Stimulated ErbB4 internalization is necessary for neuregulin signaling in neurons

Neuregulin-1 (NRG1) plays an important role in neural development, synapse formation, and synaptic plasticity by activating ErbB receptor tyrosine kinases. Although ligand-induced endocytosis has been shown to be important for many receptor tyrosine kinases, whether NRG1 signaling depends on ErbB endocytosis remains controversial. Here, we provide evidence that ErbB4, a prominent ErbB protein in the brain, becomes internalized in NRG1-stimulated neurons. The induced ErbB4 endocytosis requires its kinase activity. Remarkably, inhibition of ErbB endocytosis attenuates NRG1-induced activation of Erk and Akt in neurons. These observations indicate a role of ErbB endocytosis in NRG1 signaling in neurons.     

Subchronic peripheral neuregulin-1 increases ventral hippocampal neurogenesis and induces antidepressant-like effects

Background

Adult hippocampal neurogenesis has been implicated in the mechanism of antidepressant action, and neurotrophic factors can mediate the neurogenic changes underlying these effects. The neurotrophic factor neuregulin-1 (NRG1) is involved in many aspects of brain development, from cell fate determination to neuronal maturation. However, nothing is known about the influence of NRG1 on neurodevelopmental processes occurring in the mature hippocampus.

Methods

Adult male mice were given subcutaneous NRG1 or saline to assess dentate gyrus proliferation and neurogenesis, as well as cell fate determination. Mice also underwent behavioral testing. Expression of ErbB3 and ErbB4 NRG1 receptors in newborn dentate gyrus cells was assessed at various time points between birth and maturity. The phenotype of ErbB-expressing progenitor cells was also characterized with cell type-specific markers.

Results

The current study shows that subchronic peripheral NRG1β administration selectively increased cell proliferation (by 71%) and neurogenesis (by 50%) in the caudal dentate gyrus within the ventral hippocampus. This pro-proliferative effect did not alter neuronal fate, and may have been mediated by ErbB3 receptors, which were expressed by newborn dentate gyrus cells from cell division to maturity and colocalized with SOX2 in the subgranular zone. Furthermore, four weeks after cessation of subchronic treatment, animals displayed robust antidepressant-like behavior in the absence of changes in locomotor activity, whereas acute treatment did not produce antidepressant effects.

Conclusions

These results show that neuregulin-1β has pro-proliferative, neurogenic and antidepressant properties, further highlight the importance of peripheral neurotrophic factors in neurogenesis and mood, and support the role of hippocampal neurogenesis in mediating antidepressant effects.     

Neuregulin 1 Controls Glutamate Uptake by Up-regulating Excitatory Amino Acid Carrier 1 (EAAC1)

Neuregulin 1 (NRG1) is a trophic factor that is thought to have important roles in the regulating brain circuitry. Recent studies suggest that NRG1 regulates synaptic transmission, although the precise mechanisms remain unknown. Here we report that NRG1 influences glutamate uptake by increasing the protein level of excitatory amino acid carrier (EAAC1). Our data indicate that NRG1 induced the up-regulation of EAAC1 in primary cortical neurons with an increase in glutamate uptake. These in vitro results were corroborated in the prefrontal cortex (PFC) of mice given NRG1. The stimulatory effect of NRG1 was blocked by inhibition of the NRG1 receptor ErbB4. The suppressed expression of ErbB4 by siRNA led to a decrease in the expression of EAAC1. In addition, the ablation of ErbB4 in parvalbumin (PV)-positive neurons in PV-ErbB4^−/− mice suppressed EAAC1 expression. Taken together, our results show that NRG1 signaling through ErbB4 modulates EAAC1. These findings link proposed effectors in schizophrenia: NRG1/ErbB4 signaling perturbation, EAAC1 deficit, and neurotransmission dysfunction.     

ErbB4 expression in neural progenitor cells (ST14A) is necessary to mediate neuregulin-1beta1-induced migration

Activation of the receptor tyrosine kinase ErbB4 leads to various cellular responses such as proliferation, survival, differentiation, and chemotaxis. Two pairs of naturally occurring ErbB4 isoforms differing in their juxtamembrane (JMa/JMb) and C termini (cyt1/cyt2) have been described. To examine the role of ErbB4 in neuron migration, we cloned and stably transfected each of the four ErbB4 isoforms in ST14A cells (a neural progenitor cell line derived from the striatum of embryonic day 14 rats) endogenously expressing the other members of the ErbB family: ErbB1, ErbB2, and ErbB3. Using immunoprecipitation assays, we showed that the neuregulin-1beta1 (NRG1beta1) stimulus induced ErbB4 tyrosine phosphorylation and phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K) recruitment and activation (as demonstrated by Akt phosphorylation) either directly (ErbB4 cyt1 isoform) or indirectly (ErbB4 cyt2 isoform). We examined the ability of the four ErbB4 isoforms to induce chemotaxis and cell proliferation in response to NRG1beta1 stimulation. Using migration assays, we observed that only ErbB4-expressing cells stimulated with NRG1beta1 showed a significant increase in migration, whereas the growth rate remained unchanged. Additional assays showed that inhibition of PI3K (but not of phospholipase Cgamma) dramatically reduced migratory activity. Our data show that ErbB4 signaling via PI3K activation plays a fundamental role in controlling NRG1beta1-induced migration.     

