title: Could α-synuclein amyloid-like aggregates trigger a prionic neuronal invasion?
abstract: Parkinson's disease (PD), a progressive neurodegenerative disease primarily affecting voluntary and controlled movement, is characterized by abnormal accumulations of α-synuclein (α-syn) in intraneuronal Lewy bodies. In the last years, the increased number of evidences from both the in vitro and in vivo studies has shown the ability of α-syn to misfold in amyloid conformations and to spread via neuron-to-neuron transmission, suggesting a prion-like behaviour. However, in contrast to prion protein (PrP), α-syn transmission is far from neuronal invasion. The high neuronal toxicity of both mature fibres and oligomeric species, as well as the intracellular localization of the protein and the difficulty to be secreted, could be key factors impeding the prion ability of α-syn aggregates.
authors: Department of Physical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Barcelona, and Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology of the University of Barcelona (IN2UB), Avenue Joan XXIII 27-31, Barcelona, 08028 Catalonia, Spain.
authors: Maria Antònia
authors: MA
authors: Busquets
authors: Department of Physical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Barcelona, and Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology of the University of Barcelona (IN2UB), Avenue Joan XXIII 27-31, Barcelona, 08028 Catalonia, Spain.
authors: Alba
authors: A
authors: Espargaró
authors: Department of Physical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Barcelona, and Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology of the University of Barcelona (IN2UB), Avenue Joan XXIII 27-31, Barcelona, 08028 Catalonia, Spain.
authors: Joan
authors: J
authors: Estelrich
authors: Department of Physical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Barcelona, and Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology of the University of Barcelona (IN2UB), Avenue Joan XXIII 27-31, Barcelona, 08028 Catalonia, Spain.
authors: Raimon
authors: R
authors: Sabate
mesh_terms: D000682:Amyloid / Q000378:metabolism*; D000818:Animals; D006801:Humans; D016631:Lewy Bodies / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D010300:Parkinson Disease / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D017510:Protein Folding; D051844:alpha-Synuclein / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D000682:Amyloid; D051844:alpha-Synuclein