinica, 128, Academia Rd., Sec. 2, Nankang District, Taipei 11529, Taiwan
| | - Yun-Ru Chen
- Genomics Research Center, Academia Sinica, 128, Academia Rd., Sec. 2, Nankang District, Taipei 11529, Taiwan.,Institute of Bioinformatics and Structural Biology, National Tsing Hua University, 101, Kuang-Fu Rd., Sec. 2., Hsinchu 30013, Taiwan.,Taiwan International Graduate Program in Interdisciplinary Neuroscience, National Cheng Kung University and Academia Sinica, Taipei 11529, Taiwan
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25
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Naeimi WR, Serio TR. Beyond Amyloid Fibers: Accumulation, Biological Relevance, and Regulation of Higher-Order Prion Architectures. Viruses 2022; 14:v14081635. [PMID: 35893700 PMCID: PMC9332770 DOI: 10.3390/v14081635] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2022] [Revised: 07/14/2022] [Accepted: 07/23/2022] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
The formation of amyloid fibers is associated with a diverse range of disease and phenotypic states. These amyloid fibers often assemble into multi-protofibril, high-order architectures in vivo and in vitro. Prion propagation in yeast, an amyloid-based process, represents an attractive model to explore the link between these aggregation states and the biological consequences of amyloid dynamics. Here, we integrate the current state of knowledge, highlight opportunities for further insight, and draw parallels to more complex systems in vitro. Evidence suggests that high-order fibril architectures are present ex vivo from disease relevant environments and under permissive conditions in vivo in yeast, including but not limited to those leading to prion formation or instability. The biological significance of these latter amyloid architectures or how they may be regulated is, however, complicated by inconsistent experimental conditions and analytical methods, although the Hsp70 chaperone Ssa1/2 is likely involved. Transition between assembly states could form a mechanistic basis to explain some confounding observations surrounding prion regulation but is limited by a lack of unified methodology to biophysically compare these assembly states. Future exciting experimental entryways may offer opportunities for further insight.
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26
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Yagi-Utsumi M, Kato K. Conformational Variability of Amyloid-β and the Morphological Diversity of Its Aggregates. Molecules 2022; 27:molecules27154787. [PMID: 35897966 PMCID: PMC9369837 DOI: 10.3390/molecules27154787] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2022] [Revised: 07/19/2022] [Accepted: 07/25/2022] [Indexed: 12/03/2022]
Abstract
Protein folding is the most fundamental and universal example of biomolecular self-organization and is characterized as an intramolecular process. In contrast, amyloidogenic proteins can interact with one another, leading to protein aggregation. The energy landscape of amyloid fibril formation is characterized by many minima for different competing low-energy structures and, therefore, is much more enigmatic than that of multiple folding pathways. Thus, to understand the entire energy landscape of protein aggregation, it is important to elucidate the full picture of conformational changes and polymorphisms of amyloidogenic proteins. This review provides an overview of the conformational diversity of amyloid-β (Aβ) characterized from experimental and theoretical approaches. Aβ exhibits a high degree of conformational variability upon transiently interacting with various binding molecules in an unstructured conformation in a solution, forming an α-helical intermediate conformation on the membrane and undergoing a structural transition to the β-conformation of amyloid fibrils. This review also outlines the structural polymorphism of Aβ amyloid fibrils depending on environmental factors. A comprehensive understanding of the energy landscape of amyloid formation considering various environmental factors will promote drug discovery and therapeutic strategies by controlling the fibril formation pathway and targeting the consequent morphology of aggregated structures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maho Yagi-Utsumi
- Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Nagoya City University, Nagoya 467-8603, Japan
- Exploratory Research Center on Life and Living Systems and Institute for Molecular Science, National Institutes of Natural Sciences, Okazaki 444-8787, Japan
- Correspondence: (M.Y.-U.); (K.K.)
| | - Koichi Kato
- Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Nagoya City University, Nagoya 467-8603, Japan
- Exploratory Research Center on Life and Living Systems and Institute for Molecular Science, National Institutes of Natural Sciences, Okazaki 444-8787, Japan
- Correspondence: (M.Y.-U.); (K.K.)
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27
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Chedid J, Labrador-Garrido A, Zhong S, Gao J, Zhao Y, Perera G, Kim WS, Halliday GM, Dzamko N. A small molecule Toll-like receptor antagonist rescues α-synuclein fibril pathology. J Biol Chem 2022; 298:102260. [PMID: 35841928 PMCID: PMC9364105 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2022.102260] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2022] [Revised: 06/22/2022] [Accepted: 06/23/2022] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
Abstract
The propagation and accumulation of pathological α-synuclein protein is thought to underlie the clinical symptoms of the neurodegenerative movement disorder Parkinson's disease (PD). Consequently, there is significant interest in identifying the mechanisms that contribute to α-synuclein pathology, as these may inform therapeutic targets for the treatment of PD. One protein that appears to contribute to α-synuclein pathology is the innate immune pathogen recognition receptor, Toll-like receptor 2 (TLR). TLR2 is expressed on neurons and its activation results in the accumulation of α-synuclein protein; however, the precise mechanism by which TLR2 contributes to α-synuclein pathology is unclear. Herein we demonstrate using human cell models that neuronal TLR2 activation acutely impairs the autophagy lysosomal pathway and markedly potentiates α-synuclein pathology seeded with α-synuclein pre-formed fibrils (PFF). Moreover, α-synuclein pathology could be ameliorated with a novel small molecule TLR2 inhibitor, including in induced pluripotent stem cell-derived neurons from a patient with PD. These results provide further insight into how TLR2 activation may promote α-synuclein pathology in PD and support that TLR2 may be a potential therapeutic target for the treatment of PD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jessica Chedid
- School of Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health and the Brain and Mind Centre, University of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW, 2050, Australia
| | - Adahir Labrador-Garrido
- School of Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health and the Brain and Mind Centre, University of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW, 2050, Australia
| | - Siying Zhong
- School of Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health and the Brain and Mind Centre, University of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW, 2050, Australia
| | - Jianqun Gao
- School of Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health and the Brain and Mind Centre, University of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW, 2050, Australia
| | - Ye Zhao
- School of Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health and the Brain and Mind Centre, University of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW, 2050, Australia
| | - Gayathri Perera
- School of Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health and the Brain and Mind Centre, University of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW, 2050, Australia
| | - Woojin S Kim
- School of Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health and the Brain and Mind Centre, University of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW, 2050, Australia
| | - Glenda M Halliday
- School of Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health and the Brain and Mind Centre, University of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW, 2050, Australia
| | - Nicolas Dzamko
- School of Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health and the Brain and Mind Centre, University of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW, 2050, Australia.
