phosphoramidon and Alzheimer-Disease

There is increasing evidence that deficient clearance of β-amyloid (Aβ) contributes to its accumulation in late-onset Alzheimer disease (AD). Several Aβ-degrading enzymes, including neprilysin (NEP), insulin-degrading enzyme, and endothelin-converting enzyme reduce Aβ levels and protect against cognitive impairment in mouse models of AD. The activity of several Aβ-degrading enzymes rises with age and increases still further in AD, perhaps as a physiological response to minimize the buildup of Aβ. The age- and disease-related changes in expression of more recently recognized Aβ-degrading enzymes (e.g. NEP-2 and cathepsin B) remain to be investigated, and there is strong evidence that reduced NEP activity contributes to the development of cerebral amyloid angiopathy. Regardless of the role of Aβ-degrading enzymes in the development of AD, experimental data indicate that increasing the activity of these enzymes (NEP in particular) has therapeutic potential in AD, although targeting their delivery to the brain remains a major challenge. The most promising current approaches include the peripheral administration of agents that enhance the activity of Aβ-degrading enzymes and the direct intracerebral delivery of NEP by convection-enhanced delivery. In the longer term, genetic approaches to increasing the intracerebral expression of NEP or other Aβ-degrading enzymes may offer advantages.

Topics: Alzheimer Disease; Amyloid beta-Peptides; Animals; Disease Models, Animal; Genetic Therapy; Glycopeptides; Humans; Insulysin; Mice; Mice, Transgenic; Microglia; Neprilysin; Protease Inhibitors; Stem Cell Transplantation; Thiorphan

Serotoninergic activation which decreases brain Aβ peptides is considered beneficial in mouse models for Alzheimer's disease (AD), but the mechanisms involved remain unclear. Because growing evidence suggested that the stimulation of proteases digesting Aβ, especially the endopeptidase neprilysin (NEP) may be effective for AD therapy/prevention, we explored the involvement of serotonin precursors and derivatives in NEP regulation. We found that 5-hydroxyindolacetic acid (5-HIAA), the final metabolite of serotonin, considered until now as a dead-end and inactive product of serotonin catabolism, significantly reduces brain Aβ in the transgenic APPSWE mouse model for AD-related Aβ pathology and in the phosphoramidon-induced cerebral NEP inhibition mouse model. 5-HIAA treatment improves memory performance in APPSWE mice. Furthermore, 5-HIAA and its precursors increase NEP level in vivo and in neuroblastoma cells. Inhibition of ERK 1/2 cascade by 5-HIAA or SCH772984 enhanced NEP levels, suggesting MAP-kinase pathway involvement in 5-HIAA-induced regulation of NEP expression. Our results provide the first demonstration that 5-HIAA is an active serotonin metabolite that increases brain Aβ degradation/clearance and improves symptoms in the APPSWE mouse model for AD.

Topics: 5-Hydroxytryptophan; Alzheimer Disease; Amyloid beta-Peptides; Amyloid beta-Protein Precursor; Animals; Antipsychotic Agents; Brain; Cell Line, Tumor; Disease Models, Animal; Enzyme Inhibitors; Female; Gene Expression Regulation; Glycopeptides; Humans; Hydroxyindoleacetic Acid; Male; Mice; Mice, Transgenic; Neprilysin; Signal Transduction; Spatial Behavior

Intranasal administration is emerging as a reliable and non-invasive method to bypass the blood-brain barrier and deliver drugs to the brain. This approach has been primarily used to explore therapeutic avenues for neurological diseases. However, intranasal administration could also be used to create animal models of brain disease. Beta-amyloid peptide (Aβ) accumulation is a key feature of Alzheimer's disease (AD), and the most common models of AD are transgenic mice expressing mutant human genes linked to familial AD. An alternative model of amyloidosis utilizes intracerebroventricular infusion of thiorphan or phosphoramidon to block the activity of key Aβ degrading enzymes (NEP, NEP2) resulting in accumulation of Aβ. Here, we demonstrate that intranasal administration of phosphoramidon produces significantly elevated cerebral Aβ levels in wild-type mice. Furthermore, intranasal phosphoramidon administration in double knockout mice lacking NEP and NEP2 also showed increased levels of Aβ(40). These data show that intranasal delivery of drugs can be used to model AD and suggest that other phosphoramidon-sensitive peptidases are degrading Aβ in NEP/NEP2-deficient mice.

