Oxidative and nitrative protein modifications in Parkinson's disease

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a complex neurodegenerative syndrome likely involving contributions from various factors in individuals including genetic susceptibility, exposure to environmental toxins, and the aging process itself. Increased oxidative stress appears to be a common causative aspect involved in the preferential loss of dopaminergic neurons in a region of the brain prominently affected by the disorder, the substantia nigra (SN). Loss of dopaminergic SN neurons is responsible for the classic clinical motor symptoms associated with PD. Several oxidative and nitrative posttranslational modifications (PTMs) have been identified on proteins pertinent to PD that may affect this or other aspects of disease progression. In this review, we discuss several examples of such PTMs to illustrate their potential consequences in terms of initiation or progression of PD neuropathophysiology.     

Destabilization of DJ-1 by familial substitution and oxidative modifications: implications for Parkinson's disease

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by oxidative stress and protein aggregation. Both toxic phenomena are mitigated by DJ-1, a homodimeric protein with proposed antioxidant and chaperone activities. The neuroprotective function of DJ-1 is modulated by oxidation of cysteine 106, a residue that may act as an oxidative stress sensor. Loss-of-function mutations in the DJ-1 gene have been linked to early onset PD, and age-dependent over-oxidation of DJ-1 is thought to contribute to sporadic PD. The familial mutant L166P fails to dimerize and is rapidly degraded, suggesting that protein destabilization accounts for the dysfunction of this mutant. In this study, we investigated how the structure and stability of DJ-1 are impacted by two other pathogenic substitutions (M26I and E64D) and by over-oxidation with H2O2. Whereas the recombinant wild-type protein and E64D both adopted a stable dimeric structure, M26I showed an increased propensity to aggregate and decreased secondary structure. Similar to M26I, over-oxidized wild-type DJ-1 exhibited reduced secondary structure, and this property correlated with destabilization of the dimer. The engineered mutant C106A had a greater thermodynamic stability and was more resistant to oxidation-induced destabilization than the wild-type protein. These results suggest that (i) the M26I substitution and over-oxidation destabilize dimeric DJ-1, and (ii) the oxidation of cysteine 106 contributes to DJ-1 destabilization. Our findings provide a structural basis for DJ-1 dysfunction in familial and sporadic PD, and they suggest that dimer stabilization is a reasonable therapeutic strategy to treat both forms of this disorder.     

Post-translational modifications of tau protein: implications for Alzheimer's disease

Alzheimer's disease (AD) belongs to a group of neurodegenerative diseases collectively designated as "tauopathies", because they are characterized by the aggregation of abnormally phosphorylated tau protein. The mechanisms responsible for tau aggregation and its contribution to neurodegeneration are still unknown. Thereby, understanding the modes of regulation of tau is of high interest in the determination of the possible causes at the origin of the formation of tau aggregates and to elaborate protection strategies to cope with these pathological lesions. The regulation of tau takes place predominantly through post-translational modifications. Extensive reports have been published about tau phosphorylation; however, the other tau post-translational modifications have received much less attention. Here, we review the different types of post-translational modifications of tau including phosphorylation, glycosylation, glycation, prolyl-isomerization, cleavage or truncation, nitration, polyamination, ubiquitination, sumoylation, oxidation and aggregation, with a particular interest towards their relevance in AD.     

Mass spectrometry of protein modifications by reactive oxygen and nitrogen species

The modification of proteins by reactive oxygen and nitrogen species plays an important role in various biologic processes involving protein activation and inactivation, protein translocation and turnover during signal transduction, stress response, proliferation, and apoptosis. Recent advances in protein and peptide separation and mass spectrometry provide increasingly sophisticated tools for the quantitative analysis of such protein modifications, which are absolutely necessary for their correlation with biologic phenomena. The present review focuses specifically on the qualitative and quantitative mass spectrometric analysis of the most common protein modifications caused by reactive oxygen and nitrogen species in vivo and in vitro and details a case study on a membrane protein the sarco/endoplasmic reticulum Ca-ATPase (SERCA).     