Neuregulin-1/ErbB signaling serves distinct functions in myelination of the peripheral and central nervous system

Understanding the control of myelin formation by oligodendrocytes is essential for treating demyelinating diseases. Neuregulin-1 (NRG1) type III, an EGF-like growth factor, is essential for myelination in the PNS. It is thus thought that NRG1/ErbB signaling also regulates CNS myelination, a view suggested by in vitro studies and the overexpression of dominant-negative ErbB receptors. To directly test this hypothesis, we generated a series of conditional null mutants that completely lack NRG1 beginning at different stages of neural development. Unexpectedly, these mice assemble normal amounts of myelin. In addition, double mutants lacking oligodendroglial ErbB3 and ErbB4 become myelinated in the absence of any stimulation by neuregulins. In contrast, a significant hypermyelination is achieved by transgenic overexpression of NRG1 type I or NRG1 type III. Thus, NRG1/ErbB signaling is markedly different between Schwann cells and oligodendrocytes that have evolved an NRG/ErbB-independent mechanism of myelination control.     

Neuregulin induces proliferation of neural progenitor cells via PLC/PKC pathway

Nestin-expressing neural progenitor cells (NPCs) have been isolated from hippocampus of brains and propagated with epidermal growth factor and basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF). However, the underlying signaling mechanisms regulating NPC proliferation remain elusive. Here we showed that neuregulinbeta1 (NRG), like bFGF, effectively promoted the proliferation of hippocampus-derived NPCs and maintained the progenitor states of NPCs. Activation of protein kinase C (PKC), a downstream effector of phospholipase C (PLC), with 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA) mimicked the NRG-induced proliferation of NPCs. The synergic effect of TPA plus NRG on neurosphere growth further prompted us to find that NRG induced NPC propagation through PLC/PKC signaling pathway. ErbB4, an important functional receptor of NRG, had an interaction with PLCgamma1 protein. In addition, inactivation of PLC pathway led to severe proliferative suppression of NPCs. Our study suggests that activation of PLC/PKC pathway plays an essential role in the NRG-induced proliferation of hippocampus-derived NPCs.     

HDAC1 Regulates the Proliferation of Radial Glial Cells in the Developing Xenopus Tectum

In the developing central nervous system (CNS), progenitor cells differentiate into progeny to form functional neural circuits. Radial glial cells (RGs) are a transient progenitor cell type that is present during neurogenesis. It is thought that a combination of neural trophic factors, neurotransmitters and electrical activity regulates the proliferation and differentiation of RGs. However, it is less clear how epigenetic modulation changes RG proliferation. We sought to explore the effect of histone deacetylase (HDAC) activity on the proliferation of RGs in the visual optic tectum of Xenopus laevis. We found that the number of BrdU-labeled precursor cells along the ventricular layer of the tectum decrease developmentally from stage 46 to stage 49. The co-labeling of BrdU-positive cells with brain lipid-binding protein (BLBP), a radial glia marker, showed that the majority of BrdU-labeled cells along the tectal midline are RGs. BLBP-positive cells are also developmentally decreased with the maturation of the brain. Furthermore, HDAC1 expression is developmentally down-regulated in tectal cells, especially in the ventricular layer of the tectum. Pharmacological blockade of HDACs using Trichostatin A (TSA) or Valproic acid (VPA) decreased the number of BrdU-positive, BLBP-positive and co-labeling cells. Specific knockdown of HDAC1 by a morpholino (HDAC1-MO) decreased the number of BrdU- and BLBP-labeled cells and increased the acetylation level of histone H4 at lysine 12 (H4K12). The visual deprivation-induced increase in BrdU- and BLBP-positive cells was blocked by HDAC1 knockdown at stage 49 tadpoles. These data demonstrate that HDAC1 regulates radial glia cell proliferation in the developing optical tectum of Xenopus laevis.     

