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The Alzheimer's disease-associated protective Plc?2-P522R variant promotes immune functions.

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND:Microglia-specific genetic variants are enriched in several neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer's disease (AD), implicating a central role for alterations of the innate immune system in the disease etiology. A rare coding variant in the PLCG2 gene (rs72824905, p.P522R) expressed in myeloid lineage cells was recently identified and shown to reduce the risk for AD. METHODS:To assess the role of the protective variant in the context of immune cell functions, we generated a Plc?2-P522R knock-in (KI) mouse model using CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing. RESULTS:Functional analyses of macrophages derived from homozygous KI mice and wild type (WT) littermates revealed that the P522R variant potentiates the primary function of Plc?2 as a Pip2-metabolizing enzyme. This was associated with improved survival and increased acute inflammatory response of the KI macrophages. Enhanced phagocytosis was observed in mouse BV2 microglia-like cells overexpressing human PLC?2-P522R, but not in PLC?2-WT expressing cells. Immunohistochemical analyses did not reveal changes in the number or morphology of microglia in the cortex of Plc?2-P522R KI mice. However, the brain mRNA signature together with microglia-related PET imaging suggested enhanced microglial functions in Plc?2-P522R KI mice. CONCLUSION:The AD-associated protective Plc?2-P522R variant promotes protective functions associated with TREM2 signaling. Our findings provide further support for the idea that pharmacological modulation of microglia via TREM2-PLC?2 pathway-dependent stimulation may be a novel therapeutic option for the treatment of AD.

SUBMITTER: Takalo M

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7488484 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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The Alzheimer's disease-associated protective Plcγ2-P522R variant promotes immune functions.

Takalo Mari M Wittrahm Rebekka R Wefers Benedikt B Parhizkar Samira S Jokivarsi Kimmo K Kuulasmaa Teemu T Mäkinen Petra P Martiskainen Henna H Wurst Wolfgang W Xiang Xianyuan X Marttinen Mikael M Poutiainen Pekka P Haapasalo Annakaisa A Hiltunen Mikko M Haass Christian C

Molecular neurodegeneration 20200911 1

<h4>Background</h4>Microglia-specific genetic variants are enriched in several neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer's disease (AD), implicating a central role for alterations of the innate immune system in the disease etiology. A rare coding variant in the PLCG2 gene (rs72824905, p.P522R) expressed in myeloid lineage cells was recently identified and shown to reduce the risk for AD.<h4>Methods</h4>To assess the role of the protective variant in the context of immune cell functions, we ...[more]

PMID: 32917267

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Project description:PLCγ2-P522R (phospholipase C gamma 2, proline 522 to arginine) is a protective variant that reduces the risk for late onset Alzheimer’s disease (LOAD). Recently, it was shown to decrease β-amyloid pathology in 5XFAD mouse model of AD. In this study, our goal was to investigate the protective functions of PLCγ2-P522R variant in less aggressive mouse model of AD as well as to assess underlying mechanisms at the molecular and cellular level using mouse and human microglia models. The effects of the protective PLCγ2-P522R variant on microglia activation, AD-related β-amyloid and neuronal pathologies, as well as behavioral changes were investigated in PLCγ2-P522R knock-in mice crossbred with an APP/PS1 mouse model of AD. Transcriptomic, proteomic, and functional studies were carried out in cultured and acutely isolated adult PLCγ2-P522R mouse microglia to study molecular mechanisms. Finally, microglia-like cell models generated from blood and skin biopsy samples of the PLCγ2-P522R variant carriers were employed to translate the key findings in human cells. Our results demonstrate that the PLCγ2-P522R variant reduces brain β-amyloid plaque burden of APP/PS1 mice. Simultaneously, PLCγ2-P522R variant increased non-proinflammatory microglia activation and microglia clustering around β-amyloid plaques, leading to reduced β-amyloid plaque-associated neuronal dystrophy. In cultured mouse primary microglia, PLCγ2-P522R variant decreased accumulation of large lipid droplets, reduced cell stress, and increased acute response to strong inflammatory stimuli. Transcriptomic and proteomic analyses in acutely isolated adult mouse microglia as well as in human monocyte-derived microglial cells showed that PLCγ2-P522R upregulates mitochondrial fatty acid oxidation and downregulates inflammatory/interferon signaling pathways. Accordingly, PLCγ2-P522R increased mitochondrial respiration in iPSC -derived microglial cells. Together, these findings suggest that PLCγ2-P522R variant exerts protection against AD-associated β-amyloid and neuronal pathologies via enhancing microglial barrier formation around β-amyloid plaques, but suppressing pro-inflammatory activation. Observed changes in fatty acid metabolism and mitochondrial flexibility as well as the downregulation of genes involved in inflammatory signaling pathways suggest that these protective effects of the PLCγ2-P522R variant are mediated through an anti-ageing mechanism.

Project description:BackgroundRheumatoid arthritis (RA) and Alzheimer's disease (AD) are inversely associated. To test the hypothesis that genetic elements associated with increased RA risk are associated with decreased AD risk, we evaluated RA genetic risk factors recently identified in genome-wide association studies (GWAS) for their association with AD in a two-stage, case-control analysis.ResultsIn our Stage 1 analysis of ~800 AD and ~1,200 non-AD individuals, three of seventeen RA-associated SNPs were nominally associated with AD (p < 0.05) with one SNP, rs2837960, retaining significance after correction for multiple testing (p = 0.03). The rs2837960_G (minor) allele, which is associated with increased RA risk, was associated with increased AD risk. Analysis of these three SNPs in a Stage 2 population, consisting of ~1,100 AD and ~2,600 non-AD individuals, did not confirm their association with AD. Analysis of Stage 1 and 2 combined suggested that rs2837960 shows a trend for association with AD. When the Stage 2 population was age-matched for the Stage 1 population, rs2837960 exhibited a non-significant trend with AD. Combined analysis of Stage 1 and the age-matched Stage 2 subset showed a significant association of rs2837960 with AD (p = 0.002, OR 1.24) that retained significance following correction for age, sex and APOE (p = 0.02, OR = 1.20). Rs2837960 is near BACE2, which encodes an aspartic protease capable of processing the AD-associated amyloid precursor protein. Testing for an association between rs2837960 and the expression of BACE2 isoforms in human brain, we observed a trend between rs2837960 and the total expression of BACE2 and the expression of a BACE2 transcript lacking exon 7 (p = 0.07 and 0.10, respectively).ConclusionsRA-associated SNPs are generally not associated with AD. Moreover, rs2837960_G is associated with increased risk of both RA and, in individuals less than 80 years of age, with AD. Overall, these results contest the hypothesis that genetic variants associated with RA confer protection against AD. Further investigation of rs2837960 is necessary to elucidate the mechanism by which rs2837960 contributes to both AD and RA risk, likely via modulation of BACE2 expression.

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The Alzheimer's disease-associated protective Plc?2-P522R variant promotes immune functions.

Publications

The Alzheimer's disease-associated protective Plcγ2-P522R variant promotes immune functions.

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