scholarly journals The Diagnostic Potential of Amyloidogenic Proteins

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (8) ◽  
pp. 4128
Author(s):  
Yiyun Jin ◽  
Devkee Mahesh Vadukul ◽  
Dimitra Gialama ◽  
Ying Ge ◽  
Rebecca Thrush ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis ◽  
Nervous System ◽  
Neurodegenerative Disorders ◽  
Early Treatment ◽  
Future Developments ◽  
Amyloidogenic Proteins ◽  
Diagnostic Potential ◽  
Parkinson’S Diseases ◽  
Specific Proteins ◽  
Lateral Sclerosis

Neurodegenerative disorders are a highly prevalent class of diseases, whose pathological mechanisms start before the appearance of any clear symptoms. This fact has prompted scientists to search for biomarkers that could aid early treatment. These currently incurable pathologies share the presence of aberrant aggregates called amyloids in the nervous system, which are composed of specific proteins. In this review, we discuss how these proteins, their conformations and modifications could be exploited as biomarkers for diagnostic purposes. We focus on proteins that are associated with the most prevalent neurodegenerative disorders, including Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and frontotemporal dementia. We also describe current challenges in detection, the most recent techniques with diagnostic potentials and possible future developments in diagnosis.

Neurofilament Proteins as Prognostic Biomarkers in Neurological Disorders

2020 ◽  
Vol 25 (43) ◽  
pp. 4560-4569 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yichen Lee ◽  
Bo H. Lee ◽  
William Yip ◽  
Pingchen Chou ◽  
Bak-Sau Yip
Keyword(s):  
Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis ◽  
Nervous System ◽  
Trinucleotide Repeat ◽  
Muscular Atrophy ◽  
Electric Signal ◽  
Motor Neuropathy ◽  
Post Translational Modification ◽  
Neurofilament Proteins ◽  
Type Iv ◽  
Lateral Sclerosis

Neurofilaments: light, medium, and heavy (abbreviated as NF-L, NF-M, and NF-H, respectively), which belong to Type IV intermediate filament family (IF), are neuron-specific cytoskeletal components. Neurofilaments are axonal structural components and integral components of synapses, which are important for neuronal electric signal transmissions along the axons and post-translational modification. Abnormal assembly of neurofilaments is found in several human neurodegenerative diseases such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), infantile spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), and hereditary sensory-motor neuropathy (HSMN). In addition, those pathological neurofilament accumulations are known in α-synuclein in Parkinson’s disease (PD), Aβ and tau in Alzheimer’s disease (AD), polyglutamine in CAG trinucleotide repeat disorders, superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1), TAR DNA-binding protein 43 (TDP43), neuronal FUS proteins, optineurin (OPTN), ubiquilin 2 (UBQLN2), and dipeptide repeat protein (DRP) in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). When axon damage occurs in central nervous disorders, neurofilament proteins are released and delivered into cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), which are then circulated into blood. New quantitative analyses and assay techniques are well-developed for the detection of neurofilament proteins, particularly NF-L and the phosphorylated NF-H (pNF-H) in CSF and serum. This review discusses the potential of using peripheral blood NF quantities and evaluating the severity of damage in the nervous system. Intermediate filaments could be promising biomarkers for evaluating disease progression in different nervous system disorders.

scholarly journals Nucleolin Rescues TDP-43 Toxicity in Yeast and Human Cell Models

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Caterina Peggion ◽  
Maria Lina Massimino ◽  
Roberto Stella ◽  
Raissa Bortolotto ◽  
Jessica Agostini ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis ◽  
Cell Viability ◽  
Human Cell ◽  
Neurodegenerative Disorders ◽  
Nuclear Protein ◽  
Human Cells ◽  
Cell Models ◽  
Nuclear Retention ◽  
Beneficial Effects ◽  
Lateral Sclerosis

TDP-43 is a nuclear protein involved in pivotal processes, extensively studied for its implication in neurodegenerative disorders. TDP-43 cytosolic inclusions are a common neuropathologic hallmark in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and related diseases, and it is now established that TDP-43 misfolding and aggregation play a key role in their etiopathology. TDP-43 neurotoxic mechanisms are not yet clarified, but the identification of proteins able to modulate TDP-43-mediated damage may be promising therapeutic targets for TDP-43 proteinopathies. Here we show by the use of refined yeast models that the nucleolar protein nucleolin (NCL) acts as a potent suppressor of TDP-43 toxicity, restoring cell viability. We provide evidence that NCL co-expression is able to alleviate TDP-43-induced damage also in human cells, further supporting its beneficial effects in a more consistent pathophysiological context. Presented data suggest that NCL could promote TDP-43 nuclear retention, reducing the formation of toxic cytosolic TDP-43 inclusions.

scholarly journals Inherited and Sporadic Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and Fronto-Temporal Lobar Degenerations arising from Pathological Condensates of Phase Separating Proteins

2019 ◽  
Vol 28 (R2) ◽  
pp. R187-R196 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Fernandopulle ◽  
GuoZhen Wang ◽  
Jonathon Nixon-Abell ◽  
Seema Qamar ◽  
Varun Balaji ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis ◽  
Recent Work ◽  
Neurodegenerative Disorders ◽  
Low Complexity ◽  
Present Review ◽  
Sporadic Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis ◽  
Missense Mutations ◽  
Post Translational Modifications ◽  
Intrinsically Disordered ◽  
Lateral Sclerosis

Abstract Recent work on the biophysics of proteins with low complexity, intrinsically disordered domains that have the capacity to form biological condensates has profoundly altered the concepts about the pathogenesis of inherited and sporadic neurodegenerative disorders associated with pathological accumulation of these proteins. In the present review, we use the FUS, TDP-43 and A11 proteins as examples to illustrate how missense mutations and aberrant post-translational modifications of these proteins cause amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and fronto-temporal lobar degeneration (FTLD).

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