Neuronal expression of constitutive heat shock proteins: implications for neurodegenerative diseases.
Neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis have been termed "protein misfolding disorders." These diseases differ widely in frequency and impact different classes of neurons. Heat shock proteins provide a line of defense against misfolded, aggregation-prone proteins and are among the most potent suppressors of neurodegeneration in animal models. Analysis of constitutively expressed heat shock proteins revealed variable levels of Hsc70 and Hsp27 in different classes of neurons in the adult rat brain. The differing levels of these constitutively expressed heat shock proteins in neuronal cell populations correlated with the relative frequencies of the previously mentioned neurodegenerative diseases.
Chen
Sheng
S
Centre for the Neurobiology of Stress, University of Toronto at Scarborough, Toronto, Ontario M1C 1A4, Canada.
Brown
Ian R
IR
D000818:Animals; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D050883:HSC70 Heat-Shock Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D055551:HSP27 Heat-Shock Proteins; D006360:Heat-Shock Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D006979:Hyperthermia, Induced; D008297:Male; D009363:Neoplasm Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D019636:Neurodegenerative Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000378:metabolism*; D009474:Neurons / Q000145:classification / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism*; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar
D050883:HSC70 Heat-Shock Proteins; D055551:HSP27 Heat-Shock Proteins; D006360:Heat-Shock Proteins; C486114:Hspb1 protein, rat; D009363:Neoplasm Proteins