title: Recovery of PEX1-Gly843Asp peroxisome dysfunction by small-molecule compounds.
abstract: Zellweger spectrum disorder (ZSD) is a heterogeneous group of diseases with high morbidity and mortality caused by failure to assemble normal peroxisomes. There is no therapy for ZSD, but management is supportive. Nevertheless, one-half of the patients have a phenotype milder than classic Zellweger syndrome and exhibit a progressive disease course. Thus, patients would benefit if therapies became available and were instituted early. Recent reports indicate several interventions that result in partial peroxisome recovery in ZSD fibroblasts. To identify drugs that recover peroxisome functions, we expressed a GFP-peroxisome targeting signal 1 reporter in fibroblasts containing the common disease allele, PEX1-p.Gly843Asp. The GFP reporter remained cytosolic at baseline, and improvement in peroxisome functions was detected by the redistribution of the GFP reporter from the cytosol to the peroxisome. We established a high-content screening assay based on this phenotype assay and evaluated 2,080 small molecules. The cells were cultured in chemical for 2 days and then, were fixed and imaged by epifluorescent microscopy on a high-content imaging platform. We identified four compounds that partially recover matrix protein import, and we confirmed three using independent assays. Our results suggest that PEX1-p.G843D is a misfolded protein amenable to chaperone therapy.
authors.affiliation: McKusick-Nathans Institute of Genetic Medicine, The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA.
authors.forename: Rui
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Li
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Sarn
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Jiralerspong
authors.forename: Ann
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Snowden
authors.forename: Steven
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Steinberg
authors.forename: Nancy
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Braverman
mesh_terms: D000074183:ATPases Associated with Diverse Cellular Activities; D000251:Adenosine Triphosphatases / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D019943:Amino Acid Substitution; D001622:Betaine / Q000494:pharmacology; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D004353:Drug Evaluation, Preclinical; D017930:Genes, Reporter; D005990:Glycerol / Q000494:pharmacology; D049452:Green Fluorescent Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D008565:Membrane Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology; D008744:Methylamines / Q000494:pharmacology; D020125:Mutation, Missense; D000074435:Peroxisome-Targeting Signal 1 Receptor; D020675:Peroxisomes / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D017510:Protein Folding / Q000187:drug effects; D018160:Receptors, Cytoplasmic and Nuclear / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D015211:Zellweger Syndrome / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000235:genetics* / Q000503:physiopathology
chemical_list: D008565:Membrane Proteins; D008744:Methylamines; D000074435:Peroxisome-Targeting Signal 1 Receptor; D018160:Receptors, Cytoplasmic and Nuclear; D049452:Green Fluorescent Proteins; D001622:Betaine; D000251:Adenosine Triphosphatases; D000074183:ATPases Associated with Diverse Cellular Activities; C111808:PEX1 protein, human; C005855:trimethyloxamine; D005990:Glycerol