Trisomy for Synaptojanin1 in Down syndrome is functionally linked to the enlargement of early endosomes

Enlarged early endosomes have been observed in neurons and fibroblasts in Down syndrome (DS). These endosome abnormalities have been implicated in the early development of Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathology in these subjects. Here, we show the presence of enlarged endosomes in blood mononuclear cells and lymphoblastoid cell lines (LCLs) from individuals with DS using immunofluorescence and confocal microscopy. Genotype-phenotype correlations in LCLs carrying partial trisomies 21 revealed that triplication of a 2.56 Mb locus in 21q22.11 is associated with the endosomal abnormalities. This locus contains the gene encoding the phosphoinositide phosphatase synaptojanin 1 (SYNJ1), a key regulator of the signalling phospholipid phosphatidylinositol-4,5-biphosphate that has been shown to regulate clathrin-mediated endocytosis. We found that SYNJ1 transcripts are increased in LCLs from individuals with DS and that overexpression of SYNJ1 in a neuroblastoma cell line as well as in transgenic mice leads to enlarged endosomes. Moreover, the proportion of enlarged endosomes in fibroblasts from an individual with DS was reduced after silencing SYNJ1 expression with RNA interference. In LCLs carrying amyloid precursor protein (APP) microduplications causing autosomal dominant early-onset AD, enlarged endosomes were absent, suggesting that APP overexpression alone is not involved in the modification of early endosomes in this cell type. These findings provide new insights into the contribution of SYNJ1 overexpression to the endosomal changes observed in DS and suggest an attractive new target for rescuing endocytic dysfunction and lipid metabolism in DS and in A

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Enlarged endosomes are believed to be the first morphological change observed in Alzheimer's disease brains (AD). They are found in sporadic cases with no pathological evidence of AD yet, in Down syndrome (DS) as early as 28 weeks of gestation. DS patients developped AD because amyloïd peptides found in seniles plaques, were generated from APP (amyloid precursor protein), a gene localized on the chromosome 21. As APP and amyloid peptide seems not to be involved in enlarged endosomes, we thus searched for other factors that could modify the endosome morphology in AD and DS. We found unexpectedly that increased membrane cholesterol was associated with the appearance of enlarged endosomes together with increased APP endocytosis and Aß secretion in cultured neuronal and non neuronal cells. This effect of cholesterol was inhibited by siRNA against clathrin and by mutants of proteins involved in the formation of early endosomes (dynamin2 and Rab5). We suggest that the endo-lysosomal pathway of APP is regulated by cholesterol, in a Rab5 and clathrin dependent manner. As levels of total cholesterol are increased in the brains of AD patients we postulate that this raise could be responsible for the enhanced internalization of APP in enlarged endosomes and the overproduction of Aß. In search for new genes involved in the enlargment of early endosomes, we used lymphoblastoid cell lines (LCL) and blood mononuclear cells (BMC) from DS patients carrying full or partial trisomy 21. Using confocal microscopy, we showed that the mean size of the endosomes was significantly increased (+35%) in LCLs and BMC. Enlarged endosomes were absent in the 3 LCLs carrying APP microduplications. This result suggested that APP is not involved in the enlargement of early endosomes in this cell type. In four out of seven LCLs from DS patients carrying partial trisomy 21 we could very easily identify enlarged endosomes. By correlating the presence of enlarged endosomes to the triplicated genomic segment from Hsa21 we identified SYNJ1 as a candidate gene. SYNJ1 gene codes for the phosphoinositide phosphatase synaptojanin 1 protein, a key regulator of the signalling phospholipids phosphatidylinositol-4,5-biphosphate (PtdIns(4,5)P2). We observed abnormally large endosomes in SH-SY5Y cells transfected with SYNJ1 plasmid. We conclude that deregulation of PtdIns(4,5)P2 homeostasy by synapyojanin 1 over-expression can lead to the enlargement of early endosomes.Le premier signe morphologique observé dans le cerveau des patients atteints de la maladie d'Alzheimer (MA) est l'élargissement des endosomes précoces dans les neurones. Ce phénotype est retrouvé dans les formes sporadiques de la MA et chez les individus porteurs d'une trisomie 21 qui développent une neuropathologie de type Alzheimer dès l'âge de 40 ans. Cette forme précoce de la maladie d'Alzheimer serait causée par la surexpression de l'APP (Amyloid precursor protein) dont le gène est sur le chromosome 21. Suite à deux clivages successifs, l'APP génère le peptide amyloïde (Ab) qui s'agrège pour former des plaques séniles, lésions caractéristiques de la MA. Les endosomes élargis apparaissant avant la formation des dépôts d'Ab, nous avons donc recherché d'autres facteurs responsables de ce phénotype. Nous avons trouvé qu'une augmentation du cholestérol membranaire est associée à l'élargissement des endosomes, l'augmentation de l'endocytose de l'APP et de la sécrétion d'Ab dans des cultures cellulaires de types neuronales et non neuronales. Cette augmentation d'endocytose de l'APP est inhibée par un ARN interférence contre la clathrine et les mutants des protéines dynamine2 et Rab5 impliquées dans la formation des endosomes précoces. Le cholestérol total étant augmenté dans le cerveau des patients Alzheimer, nous postulons que l'internalisation de l'APP dépendante de la clathrine est accrue, conduisant à l'élargissement des endosomes et la surproduction du peptide amyloïde. Afin de trouver d'autres gènes impliqués dans l'élargissement des endosomes dans la trisomie 21, nous avons utilisé des lignées de cellules lymphoblastoïdes (LCL) et des cellules mononucléaires provenant de sang d'individus porteurs d'une trisomie 21 complète ou partielle. Nous avons trouvé une augmentation de la taille moyenne des endosomes précoces (+35%) dans les LCL et les cellules mononucléaires. Quatre lignées de trisomies partielles ont montré un élargissement des endosomes, permettant de réduire l'intervalle génétique à 1.3Mb. Le gène de l'APP est en dehors de cette région, suggérant qu'il n'est pas impliqué dans le phénotype dans ce type cellulaire. Nous avons identifié un gène candidat : SYNJ1 qui code pour la protéine synaptojanine-1, une phosphatase régulant la phosphorylation des phosphatidylinositol-4,5-biphosphates (PtdIns(4,5)P2) impliqués dans le trafic intracellulaire. Nous avons observé de larges endosomes dans des cellules transfectée avec le plasmide SYNJ1. Nous concluons que la dérégulation de l'homéostasie des PtdIns(4,5)P2 par la surexpression de la synaptojanine-1 peut conduire à l'élargissement des endosomes