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28
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Zwierzchowski-Zarate AN, Mendoza-Oliva A, Kashmer OM, Collazo-Lopez JE, White CL, Diamond MI. RNA induces unique tau strains and stabilizes Alzheimer's disease seeds. J Biol Chem 2022; 298:102132. [PMID: 35700826 PMCID: PMC9364032 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2022.102132] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/13/2022] [Revised: 06/08/2022] [Accepted: 06/09/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Tau aggregation underlies neurodegenerative tauopathies, and trans-cellular propagation of tau assemblies of unique structure, i.e. strains, may underlie the diversity of these disorders. Polyanions have been reported to induce tau aggregation in vitro, but the precise trigger to convert tau from an inert to a seed-competent form in disease states is unknown. RNA triggers tau fibril formation in vitro and has been observed to associate with neurofibrillary tangles in human brain. Here we have tested whether RNA exerts sequence-specific effects on tau assembly and strain formation. We found that three RNA homopolymers, polyA, polyU, and polyC, all bound tau, but only polyA RNA triggered seed and fibril formation. In addition, polyA:tau seeds and fibrils were sensitive to RNase. We also observed that the origin of the RNA influenced the ability of tau to adopt a structure that would form stable strains. Human RNA potently induced tau seed formation and created tau conformations that preferentially formed stable strains in a HEK293T cell model, whereas RNA from other sources, or heparin, produced strains that were not stably maintained in cultured cells. Finally, we found that soluble, but not insoluble seeds from Alzheimer's disease (AD) brain were also sensitive to RNase. We conclude that human RNA specifically induces formation of stable tau strains, and may trigger the formation of dominant pathological assemblies that propagate in AD, and possibly other tauopathies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amy N Zwierzchowski-Zarate
- Center for Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Diseases, Peter O'Donnell Jr. Brain Institute, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX USA
| | - Aydé Mendoza-Oliva
- Center for Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Diseases, Peter O'Donnell Jr. Brain Institute, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX USA
| | - Omar M Kashmer
- Center for Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Diseases, Peter O'Donnell Jr. Brain Institute, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX USA
| | - Josue E Collazo-Lopez
- Center for Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Diseases, Peter O'Donnell Jr. Brain Institute, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX USA
| | - Charles L White
- Center for Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Diseases, Peter O'Donnell Jr. Brain Institute, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX USA
| | - Marc I Diamond
- Center for Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Diseases, Peter O'Donnell Jr. Brain Institute, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX USA.
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29
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Yang X, Xie M, Guan C, Yingchen, Guo R, Ma C, Xu H, Shao M. Effect of CaCl 2 on 2 heat-induced whey protein concentrate fibrillation pathways: Spontaneous and nuclear induction. J Dairy Sci 2022; 105:5573-5586. [PMID: 35570036 DOI: 10.3168/jds.2021-20895] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2021] [Accepted: 03/12/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Amyloid fibrils have many excellent functional properties that facilitate their applications in the food industry. There are 2 pathways for whey protein concentrate (WPC) to form amyloid fibril aggregates: spontaneous pathway and nuclear induction pathway. Low ionic strength is a necessary condition for the spontaneous pathway to proceed successfully. In this paper, the effect of salt ions on 2 WPC fibrillation pathways was investigated by adding CaCl2. The results demonstrated WPC fibrils were unable to form normally through spontaneous pathway as adding CaCl2; but still could form through nuclear induction pathway with 20 to 30 mM CaCl2, the nuclei accelerated the fibrillation process led to the resistance to the disordered aggregation brought by CaCl2. Moreover, divalent cations (Ca2+, Mg2+) had much stronger effects than monovalent cations (Na+) on fibril formation, and the results of X-ray photoelectron spectrum together with Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy suggested that Ca2+ had a greater effect on the fibril formation than Cl-.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaotong Yang
- Key Laboratory of Dairy Science, Ministry of Education, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin 150030, People's Republic of China
| | - Mingming Xie
- Key Laboratory of Dairy Science, Ministry of Education, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin 150030, People's Republic of China
| | - Chen Guan
- Key Laboratory of Dairy Science, Ministry of Education, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin 150030, People's Republic of China
| | - Yingchen
- Key Laboratory of Dairy Science, Ministry of Education, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin 150030, People's Republic of China
| | - Ruichi Guo
- Key Laboratory of Dairy Science, Ministry of Education, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin 150030, People's Republic of China
| | - Caihong Ma
- Key Laboratory of Dairy Science, Ministry of Education, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin 150030, People's Republic of China
| | - Honghua Xu
- Key Laboratory of Dairy Science, Ministry of Education, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin 150030, People's Republic of China.
| | - Meili Shao
- Key Laboratory of Dairy Science, Ministry of Education, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin 150030, People's Republic of China.
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30
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Mikalauskaite K, Ziaunys M, Smirnovas V. Lysozyme Amyloid Fibril Structural Variability Dependence on Initial Protein Folding State. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:5421. [PMID: 35628230 DOI: 10.3390/ijms23105421] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2022] [Revised: 05/11/2022] [Accepted: 05/11/2022] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Amyloid fibril formation is associated with several amyloidoses, including neurodegenerative Alzheimer's or Parkinson's diseases. The process of such fibrillar structure formation is still not fully understood, with new mechanistic insights appearing on a regular basis. This, in turn, has limited the development of potential anti-amyloid compounds, with only a handful of effective cures or treatment modalities available. One of the multiple amyloid aggregation factors that requires further examination is the ability of proteins to form multiple, structurally distinct aggregates, based on the environmental conditions. In this work, we examine how the initial folding state affects the fibrilization of lysozyme-an amyloidogenic protein, often used in protein aggregation studies. We show that there is a correlation between the initial state of the protein and the aggregate formation lag time, rate of elongation, resulting aggregate structural variability and dye-binding properties, as well as formation lag time and rate of elongation.
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Saffari B, Amininasab M. Crocin Inhibits the Fibrillation of Human α-synuclein and Disassembles Mature Fibrils: Experimental Findings and Mechanistic Insights from Molecular Dynamics Simulation. ACS Chem Neurosci 2021; 12:4037-4057. [PMID: 34636232 DOI: 10.1021/acschemneuro.1c00379] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
The aggregation of human alpha-synuclein (hαS) is pivotally implicated in the development of most types of synucleinopathies. Molecules that can inhibit or reverse the aggregation process of amyloidogenic proteins have potential therapeutic value. The anti-aggregating activity of multiple carotenoid compounds has been reported over the past decades against a growing list of amyloidogenic polypeptides. Here, we aimed to determine whether crocin, the main carotenoid glycoside component of saffron, would inhibit hαS aggregation or could disassemble its preformed fibrils. By employing a series of biochemical and biophysical techniques, crocin was exhibited to inhibit hαS fibrillation in a dose-dependent fashion by stabilizing very early aggregation intermediates in off-pathway non-toxic conformations with little β-sheet content. We also observed that crocin at high concentrations could efficiently destabilize mature fibrils and disassemble them into seeding-incompetent intermediates by altering their β-sheet conformation and reshaping their structure. Our atomistic molecular dynamics (MD) simulations demonstrated that crocin molecules bind to both the non amyloid-β component (NAC) region and C-terminal domain of hαS. These interactions could thereby stabilize the autoinhibitory conformation of the protein and prevent it from adopting aggregation-prone structures. MD simulations further suggested that ligand molecules prefer to reside longitudinally along the fibril axis onto the edges of the inter-protofilament interface where they establish hydrogen and hydrophobic bonds with steric zipper stabilizing residues. These interactions turned out to destabilize hαS fibrils by altering the interstrand twist angles, increasing the rigidity of the fibril core, and elevating its radius of gyration. Our findings suggest the potential pharmaceutical implication of crocin in synucleinopathies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Babak Saffari
- Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, School of Biology, College of Science, University of Tehran, Tehran 14155-6455, Iran
| | - Mehriar Amininasab
- Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, School of Biology, College of Science, University of Tehran, Tehran 14155-6455, Iran
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Weismiller HA, Holub TJ, Krzesinski BJ, Margittai M. A thiol-based intramolecular redox switch in four-repeat tau controls fibril assembly and disassembly. J Biol Chem 2021; 297:101021. [PMID: 34339733 PMCID: PMC8387771 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2021.101021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/13/2021] [Revised: 07/17/2021] [Accepted: 07/28/2021] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Oxidative stress has been implicated in the pathogenesis and progression of several tauopathies, including Alzheimer's disease. The deposition of fibrillar inclusions made of tau protein is one of the pathological hallmarks of these disorders. Although it is becoming increasingly evident that the specific fibril structure may vary from one tauopathy to another and it is recognized that different types of isoforms (three-repeat and four-repeat tau) can be selectively deposited, little is known about the role oxidation may play in aggregation. Four-repeat tau contains two cysteines that can form an intramolecular disulfide bond, resulting in a structurally restrained compact monomer. There is discrepancy as to whether this monomer can aggregate or not. Using isolated four-repeat tau monomers (htau40) with intramolecular disulfide bonds, we demonstrate that these proteins form fibrils. The fibrils are less stable than fibrils formed under reducing conditions but are highly effective in seeding oxidized tau monomers. Conversely, a strong seeding barrier prevents incorporation of reduced tau monomers, tau mimics in which the cysteines have been replaced by alanines or serines, and three-repeat tau (htau23), a single-cysteine isoform. The barrier also holds true when seed and monomer types are reversed, indicating that oxidized and reduced tau are incompatible with each other. Surprisingly, fibrils composed of compact tau disaggregate upon reduction, highlighting the importance of the intramolecular disulfide bond for fibril stability. The findings uncover a novel binary redox switch that controls the aggregation and disaggregation of these fibrils and extend the conformational spectrum of tau aggregates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hilary A Weismiller
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Denver, Denver, Colorado, USA
| | - Tyler J Holub
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Denver, Denver, Colorado, USA
| | - Brad J Krzesinski
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Denver, Denver, Colorado, USA
| | - Martin Margittai
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Denver, Denver, Colorado, USA.
