Effects of Lipid Compounds and Antidepressant Drugs on TRKB Dimerization

An increasing number of people are diagnosed with depression. One possible reason for the development of depression is faulty wiring and information processing in certain neural networks (network hypothesis) in the central nervous system. It has been shown that antidepressant drugs (ADs) can induce a juvenile-like plasticity state in the brain (iPlasticity) comparable to the plastic state of critical periods during development. iPlasticity enables the rewiring of neuronal networks in combination with environmental stimuli. At the molecular level, the binding of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) to its high-affinity receptor tropomyosin kinase receptor B (TRKB) leads to TRKB dimerization and activation, triggering a downstream signalling cascade promoting brain plasticity. Activation of the TRKB signalling cascade is triggered by neuronal activity as well as AD treatment. Recent findings demonstrate that classical as well as rapid-onset ADs bind directly to the transmembrane domain of TRKB, leading to increased translocation of intracellularly stored TRKB to the plasma membrane and enhanced BDNF binding. Cholesterol, a sterol lipid known to regulate TRKB signalling, has been found to ensure optimal TRKB-BDNF signalling by changing the TRKB dimers’ relative orientation when altering the membrane thickness. A point mutation of TRKB tyrosine 433 to phenylalanine (TRKB.Y433F) has been found to hinder TRKB dimerization. Molecular dynamic simulations reveal that other membrane lipids are likely to participate in AD binding to TRKB. The aim of this thesis was to investigate whether lipid and drug compound treatments affect TRKB dimerization in Neuro2A cells expressing TRKB. Furthermore, we assessed whether the Y433F mutation modulates TRKB dimerization in such treatments. Protein fragment complementation assay (PCA) was used as in vitro protein-protein interaction assay to quantify dimerization of overexpressed TRKB carrying two split luciferase reporter proteins. Additionally, to avoid variability caused by transient transfection and be able to test large compound libraries, the establishment of a stably TRKB-expressing N2A cell line was initiated. The results show that lipid compounds, such as Allopregnanolone, as well as ADs, such as Imipramine and (2R,6R)-Hydroxynorketamine, increased TRKB dimerization in vitro in a dose-dependent manner within 40 minutes. The increase was more pronounced in the TRKB WT-expressing cells. This indicates that the compounds tested here may be directly interacting with TRKB, facilitating dimerization. Moreover, data seem to confirm previous research on the less effective TRKB.Y433F mutation. While stable expression of TRKB carrying one of the luciferase reporter proteins was successfully achieved in a monoclonal cell line, the amount of protein expressed seems to require further optimization before utilising it for PCA. In conclusion, lipid and AD treatments can induce an increase in TRKB dimerization in a dose-dependent fashion. Further investigations are needed to determine where the compounds bind and by which mechanisms they exert their effects on TRKB. Furthermore, the work on the stable cell line will be completed to avoid variability of transient transfection in the future

Cerebellar contribution to the regulation of defensive states

Despite fine tuning voluntary movement as the most prominently studied function of the cerebellum, early human studies suggested cerebellar involvement emotion regulation. Since, the cerebellum has been associated with various mood and anxiety-related conditions. Research in animals provided evidence for cerebellar contributions to fear memory formation and extinction. Fear and anxiety can broadly be referred to as defensive states triggered by threat and characterized by multimodal adaptations such as behavioral and cardiac responses integrated into an intricately orchestrated defense reaction. This is mediated by an evolutionary conserved, highly interconnected network of defense-related structures with functional connections to the cerebellum. Projections from the deep cerebellar nucleus interpositus to the central amygdala interfere with retention of fear memory. Several studies uncovered tight functional connections between cerebellar deep nuclei and pyramis and the midbrain periaqueductal grey. Specifically, the fastigial nucleus sends direct projections to the ventrolateral PAG to mediate fear-evoked innate and learned freezing behavior. The cerebellum also regulates cardiovascular responses such as blood pressure and heart rate-effects dependent on connections with medullary cardiac regulatory structures. Because of the integrated, multimodal nature of defensive states, their adaptive regulation has to be highly dynamic to enable responding to a moving threatening stimulus. In this, predicting threat occurrence are crucial functions of calculating adequate responses. Based on its role in prediction error generation, its connectivity to limbic regions, and previous results on a role in fear learning, this review presents the cerebellum as a regulator of integrated cardio-behavioral defensive states