Endosomes élargis et cholestérol (de la trisomie 21 à la maladie d'Alzheimer)

PARIS7-Bibliothèque centrale (751132105) / SudocSudocFranceF

Generation of embryo-like structures from mouse embryonic stem cells treated with a chemical inhibitor of SUMOylation and cultured in microdroplets

Summary: The field of stem cell-based embryo-like models is rapidly evolving, providing in vitro models of in utero stages of mammalian development. Here, we detail steps to first establish adherent spheroids composed of three cell types from mouse embryonic stem cells solely treated with a chemical inhibitor of SUMOylation. We then describe procedures for generating highly reproducible gastruloids from these dissociated spheroid cells, as well as embryo-like structures comprising anterior neural and trunk somite-like regions using an optimized microfluidics platform.For complete details on the use and execution of this protocol, please refer to Cossec et al. (2023).1 : Publisher's note: Undertaking any experimental protocol requires adherence to local institutional guidelines for laboratory safety and ethics

Cholesterol changes in Alzheimer's disease: methods of analysis and impact on the formation of enlarged endosomes

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Extensive SUMO Modification of Repressive Chromatin Factors Distinguishes Pluripotent from Somatic Cells

International audiencePost-translational modification by SUMO is a key regulator of cell identity. In mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs), SUMO impedes reprogramming to pluripotency, while in embryonic stem cells (ESCs), it represses the emergence of totipotent-like cells, suggesting that SUMO targets distinct substrates to preserve somatic and pluripotent states. Using MS-based proteomics, we show that the composition of endogenous SUMOylomes differs dramatically between MEFs and ESCs. In MEFs, SUMO2/3 targets proteins associated with canonical SUMO functions, such as splicing, and transcriptional regulators driving somatic enhancer selection. In contrast, in ESCs, SUMO2/3 primarily modifies highly interconnected repressive chromatin complexes, thereby preventing chromatin opening and transitioning to totipotent-like states. We also characterize several SUMO-modified pluripotency factors and show that SUMOylation of Dppa2 and Dppa4 impedes the conversion to 2-cell-embryo-like states. Altogether, we propose that rewiring the repertoire of SUMO target networks is a major driver of cell fate decision during embryonic development