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Gaur P, Galkin M, Kurochka A, Ghosh S, Yushchenko DA, Shvadchak VV. Fluorescent Probe for Selective Imaging of α-Synuclein Fibrils in Living Cells. ACS Chem Neurosci 2021; 12:1293-1298. [PMID: 33819025 DOI: 10.1021/acschemneuro.1c00090] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Plaques of amyloid fibrils composed of neuronal protein α-synuclein are one of the hallmarks of Parkinson's disease, and their selective imaging is crucial to study the mechanism of its pathogenesis. However, the existing fluorescent probes for amyloids are efficient only in solution and tissue systems, and they are not selective enough for the visualization of amyloid fibrils in living cells. In this study, we present two molecular rotor-based probes RB1 and RB2. These thiazolium probes show affinity to α-synuclein fibrils and turn-on fluorescence response upon interactions. Because of its extended π-conjugation and high rotational degree of freedom, RB1 exhibits a 76 nm red-shift of absorption maxima and 112-fold fluorescence enhancement upon binding to amyloid fibrils. Owing to its strong binding affinity to α-synuclein fibrils, RB1 can selectively stain them in the cytoplasm of living HeLa and SH-SY5Y cells with high optical contrast. RB1 is a cell-permeable and noncytotoxic probe. Taken together, we have demonstrated that RB1 is an amyloid probe with an outstanding absorption red-shift that can be used for intracellular imaging of α-synuclein fibrils.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pankaj Gaur
- Laboratory of Chemical Biology, The Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Flemingovo namesti 2, Prague 6, 16610, Czech Republic
| | - Maksym Galkin
- Laboratory of Chemical Biology, The Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Flemingovo namesti 2, Prague 6, 16610, Czech Republic
- Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Albertov 6, Prague, 12843, Czech Republic
| | - Andrii Kurochka
- Laboratory of Chemical Biology, The Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Flemingovo namesti 2, Prague 6, 16610, Czech Republic
| | - Subrata Ghosh
- School of Basic Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology Mandi, Mandi, Himachal Pradesh 175005, India
| | - Dmytro A. Yushchenko
- Laboratory of Chemical Biology, The Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Flemingovo namesti 2, Prague 6, 16610, Czech Republic
| | - Volodymyr V. Shvadchak
- Laboratory of Chemical Biology, The Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Flemingovo namesti 2, Prague 6, 16610, Czech Republic
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Michiels E, Liu S, Gallardo R, Louros N, Mathelié-Guinlet M, Dufrêne Y, Schymkowitz J, Vorberg I, Rousseau F. Entropic Bristles Tune the Seeding Efficiency of Prion-Nucleating Fragments. Cell Rep 2021; 30:2834-2845.e3. [PMID: 32101755 PMCID: PMC7043027 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2020.01.098] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/03/2019] [Revised: 01/07/2020] [Accepted: 01/28/2020] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Prions of lower eukaryotes are self-templating protein aggregates with cores formed by parallel in-register beta strands. Short aggregation-prone glutamine (Q)- and asparagine (N)-rich regions embedded in longer disordered domains have been proposed to act as nucleation sites that initiate refolding of soluble prion proteins into highly ordered fibrils, termed amyloid. We demonstrate that a short Q/N-rich peptide corresponding to a proposed nucleation site in the prototype Saccharomyces cerevisiae prion protein Sup35 is sufficient to induce infectious cytosolic prions in mouse neuroblastoma cells ectopically expressing the soluble Sup35 NM prion domain. Embedding this nucleating core in a non-native N-rich sequence that does not form amyloid but acts as an entropic bristle quadruples seeding efficiency. Our data suggest that large disordered sequences flanking an aggregation core in prion proteins act as not only solubilizers of the monomeric protein but also breakers of the formed amyloid fibrils, enhancing infectivity of the prion seeds. A short peptide derived from Sup35 (p103–113) forms rigid amyloid fibrils p103–113 fibrils can induce infectious Sup35 NM prions in mammalian cells Embedding p103–113 in an N-rich sequence increases fibril brittleness Increased fibril brittleness enhances prion-inducing capacity
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Affiliation(s)
- Emiel Michiels
- VIB Center for Brain and Disease Research, 3000 Leuven, Belgium; Switch Laboratory, Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, KULeuven, 3000 Leuven, Belgium
| | - Shu Liu
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases Bonn (DZNE e.V.), Venusberg-Campus 1, Building 99, 53127 Bonn, Germany
| | - Rodrigo Gallardo
- VIB Center for Brain and Disease Research, 3000 Leuven, Belgium; Switch Laboratory, Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, KULeuven, 3000 Leuven, Belgium
| | - Nikolaos Louros
- VIB Center for Brain and Disease Research, 3000 Leuven, Belgium; Switch Laboratory, Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, KULeuven, 3000 Leuven, Belgium
| | - Marion Mathelié-Guinlet
- Louvain Institute of Biomolecular Science and Technology, Université catholique de Louvain, Croix du Sud, 4-5, bte L7.07.06, 1348 Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
| | - Yves Dufrêne
- Louvain Institute of Biomolecular Science and Technology, Université catholique de Louvain, Croix du Sud, 4-5, bte L7.07.06, 1348 Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium; Walloon Excellence in Life Sciences and Biotechnology (WELBIO), 1300 Wavre, Belgium
| | - Joost Schymkowitz
- VIB Center for Brain and Disease Research, 3000 Leuven, Belgium; Switch Laboratory, Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, KULeuven, 3000 Leuven, Belgium.
| | - Ina Vorberg
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases Bonn (DZNE e.V.), Venusberg-Campus 1, Building 99, 53127 Bonn, Germany; Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn, Siegmund-Freud-Str. 25, 53127 Bonn, Germany.
| | - Frederic Rousseau
- VIB Center for Brain and Disease Research, 3000 Leuven, Belgium; Switch Laboratory, Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, KULeuven, 3000 Leuven, Belgium.
