title: The cytosolic loop of the gamma-secretase component presenilin enhancer 2 protects zebrafish embryos from apoptosis.
abstract: The gamma-secretase complex, composed of presenilin, presenilin enhancer 2 (Pen-2), nicastrin, and Aph-1, catalyzes the final cleavage of amyloid precursor protein to generate the toxic amyloid beta protein, the major component of plaques in the brains of Alzheimer disease patients. To understand the in vivo function of Pen-2, we used morphant technology available in zebrafish and transiently knocked down the expression of endogenous Pen-2 by injecting the morpholino (MO) against Pen-2. Two truncated Pen-2 proteins lacking either the cytosolic or the C-terminal domain were expressed in MO-injected embryos. This deletion analysis demonstrated that the Pen-2 cytosolic loop is essential for protecting developing embryos from caspase-dependent apoptosis caused by the reduction of Pen-2. Twelve amino acids in the C terminus of Pen-2 were dispensable and could not rescue the Pen-2 knockdown-induced apoptotic phenotype. Surprisingly, double knockdown of Pen-2 and nuclear factor kappaB component p65 abrogated the single Pen-2 MO-induced caspase activation, indicating that a previously reported pro-apoptotic role of NF-kappaB in some cell types could be manifested in a whole animal and that knockdown of Pen-2 may trigger pro-apoptotic activation of NF-kappaB.
authors.affiliation: Center for Neurologic Diseases, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, USA.
authors.forename: Henrik
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zetterberg
authors.forename: William A
authors.initials: WA
authors.lastname: Campbell
authors.forename: Hong Wei
authors.initials: HW
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Weiming
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Xia
mesh_terms: D053829:Amyloid Precursor Protein Secretases; D000818:Animals; D017209:Apoptosis / Q000235:genetics*; D016282:Aspartic Acid Endopeptidases / Q000378:metabolism; D020169:Caspases / Q000378:metabolism; D003600:Cytosol / Q000201:enzymology*; D004625:Embryo, Nonmammalian / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism*; D010450:Endopeptidases / Q000378:metabolism*; D004789:Enzyme Activation; D008565:Membrane Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology*; D016376:Oligonucleotides, Antisense / Q000494:pharmacology; D053766:Presenilin-2; D051996:Transcription Factor RelA / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D015027:Zebrafish / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism*; D029961:Zebrafish Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D008565:Membrane Proteins; D016376:Oligonucleotides, Antisense; D053766:Presenilin-2; D051996:Transcription Factor RelA; D029961:Zebrafish Proteins; C510149:psenen protein, zebrafish; D053829:Amyloid Precursor Protein Secretases; D010450:Endopeptidases; D020169:Caspases; D016282:Aspartic Acid Endopeptidases