Dataset Information

Loss of MyD88 alters neuroinflammatory response and attenuates early Purkinje cell loss in a spinocerebellar ataxia type 6 mouse model.

ABSTRACT: Spinocerebellar ataxia type 6 (SCA6) is dominantly inherited neurodegenerative disease, caused by an expansion of CAG repeat encoding a polyglutamine (PolyQ) tract in the Cav2.1 voltage-gated calcium channel. Its key pathological features include selective degeneration of the cerebellar Purkinje cells (PCs), a common target for PolyQ-induced toxicity in various SCAs. Mutant Cav2.1 confers toxicity primarily through a toxic gain-of-function mechanism; however, its molecular basis remains elusive. Here, we studied the cerebellar gene expression patterns of young Sca6-MPI(118Q/118Q) knockin (KI) mice, which expressed mutant Cav2.1 from an endogenous locus and recapitulated many phenotypic features of human SCA6. Transcriptional signatures in the MPI(118Q/118Q) mice were distinct from those in the Sca1(154Q/2Q) mice, a faithful SCA1 KI mouse model. Temporal expression profiles of the candidate genes revealed that the up-regulation of genes associated with microglial activation was initiated before PC degeneration and was augmented as the disease progressed. Histological analysis of the MPI(118Q/118Q) cerebellum showed the predominance of M1-like pro-inflammatory microglia and it was concomitant with elevated expression levels of tumor necrosis factor, interleukin-6, Toll-like receptor (TLR) 2 and 7. Genetic ablation of MyD88, a major adaptor protein conveying TLR signaling, altered expression patterns of M1/M2 microglial phenotypic markers in the MPI(118Q/118Q) cerebellum. More importantly, it ameliorated PC loss and partially rescued motor impairments in the early disease phase. These results suggest that early neuroinflammatory response may play an important role in the pathogenesis of SCA6 and its modulation could pave the way for slowing the disease progression during the early stage of the disease.

SUBMITTER: Aikawa T

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4527484 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Loss of MyD88 alters neuroinflammatory response and attenuates early Purkinje cell loss in a spinocerebellar ataxia type 6 mouse model.

Aikawa Tomonori T Mogushi Kaoru K Iijima-Tsutsui Kumiko K Ishikawa Kinya K Sakurai Miyano M Tanaka Hiroshi H Mizusawa Hidehiro H Watase Kei K

Human molecular genetics 20150601 17

Spinocerebellar ataxia type 6 (SCA6) is dominantly inherited neurodegenerative disease, caused by an expansion of CAG repeat encoding a polyglutamine (PolyQ) tract in the Cav2.1 voltage-gated calcium channel. Its key pathological features include selective degeneration of the cerebellar Purkinje cells (PCs), a common target for PolyQ-induced toxicity in various SCAs. Mutant Cav2.1 confers toxicity primarily through a toxic gain-of-function mechanism; however, its molecular basis remains elusive. ...[more]

PMID: 26034136

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Project description:Spinocerebellar ataxia type 6 (SCA6) is a dominantly inherited neurodegenerative disease caused by an expansion of a CAG repeat encoding a polyglutamine (PolyQ) tract in the Cav2.1 voltage-gated calcium channel. Pathologically, it is characterized by selective degeneration of cerebellar Purkinje cells (PCs), which are a common target for PolyQ-induced toxicity among several different SCAs. Mutant Cav2.1 confers toxicity mainly through a toxic gain-of-function mechanism, but subcellular site of expanded Cav2.1 toxicity is controversial and it remains elusive whether SCA6 shares pathogenic cascades with other SCAs. To gain insight into these problems, we studied the cerebellar gene expression patterns of young Sca6 MPI 118Q/118Q knockin (KI) mice, which express mutant Cav2.1 from endogenous locus and faithfully models human SCA6. Comparison of transcriptional changes with those of Sca1 154Q/2Q mice, a faithful KI mouse model of SCA1, revealed that transcriptional signatures in the MPI 118Q/118Q were distinct from those of Sca1 154Q/2Q. Examination of temporal profiles of candidate genes showed that upregulation of those associated with microglial activation was initiated before PC degeneration was apparent and augmented as the disease progressed. Histological analysis of the MPI 118Q/118Q cerebellum confirmed the presence of Iba-1 positive activated microglia. Moreover, predominance of M1-like pro-inflammatory microglia was observed and was concomitant with the increased expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines. These results suggest that the unique transcriptional response, which highlights upregulation of neuroinflammatory genes possibly associated with lysosomal involvement, may play a pivotal role in the pathogenesis. Modulation of innate immune system could pave the way for slowing the progression of SCA6. We used MPI 118Q/118Q and MPI 11Q/11Q mice for Sca6 KI model at six weeks old. Statistical analysis of differently expressed genes was performed using the Linear Models for Microarray Data (limma) package in R/Bioconductor.