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Desai AA, Smith MD, Zhang Y, Makowski EK, Gerson JE, Ionescu E, Starr CG, Zupancic JM, Moore SJ, Sutter AB, Ivanova MI, Murphy GG, Paulson HL, Tessier PM. Rational affinity maturation of anti-amyloid antibodies with high conformational and sequence specificity. J Biol Chem 2021; 296:100508. [PMID: 33675750 PMCID: PMC8081927 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2021.100508] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2020] [Revised: 02/05/2021] [Accepted: 03/02/2021] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
The aggregation of amyloidogenic polypeptides is strongly linked to several neurodegenerative disorders, including Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases. Conformational antibodies that selectively recognize protein aggregates are leading therapeutic agents for selectively neutralizing toxic aggregates, diagnostic and imaging agents for detecting disease, and biomedical reagents for elucidating disease mechanisms. Despite their importance, it is challenging to generate high-quality conformational antibodies in a systematic and site-specific manner due to the properties of protein aggregates (hydrophobic, multivalent, and heterogeneous) and limitations of immunization (uncontrolled antigen presentation and immunodominant epitopes). Toward addressing these challenges, we have developed a systematic directed evolution procedure for affinity maturing antibodies against Alzheimer's Aβ fibrils and selecting variants with strict conformational and sequence specificity. We first designed a library based on a lead conformational antibody by sampling combinations of amino acids in the antigen-binding site predicted to mediate high antibody specificity. Next, we displayed this library on the surface of yeast, sorted it against Aβ42 aggregates, and identified promising clones using deep sequencing. The resulting antibodies displayed similar or higher affinities than clinical-stage Aβ antibodies (aducanumab and crenezumab). Moreover, the affinity-matured antibodies retained high conformational specificity for Aβ aggregates, as observed for aducanumab and unlike crenezumab. Notably, the affinity-maturated antibodies displayed extremely low levels of nonspecific interactions, as observed for crenezumab and unlike aducanumab. We expect that our systematic methods for generating antibodies with unique combinations of desirable properties will improve the generation of high-quality conformational antibodies specific for diverse types of aggregated conformers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alec A Desai
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA; Biointerfaces Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Matthew D Smith
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA; Biointerfaces Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Yulei Zhang
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA; Biointerfaces Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Emily K Makowski
- Biointerfaces Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA; Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Julia E Gerson
- Department of Neurology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Edward Ionescu
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA; Biointerfaces Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Charles G Starr
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA; Biointerfaces Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA; Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Jennifer M Zupancic
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA; Biointerfaces Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Shannon J Moore
- Protein Folding Disease Initiative, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA; Department of Molecular & Integrative Physiology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Alexandra B Sutter
- Department of Neurology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA; Biophysics Program, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Magdalena I Ivanova
- Department of Neurology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA; Biophysics Program, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Geoffrey G Murphy
- Protein Folding Disease Initiative, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA; Department of Molecular & Integrative Physiology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Henry L Paulson
- Department of Neurology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA; Protein Folding Disease Initiative, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA; Michigan Alzheimer's Disease Center, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Peter M Tessier
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA; Biointerfaces Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA; Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA; Protein Folding Disease Initiative, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA; Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA.
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Abstract
α-Synuclein is a neuronal protein involved in synaptic vesicle trafficking. During the course of Parkinson's disease, it aggregates, forming amyloid fibrils that accumulate in the midbrain. This pathological fibrillization process is strongly modulated by physiological interactions of α-synuclein with lipid membranes. However, the detailed mechanism of this effect remains unclear. In this work, we used environment-sensitive fluorescent dyes to study the influence of model lipid membranes on the kinetics of α-synuclein fibrillization. We observed that formation of the fibrils from α-synuclein monomers is strongly delayed even by small amounts of lipids. Furthermore, we found that membrane-bound α-synuclein monomers are not involved in fibril elongation. Hence, presence of lipids slows down fibril growth proportionally to the fraction of membrane-bound protein.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrii S. Kurochka
- Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Prague 166 10, Czech Republic
- Department of Analytical Chemistry, University of Chemistry and Technology, Prague 166 28, Czech Republic
| | - Dmytro A. Yushchenko
- Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Prague 166 10, Czech Republic
- Miltenyi Biotec GmbH, Bergisch Gladbach 51429, Germany
| | - Petr Bouř
- Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Prague 166 10, Czech Republic
- Department of Analytical Chemistry, University of Chemistry and Technology, Prague 166 28, Czech Republic
| | - Volodymyr V. Shvadchak
- Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Prague 166 10, Czech Republic
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Beisbayeva Z, Zhanbassynova A, Kulzhanova G, Mukasheva F, Erisken C. Change in Collagen Fibril Diameter Distribution of Bovine Anterior Cruciate Ligament upon Injury Can Be Mimicked in a Nanostructured Scaffold. Molecules 2021; 26:molecules26051204. [PMID: 33668154 PMCID: PMC7956598 DOI: 10.3390/molecules26051204] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2021] [Revised: 01/28/2021] [Accepted: 02/02/2021] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
More than 200,000 people are suffering from Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) related injuries each year in the US. There is an unmet clinical demand for improving biological attachment between grafts and the host tissue in addition to providing mechanical support. For biological graft integration, it is important to provide a physiologically feasible environment for the host cells to enable them to perform their duties. However, behavior of cells during ACL healing and the mechanism of ACL healing is not fully understood partly due to the absence of appropriate environment to test cell behavior both in vitro and in vivo. This study aims at (i) investigating the change in fibril diameter of bovine ACL tissue upon injury and (ii) fabricating nanofiber-based scaffolds to represent the morphology and structure of healthy and injured ACL tissues. We hypothesized that distribution and mean diameter of ACL fibrils will be altered upon injury. Findings revealed that the collagen fibril diameter distribution of bovine ACL changed from bimodal to unimodal upon injury with subsequent decrease in mean diameter. Polycaprolactone (PCL) scaffold fiber diameter distribution exhibited similar bimodal and unimodal distribution behavior to qualitatively represent the cases of healthy and injured ACL, respectively. The native ACL tissue demonstrated comparable modulus values only with the aligned bimodal PCL scaffolds. There was significant difference between mechanical properties of aligned bimodal and unaligned unimodal PCL scaffolds. We believe that the results obtained from measurements of diameter of collagen fibrils of native bovine ACL tissue can serve as a benchmark for scaffold design.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhuldyz Beisbayeva
- Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering, School of Engineering & Digital Sciences, Nazarbayev University, 53 Kabanbay Batyr, Nur-Sultan 010000, Kazakhstan; (Z.B.); (A.Z.); (F.M.)
| | - Ainur Zhanbassynova
- Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering, School of Engineering & Digital Sciences, Nazarbayev University, 53 Kabanbay Batyr, Nur-Sultan 010000, Kazakhstan; (Z.B.); (A.Z.); (F.M.)
| | - Gulzada Kulzhanova
- Department of Biological Sciences, Nazarbayev University, 53 Kabanbay Batyr, Nur-Sultan 010000, Kazakhstan;
| | - Fariza Mukasheva
- Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering, School of Engineering & Digital Sciences, Nazarbayev University, 53 Kabanbay Batyr, Nur-Sultan 010000, Kazakhstan; (Z.B.); (A.Z.); (F.M.)
| | - Cevat Erisken
- Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering, School of Engineering & Digital Sciences, Nazarbayev University, 53 Kabanbay Batyr, Nur-Sultan 010000, Kazakhstan; (Z.B.); (A.Z.); (F.M.)
