Therapeutic potential of resveratrol in Alzheimer's disease

Several epidemiological studies indicate that moderate consumption of red wine is associated with a lower incidence of dementia and Alzheimer's disease. Red wine is enriched in antioxidant polyphenols with potential neuroprotective activities. Despite scepticism concerning the bioavailability of these polyphenols, in vivo data have clearly demonstrated the neuroprotective properties of the naturally occurring polyphenol resveratrol in rodent models for stress and diseases. Furthermore, recent work in cell cultures and animal models has shed light on the molecular mechanisms potentially involved in the beneficial effects of resveratrol intake against the neurodegenerative process in Alzheimer's disease

Aspects moléculaires et cellulaires impliqués dans le clivage ou la dégradation des fragments carboxy-terminaux et du domaine intracellulaire du Précurseur du Peptide Amyloïde (APP-CTFs et AICD)

La maladie d'Alzheimer (MA) se caractérise par la présence de deux lésions : les dégénérescences neurofibrillaires (DNF) et les dépôts amyloïdes, ces derniers résultants de l'accumulation du peptide bêta-amyloïde. Ce peptide dérive du catabolisme de l'APP (Précurseur du Peptide Amyloïde). Les travaux réalisés au laboratoire montrent qu'il existe une relation entre le métabolisme de l'APP et la progression des DNF qui s'illustre par une perte du domaine intracellulaire et des fragments carboxy-terminaux de l'APP (AICD et APP-CTFs). La phosphorylation de ces derniers est également modifiée dans la MA. Notre objectif a donc été de déterminer quels étaient les facteurs susceptibles de diminuer les APP-CTFs et l'AICD. Nos travaux ont permis de montrer que la phosphorylation des APP-CTFs pouvait réguler leur clivage via l'activité g-sécrétase, que la voie endosome/lysosome est impliquée dans la dégradation de l'AICD et ils décrivent une nouvelle voie de sécrétion pour l'APP et ses dérivés.Alzheimer's disease (AD) is characterized by two distinct pathologies: neurofibrillary tangles (NFT) and extracellular amyloid plaques composed of beta-amyloid peptide (Abeta). Abeta derive from the catabolism of the Amyloid Precursor Protein (APP). A relationship between APP metabolism and NFT is observed in AD. This relation is illustrated by a significant decrease of APP-CTFs and AIDD, which correlated with the progression of NFT. APP-CTFs phosphorylation is also modified in AD. The main objectives of this thesis were to identify the degradations pathways of APP-CTFs and AICD. Our results demonstrated that increase in the phosphorylation of APP-CTFs facilitates their processing by the gamma-secretase. Moreover, our data demonstrate for the first time that the endosome/lysosome pathway mediates the degradation of AICD and we describe a novel secretion pathway of APP catabolic derivatives.LILLE2-BU Santé-Recherche (593502101) / SudocPARIS-BIUP (751062107) / SudocSudocFranceF

Calcium signaling in neurodegeneration

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Calcium is a key signaling ion involved in many different intracellular and extracellular processes ranging from synaptic activity to cell-cell communication and adhesion. The exact definition at the molecular level of the versatility of this ion has made overwhelming progress in the past several years and has been extensively reviewed. In the brain, calcium is fundamental in the control of synaptic activity and memory formation, a process that leads to the activation of specific calcium-dependent signal transduction pathways and implicates key protein effectors, such as CaMKs, MAPK/ERKs, and CREB. Properly controlled homeostasis of calcium signaling not only supports normal brain physiology but also maintains neuronal integrity and long-term cell survival. Emerging knowledge indicates that calcium homeostasis is not only critical for cell physiology and health, but also, when deregulated, can lead to neurodegeneration via complex and diverse mechanisms involved in selective neuronal impairments and death. The identification of several modulators of calcium homeostasis, such as presenilins and CALHM1, as potential factors involved in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease, provides strong support for a role of calcium in neurodegeneration. These observations represent an important step towards understanding the molecular mechanisms of calcium signaling disturbances observed in different brain diseases such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and Huntington's diseases.</p

AMP-activated Protein Kinase Controls Immediate Early Genes Expression Following Synaptic Activation Through the PKA/CREB Pathway

Long-term memory formation depends on the expression of immediate early genes (IEGs). Their expression, which is induced by synaptic activation, is mainly regulated by the 3&#8242;,5&#8242;-cyclic AMP (cAMP)-dependent protein kinase/cAMP response element binding protein (cAMP-dependent protein kinase (PKA)/ cAMP response element binding (CREB)) signaling pathway. Synaptic activation being highly energy demanding, neurons must maintain their energetic homeostasis in order to successfully induce long-term memory formation. In this context, we previously demonstrated that the expression of IEGs required the activation of AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) to sustain the energetic requirements linked to synaptic transmission. Here, we sought to determine the molecular mechanisms by which AMPK regulates the expression of IEGs. To this end, we assessed the involvement of AMPK in the regulation of pathways involved in the expression of IEGs upon synaptic activation in differentiated primary neurons. Our data demonstrated that AMPK regulated IEGs transcription via the PKA/CREB pathway, which relied on the activity of the soluble adenylyl cyclase. Our data highlight the interplay between AMPK and PKA/CREB signaling pathways that allows synaptic activation to be transduced into the expression of IEGs, thus exemplifying how learning and memory mechanisms are under metabolic control

