1. Accumulated α-synuclein affects the progression of GM2 gangliosidoses
- Author
-
Masato Kawashima, Yoshio Hirayasu, Ichiro Aoki, Eizo Iseki, Makoto Hashimoto, Kayoko Yamaguchi, Naoya Aoki, Shoji Yamanaka, Noriko Koumitsu, Takashi Togo, Omi Katsuse, Kenji Kosaka, Kyoko Suzuki, Seiichi Kanzaki, and Akira Yamaguchi
- Subjects
0301 basic medicine ,Ganglioside ,GM2 gangliosidoses ,Microglia ,Autophagy ,Central nervous system ,Mitochondrion ,Sandhoff disease ,Biology ,medicine.disease ,Cell biology ,Pathogenesis ,03 medical and health sciences ,030104 developmental biology ,0302 clinical medicine ,medicine.anatomical_structure ,Developmental Neuroscience ,Neurology ,Immunology ,medicine ,030217 neurology & neurosurgery - Abstract
The accumulation of α-synuclein (ASyn) has been observed in several lysosomal storage diseases (LSDs) but it remains unclear if ASyn accumulation contributes to LSD pathology. ASyn also accumulates in the neurons of Sandhoff disease (SD) patients and SD model mice (Hexb-/- ASyn+/+ mice). SD is a lysosomal storage disorder caused by the absence of a functional β-subunit on the β-hexosaminidase A and B enzymes, which leads to the accumulation of ganglioside in the central nervous system. Here, we explored the role of accumulated ASyn in the progression of Hexb-/- mice by creating a Hexb-/- ASyn-/- double-knockout mice. Our results show that Hexb-/- ASyn-/- mice demonstrated active microglia levels and less dopaminergic neuron loss, without altering the neuronal storage of ganglioside. The autophagy and ubiquitin proteasome pathways are defective in the neurons of Hexb-/- ASyn+/+ mice. In ultrastructural physiological studies, the mitochondria structures look degenerated and dysfunctional. As a result, expression of manganese superoxide dismutase 2 are reduced, and reactive oxygen species-mediated oxidative damage in the neurons of Hexb-/- ASyn+/+ mice. Interestingly, these dysfunctions improved in Hexb-/- ASyn-/- mice. But any clinical improvement were hardly observed in Hexb-/- ASyn-/- mice. Taken together, these findings suggest that ASyn accumulation plays an important role in the pathogenesis of neuropathy in SD and other LSDs, and is therefore a target for novel therapies.
- Published
- 2016
- Full Text
- View/download PDF