- Correspondence:
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Yu KH, Huang MY, Lee YR, Lin YK, Chen HR, Lee CI. The Effect of Octapeptide Repeats on Prion Folding and Misfolding. Int J Mol Sci 2021; 22:ijms22041800. [PMID: 33670336 PMCID: PMC7918816 DOI: 10.3390/ijms22041800] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2020] [Revised: 02/06/2021] [Accepted: 02/08/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Misfolding of prion protein (PrP) into amyloid aggregates is the central feature of prion diseases. PrP has an amyloidogenic C-terminal domain with three α-helices and a flexible tail in the N-terminal domain in which multiple octapeptide repeats are present in most mammals. The role of the octapeptides in prion diseases has previously been underestimated because the octapeptides are not located in the amyloidogenic domain. Correlation between the number of octapeptide repeats and age of onset suggests the critical role of octapeptide repeats in prion diseases. In this study, we have investigated four PrP variants without any octapeptides and with 1, 5 and 8 octapeptide repeats. From the comparison of the protein structure and the thermal stability of these proteins, as well as the characterization of amyloids converted from these PrP variants, we found that octapeptide repeats affect both folding and misfolding of PrP creating amyloid fibrils with distinct structures. Deletion of octapeptides forms fewer twisted fibrils and weakens the cytotoxicity. Insertion of octapeptides enhances the formation of typical silk-like fibrils but it does not increase the cytotoxicity. There might be some threshold effect and increasing the number of peptides beyond a certain limit has no further effect on the cell viability, though the reasons are unclear at this stage. Overall, the results of this study elucidate the molecular mechanism of octapeptides at the onset of prion diseases.
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Takeyari S, Kubota T, Ohata Y, Fujiwara M, Kitaoka T, Taga Y, Mizuno K, Ozono K. 4-Phenylbutyric acid enhances the mineralization of osteogenesis imperfecta iPSC-derived osteoblasts. J Biol Chem 2021; 296:100027. [PMID: 33154166 PMCID: PMC7948972 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.ra120.014709] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2020] [Revised: 10/26/2020] [Accepted: 11/05/2020] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Osteogenesis imperfecta (OI) is a heritable brittle bone disease mainly caused by mutations in the two type I collagen genes. Collagen synthesis is a complex process including trimer formation, glycosylation, secretion, extracellular matrix (ECM) formation, and mineralization. Using OI patient-derived fibroblasts and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), we investigated the effect of 4-phenylbutyric acid (4-PBA) on collagen synthesis to test its potential as a new treatment for OI. Endoplasmic reticulum (ER) retention of type I collagen was observed by immunofluorescence staining in OI patient-derived fibroblasts with glycine substitution and exon skipping mutations. Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis revealed excessive glycosylation of secreted type I collagen at the specific sites in OI cells. The misfolding of the type I collagen triple helix in the ECM was demonstrated by the incorporation of heat-dissociated collagen hybridizing peptide in OI cells. Type I collagen was produced excessively by OI fibroblasts with a glycine mutation, but this excessive production was normalized when OI fibroblasts were cultured on control fibroblast-derived ECM. We also found that mineralization was impaired in osteoblasts differentiated from OI iPSCs. In summary, treatment with 4-PBA normalizes the excessive production of type I collagen, reduces ER retention, partially improves misfolding of the type I collagen helix in ECM, and improves osteoblast mineralization. Thus, 4-PBA may improve not only ER retention, but also type I collagen synthesis and mineralization in human cells from OI patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shinji Takeyari
- Department of Pediatrics, Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine, Suita, Osaka, Japan
| | - Takuo Kubota
- Department of Pediatrics, Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine, Suita, Osaka, Japan.
| | - Yasuhisa Ohata
- Department of Pediatrics, Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine, Suita, Osaka, Japan
| | - Makoto Fujiwara
- Department of Pediatrics, Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine, Suita, Osaka, Japan
| | - Taichi Kitaoka
- Department of Pediatrics, Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine, Suita, Osaka, Japan
| | - Yuki Taga
- Nippi Research Institute of Biomatrix, Toride, Ibaraki, Japan
| | - Kazunori Mizuno
- Nippi Research Institute of Biomatrix, Toride, Ibaraki, Japan
| | - Keiichi Ozono
- Department of Pediatrics, Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine, Suita, Osaka, Japan
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40
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Zhang W, Ren J, Pei Y, Ye C, Fan Y, Qi Z, Ling S. Analysis of the Contribution of Conformation and Fibrils on Tensile Toughness and Fracture Resistance of Camel Hairs. ACS Biomater Sci Eng 2020. [PMID: 33356118 DOI: 10.1021/acsbiomaterials.0c00892] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Animal hairs, like other natural fibers, display excellent mechanical properties, especially, the tensile toughness and fracture resistance. Several structure-mechanics models have attributed mechanical superiority of hair to its unique nanocomposite structure which consists of intermediate filaments and matrix. However, the contribution of fibrils and their associated interfaces on the mechanical properties of animal hairs remains unclear. Herein, using the small- and wide-angle X-ray scattering, and an ultrahigh-speed microcamera system, it is confirmed that the conformation and fibrils (which represent both nanofibrils and microfibrils) of the keratin channel endow tensile toughness and fracture resistance to camel hairs. During the stretching process, an α-β transition occurred at the secondary structure level, leading to the formation of a tensile plateau, which improves the toughness compared with the structure without a conformation transition. Meanwhile, fibrils further toughened the camel hairs and resisted their crack propagation through confined fibrillar slippage, splitting, and pulling. These structure-property relations in natural hairs can inspire damage-tolerant polymer fiber design.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wenwen Zhang
- Jiangsu Co-Innovation Center of Efficient Processing and Utilization of Forest Resources, Jiangsu Key Lab of Biomass-Based Green Fuel & Chemicals, Key Laboratory of Forestry Genetics & Biotechnology (Nanjing Forestry University) of Ministry of Education, College of Chemical Engineering, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, China.,School of Physical Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University, 393 Middle Huaxia Road, Shanghai 201210, China
| | - Jing Ren
- School of Physical Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University, 393 Middle Huaxia Road, Shanghai 201210, China
| | - Ying Pei
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou 450001, China
| | - Chao Ye
- School of Physical Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University, 393 Middle Huaxia Road, Shanghai 201210, China
| | - Yimin Fan
- Jiangsu Co-Innovation Center of Efficient Processing and Utilization of Forest Resources, Jiangsu Key Lab of Biomass-Based Green Fuel & Chemicals, Key Laboratory of Forestry Genetics & Biotechnology (Nanjing Forestry University) of Ministry of Education, College of Chemical Engineering, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, China
| | - Zeming Qi
- National Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230029, People's Republic of China
| | - Shengjie Ling
- School of Physical Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University, 393 Middle Huaxia Road, Shanghai 201210, China
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41
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Harne S, Duret S, Pande V, Bapat M, Béven L, Gayathri P. MreB5 Is a Determinant of Rod-to-Helical Transition in the Cell-Wall-less Bacterium Spiroplasma. Curr Biol 2020; 30:4753-4762.e7. [PMID: 32976813 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2020.08.093] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2020] [Revised: 08/05/2020] [Accepted: 08/26/2020] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
