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BACE1 across species: a comparison of the in vivo consequences of BACE1 deletion in mice and rats.

ABSTRACT: Assessing BACE1 (?-site APP cleaving enzyme 1) knockout mice for general health and neurological function may be useful in predicting risks associated with prolonged pharmacological BACE1 inhibition, a treatment approach currently being developed for Alzheimer's disease. To determine whether BACE1 deletion-associated effects in mice generalize to another species, we developed a novel Bace1^-/- rat line using zinc-finger nuclease technology and compared Bace1^-/- mice and rats with their Bace1^+/+ counterparts. Lack of BACE1 was confirmed in Bace1^-/- animals from both species. Removal of BACE1 affected startle magnitude, balance beam performance, pain response, and nerve myelination in both species. While both mice and rats lacking BACE1 have shown increased mortality, the increase was smaller and restricted to early developmental stages for rats. Bace1^-/- mice and rats further differed in body weight, spontaneous locomotor activity, and prepulse inhibition of startle. While the effects of species and genetic background on these phenotypes remain difficult to distinguish, our findings suggest that BACE1's role in myelination and some sensorimotor functions is consistent between mice and rats and may be conserved in other species. Other phenotypes differ between these models, suggesting that some effects of BACE1 inhibition vary with the biological context (e.g. species or background strain).

SUBMITTER: Weber M

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5345047 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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BACE1 across species: a comparison of the in vivo consequences of BACE1 deletion in mice and rats.

Weber Martin M Wu Tiffany T Meilandt William J WJ Dominguez Sara L SL Solanoy Hilda O HO Maloney Janice A JA Ngu Hai H Baca Miriam M Kung Chung C Lima Lisa L Earr Timothy K TK Fleck Daniel D Shields Shannon D SD Forrest William F WF Foreman Oded O Warming Søren S Watts Ryan J RJ Scearce-Levie Kimberly K

Scientific reports 20170310

Assessing BACE1 (β-site APP cleaving enzyme 1) knockout mice for general health and neurological function may be useful in predicting risks associated with prolonged pharmacological BACE1 inhibition, a treatment approach currently being developed for Alzheimer's disease. To determine whether BACE1 deletion-associated effects in mice generalize to another species, we developed a novel Bace1<sup>-/-</sup> rat line using zinc-finger nuclease technology and compared Bace1<sup>-/-</sup> mice and rats ...[more]

PMID: 28281673

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Project description:Backgroundβ-site amyloid precursor protein cleaving enzyme 1 (BACE1) is the rate-limiting enzyme in the production of amyloid beta (Aβ), the toxic peptide that accumulates in the brains of Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients. Our previous studies have shown that the clathrin adaptor Golgi-localized γ-ear-containing ARF binding protein 3 (GGA3) plays a key role in the trafficking of BACE1 to lysosomes, where it is normally degraded. GGA3 depletion results in BACE1 stabilization both in vitro and in vivo. Moreover, levels of GGA3 are reduced and inversely related to BACE1 levels in post-mortem brains of AD patients.MethodIn order to assess the effect of GGA3 deletion on AD-like phenotypes, we crossed GGA3 -/- mice with 5XFAD mice. BACE1-mediated processing of APP and the cell adhesion molecule L1 like protein (CHL1) was measured as well as levels of Aβ42 and amyloid burden.ResultsIn 5XFAD mice, we found that hippocampal and cortical levels of GGA3 decreased while BACE1 levels increased with age, similar to what is observed in human AD brains. GGA3 deletion prevented age-dependent elevation of BACE1 in GGA3KO;5XFAD mice. We also found that GGA3 deletion resulted in increased hippocampal levels of Aβ42 and amyloid burden in 5XFAD mice at 12 months of age. While levels of BACE1 did not change with age and gender in GGAKO;5XFAD mice, amyloid precursor protein (APP) levels increased with age and were higher in female mice. Moreover, elevation of APP was associated with a decreased BACE1-mediated processing of CHL1 not only in 12 months old 5XFAD mice but also in human brains from subjects affected by Down syndrome, most likely due to substrate competition.ConclusionThis study demonstrates that GGA3 depletion is a leading candidate mechanism underlying elevation of BACE1 in AD. Furthermore, our findings suggest that BACE1 inhibition could exacerbate mechanism-based side effects in conditions associated with APP elevation (e.g. Down syndrome) owing to impairment of BACE1-mediated processing of CHL1. Therefore, therapeutic approaches aimed to restore GGA3 function and to prevent the down stream effects of its depletion (e.g. BACE1 elevation) represent an attractive alternative to BACE inhibition for the prevention/treatment of AD.

Dataset Information

BACE1 across species: a comparison of the in vivo consequences of BACE1 deletion in mice and rats.

Publications

BACE1 across species: a comparison of the in vivo consequences of BACE1 deletion in mice and rats.

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