N-Chloroacyl-6-O-triphenylmethylchitosans: useful intermediates for synthetic modifications of chitosan

An efficient synthetic route was developed for the mild chloroacylation of chitosan with different chloroacyl chlorides. Full N-chloroacylation was obtained with this procedure without any O-acylation, and products having lower degrees of substitution can also be produced. Organo-soluble 6-O-triphenylmethylchitosan was used as a starting material for the acylation reactions. The resulting N-chloroacyl-6-O-triphenylmethylchitosan intermediates were also organo-soluble and characterized by FT-IR. N-Methylpiperazine moieties were attached to make end products that were sufficiently soluble for characterization by NMR and also to prove that the present intermediates could be used for further modifications. The end products were fully characterized by 1H NMR, 13C NMR, and 2D 1H-13C heteronuclear single-quantum correlation NMR spectroscopy. The degrees of substitution were determined by 1H NMR. Molecular weight determination by GPC-LS displayed a significant degradation of the polymer. The weight-average molar masses (M(w)) of the end products ranged from 29.6 to 49.4 kDa, when the M(w) of the starting material was 144.2 kDa.     

Regulation of G protein function: Implications for heart disease

Heterotrimeric GTP-binding and -hydrolyzing proteins (G proteins) link members of a family of seven-helix transmembrane receptors (G protein-coupled receptors, GPCR) to intracellular effectors. The coupling mechanism involves the G protein completing a cycle of activation, dissociation into and subunits, deactivation, and reassociation. At the center of this cycle is the subunit, in which activation by GPCR, GTPase activity, and regulation of effector are combined. Whereas G's functional domains and residues had already been inferred from mutagenesis studies, the recent solution of the crystal structure has elucidated the structural basis of subunit function. It is now clear that an irregularity in any GPCR pathway component could cause a physiological defect. This is confirmed by the identification of mutations in GPCR and G's in various human diseases. Although several cardiomyopathies are associated with abnormal GPCR function, mutations are unlikely in these disorders. The last few years, other aspects of G protein function have moved into focus: e.g. posttranslational modifications; effector regulation by subunits; GTPase activating protein (GAP) activity of effectors; G protein expression levels etc. When comparing the regulation of G protein functional activity in cAMP and in inositol phosphate generating pathways, an extrapolation can be made to data on the status of these pathways in some cardiovascular diseases.Abbreviations AC adenylate cyclase - GPCR G protein-coupled receptor - PLC phospholipase C - GAP GTPase activating protein - PTX pertussis toxin - Ptdins(4,5)P ₂ phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate - Ins(1,4,5)P ₃ inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate - CCh carbachol     

Sulfur-centered reactive intermediates derived from the oxidation of sulfur compounds of biological interest

Sulphur compounds play a central role in the structure and activity of many vital systems. In the living cell, sulfur constitutes an essential part of the defense against oxidative damage and is transformed into a variety of sulfur free radical species. Many studies of the chemistry of sulfur-centered radicals using pulse radiolysis and photolysis techniques to detect and measure the kinetics of these radicals have been published and reviewed. This paper discusses the present state of research on the formation and reactivity of certain sulfur-centered radicals [RS*, RSS*, RS*+, (RSSR)*+] and their implications for biological systems.     

Iron-Melanin Interaction and Lipid Peroxidation: Implications for Parkinson's Disease

The vulnerability of substantia nigral (SN) melaninized dopamine neurons to neurodegeneration in Parkinson's disease and the selective increases of iron and basal lipid peroxidation in SN indicate that iron-melanin interaction could be crucial to the pathogenesis of this disease. The present study describes, for the first time, the identification and characterization of a high-affinity (KD = 13 nM) and a lower affinity (KD = 200 nM) binding site for iron on dopamine melanin. The binding of iron to melanin is dependent on pH and the concentration of melanin. Iron chelators, U74500A, desferrioxamine, and to less extent 1,10-phenanthroline and chlorpromazine, but not the Parkinson-inducing neurotoxin, 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine, can inhibit the binding of iron to melanin and iron-induced lipid peroxidation. Although melanin alone diminishes basal lipid peroxidation in rat cortical homogenates, it can also potentiate that initiated by iron, a reaction inhibited by desferrioxamine. In the absence of an identifiable exogenous or endogenous neurotoxin in idiopathic Parkinson's disease, iron-melanin interaction in pars compacta of SN may be a strong candidate for the cytotoxic component of oxygen radical-induced neurodegeneration of melaninized dopamine neurons.     

