Multiple genetic and environmental factors play a role in the development and progression of Parkinson's disease (PD). The main neuropathological hallmark of PD is the degeneration of dopaminergic ...(DAergic) neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta. To study genetic and molecular contributors to the disease process, there is a great need for readily accessible cells with prominent DAergic features that can be used for reproducible in vitro cellular screening. Here, we investigated the molecular phenotype of retinoic acid (RA) differentiated SH-SY5Y cells using genome wide transcriptional profiling combined with gene ontology, transcription factor and molecular pathway analysis. We demonstrated that RA induces a general neuronal differentiation program in SH-SY5Y cells and that these cells develop a predominantly mature DAergic-like neurotransmitter phenotype. This phenotype is characterized by increased dopamine levels together with a substantial suppression of other neurotransmitter phenotypes, such as those for noradrenaline, acetylcholine, glutamate, serotonin and histamine. In addition, we show that RA differentiated SH-SY5Y cells express the dopamine and noradrenalin neurotransmitter transporters that are responsible for uptake of MPP(+), a well known DAergic cell toxicant. MPP(+) treatment alters mitochondrial activity according to its proposed cytotoxic effect in DAergic neurons. Taken together, RA differentiated SH-SY5Y cells have a DAergic-like phenotype, and provide a good cellular screening tool to find novel genes or compounds that affect cytotoxic processes that are associated with PD.
Dementias are prevalent brain disorders in the aged population. Dementias pose major socio‐medical burden, but currently there is no cure available. Novel proteomics approaches hold promise to ...identify alterations of the brain proteome that could provide clues on disease etiology, and identify candidate proteins to develop further as a biomarker. In this review, we focus on recent proteomics findings from brains affected with Alzheimer's Disease, Parkinson Disease Dementia, Frontotemporal Dementia, and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. These studies confirmed known cellular changes, and in addition identified novel proteins that may underlie distinct aspects of the diseases.
This article is part of the special issue "Proteomics".
Mass spectrometry based proteomics is an ideal technology to elucidate aberrant protein expression in disease‐affected brain. In this review, we describe the recent proteomics findings from brains affected with Alzheimer's Disease, Parkinson Disease Dementia, Frontotemporal Dementia, and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. Brain is collected. Proteins are digested by trypsin, and the resulting peptides are analysed by LC‐MS/MS. Results are validated by alternative means, for example immunohistochemistry.
This article is part of the special issue "Proteomics".
In the vertebrate nervous system, myelination of axons for rapid impulse propagation requires the synthesis of large amounts of lipids and proteins by oligodendrocytes and Schwann cells. Myelin ...membranes are thought to be cell-autonomously assembled by these axon-associated glial cells. Here, we report the surprising finding that in normal brain development, a substantial fraction of the lipids incorporated into central nervous system (CNS) myelin are contributed by astrocytes. The oligodendrocyte-specific inactivation of sterol regulatory element-binding protein (SREBP) cleavage-activating protein (SCAP), an essential coactivator of the transcription factor SREBP and thus of lipid biosynthesis, resulted in significantly retarded CNS myelination; however, myelin appeared normal at 3 months of age. Importantly, embryonic deletion of the same gene in astrocytes, or in astrocytes and oligodendrocytes, caused a persistent hypomyelination, as did deletion from astrocytes during postnatal development. Moreover, when astroglial lipid synthesis was inhibited, oligodendrocytes began incorporating circulating lipids into myelin membranes. Indeed, a lipid-enriched diet was sufficient to rescue hypomyelination in these conditional mouse mutants. We conclude that lipid synthesis by oligodendrocytes is heavily supplemented by astrocytes in vivo and that horizontal lipid flux is a major feature of normal brain development and myelination.
Neuronal network dysfunction is increasingly recognized as an early symptom in Alzheimer's disease (AD) and may provide new entry points for diagnosis and intervention. Here, we show that ...amyloid-beta-induced hyperexcitability of hippocampal inhibitory parvalbumin (PV) interneurons importantly contributes to neuronal network dysfunction and memory impairment in APP/PS1 mice, a mouse model of increased amyloidosis. We demonstrate that hippocampal PV interneurons become hyperexcitable at ~16 weeks of age, when no changes are observed yet in the intrinsic properties of pyramidal cells. This hyperexcitable state of PV interneurons coincides with increased inhibitory transmission onto hippocampal pyramidal neurons and deficits in spatial learning and memory. We show that treatment aimed at preventing PV interneurons from becoming hyperexcitable is sufficient to restore PV interneuron properties to wild-type levels, reduce inhibitory input onto pyramidal cells, and rescue memory deficits in APP/PS1 mice. Importantly, we demonstrate that early intervention aimed at restoring PV interneuron activity has long-term beneficial effects on memory and hippocampal network activity, and reduces amyloid plaque deposition, a hallmark of AD pathology. Taken together, these findings suggest that early treatment of PV interneuron hyperactivity might be clinically relevant in preventing memory decline and delaying AD progression.
The CYFIP1/SRA1 gene is located in a chromosomal region linked to various neurological disorders, including intellectual disability, autism, and schizophrenia. CYFIP1 plays a dual role in two ...apparently unrelated processes, inhibiting local protein synthesis and favoring actin remodeling. Here, we show that brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF)-driven synaptic signaling releases CYFIP1 from the translational inhibitory complex, triggering translation of target mRNAs and shifting CYFIP1 into the WAVE regulatory complex. Active Rac1 alters the CYFIP1 conformation, as demonstrated by intramolecular FRET, and is key in changing the equilibrium of the two complexes. CYFIP1 thus orchestrates the two molecular cascades, protein translation and actin polymerization, each of which is necessary for correct spine morphology in neurons. The CYFIP1 interactome reveals many interactors associated with brain disorders, opening new perspectives to define regulatory pathways shared by neurological disabilities characterized by spine dysmorphogenesis.