RET and NRG1 interplay in Hirschsprung disease

Hirschsprung disease (HSCR, aganglionic megacolon) is a complex genetic disorder of the enteric nervous system (ENS) characterized by the absence of enteric neurons along a variable length of the intestine. While rare variants (RVs) in the coding sequence (CDS) of several genes involved in ENS development lead to disease, the association of common variants (CVs) with HSCR has only been reported for RET (the major HSCR gene) and NRG1. Importantly, RVs in the CDS of these two genes are also associated with the disorder. To assess independent and joint effects between the different types of RET and NRG1 variants identified in HSCR patients, we used 254 Chinese sporadic HSCR patients and 143 ethnically matched controls for whom the RET and/or NRG1 variants genotypes (rare and common) were available. Four genetic risk factors were defined and interaction effects were modeled using conditional logistic regression analyses and pair-wise Kendall correlations. Our analysis revealed a joint effect of RET CVs with RET RVs, NRG1 CVs or NRG1 RVs. To assess whether the genetic interaction translated into functional interaction, mouse neural crest cells (NCCs; enteric neuron precursors) isolated from embryonic guts were treated with NRG1 (ErbB2 ligand) or/and GDNF (Ret ligand) and monitored during the subsequent neural differentiation process. Nrg1 inhibited the Gdnf-induced neuronal differentiation and Gdnf negatively regulated Nrg1-signaling by down-regulating the expression of its receptor, ErbB2. This preliminary data suggest that the balance neurogenesis/gliogenesis is critical for ENS development.     

G protein betagamma subunits and AGS3 control spindle orientation and asymmetric cell fate of cerebral cortical progenitors

Neurons in the developing mammalian brain are generated from progenitor cells in the proliferative ventricular zone, and control of progenitor division is essential to produce the correct number of neurons during neurogenesis. Here we establish that Gbetagamma subunits of heterotrimeric G proteins are required for proper mitotic-spindle orientation of neural progenitors in the developing neocortex. Interfering with Gbetagamma function in progenitors causes a shift in spindle orientation from apical-basal divisions to planar divisions. This results in hyperdifferentiation of progenitors into neurons as a consequence of both daughter cells adopting a neural fate instead of the normal asymmetric cell fates. Silencing AGS3, a nonreceptor activator of Gbetagamma, results in defects similar to the impairment of Gbetagamma, providing evidence that AGS3-Gbetagamma signaling in progenitors regulates apical-basal division and asymmetric cell-fate decisions. Furthermore, our observations indicate that the cell-fate decision of daughter cells is coupled to mitotic-spindle orientation in progenitors.     

Jagged1 is necessary for postnatal and adult neurogenesis in the dentate gyrus

Understanding the mechanisms that control the maintenance of neural stem cells is crucial for the study of neurogenesis. In the brain, granule cell neurogenesis occurs during development and adulthood, and the generation of new neurons in the adult subgranular zone of the dentate gyrus contributes to learning. Notch signaling plays an important role during postnatal and adult subgranular zone neurogenesis, and it has been suggested as a potential candidate to couple cell proliferation with stem cell maintenance. Here we show that conditional inactivation of Jagged1 affects neural stem cell maintenance and proliferation during postnatal and adult neurogenesis of the subgranular zone. As a result, granule cell production is severely impaired. Our results provide additional support to the proposal that Notch/Jagged1 activity is required for neural stem cell maintenance during granule cell neurogenesis and suggest a link between maintenance and proliferation of these cells during the early stages of neurogenesis.     

Notch signaling coordinates the patterning of striatal compartments

Numerous lines of evidence suggest that Notch signaling plays a pivotal role in controlling the production of neurons from progenitor cells. However, most experiments have relied on gain-of-function approaches because perturbation of Notch signaling results in death prior to the onset of neurogenesis. Here, we examine the requirement for Notch signaling in the development of the striatum through the analysis of different single and compound Notch1 conditional and Notch3 null mutants. We find that normal development of the striatum depends on the presence of appropriate Notch signals in progenitors during a critical window of embryonic development. Early removal of Notch1 prior to neurogenesis alters early-born patch neurons but not late-born matrix neurons in the striatum. We further show that the late-born striatal neurons in these mutants are spared as a result of functional compensation by Notch3. Notably, however, the removal of Notch signaling subsequent to cells leaving the germinal zone has no obvious effect on striatal organization and patterning. These results indicate that Notch signaling is required in neural progenitor cells to control cell fate in the striatum, but is dispensable during subsequent phases of neuronal migration and differentiation.     