In most rod-shaped bacteria, the spatial coordination of cell wall synthesis machinery by MreBs is the main theme for shape determination and maintenance in cell-walled bacteria [1-9]. However, how rod or spiral shapes are achieved and maintained in cell-wall-less bacteria is currently unknown. Spiroplasma, a helical Mollicute that lacks cell wall synthesis genes, encodes five MreB paralogs and a unique cytoskeletal protein fibril [10, 11]. Here, we show that MreB5, one of the five MreB paralogs, contributes to cell elongation and is essential for the transition from rod-to-helical shape in Spiroplasma. Comparative genomic and proteomic characterization of a helical and motile wild-type Spiroplasma strain and a non-helical, non-motile natural variant helped delineate the specific roles of MreB5. Moreover, complementation of the non-helical strain with MreB5 restored its helical shape and motility by a kink-based mechanism described for Spiroplasma [12]. Earlier studies had proposed that length changes in fibril filaments are responsible for the change in handedness of the helical cell and kink propagation during motility [13]. Through structural and biochemical characterization, we identify that MreB5 exists as antiparallel double protofilaments that interact with fibril and the membrane, and thus potentially assists in kink propagation. In summary, our study provides direct experimental evidence for MreB in maintaining cell length, helical shape, and motility-revealing the role of MreB in sculpting the cell in the absence of a cell wall.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shrikant Harne
- Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Dr. Homi Bhabha Road, Pashan, Pune 411008, India
| | - Sybille Duret
- INRAE, University of Bordeaux, UMR 1332 BFP, Villenave d'Ornon, Bordeaux, France
| | - Vani Pande
- Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Dr. Homi Bhabha Road, Pashan, Pune 411008, India
| | - Mrinmayee Bapat
- Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Dr. Homi Bhabha Road, Pashan, Pune 411008, India
| | - Laure Béven
- INRAE, University of Bordeaux, UMR 1332 BFP, Villenave d'Ornon, Bordeaux, France.
| | - Pananghat Gayathri
- Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Dr. Homi Bhabha Road, Pashan, Pune 411008, India.
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42
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Lavatelli F, Mazzini G, Ricagno S, Iavarone F, Rognoni P, Milani P, Nuvolone M, Swuec P, Caminito S, Tasaki M, Chaves-Sanjuan A, Urbani A, Merlini G, Palladini G. Mass spectrometry characterization of light chain fragmentation sites in cardiac AL amyloidosis: insights into the timing of proteolysis. J Biol Chem 2020; 295:16572-16584. [PMID: 32952127 PMCID: PMC7864057 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.ra120.013461] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2020] [Revised: 09/04/2020] [Indexed: 01/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Amyloid fibrils are polymeric structures originating from aggregation of misfolded proteins. In vivo, proteolysis may modulate amyloidogenesis and fibril stability. In light chain (AL) amyloidosis, fragmented light chains (LCs) are abundant components of amyloid deposits; however, site and timing of proteolysis are debated. Identification of the N and C termini of LC fragments is instrumental to understanding involved processes and enzymes. We investigated the N and C terminome of the LC proteoforms in fibrils extracted from the hearts of two AL cardiomyopathy patients, using a proteomic approach based on derivatization of N- and C-terminal residues, followed by mapping of fragmentation sites on the structures of native and fibrillar relevant LCs. We provide the first high-specificity map of proteolytic cleavages in natural AL amyloid. Proteolysis occurs both on the LC variable and constant domains, generating a complex fragmentation pattern. The structural analysis indicates extensive remodeling by multiple proteases, largely taking place on poorly folded regions of the fibril surfaces. This study adds novel important knowledge on amyloid LC processing: although our data do not exclude that proteolysis of native LC dimers may destabilize their structure and favor fibril formation, the data show that LC deposition largely precedes the proteolytic events documentable in mature AL fibrils.
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Affiliation(s)
- Francesca Lavatelli
- Amyloidosis Research and Treatment Center, Fondazione IRCCS Policlinico San Matteo and University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy.
| | - Giulia Mazzini
- Amyloidosis Research and Treatment Center, Fondazione IRCCS Policlinico San Matteo and University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy
| | - Stefano Ricagno
- Department of Biosciences, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy
| | - Federica Iavarone
- Department of Basic Biotechnological Sciences, Intensivological and Perioperative Clinics, Faculty of Medicine, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Rome, Italy; Clinical Chemistry, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Clinic, Fondazione Policlinico Agostino Gemelli IRCCS, Rome, Italy
| | - Paola Rognoni
- Amyloidosis Research and Treatment Center, Fondazione IRCCS Policlinico San Matteo and University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy
| | - Paolo Milani
- Amyloidosis Research and Treatment Center, Fondazione IRCCS Policlinico San Matteo and University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy
| | - Mario Nuvolone
- Amyloidosis Research and Treatment Center, Fondazione IRCCS Policlinico San Matteo and University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy
| | - Paolo Swuec
- Department of Biosciences, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy; Cryo-Electron Microscopy Facility, Human Technopole, Milan, Italy
| | - Serena Caminito
- Amyloidosis Research and Treatment Center, Fondazione IRCCS Policlinico San Matteo and University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy
| | - Masayoshi Tasaki
- Department of Morphological and Physiological Sciences, Graduate School of Health Sciences, Kumamoto University, Kumamoto, Japan; Department of Neurology, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kumamoto University, Kumamoto, Japan
| | | | - Andrea Urbani
- Department of Basic Biotechnological Sciences, Intensivological and Perioperative Clinics, Faculty of Medicine, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Rome, Italy; Clinical Chemistry, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Clinic, Fondazione Policlinico Agostino Gemelli IRCCS, Rome, Italy
| | - Giampaolo Merlini
- Amyloidosis Research and Treatment Center, Fondazione IRCCS Policlinico San Matteo and University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy
| | - Giovanni Palladini
- Amyloidosis Research and Treatment Center, Fondazione IRCCS Policlinico San Matteo and University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy
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43
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Lou W, Stimple SD, Desai AA, Makowski EK, Kalyoncu S, Mogensen JE, Spang LT, Asgreen DJ, Staby A, Duus K, Amstrup J, Zhang Y, Tessier PM. Directed evolution of conformation-specific antibodies for sensitive detection of polypeptide aggregates in therapeutic drug formulations. Biotechnol Bioeng 2020; 118:797-808. [PMID: 33095442 DOI: 10.1002/bit.27610] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2020] [Revised: 10/15/2020] [Accepted: 10/19/2020] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Biologics such as peptides and proteins possess a number of attractive attributes that make them particularly valuable as therapeutics, including their high activity, high specificity, and low toxicity. However, one of the key challenges associated with this class of drugs is their propensity to aggregate. Given the safety and immunogenicity concerns related to polypeptide aggregates, it is particularly important to sensitively detect aggregates in therapeutic drug formulations as part of the quality control process. Here, we report the development of conformation-specific antibodies that recognize polypeptide aggregates composed of a GLP-1 receptor agonist (liraglutide) and their integration into a sensitive immunoassay for detecting liraglutide amyloid fibrils. We sorted single-chain antibody libraries against liraglutide fibrils using yeast surface display and magnetic-activated cell sorting, and identified several antibodies with high conformational specificity. Interestingly, these antibodies cross-react with amyloid fibrils formed by several other polypeptides, revealing that they recognize molecular features common to different types of fibrils. Moreover, we find that our immunoassay using these antibodies is >50-fold more sensitive than the conventional method for detecting liraglutide aggregation (Thioflavin T fluorescence). We expect that our systematic approach for generating a sensitive, aggregate-specific immunoassay can be readily extended to other biologics to improve the quality and safety of formulated drug products.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wenjia Lou
