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Modulation of alpha-synuclein aggregation by dopamine analogs.

ABSTRACT: The action of dopamine on the aggregation of the unstructured alpha-synuclein (alpha-syn) protein may be linked to the pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease. Dopamine and its oxidation derivatives may inhibit alpha-syn aggregation by non-covalent binding. Exploiting this fact, we applied an integrated computational and experimental approach to find alternative ligands that might modulate the fibrillization of alpha-syn. Ligands structurally and electrostatically similar to dopamine were screened from an established library. Five analogs were selected for in vitro experimentation from the similarity ranked list of analogs. Molecular dynamics simulations showed they were, like dopamine, binding non-covalently to alpha-syn and, although much weaker than dopamine, they shared some of its binding properties. In vitro fibrillization assays were performed on these five dopamine analogs. Consistent with our predictions, analyses by atomic force and transmission electron microscopy revealed that all of the selected ligands affected the aggregation process, albeit to a varying and lesser extent than dopamine, used as the control ligand. The in silico/in vitro approach presented here emerges as a possible strategy for identifying ligands interfering with such a complex process as the fibrillization of an unstructured protein.

SUBMITTER: Latawiec D

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2821914 | biostudies-literature | 2010 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Modulation of alpha-synuclein aggregation by dopamine analogs.

Latawiec Diane D Herrera Fernando F Bek Alpan A Losasso Valeria V Candotti Michela M Benetti Federico F Carlino Elvio E Kranjc Agata A Lazzarino Marco M Gustincich Stefano S Carloni Paolo P Legname Giuseppe G

PloS one 20100216 2

The action of dopamine on the aggregation of the unstructured alpha-synuclein (alpha-syn) protein may be linked to the pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease. Dopamine and its oxidation derivatives may inhibit alpha-syn aggregation by non-covalent binding. Exploiting this fact, we applied an integrated computational and experimental approach to find alternative ligands that might modulate the fibrillization of alpha-syn. Ligands structurally and electrostatically similar to dopamine were screened f ...[more]

PMID: 20169066

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Project description:Methamphetamine (METH) is an illegal and widely abused psychoactive stimulant. METH abusers are at high risk of neurodegenerative disorders, including Parkinson's disease (PD). Previous studies have demonstrated that METH causes alpha-synuclein (α-syn) aggregation in the both laboratory animal and human. In this study, exposure to high METH doses increased the expression of α-syn and the small ubiquitin-related modifier 1 (SUMO-1). Therefore, we hypothesized that SUMOylation of α-syn is involved in high-dose METH-induced α-syn aggregation. We measured the levels of α-syn SUMOylation and these enzymes involved in the SUMOylation cycle in SH-SY5Y human neuroblastoma cells (SH-SY5Y cells), in cultures of C57 BL/6 primary mouse neurons and in brain tissues of mice exposure to METH. We also demonstrated the effect of α-syn SUMOylation on α-syn aggregation after METH exposure by overexpressing the key enzyme of the SUMOylation cycle or silencing SUMO-1 expression in vitro. Then, we make introduced mutations in the major SUMOylation acceptor sites of α-syn by transfecting a lentivirus containing the sequence of WT α-syn or K96/102R α-syn into SH-SY5Y cells and injecting an adenovirus containing the sequence of WT α-syn or K96/102R α-syn into the mouse striatum. Levels of the ubiquitin-proteasome system (UPS)-related makers ubiquitin (Ub) and UbE1, as well as the autophagy-lysosome pathway (ALP)-related markers LC3, P62 and lysosomal associated membrane protein 2A (LAMP2A), were also measured in SH-SY5Y cells transfected with lentivirus and mice injected with adenovirus. The results showed that METH exposure decreases the SUMOylation level of α-syn, although the expression of α-syn and SUMO-1 are increased. One possible cause is the reduction of UBC9 level. The increase in α-syn SUMOylation by UBC9 overexpression relieves METH-induced α-syn overexpression and aggregation, whereas the decrease in α-syn SUMOylation by SUMO-1 silencing exacerbates the same pathology. Furthermore, mutations in the major SUMOylation acceptor sites of α-syn also aggravate α-syn overexpression and aggregation by impairing degradation through the UPS and the ALP in vitro and in vivo. These results suggest that SUMOylation of α-syn plays a fundamental part in α-syn overexpression and aggregation induced by METH and could be a suitable target for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases.

Dataset Information

Modulation of alpha-synuclein aggregation by dopamine analogs.

Publications

Modulation of alpha-synuclein aggregation by dopamine analogs.

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