Project description:Purkinje cells are the primary processing units of the cerebellar cortex and display molecular heterogeneity that aligns with differences in physiological properties, projection patterns, and susceptibility to disease. In particular, multiple mouse models that feature Purkinje cell degeneration are characterized by incomplete and patterned Purkinje cell degeneration, suggestive of relative sparing of Purkinje cell subpopulations, such as those expressing Aldolase C/zebrinII (AldoC) or residing in the vestibulo-cerebellum. Here, we investigated a well-characterized Purkinje cell-specific mouse model for spinocerebellar ataxia type 1 (SCA1) that expresses human ATXN1 with a polyQ expansion (82Q). Our pathological analysis confirms previous findings that Purkinje cells of the vestibulo-cerebellum, i.e., the flocculonodular lobes, and crus I are relatively spared from key pathological hallmarks: somatodendritic atrophy, and the appearance of p62/SQSTM1-positive inclusions. However, immunohistological analysis of transgene expression revealed that spared Purkinje cells do not express mutant ATXN1 protein, indicating the sparing of Purkinje cells can be explained by an absence of transgene expression. Additionally, we found that Purkinje cells in other cerebellar lobules that typically express AldoC, not only display severe pathology but also show loss of AldoC expression. The relatively preserved flocculonodular lobes and crus I showed a substantial fraction of Purkinje cells that expressed the mutant protein and displayed pathology as well as loss of AldoC expression. Despite considerable pathology in these lobules, behavioral analyses demonstrated a relative sparing of related functions, suggestive of sufficient functional cerebellar reserve. Together, the data indicate that mutant ATXN1 affects both AldoC-positive and AldoC-negative Purkinje cells and disrupts normal parasagittal AldoC expression in Purkinje cells. Our results show that, in a mouse model otherwise characterized by widespread Purkinje cell degeneration, sparing of specific subpopulations is sufficient to maintain normal performance of specific behaviors within the context of the functional, modular map of the cerebellum.

Project description:Purkinje cells (PCs) are primarily affected in neurodegenerative spinocerebellar ataxias (SCAs). For generating animal models for SCAs, genetic regulatory elements specifically targeting PCs are required, thereby linking pathological molecular effects with impaired function and organismic behavior. Because cerebellar anatomy and function are evolutionary conserved, zebrafish represent an excellent model to study SCAs in vivo We have isolated a 258 bp cross-species PC-specific enhancer element that can be used in a bidirectional manner for bioimaging of transgene-expressing PCs in zebrafish (both sexes) with variable copy numbers for tuning expression strength. Emerging ectopic expression at high copy numbers can be further eliminated by repurposing microRNA-mediated posttranslational mRNA regulation.Subsequently, we generated a transgenic SCA type 13 (SCA13) model, using a zebrafish-variant mimicking a human pathological SCA13R420H mutation, resulting in cell-autonomous progressive PC degeneration linked to cerebellum-driven eye-movement deficits as observed in SCA patients. This underscores that investigating PC-specific cerebellar neuropathologies in zebrafish allows for interconnecting bioimaging of disease mechanisms with behavioral analysis suitable for therapeutic compound testing.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT SCA13 patients carrying a KCNC3R420H allele have been shown to display mid-onset progressive cerebellar atrophy, but genetic modeling of SCA13 by expressing this pathogenic mutant in different animal models has not resulted in neuronal degeneration so far; likely because the transgene was expressed in heterologous cell types. We developed a genetic system for tunable PC-specific coexpression of several transgenes to manipulate and simultaneously monitor cerebellar PCs. We modeled a SCA13 zebrafish accessible for bioimaging to investigate disease progression, revealing robust PC degeneration, resulting in impaired eye movement. Our transgenic zebrafish mimicking both neuropathological and behavioral changes manifested in SCA-affected patients will be suitable for investigating causes of cerebellar diseases in vivo from the molecular to the behavioral level.

Dataset Information

Loss of MyD88 alters neuroinflammatory response and attenuates early Purkinje cell loss in a spinocerebellar ataxia type 6 mouse model.

Publications

Loss of MyD88 alters neuroinflammatory response and attenuates early Purkinje cell loss in a spinocerebellar ataxia type 6 mouse model.

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