title: Signaling events in amyloid beta-peptide-induced neuronal death and insulin-like growth factor I protection.
abstract: Amyloid beta-peptide (Abeta) is implicated as the toxic agent in Alzheimer's disease and is the major component of brain amyloid plaques. In vitro, Abeta causes cell death, but the molecular mechanisms are unclear. We analyzed the early signaling mechanisms involved in Abeta toxicity using the SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma cell line. Abeta caused cell death and induced a 2- to 3-fold activation of JNK. JNK activation and cell death were inhibited by overexpression of a dominant-negative SEK1 (SEK1-AL) construct. Butyrolactone I, a cdk5 inhibitor, had an additional protective effect against Abeta toxicity in these SEK1-AL-expressing cells suggesting that cdk5 and JNK activation independently contributed to this toxicity. Abeta also weakly activated ERK and Akt but had no effect on p38 kinase. Inhibitors of ERK and phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) pathways did not affect Abeta-induced cell death, suggesting that these pathways were not important in Abeta toxicity. Insulin-like growth factor I protected against Abeta toxicity by strongly activating ERK and Akt and blocking JNK activation in a PI3K-dependent manner. Pertussis toxin also blocked Abeta-induced cell death and JNK activation suggesting that G(i/o) proteins were upstream activators of JNK. The results suggest that activation of the JNK pathway and cdk5 may be initial signaling cascades in Abeta-induced cell death.
authors.affiliation: Molecular Neurobiology Unit, Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Biology, NIA, Intramural Research Program, National Institutes of Health, Baltimore, Maryland 21224, USA. weiwa@grc.nia.nih.gov
authors.forename: Wanli
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Wei
authors.forename: Xiantao
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: John W
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Kusiak
mesh_terms: D015107:4-Butyrolactone / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000494:pharmacology; D016229:Amyloid beta-Peptides / Q000633:toxicity*; D016923:Cell Death; D051360:Cyclin-Dependent Kinase 5; D018844:Cyclin-Dependent Kinases / Q000378:metabolism; D004789:Enzyme Activation; D006801:Humans; D007334:Insulin-Like Growth Factor I / Q000378:metabolism; D048031:JNK Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases; D048670:MAP Kinase Kinase 4; D020929:Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase Kinases / Q000378:metabolism; D020928:Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases / Q000378:metabolism; D009447:Neuroblastoma / Q000473:pathology; D009474:Neurons / Q000473:pathology*; D037342:Pertussis Toxin; D019869:Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinases / Q000378:metabolism; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000502:physiology*; D014407:Tumor Cells, Cultured; D010566:Virulence Factors, Bordetella / Q000494:pharmacology; D048051:p38 Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases
chemical_list: D016229:Amyloid beta-Peptides; D010566:Virulence Factors, Bordetella; D007334:Insulin-Like Growth Factor I; C082868:butyrolactone I; D037342:Pertussis Toxin; D019869:Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinases; D051360:Cyclin-Dependent Kinase 5; C495905:CDK5 protein, human; D018844:Cyclin-Dependent Kinases; D048031:JNK Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases; D020928:Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases; D048051:p38 Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases; D048670:MAP Kinase Kinase 4; C482559:MAP2K4 protein, human; D020929:Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase Kinases; D015107:4-Butyrolactone