Developmental regulation of tau phosphorylation, tau kinases, and tau phosphatases.
Tau is a neuronal microtubule-associated protein. Its hyperphosphorylation plays a critical role in Alzheimer disease (AD). Expression and phosphorylation of tau are regulated developmentally, but its dynamic regulation and the responsible kinases or phosphatases remain elusive. Here, we studied the developmental regulation of tau in rats during development from embryonic day 15 through the age of 24 months. We found that tau expression increased sharply during the embryonic stage and then became relatively stable, whereas tau phosphorylation was much higher in developing brain than in mature brain. However, the extent of tau phosphorylation at seven of the 14 sites studied was much less in developing brain than in AD brain. Tau phosphorylation during development matched the period of active neurite outgrowth in general. Tau phosphorylation at various sites had different topographic distributions. Several tau kinases appeared to regulate tau phosphorylation collectively at overlapping sites, and the decrease of overall tau phosphorylation in adult brain might be due to the higher levels of tau phosphatases in mature brain. These studies provide new insight into the developmental regulation of site-specific tau phosphorylation and identify the likely sites required for the abnormal hyperphosphorylation of tau in AD.
Yu
Yang
Y
Department of Neurochemistry, New York State Institute for Basic Research in Developmental Disabilities, Staten Island, New York, USA.
Run
Xiaoqin
X
Liang
Zhihou
Z
Li
Yi
Y
Liu
Fei
F
Liu
Ying
Y
Iqbal
Khalid
K
Grundke-Iqbal
Inge
I
Gong
Cheng-Xin
CX
D000367:Age Factors; D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000473:pathology; D000818:Animals; D001921:Brain / Q000196:embryology / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism*; D004622:Embryo, Mammalian; D005260:Female; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010744:Phosphoric Monoester Hydrolases / Q000378:metabolism*; D010766:Phosphorylation; D010770:Phosphotransferases / Q000378:metabolism*; D051381:Rats; D016875:tau Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*
D016875:tau Proteins; D010770:Phosphotransferases; D010744:Phosphoric Monoester Hydrolases