Seasonal trends of incidence and outcomes of cardiogenic shock : findings from a large, nationwide inpatients sample with 441,696 cases

Background!#!Outcome data about the use of tranexamic acid (TXA) in civilian patients in mature trauma systems are scarce. The aim of this study was to determine how severely injured patients are affected by the widespread prehospital use of TXA in Germany.!##!Methods!#!The international TraumaRegister DGU® was retrospectively analyzed for severely injured patients with risk of bleeding (2015 until 2019) treated with at least one dose of TXA in the prehospital phase (TXA group). These were matched with patients who had not received prehospital TXA (control group), applying propensity score-based matching. Adult patients (≥ 16) admitted to a trauma center in Germany with an Injury Severity Score (ISS) ≥ 9 points were included.!##!Results!#!The matching yielded two comparable cohorts (n = 2275 in each group), and the mean ISS was 32.4 ± 14.7 in TXA group vs. 32.0 ± 14.5 in control group (p = 0.378). Around a third in both groups received one dose of TXA after hospital admission. TXA patients were significantly more transfused (p = 0.022), but needed significantly less packed red blood cells (p ≤ 0.001) and fresh frozen plasma (p = 0.023), when transfused. Massive transfusion rate was significantly lower in the TXA group (5.5% versus 7.2%, p = 0.015). Mortality was similar except for early mortality after 6 h (p = 0.004) and 12 h (p = 0.045). Among non-survivors hemorrhage as leading cause of death was less in the TXA group (3.0% vs. 4.3%, p = 0.021). Thromboembolic events were not significantly different between both groups (TXA 6.1%, control 4.9%, p = 0.080).!##!Conclusion!#!This is the largest civilian study in which the effect of prehospital TXA use in a mature trauma system has been examined. TXA use in severely injured patients was associated with a significantly lower risk of massive transfusion and lower mortality in the early in-hospital treatment period. Due to repetitive administration, a dose-dependent effect of TXA must be discussed

Tyrosine kinases compete for growth hormone receptor binding and regulate receptor mobility and degradation

Summary: Growth hormone (GH) acts via JAK2 and LYN to regulate growth, metabolism, and neural function. However, the relationship between these tyrosine kinases remains enigmatic. Through an interdisciplinary approach combining cell biology, structural biology, computation, and single-particle tracking on live cells, we find overlapping LYN and JAK2 Box1-Box2-binding regions in GH receptor (GHR). Our data implicate direct competition between JAK2 and LYN for GHR binding and imply divergent signaling profiles. We show that GHR exhibits distinct mobility states within the cell membrane and that activation of LYN by GH mediates GHR immobilization, thereby initiating its nanoclustering in the membrane. Importantly, we observe that LYN mediates cytokine receptor degradation, thereby controlling receptor turnover and activity, and this applies to related cytokine receptors. Our study offers insight into the molecular interactions of LYN with GHR and highlights important functions for LYN in regulating GHR nanoclustering, signaling, and degradation, traits broadly relevant to many cytokine receptors

Proof-of-concept Studies for siRNA-mediated Gene Silencing for Coagulation Factors in Rat and Rabbit

The present study aimed at establishing feasibility of delivering short interfering RNA (siRNA) to target the coagulation cascade in rat and rabbit, two commonly used species for studying thrombosis and hemostasis. siRNAs that produced over 90% mRNA knockdown of rat plasma prekallikrein and rabbit Factor X (FX) were identified from in vitro screens. An ionizable amino lipid based lipid nanoparticle (LNP) formulation for siRNA in vivo delivery was characterized as tolerable and exerting no appreciable effect on coagulability at day 7 postdosing in both species. Both prekallikrein siRNA-LNP and FX siRNA-LNP resulted in dose-dependent and selective knockdown of target gene mRNA in the liver with maximum reduction of over 90% on day 7 following a single dose of siRNA-LNP. Knockdown of plasma prekallikrein was associated with modest clot weight reduction in the rat arteriovenous shunt thrombosis model and no increase in the cuticle bleeding time. Knockdown of FX in the rabbit was accompanied with prolongation in ex vivo clotting times. Results fit the expectations with both targets and demonstrate for the first time, the feasibility of targeting coagulation factors in rat, and, more broadly, targeting a gene of interest in rabbit, via systemic delivery of ionizable LNP formulated siRNA

Psychedelics promote plasticity by directly binding to BDNF receptor TrkB

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