title: Altered levels and distribution of amyloid precursor protein and its processing enzymes in Niemann-Pick type C1-deficient mouse brains.
abstract: Niemann-Pick type C (NPC) disease is an autosomal recessive neurodegenerative disorder characterized by intracellular accumulation of cholesterol and glycosphingolipids in many tissues including the brain. The disease is caused by mutations of either NPC1 or NPC2 gene and is accompanied by a severe loss of neurons in the cerebellum, but not in the hippocampus. NPC pathology exhibits some similarities with Alzheimer's disease, including increased levels of amyloid beta (Abeta)-related peptides in vulnerable brain regions, but very little is known about the expression of amyloid precursor protein (APP) or APP secretases in NPC disease. In this article, we evaluated age-related alterations in the level/distribution of APP and its processing enzymes, beta- and gamma-secretases, in the hippocampus and cerebellum of Npc1(-/-) mice, a well-established model of NPC pathology. Our results show that levels and expression of APP and beta-secretase are elevated in the cerebellum prior to changes in the hippocampus, whereas gamma-secretase components are enhanced in both brain regions at the same time in Npc1(-/-) mice. Interestingly, a subset of reactive astrocytes in Npc1(-/-) mouse brains expresses high levels of APP as well as beta- and gamma-secretase components. Additionally, the activity of beta-secretase is enhanced in both the hippocampus and cerebellum of Npc1(-/-) mice at all ages, while the level of C-terminal APP fragments is increased in the cerebellum of 10-week-old Npc1(-/-) mice. These results, taken together, suggest that increased level and processing of APP may be associated with the development of pathology and/or degenerative events observed in Npc1(-/-) mouse brains.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Centre for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kodam
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Maulik
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Peake
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Amritraj
authors.forename: K S
authors.initials: KS
authors.lastname: Vetrivel
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Thinakaran
authors.forename: J E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Vance
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kar
mesh_terms: D000375:Aging / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D053829:Amyloid Precursor Protein Secretases / Q000378:metabolism; D016564:Amyloid beta-Protein Precursor / Q000378:metabolism*; D000818:Animals; D002531:Cerebellum / Q000201:enzymology / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004789:Enzyme Activation / Q000235:genetics; D006624:Hippocampus / Q000201:enzymology / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D047908:Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D018345:Mice, Knockout; D008822:Mice, Transgenic; D000077296:Niemann-Pick C1 Protein; D052556:Niemann-Pick Disease, Type C / Q000201:enzymology / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology*; D010446:Peptide Fragments / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D011499:Protein Processing, Post-Translational / Q000235:genetics*; D011506:Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D016564:Amyloid beta-Protein Precursor; D047908:Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins; D000077296:Niemann-Pick C1 Protein; C106831:Npc1 protein, mouse; D010446:Peptide Fragments; D011506:Proteins; D053829:Amyloid Precursor Protein Secretases