Proliferating neural progenitors in the developing CNS of zebrafish require Jagged2 and Jagged1b

In the central nervous system (CNS), giving rise to the diversity and the complexity of neurons is the spatial and temporal differentiation of neural stem cells and/or neural precursors. Here, we investigated the role of Jagged-mediated Notch signaling in the maintenance and differentiation of progenitor cells during late neurogenesis by analyzing the expression patterns of zebrafish jagged homologues, and by injecting their morpholinos. Expression of both jagged2 and jagged1b mRNA in the CNS suggested that they might be involved in control of differentiating neural progenitors in which they are involved later in development. In Jagged2 and Jagged1b knock-down embryos, the overall rate of cell division dramatically decreased, and the ectopic VeMe neurons were generated. The results suggest that Jagged-Notch signaling plays a critical role in the maintenance of proliferating neural precursors, and that the generation of late-born neurons, especially VeMe neurons, is regulated by the interplay between Jagged2 and Jagged1b.     

Deletion of Shp2 in the brain leads to defective proliferation and differentiation in neural stem cells and early postnatal lethality

The intracellular signaling controlling neural stem/progenitor cell (NSC) self-renewal and neuronal/glial differentiation is not fully understood. We show here that Shp2, an introcellular tyrosine phosphatase with two SH2 domains, plays a critical role in NSC activities. Conditional deletion of Shp2 in neural progenitor cells mediated by Nestin-Cre resulted in early postnatal lethality, impaired corticogenesis, and reduced proliferation of progenitor cells in the ventricular zone. In vitro analyses suggest that Shp2 mediates basic fibroblast growth factor signals in stimulating self-renewing proliferation of NSCs, partly through control of Bmi-1 expression. Furthermore, Shp2 regulates cell fate decisions, by promoting neurogenesis while suppressing astrogliogenesis, through reciprocal regulation of the Erk and Stat3 signaling pathways. Together, these results identify Shp2 as a critical signaling molecule in coordinated regulation of progenitor cell proliferation and neuronal/astroglial cell differentiation.     

ErbB3和ErbB4特异性配体筛选系统的建立及neuregulin-1突变体的筛选

Neuregulin-1(NRG1,纽兰格林)通过活化ErbB2/ErbB4二聚体具有治疗心衰的作用,目前已完成临床二期。为避免作为心衰治疗药物时同时激活ErbB3并产生副作用,因此用NRG1变异体的方法寻找能对ErbB4专一性激活的配体。文章构建了带有不同筛选标记的ErbB2、ErbB3、ErbB4细胞表达质粒,将ErbB2/ErbB3、ErbB2/ErbB4质粒共转染至CHO细胞,建立了ErbB2/ErbB3特异性表达和ErbB2/ErbB4特异性表达的细胞株。通过与新生大鼠原代心肌细胞比较,证明ErbB2/ErbB4细胞株信号传导功能与心肌细胞相似,NRG1可以激活下游的AKT信号途径、PI3K信号途径,并表现出良好的剂量效应。因此可以通过检测与心肌功能密切相关的下游信号AKT磷酸化水平快速筛选抗心衰药物,并通过与ErbB2/ErbB3信号激活水平比较鉴定其对心肌细胞的特异性。文章还构建了31个不同的NRG1突变体并在大肠杆菌中成功的表达和纯化。将这些突变体用于刺激两个细胞株,通过检测AKT磷酸化水平,发现这些突变体对ErbB2/ErbB3与ErbB2/ErbB4受体的激活能力不同。进一步检测其中5个ErbB2/ErbB4激活特异性发生改变的突变体与两对受体的亲和力,发现这些突变体和ErbB2/ErbB4与ErbB2/ErbB3受体亲和力的变化有一致性。最终筛选到了4个可以更特异性激活ErbB2/ErbB4受体的突变体作为更有效治疗心衰的候选药物。     

Development of Circadian Oscillators in Neurosphere Cultures during Adult Neurogenesis

Circadian rhythms are common in many cell types but are reported to be lacking in embryonic stem cells. Recent studies have described possible interactions between the molecular mechanism of circadian clocks and the signaling pathways that regulate stem cell differentiation. Circadian rhythms have not been examined well in neural stem cells and progenitor cells that produce new neurons and glial cells during adult neurogenesis. To evaluate circadian timing abilities of cells undergoing neural differentiation, neurospheres were prepared from the mouse subventricular zone (SVZ), a rich source of adult neural stem cells. Circadian rhythms in mPer1 gene expression were recorded in individual spheres, and cell types were characterized by confocal immunofluorescence microscopy at early and late developmental stages in vitro. Circadian rhythms were observed in neurospheres induced to differentiate into neurons or glia, and rhythms emerged within 3–4 days as differentiation proceeded, suggesting that the neural stem cell state suppresses the functioning of the circadian clock. Evidence was also provided that neural stem progenitor cells derived from the SVZ of adult mice are self-sufficient clock cells capable of producing a circadian rhythm without input from known circadian pacemakers of the organism. Expression of mPer1 occurred in high frequency oscillations before circadian rhythms were detected, which may represent a role for this circadian clock gene in the fast cycling of gene expression responsible for early cell differentiation.