No abstract

No abstract

A set of different protein kinases have been involved in tau phosphorylations, including glycogen synthase kinase 3beta (GSK3 beta), MARK kinase, MAP kinase, the cyclin-dependent kinase 5 (Cdk5) system and others. The latter system include the catalytic component Cdk5 and the regulatory proteins p35, p25 and p39. Cdk5 and its neuron-specific activator p35 are essential molecules for neuronal migration and for the laminar configuration of the cerebral cortex. Recent evidence that the Cdk5/p35 complex concentrates at the leading edge of axonal growth cones, together with the involvement of this system in the phosphorylation of neuronal microtubule-asociated proteins (MAPs), provide further support to the role of this protein kinase in regulating axonal extension in developing brain neurons. Although the aminoacid sequence of p35 has little similarity with those of normal cyclins, studies have shown that its activation domain may adopt a conformation of the cyclin-folded structure. The computed structure for Cdk5 is compatible with experimental data obtained from studies on the Cdk5/p35 complex, and has allowed predictions on the protein interacting domains. This enzyme exhibits a wide cell distribution, even though a regulated Cdk5 activity has been shown only in neuronal cells. Cdk5 has been characterized as a proline-directed Ser/Thr protein kinase, that contributes to phosphorylation of human tau on Ser202, Thr205, Ser235 and Ser404. Cdk5 is active in postmitiotic neurons, and it has been implicated in cytoskeleton assembly and its organization during axonal growth. In addition to tau and other MAPs, Cdk5 phosphorylates the high molecular weight neurofilament proteins at their C-terminal domain. Moreover, nestin, a protein that regulates cytoskeleton organization of neuronal and muscular cells during development of early embryos, and several other regulatory proteins appear to be substrates of Cdk5 and are phosphorylated by this kinase. Studies also suggest, that in addition to Cdk5 involvement in neuronal differentiation, its activity is induced during myogenesis, however, the mechanisms of how this activity is regulated during muscular differentiation has not yet been elucidated. Recent studies have shown that the beta-amyloid peptide (A beta) induces a deregulation of Cdk5 in cultured brain cells, and raises the question on the possible roles of this tau-phosphorylating protein kinase in the sequence of molecular events leading to neuronal death triggered by A beta. In this context, there are evidence that Cdk5 is involved in tau hyperphosphorylation promoted by A beta in its fibrillary form. Cdk5 inhibitors protect hippocampal neurons against both tau anomalous phosphorylations and neuronal death. The links between the studies on the Cdk5/p35 system in normal neurogenesis and its claimed participation in neurodegeneration, provide the framework to understand the regulatory relevance of this kinase system, and changes in its regulation that may be implicated in disturbances such as those occurring in Alzheime...

No abstract

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most common cause of age-related dementia leading to severe irreversible cognitive decline and massive neurodegeneration. While therapeutic approaches for managing symptoms are available, AD currently has no cure. AD associates with a progressive decline of the two major catabolic pathways of eukaryotic cells—the autophagy-lysosomal pathway (ALP) and the ubiquitin-proteasome system (UPS)—that contributes to the accumulation of harmful molecules implicated in synaptic plasticity and long-term memory impairment. One protein recently highlighted as the earliest initiator of these disturbances is the amyloid precursor protein (APP) intracellular C-terminal membrane fragment β (CTFβ), a key toxic agent with deleterious effects on neuronal function that has become an important pathogenic factor for AD and a potential biomarker for AD patients. This review focuses on the involvement of regulatory molecules and specific post-translational modifications (PTMs) that operate in the UPS and ALP to control a single proteostasis network to achieve protein balance. We discuss how these aspects can contribute to the development of novel strategies to strengthen the balance of key pathogenic proteins associated with AD.

HSV-1 reactivation from latency induced neuroinflammatory and neurodegenerative markers in the brain of asymptomatic mice suggesting that recurrent reactivations could be associated with cumulative neuronal dysfunctions.

No abstract

The neuronal cytoskeleton regulates numerous processes that occur in normal homeostasis. Under pathological conditions such as those of Alzheimer's disease (AD), major alterations in cytoskeleton organization have been observed and changes in both microtubules and actin filaments have been reported. Many neurodegenerative consequences of AD are linked to the production and accumulation of amyloid peptides (Aβ) and their oligomers, produced from the internal cleavage of the amyloid-β protein precursor. We previously reported that fibrillar Aβ1-42 (fAβ) treatment of hippocampal neurons induced an increase in Rac1 and Cdc42 activities linking fAβ effects with changes in actin dynamics. Here we show fAβ-induces increased activity of PAK1 and cyclin-dependent kinase 5, and that p21-activated kinase (PAK1) activation targets the LIMK1-cofilin signaling pathway. Increased cofilin dephosphorylation under conditions of enhanced LIM-Kinase 1 (LIMK1) activity suggests that fAβ co-stimulates bifurcating pathways impacting cofilin phosphorylation. Overexpression of slingshot (SSH) prevents the augment of F-actin induced by fAβ after 24 h, suggesting that fAβ-induced changes in actin assembly involve both LIMK1 and SSH. These results suggest that fAb may alter the PAK1/LIMK1/cofilin axis and therefore actin organization in AD.