A Modification-Specific Peptide-Based immunization Approach Using CRM197 Carrier Protein: Development of a Selective Vaccine Against Pyroglutamate Aβ Peptides

Abstract Strategies aimed at reducing cerebral accumulation of the amyloid-β (Aβ) peptides have therapeutic potential in Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Aβ immunization has proven to be effective at promoting Aβ clearance in animal models, but adverse effects have hampered its clinical evaluation. The first anti-Aβ immunization clinical trial, which assessed a full-length Aβ1-42 vaccine, showed an increased risk of encephalitis, most likely because of autoimmune proinflammatory T helper 1 (Th1) response against all forms of Aβ. Immunization against less abundant but potentially more pathologically relevant Aβ products, such as N-terminally truncated pyroglutamate-3 Aβ (AβpE3), could provide efficacy and improve tolerability in Aβ immunotherapy. Here, we describe a selective vaccine against AβpE3 that uses the diphtheria toxin mutant CRM197 as a carrier protein for epitope presentation. CRM197 is currently used in licensed vaccines and has demonstrated excellent immunogenicity and safety in humans. In mice, our AβpE3:CRM197 vaccine triggered the production of specific anti-AβpE3 antibodies that did not cross-react with Aβ1-42, non-cyclized AβE3 or N-terminally truncated pyroglutamate-11 Aβ (AβpE11). AβpE3:CRM197 antiserum strongly labeled AβpE3 in insoluble protein extracts and decorated cortical amyloid plaques in human AD brains. Anti-AβpE3 antibodies were almost exclusively of the IgG1 isotype, suggesting an antiinflammatory Th2 response bias to the AβpE3:CRM197 vaccine. To the best of our knowledge, this study shows for the first time that CRM197 has potential as a safe and suitable vaccine carrier for active and selective immunization against specific protein sequence modifications or conformations such as AβpE3

Effect of the CALHM1 G330D and R154H human variants on the control of cytosolic Ca2+ and Aβ levels.

CALHM1 is a plasma membrane voltage-gated Ca2+-permeable ion channel that controls amyloid-β (Aβ) metabolism and is potentially involved in the onset of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Recently, Rubio-Moscardo et al. (PLoS One (2013) 8: e74203) reported the identification of two CALHM1 variants, G330D and R154H, in early-onset AD (EOAD) patients. The authors provided evidence that these two human variants were rare and resulted in a complete loss of CALHM1 function. Recent publicly available large-scale exome sequencing data confirmed that R154H is a rare CALHM1 variant (minor allele frequency (MAF)  = 0.015%), but that G330D is not (MAF  = 3.5% in an African American cohort). Here, we show that both CALHM1 variants exhibited gating and permeation properties indistinguishable from wild-type CALHM1 when expressed in Xenopus oocytes. While there was also no effect of the G330D mutation on Ca2+ uptake by CALHM1 in transfected mammalian cells, the R154H mutation was associated with defects in the control by CALHM1 of both Ca2+ uptake and Aβ levels in this cell system. Together, our data show that the frequent CALHM1 G330D variant has no obvious functional consequences and is therefore unlikely to contribute to EOAD. Our data also demonstrate that the rare R154H variant interferes with CALHM1 control of cytosolic Ca2+ and Aβ accumulation. While these results strengthen the notion that CALHM1 influences Aβ metabolism, further investigation will be required to determine whether CALHM1 R154H, or other natural variants in CALHM1, is/are associated with EOAD

Neuronal AMP-activated protein kinase hyper-activation induces synaptic loss by an autophagy-mediated process

Abstract Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by synaptic loss that leads to the development of cognitive deficits. Synapses are neuronal structures that play a crucial role in memory formation and are known to consume most of the energy used in the brain. Interestingly, AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), the main intracellular energy sensor, is hyper-activated in degenerating neurons in several neurodegenerative diseases, including AD. In this context, we asked whether AMPK hyper-activation could influence synapses' integrity and function. AMPK hyper-activation in differentiated primary neurons led to a time-dependent decrease in pre- and post-synaptic markers, which was accompanied by a reduction in synapses number and a loss of neuronal networks functionality. The loss of post-synaptic proteins was mediated by an AMPK-regulated autophagy-dependent pathway. Finally, this process was also observed in vivo, where AMPK hyper-activation primed synaptic loss. Overall, our data demonstrate that during energetic stress condition, AMPK might play a fundamental role in the maintenance of synaptic integrity, at least in part through the regulation of autophagy. Thus, AMPK might represent a potential link between energetic failure and synaptic integrity in neurodegenerative conditions such as AD