title: Tubulin seeds alpha-synuclein fibril formation.
abstract: Increasing evidence suggests that alpha-synuclein is a common pathogenic molecule in several neurodegenerative diseases, particularly in Parkinson's disease. To understand alpha-synuclein pathology, we investigated molecules that interact with alpha-synuclein in human and rat brains and identified tubulin as an alpha-synuclein binding/associated protein. Tubulin co-localized with alpha-synuclein in Lewy bodies and other alpha-synuclein-positive pathological structures. Tubulin initiated and promoted alpha-synuclein fibril formation under physiological conditions in vitro. These findings suggest that an interaction between tubulin and alpha-synuclein might accelerate alpha-synuclein aggregation in diseased brains, leading to the formation of Lewy bodies.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neural Plasticity, Tokyo Institute of Psychiatry, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo 156-8585, Japan.
authors.forename: Muhammad Abdul
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Alim
authors.forename: Mosammat Shahanara
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Hossain
authors.forename: Kunimasa
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Arima
authors.forename: Kazuya
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Takeda
authors.forename: Yoko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Izumiyama
authors.forename: Minako
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nakamura
authors.forename: Hiroyuki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kaji
authors.forename: Tomotaka
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Shinoda
authors.forename: Shinichi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hisanaga
authors.forename: Kenji
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ueda
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001921:Brain / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D008854:Microscopy, Electron; D008870:Microtubules / Q000378:metabolism / Q000648:ultrastructure; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D019636:Neurodegenerative Diseases / Q000378:metabolism; D051381:Rats; D051843:Synucleins; D014404:Tubulin / Q000378:metabolism*; D051844:alpha-Synuclein
chemical_list: D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins; C497604:SNCA protein, human; C497606:Snca protein, rat; D051843:Synucleins; D014404:Tubulin; D051844:alpha-Synuclein