•BDNF-Rac1 signaling redistributes CYFIP1 between eIF4E and WRC•FRET demonstrates that BDNF-Rac1 signaling alters CYFIP1 conformation•CYFIP1-eIF4E-WRC regulates ARC synthesis, actin polymerization, and spine morphology•The CYFIP1 interactome is enriched in genes implicated in neurological disorders
CYFIP1 plays a dual role in inhibiting local protein synthesis and favoring actin remodeling. De Rubeis et al. show that BDNF-driven synaptic signaling releases CYFIP1 from the translational inhibitory complex, triggering translation of target mRNAs and shifting CYFIP1 into the WAVE regulatory complex.
The medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) is critically involved in numerous cognitive functions, including attention, inhibitory control, habit formation, working memory and long-term memory. Moreover, ...through its dense interconnectivity with subcortical regions (e.g., thalamus, striatum, amygdala and hippocampus), the mPFC is thought to exert top-down executive control over the processing of aversive and appetitive stimuli. Because the mPFC has been implicated in the processing of a wide range of cognitive and emotional stimuli, it is thought to function as a central hub in the brain circuitry mediating symptoms of psychiatric disorders. New optogenetics technology enables anatomical and functional dissection of mPFC circuitry with unprecedented spatial and temporal resolution. This provides important novel insights in the contribution of specific neuronal subpopulations and their connectivity to mPFC function in health and disease states. In this review, we present the current knowledge obtained with optogenetic methods concerning mPFC function and dysfunction and integrate this with findings from traditional intervention approaches used to investigate the mPFC circuitry in animal models of cognitive processing and psychiatric disorders.
Fast-spiking parvalbumin (PV) interneurons are inhibitory interneurons with unique morphological and functional properties that allow them to precisely control local circuitry, brain networks and ...memory processing. Since the discovery in 1987 that PV is expressed in a subset of fast-spiking GABAergic inhibitory neurons, our knowledge of the complex molecular and physiological properties of these cells has been expanding. In this review, we highlight the specific properties of PV neurons that allow them to fire at high frequency and with high reliability, enabling them to control network oscillations and shape the encoding, consolidation and retrieval of memories. We next discuss multiple studies reporting PV neuron impairment as a critical step in neuronal network dysfunction and cognitive decline in mouse models of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Finally, we propose potential mechanisms underlying PV neuron dysfunction in AD and we argue that early changes in PV neuron activity could be a causal step in AD-associated network and memory impairment and a significant contributor to disease pathogenesis.
The brain is considered to be autonomous in lipid synthesis with astrocytes producing lipids far more efficiently than neurons. Accordingly, it is generally assumed that astrocyte‐derived lipids are ...taken up by neurons to support synapse formation and function. Initial confirmation of this assumption has been obtained in cell cultures, but whether astrocyte‐derived lipids support synapses in vivo is not known. Here, we address this issue and determined the role of astrocyte lipid metabolism in hippocampal synapse formation and function in vivo. Hippocampal protein expression for the sterol regulatory element‐binding protein (SREBP) and its target gene fatty acid synthase (Fasn) was found in astrocytes but not in neurons. Diminishing SREBP activity in astrocytes using mice in which the SREBP cleavage‐activating protein (SCAP) was deleted from GFAP‐expressing cells resulted in decreased cholesterol and phospholipid secretion by astrocytes. Interestingly, SCAP mutant mice showed more immature synapses, lower presynaptic protein SNAP‐25 levels as well as reduced numbers of synaptic vesicles, indicating impaired development of the presynaptic terminal. Accordingly, hippocampal short‐term and long‐term synaptic plasticity were defective in mutant mice. These findings establish a critical role for astrocyte lipid metabolism in presynaptic terminal development and function in vivo. GLIA 2017;65:670–682
Main Points
Diminishing lipid biosynthesis in astrocytes leads to presynaptic terminal abnormalities and deficits in short‐ and long‐term synaptic plasticity.
A critical role for astrocyte lipids in synapse development and function in vivo is established.
Social impairment is frequently associated with mitochondrial dysfunction and altered neurotransmission. Although mitochondrial function is crucial for brain homeostasis, it remains unknown whether ...mitochondrial disruption contributes to social behavioral deficits. Here, we show that Drosophila mutants in the homolog of the human CYFIP1, a gene linked to autism and schizophrenia, exhibit mitochondrial hyperactivity and altered group behavior. We identify the regulation of GABA availability by mitochondrial activity as a biologically relevant mechanism and demonstrate its contribution to social behavior. Specifically, increased mitochondrial activity causes gamma aminobutyric acid (GABA) sequestration in the mitochondria, reducing GABAergic signaling and resulting in social deficits. Pharmacological and genetic manipulation of mitochondrial activity or GABA signaling corrects the observed abnormalities. We identify Aralar as the mitochondrial transporter that sequesters GABA upon increased mitochondrial activity. This study increases our understanding of how mitochondria modulate neuronal homeostasis and social behavior under physiopathological conditions.
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•Mitochondrial activity regulates the availability of the neurotransmitter GABA•The mitochondrial transporter Aralar is necessary for GABA uptake•Mitochondrial dysfunction in Drosophila Cyfip mutants affects social behavior•Social deficits are rescued by modulation of GABA levels and mitochondrial activity
A Drosophila model of CYFIP1 haploinsufficiency, a genetic variant linked to schizophrenia and autism, reveals that increased mitochondrial activity and membrane potential reduces GABA availability and plays a causal role in mediating social behavioral abnormalities.
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