Oxidative modifications, mitochondrial dysfunction, and impaired protein degradation in Parkinson's disease: how neurons are lost in the Bermuda triangle

In AtT-20 cells ACTH secretion is regulated by both Ca²⁺ and G proteins. We previously demonstrated that calnuc, an EF-hand Ca²⁺ binding protein which regulates Alzheimer's β-amyloid precursor protein (APP) biogenesis, binds both Ca²⁺ as well as Gα subunits. Here we investigate calnuc's role in G protein-mediated regulation of ACTH secretion in AtT-20 neuroendocrine secretory cells stably overexpressing calnuc-GFP. Similar to endogenous calnuc, calnuc-GFP is mainly found in the Golgi, on the plasma membrane (PM), and associated with regulated secretion granules (RSG). By deconvolution immunofluorescence, calnuc-GFP partially colocalizes with Gαi1/2 and Gαi3 at the PM and on RSG. Cytosolic calnuc(ΔSS)-CFP with the signal sequence deleted also partially colocalizes with RSG and partially cosediments with Gαi1/2 in fractions enriched in RSG. Overexpression of calnuc-GFP specifically increases the distribution of Gαi1/2 on the PM whereas the distribution of Gβ subunits and synaptobrevin 2 (Vamp 2) is unchanged. Overexpression of calnuc-GFP or cytosolic calnuc(ΔSS)-CFP enhances ACTH secretion two-fold triggered by mastoparan or GTPγS but does not significantly affect glycosaminoglycan (GAG) chain secretion along the constitutive pathway or basal secretion of ACTH. Calnuc's facilitating effects on ACTH secretion are decreased after introducing anti-Gαi1/2, Gαi3, Gβ or calnuc IgG into permeabilized cells but not when Gα12 or preimmune IgG is introduced. The results suggest that calnuc binds to Gα subunits on the Golgi and on RSG and that overexpression of calnuc causes redistribution of Gαi subunits to the PM and RSG, indicating that calnuc plays a role in dynamic distribution of only Gα but not Gβ subunits. Thus calnuc may connect G protein signaling and calcium signaling during regulated secretion.     

alpha-synuclein fibrillogenesis is nucleation-dependent. Implications for the pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disorder that is pathologically characterized by the presence of intracytoplasmic Lewy bodies, the major components of which are filaments consisting of alpha-synuclein. Two recently identified point mutations in alpha-synuclein are the only known genetic causes of PD. alpha-Synuclein fibrils similar to the Lewy body filaments can be formed in vitro, and we have shown recently that both PD-linked mutations accelerate their formation. This study addresses the mechanism of alpha-synuclein aggregation: we show that (i) it is a nucleation-dependent process that can be seeded by aggregated alpha-synuclein functioning as nuclei, (ii) this fibril growth follows first-order kinetics with respect to alpha-synuclein concentration, and (iii) mutant alpha-synuclein can seed the aggregation of wild type alpha-synuclein, which leads us to predict that the Lewy bodies of familial PD patients with alpha-synuclein mutations will contain both, the mutant and the wild type protein. Finally (iv), we show that wild type and mutant forms of alpha-synuclein do not differ in their critical concentrations. These results suggest that differences in aggregation kinetics of alpha-synucleins cannot be explained by differences in solubility but are due to different nucleation rates. Consequently, alpha-synuclein nucleation may be the rate-limiting step for the formation of Lewy body alpha-synuclein fibrils in Parkinson's disease.     

The role of reactive N-bromo species and radical intermediates in hypobromous acid-induced protein oxidation

Activated eosinophils, and hypobromous acid (HOBr) generated by these cells, have been implicated in the tissue injury in asthma, allergic reactions, and some infections. Proteins are major targets for this oxidant, but limited information is available on the mechanisms of damage and intermediates formed. Reaction of HOBr with proteins is shown to result in the formation of bromamines and bromamides, from side-chain and backbone amines and amides, and 3-bromo- and 3,5-dibromo-Tyr, from Tyr residues; these materials account for ca. 70% of the oxidant consumed. Protein carbonyls, dityrosine, and 3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine are also formed, though these are minor products (<5% of HOBr added). With BSA, extensive (selective and nonspecific) protein fragmentation and limited aggregation are also observed. The bromamines/bromamides are unstable and induce further oxidation and free radical formation as detected by EPR spin trapping. Evidence was obtained for the generation of nitrogen-centered radicals on side-chain and backbone amide groups of amino acids, peptides, and proteins. These radicals readily undergo rearrangement reactions to give carbon-centered radicals. With proteins, alpha-carbon (backbone) radicals are detected, which may play a role in protein fragmentation. A novel damage transfer pathway from Gln side-chain amide groups to backbone sites was also observed.     

In vitro reductive metabolism of N-nitrosodibenzylamine: Evidence for new reactive intermediates

N-Nitrosodibenzylamine was incubated with rabbit-whole-liver homogenates. Gas-chromatographic and mass spectrometric analysis of the incubation extracts showed the formation of bibenzyl. This biotransformation is the result of a 2-electron reduction of the substrate to 1-hydroxy-2,2-dibenzylhydrazine, an unstable compound which breaks down to bibenzyl and nitrogen. It is suggested that such reductive metabolism may be involved in the generation of toxic metabolites of nitrosamines.     