Enrichment of cholesterol in microdissected Alzheimer’s disease senile plaques as assessed by mass spectrometry

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Clathrin-dependent APP endocytosis and Abeta secretion are highly sensitive to the level of plasma membrane cholesterol

Several lines of evidence support a strong relationship between cholesterol and Alzheimer's disease pathogenesis. Membrane cholesterol is known to modulate amyloid precursor protein (APP) endocytosis and amyloid-β (Aβ) secretion. Here we show in a human cell line model of endocytosis (HEK293 cells) that cholesterol exerts these effects in a dose-dependent and linear manner, over a wide range of concentrations (-40% to + 40% variations of plasma membrane cholesterol induced by methyl-beta-cyclodextrin (MBCD) and MBCD-cholesterol complex respectively). We found that the gradual effect of cholesterol is inhibited by small interference RNA-mediated downregulation of clathrin. Modulation of clathrin-mediated APP endocytosis by cholesterol was further demonstrated using mutants of proteins involved in the formation of early endosomes (dynamin2, Eps15 and Rab5). Importantly we show that membrane proteins other than APP are not affected by cholesterol to the same extent. Indeed clathrin-dependent endocytosis of transferrin and cannabinoid1 receptors as well as internalization of surface proteins labelled with a biotin derivative (sulfo-NHS-SS-biotin) were not sensitive to variations of plasma membrane cholesterol from -40% to 40%. In conclusion clathrin-dependent APP endocytosis appears to be very sensitive to the levels of membrane cholesterol. These results suggest that cholesterol increase in AD could be responsible for the enhanced internalization of clathrin-, dynamin2-, Eps15- and Rab5-dependent endocytosis of APP and the ensuing overproduction of Aβ. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

Homodimerization of Amyloid Precursor Protein at the Plasma Membrane: A homoFRET Study by Time-Resolved Fluorescence Anisotropy Imaging

Classical FRET (Förster Resonance Energy Transfer) using two fluorescent labels (one for the donor and another one for the acceptor) is not efficient for studying the homodimerization of a protein as only half of the homodimers formed can be identified by this technique. We thus resorted to homoFRET detected by time-resolved Fluorescence Anisotropy IMaging (tr-FAIM). To specifically image the plasma membrane of living cells, an original combination of tr-FAIM and Total Internal Reflection Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging Microscope (TIRFLIM) was implemented. The correcting factor accounting for the depolarization due to the high numerical aperture (NA) objective, mandatory for TIRF microscopy, was quantified on fluorescein solutions and on HEK293 cells expressing enhanced Green Fluorescence Protein (eGFP). Homodimerization of Amyloid Precursor Protein (APP), a key mechanism in the etiology of Alzheimer's disease, was measured on this original set-up. We showed, both in epifluorescence and under TIRF excitation, different energy transfer rates associated with the homodimerization of wild type APP-eGFP or of a mutated APP-eGFP, which forms constitutive dimers. This original set-up thus offers promising prospects for future studies of protein homodimerization in living cells in control and pathological conditions

Transient suppression of SUMOylation in embryonic stem cells generates embryo-like structures

International audienceRecent advances in synthetic embryology have opened new avenues for understanding the complex events controlling mammalian peri-implantation development. Here, we show that mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs) solely exposed to chemical inhibition of SUMOylation generate embryo-like structures comprising anterior neural and trunk-associated regions. HypoSUMOylation-instructed ESCs give rise to spheroids that self-organize into gastrulating structures containing cell types spatially and functionally related to embryonic and extraembryonic compartments. Alternatively, spheroids cultured in a droplet microfluidic device form elongated structures that undergo axial organization reminiscent of natural embryo morphogenesis. Single-cell transcriptomics reveals various cellular lineages, including properly positioned anterior neuronal cell types and paraxial mesoderm segmented into somite-like structures. Transient SUMOylation suppression gradually increases DNA methylation genome wide and repressive mark deposition at Nanog. Interestingly, cell-to-cell variations in SUMOylation levels occur during early embryogenesis. Our approach provides a proof of principle for potentially powerful strategies to explore early embryogenesis by targeting chromatin roadblocks of cell fate change