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Biointerfaces Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA.,Department of Chemical Engineering, Biointerfaces Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Samuel D Stimple
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Biointerfaces Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA.,Department of Chemical Engineering, Biointerfaces Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Alec A Desai
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Biointerfaces Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Emily K Makowski
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Biointerfaces Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Sibel Kalyoncu
- Isermann Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Center for Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York, USA
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Yulei Zhang
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Biointerfaces Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Peter M Tessier
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Biointerfaces Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA.,Department of Chemical Engineering, Biointerfaces Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA.,Isermann Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Center for Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York, USA.,Department of Biomedical Engineering, Biointerfaces Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
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44
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Zot HG, Chase PB, Hasbun JE, Pinto JR. Mechanical contribution to muscle thin filament activation. J Biol Chem 2020; 295:15913-15922. [PMID: 32900850 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.ra120.014438] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2020] [Revised: 09/04/2020] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Vertebrate striated muscle thin filaments are thought to be thermodynamically activated in response to an increase in Ca2+ concentration. We tested this hypothesis by measuring time intervals for gliding runs and pauses of individual skeletal muscle thin filaments in cycling myosin motility assays. A classic thermodynamic mechanism predicts that if chemical potential is constant, transitions between runs and pauses of gliding thin filaments will occur at constant rate as given by a Poisson distribution. In this scenario, rate is given by the odds of a pause, and hence, run times between pauses fit an exponential distribution that slopes negatively for all observable run times. However, we determined that relative density of observed run times fits an exponential only at low Ca2+ levels that activate filament gliding. Further titration with Ca2+, or adding excess regulatory proteins tropomyosin and troponin, shifted the relative density of short run times to fit the positive slope of a gamma distribution, which derives from waiting times between Poisson events. Events that arise during a run and prevent the chance of ending a run for a random interval of time account for the observed run time distributions, suggesting that the events originate with cycling myosin. We propose that regulatory proteins of the thin filament require the mechanical force of cycling myosin to achieve the transition state for activation. During activation, combinations of cycling myosin that contribute insufficient activation energy delay deactivation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Henry G Zot
- Department of Biology, University of West Georgia, Carrollton, Georgia, USA; Department of Biomedical Sciences, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida, USA.
| | - P Bryant Chase
- Department of Biological Science, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida, USA
| | - Javier E Hasbun
- Department of Physics, University of West Georgia, Carrollton, Georgia, USA
| | - Jose R Pinto
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida, USA
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45
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Abstract
Spiroplasmas are cell-wall-deficient helical bacteria belonging to the class Mollicutes. Their ability to maintain a helical shape in the absence of cell wall and their motility in the absence of external appendages have attracted attention from the scientific community for a long time. In this review we compare and contrast motility, shape determination and cytokinesis mechanisms of Spiroplasma with those of other Mollicutes and cell-walled bacteria. The current models for rod-shape determination and cytokinesis in cell-walled bacteria propose a prominent role for the cell wall synthesis machinery. These models also involve the cooperation of the actin-like protein MreB and FtsZ, the bacterial homolog of tubulin. However the exact role of the cytoskeletal proteins is still under much debate. Spiroplasma possess MreBs, exhibit a rod-shape dependent helical morphology, and divide by an FtsZ-dependent mechanism. Hence, spiroplasmas represent model organisms for deciphering the roles of MreBs and FtsZ in fundamental mechanisms of non-spherical shape determination and cytokinesis in bacteria, in the absence of a cell wall. Identification of components implicated in these processes and deciphering their functions would require genetic experiments. Challenges in genetic manipulations in spiroplasmas are a major bottleneck in understanding their biology. We discuss advancements in genome sequencing, gene editing technologies, super-resolution microscopy and electron cryomicroscopy and tomography, which can be employed for addressing long-standing questions related to Spiroplasma biology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shrikant Harne
- Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Pune, India
| | | | - Laure Béven
- INRAE, UMR 1332, Biologie du Fruit et Pathologie, University of Bordeaux, Bordeaux, France
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46
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Gracia P, Camino JD, Volpicelli-Daley L, Cremades N. Multiplicity of α-Synuclein Aggregated Species and Their Possible Roles in Disease. Int J Mol Sci 2020; 21:E8043. [PMID: 33126694 PMCID: PMC7663424 DOI: 10.3390/ijms21218043] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2020] [Revised: 10/21/2020] [Accepted: 10/27/2020] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
α-Synuclein amyloid aggregation is a defining molecular feature of Parkinson's disease, Lewy body dementia, and multiple system atrophy, but can also be found in other neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's disease. The process of α-synuclein aggregation can be initiated through alternative nucleation mechanisms and dominated by different secondary processes giving rise to multiple amyloid polymorphs and intermediate species. Some aggregated species have more inherent abilities to induce cellular stress and toxicity, while others seem to be more potent in propagating neurodegeneration. The preference for particular types of polymorphs depends on the solution conditions and the cellular microenvironment that the protein encounters, which is likely related to the distinct cellular locations of α-synuclein inclusions in different synucleinopathies, and the existence of disease-specific amyloid polymorphs. In this review, we discuss our current understanding on the nature and structure of the various types of α-synuclein aggregated species and their possible roles in pathology. Precisely defining these distinct α-synuclein species will contribute to understanding the molecular origins of these disorders, developing accurate diagnoses, and designing effective therapeutic interventions for these highly debilitating neurodegenerative diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pablo Gracia
- Joint Unit BIFI-IQFR (CSIC), Institute for Biocomputation and Physics of Complex Systems (BIFI), University of Zaragoza, 50018 Zaragoza, Spain; (P.G.); (J.D.C.)
| | - José D. Camino
- Joint Unit BIFI-IQFR (CSIC), Institute for Biocomputation and Physics of Complex Systems (BIFI), University of Zaragoza, 50018 Zaragoza, Spain; (P.G.); (J.D.C.)
| | - Laura Volpicelli-Daley
- Center for Neurodegeneration and Experimental Therapeutics, Department of Neurology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294, USA;
| | - Nunilo Cremades
- Joint Unit BIFI-IQFR (CSIC), Institute for Biocomputation and Physics of Complex Systems (BIFI), University of Zaragoza, 50018 Zaragoza, Spain; (P.G.); (J.D.C.)