Fluorescence-based viability assay for studies of reactive drug intermediates

Studies of drug toxicity, toxicologic structure-function relationships, screening of idiosyncratic drug reactions, and a variety of cytotoxic events and cellular functions in immunology and cell biology require the sensitive and rapid processing of often large numbers of cell samples. This report describes the development of a high-sensitivity, high-throughput viability assay based on (a) the carboxyfluorescein derivative 2'-7'-biscarboxyethyl-5(6)-carboxyfluorescein (BCECF) as a vital dye, (b) instrumentation capable of processing multiple small (less than 100 cells) samples, and (c) a 96-well unidirectional vacuum filtration plate. Double staining of cultured peripheral blood mononuclear cells with BCECF and propidium iodide (PI) showed no overlap between PI+ (nonviable) and BCECF+ (viable) cells by flow cytometric analysis. Optimal conditions were developed for dye loading and minimizing physical cell damage and fluorescence quench during the assay procedure. The ratio of BCECF fluorescence to internal standard fluorescent particles was linear from 40 to greater than 20,000 cells with a signal:noise ratio of approximately 3 at 40 cells/well. Sulfamethoxazole hydroxylamine (SMX-HA) was used as a model toxic drug metabolite to explore the validity of the BCECF procedure. SMX-HA, but not its parent compound sulfamethoxazole, resulted in a dose dependent loss of cellular fluorescence and the parallel accumulation of PI+ nonviable cells. When compared to the currently used tetrazolium dye reduction viability assay, the BCECF method was 3-fold more sensitive, greater than 10-fold faster, and required 1/10-1/100 the cell numbers.     

Discovery of a novel Toxoplasma gondii conoid-associated protein important for parasite resistance to reactive nitrogen intermediates

Toxoplasma gondii modifies its host cell to suppress its ability to become activated in response to IFN-γ and TNF-α and to develop intracellular antimicrobial effectors, including NO. Mechanisms used by T. gondii to modulate activation of its infected host cell likely underlie its ability to hijack monocytes and dendritic cells during infection to disseminate to the brain and CNS where it converts to bradyzoites contained in tissue cysts to establish persistent infection. To identify T. gondii genes important for resistance to the effects of host cell activation, we developed an in vitro murine macrophage infection and activation model to identify parasite insertional mutants that have a fitness defect in infected macrophages following activation but normal invasion and replication in naive macrophages. We identified 14 independent T. gondii insertional mutants out of >8000 screened that share a defect in their ability to survive macrophage activation due to macrophage production of reactive nitrogen intermediates (RNIs). These mutants have been designated counter-immune mutants. We successfully used one of these mutants to identify a T. gondii cytoplasmic and conoid-associated protein important for parasite resistance to macrophage RNIs. Deletion of the entire gene or just the region encoding the protein in wild-type parasites recapitulated the RNI-resistance defect in the counter-immune mutant, confirming the role of the protein in resistance to macrophage RNIs.     

6-Hydroxydopamine increases ubiquitin-conjugates and protein degradation: implications for the pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease

One of the hallmarks of Parkinson's disease (PD) is pathological structure, termed Lewy body, containing inclusions of ubiquitinated proteins in the dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra. The mechanism leading to the formation of these aggregates is unclear, although it has been shown that mutations in alpha-synuclein or in the ubiquitin-related enzyme UCH-L1 might induce such protein aggregation. We, therefore, examined the possible role of 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA), a dopaminergic neurotoxin used in PD experimental models, in causing protein degradation and its association with the ubiquitin system. Using antiubiquitin antibodies we found that exposure of SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma and PC-12 cell lines to 6-OHDA increased the levels of free ubiquitin and ubiquitin-conjugated proteins, in a dose-dependent manner. Furthermore, metabolic labeling with ³⁵S-methionine, demonstrated that 6-OHDA markedly increased protein degradation, as indicated by the secretion of protein metabolites to the medium. Inhibition of the proteasome activity by the specific inhibitor MG132, attenuated the protein degradation induced by 6-OHDA and potentiated its toxicity. Administration of the antioxidant N-acetylcysteine to the 6-OHDA-treated cells, increased cell survival and reduced protein degradation. In conclusion, our findings suggest that 6-OHDA toxicity is associated with protein degradation and ubiquitin–proteasome system activation.