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47
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Christensen LFB, Nowak JS, Sønderby TV, Frank SA, Otzen DE. Quantitating denaturation by formic acid: imperfect repeats are essential to the stability of the functional amyloid protein FapC. J Biol Chem 2020; 295:13031-13046. [PMID: 32719003 PMCID: PMC7489911 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.ra120.013396] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2020] [Revised: 07/11/2020] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Bacterial functional amyloids are evolutionarily optimized to aggregate, so much so that the extreme robustness of functional amyloid makes it very difficult to examine their structure-function relationships in a detailed manner. Previous work has shown that functional amyloids are resistant to conventional chemical denaturants, but they dissolve in formic acid (FA) at high concentrations. However, systematic investigation requires a quantitative analysis of FA's ability to denature proteins. Amyloid formed by Pseudomonas sp. protein FapC provides an excellent model to investigate FA denaturation. It contains three imperfect repeats, and stepwise removal of these repeats slows fibrillation and increases fragmentation during aggregation. However, the link to stability is unclear. We first calibrated FA denaturation using three small, globular, and acid-resistant proteins. This revealed a linear relationship between the concentration of FA and the free energy of unfolding with a slope of mFA+pH (the combined contribution of FA and FA-induced lowering of pH), as well as a robust correlation between protein size and mFA+pH We then measured the solubilization of fibrils formed from different FapC variants with varying numbers of repeats as a function of the concentration of FA. This revealed a decline in the number of residues driving amyloid formation upon deleting at least two repeats. The midpoint of denaturation declined with the removal of repeats. Complete removal of all repeats led to fibrils that were solubilized at FA concentrations 2-3 orders of magnitude lower than the repeat-containing variants, showing that at least one repeat is required for the stability of functional amyloid.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Jan Stanislaw Nowak
- Interdisciplinary Nanoscience Center (iNANO), Aarhus University, Aarhus C, Denmark
| | | | - Signe Andrea Frank
- Interdisciplinary Nanoscience Center (iNANO), Aarhus University, Aarhus C, Denmark
| | - Daniel Erik Otzen
- Interdisciplinary Nanoscience Center (iNANO), Aarhus University, Aarhus C, Denmark.
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48
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Del Rio JA, Ferrer I. Potential of Microfluidics and Lab-on-Chip Platforms to Improve Understanding of " prion-like" Protein Assembly and Behavior. Front Bioeng Biotechnol 2020; 8:570692. [PMID: 33015021 PMCID: PMC7506036 DOI: 10.3389/fbioe.2020.570692] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2020] [Accepted: 08/18/2020] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Human aging is accompanied by a relevant increase in age-associated chronic pathologies, including neurodegenerative and metabolic diseases. The appearance and evolution of numerous neurodegenerative diseases is paralleled by the appearance of intracellular and extracellular accumulation of misfolded proteins in affected brains. In addition, recent evidence suggests that most of these amyloid proteins can behave and propagate among neural cells similarly to infective prions. In order to improve understanding of the seeding and spreading processes of these "prion-like" amyloids, microfluidics and 3D lab-on-chip approaches have been developed as highly valuable tools. These techniques allow us to monitor changes in cellular and molecular processes responsible for amyloid seeding and cell spreading and their parallel effects in neural physiology. Their compatibility with new optical and biochemical techniques and their relative availability have increased interest in them and in their use in numerous laboratories. In addition, recent advances in stem cell research in combination with microfluidic platforms have opened new humanized in vitro models for myriad neurodegenerative diseases affecting different cellular targets of the vascular, muscular, and nervous systems, and glial cells. These new platforms help reduce the use of animal experimentation. They are more reproducible and represent a potential alternative to classical approaches to understanding neurodegeneration. In this review, we summarize recent progress in neurobiological research in "prion-like" protein using microfluidic and 3D lab-on-chip approaches. These approaches are driven by various fields, including chemistry, biochemistry, and cell biology, and they serve to facilitate the development of more precise human brain models for basic mechanistic studies of cell-to-cell interactions and drug discovery.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jose A Del Rio
- Molecular and Cellular Neurobiotechnology, Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia, Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology, Barcelona, Spain.,Department of Cell Biology, Physiology and Immunology, Faculty of Biology, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Center for Networked Biomedical Research on Neurodegenerative Diseases (Ciberned), Barcelona, Spain.,Institute of Neuroscience, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Isidre Ferrer
- Center for Networked Biomedical Research on Neurodegenerative Diseases (Ciberned), Barcelona, Spain.,Institute of Neuroscience, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Department of Pathology and Experimental Therapeutics, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Bellvitge University Hospital, Hospitalet de Llobregat, Barcelona, Spain.,Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL), Hospitalet de Llobregat, Barcelona, Spain
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49
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Abstract
An epidemiological connection exists between Parkinson's disease (PD) and melanoma. α-Synuclein (α-syn), the hallmark pathological amyloid observed in PD, is also elevated in melanoma, where its expression is inversely correlated with melanin content. We present a hypothesis that there is an amyloid link between α-syn and Pmel17 (premelanosomal protein), a functional amyloid that promotes melanogenesis. Using SK-MEL 28 human melanoma cells, we show that endogenous α-syn is present in melanosomes, the organelle where melanin polymerization occurs. Using in vitro cross-seeding experiments, we show that α-syn fibrils stimulate the aggregation of a Pmel17 fragment constituting the repeat domain (RPT), an amyloidogenic domain essential for fibril formation in melanosomes. The cross-seeded fibrils exhibited α-syn-like ultrastructural features that could be faithfully propagated over multiple generations. This cross-seeding was unidirectional, as RPT fibrils did not influence α-syn aggregation. These results support our hypothesis that α-syn, a pathogenic amyloid, modulates Pmel17 aggregation in the melanosome, defining a molecular link between PD and melanoma.
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50
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Rabe R, Hempel U, Martocq L, Keppler JK, Aveyard J, Douglas TEL. Dairy-Inspired Coatings for Bone Implants from Whey Protein Isolate-Derived Self-Assembled Fibrils. Int J Mol Sci 2020; 21:E5544. [PMID: 32756331 PMCID: PMC7432503 DOI: 10.3390/ijms21155544] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/03/2020] [Revised: 07/24/2020] [Accepted: 07/28/2020] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
To improve the integration of a biomaterial with surrounding tissue, its surface properties may be modified by adsorption of biomacromolecules, e.g., fibrils. Whey protein isolate (WPI), a dairy industry by-product, supports osteoblastic cell growth. WPI's main component, β-lactoglobulin, forms fibrils in acidic solutions. In this study, aiming to develop coatings for biomaterials for bone contact, substrates were coated with WPI fibrils obtained at pH 2 or 3.5. Importantly, WPI fibrils coatings withstood autoclave sterilization and appeared to promote spreading and differentiation of human bone marrow stromal cells (hBMSC). In the future, WPI fibrils coatings could facilitate immobilization of biomolecules with growth stimulating or antimicrobial properties.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rebecca Rabe
- Division of Food Technology, Kiel University, 24118 Kiel, Germany; (R.R.); (J.K.K.)
| | - Ute Hempel
- Institute of Physiological Chemistry, Technische Universität Dresden, 01069 Dresden, Germany;
| | - Laurine Martocq
- Engineering Department, Lancaster University, Lancaster LA1 4YW, UK;
| | - Julia K. Keppler
- Division of Food Technology, Kiel University, 24118 Kiel, Germany; (R.R.); (J.K.K.)
- Laboratory of Food Process Engineering, Wageningen University & Research AFSG, 6708 PB Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Jenny Aveyard
- School of Engineering, University of Liverpool, Liverpool L69 3BX, UK;
| | - Timothy E. L. Douglas
- Engineering Department, Lancaster University, Lancaster LA1 4YW, UK;
- Materials Science Institute (MSI), Lancaster University, Lancaster LA1 4YW, UK
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