Topics: Administration, Intranasal; Alzheimer Disease; Amyloid beta-Peptides; Animals; Disease Models, Animal; Glycopeptides; Humans; Mice; Mice, Knockout; Neprilysin; Protease Inhibitors

Proteases that degrade the amyloid-β peptide (Aβ) are important in protecting against Alzheimer's disease (AD), and understanding these proteases is critical to understanding AD pathology. Endopeptidases sensitive to inhibition by thiorphan and phosphoramidon are especially important, because these inhibitors induce dramatic Aβ accumulation (∼30- to 50-fold) and pathological deposition in rodents. The Aβ-degrading enzyme neprilysin (NEP) is the best known target of these inhibitors. However, genetic ablation of NEP results in only modest increases (∼1.5- to 2-fold) in Aβ, indicating that other thiorphan/phosphoramidon-sensitive endopeptidases are at work. Of particular interest is the NEP homolog neprilysin 2 (NEP2), which is thiorphan/phosphoramidon-sensitive and degrades Aβ. We investigated the role of NEP2 in Aβ degradation in vivo through the use of gene knockout and transgenic mice. Mice deficient for the NEP2 gene showed significant elevations in total Aβ species in the hippocampus and brainstem/diencephalon (∼1.5-fold). Increases in Aβ accumulation were more dramatic in NEP2 knockout mice crossbred with APP transgenic mice. In NEP/NEP2 double-knockout mice, Aβ levels were marginally increased (∼1.5- to 2-fold), compared with NEP(-/-)/NEP2(+/+) controls. Treatment of these double-knockout mice with phosphoramidon resulted in elevations of Aβ, suggesting that yet other NEP-like Aβ-degrading endopeptidases are contributing to Aβ catabolism.

Topics: Alzheimer Disease; Amyloid beta-Peptides; Animals; Glycopeptides; Mice; Mice, Inbred BALB C; Mice, Knockout; Neprilysin; Peptide Fragments

Deposition of beta-amyloid (Abeta) peptides in the brain is an early and invariant feature of all forms of Alzheimer's disease. As with any secreted protein, the extracellular concentration of Abeta is determined not only by its production but also by its catabolism. A major focus of Alzheimer's research has been the elucidation of the mechanisms responsible for the generation of Abeta. Much less, however, is known about the mechanisms responsible for Abeta removal in the brain. In this report, we describe the identification of endothelin-converting enzyme-1 (ECE-1) as a novel Abeta-degrading enzyme. We show that treatment of endogenous ECE-expressing cell lines with the metalloprotease inhibitor phosphoramidon causes a 2-3-fold elevation in extracellular Abeta concentration that appears to be due to inhibition of intracellular Abeta degradation. Furthermore, we show that overexpression of ECE-1 in Chinese hamster ovary cells, which lack endogenous ECE activity, reduces extracellular Abeta concentration by up to 90% and that this effect is completely reversed by treatment of the cells with phosphoramidon. Finally, we show that recombinant soluble ECE-1 is capable of hydrolyzing synthetic Abeta40 and Abeta42 in vitro at multiple sites.

Topics: Alzheimer Disease; Amino Acid Sequence; Amyloid beta-Peptides; Animals; Aspartic Acid Endopeptidases; Cell Line; CHO Cells; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; Cloning, Molecular; Cricetinae; Endothelin-Converting Enzymes; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; Glioma; Glycopeptides; Humans; Hydrolysis; Metalloendopeptidases; Molecular Sequence Data; Tumor Cells, Cultured

The amyloid precursor protein (APP) undergoes abnormal metabolism in Alzheimer's disease, resulting in the accumulation of beta A4 amyloid in the brain. Normal APP metabolism includes the release of a truncated form (sAPP) which has been cleaved at the alpha-secretase site within the beta A4 amyloidogenic domain. However, intact forms of beta A4 protein may also be generated by the beta- and gamma-secretases. Soluble forms of beta A4 have been detected in various cell lines and in cerebrospinal fluid. Previous studies of protein kinase C activation have suggested a reciprocal relationship between sAPP secretion and beta A4 production and release. We find that phorbol ester activation of protein kinase C in untransfected SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma cells increases the release of sAPP without affecting beta A4 secretion. We provide further evidence for intracellular beta A4 production. Treatment of SY5Y cells with the protease inhibitor phosphoramidon results in a 2-fold increase in beta A4 secretion and an increase in the amount of beta A4 recovered from cell lysates, yet it does not affect sAPP secretion. The protease inhibitors thiorphan and N-[(RS)-2-carboxy-3-phenylpropanoyl]-L-leucine had no effect on beta A4 or sAPP secretion. The lysosomotropic agents chloroquine and NH4Cl decreased beta A4 secretion, providing additional evidence for the involvement of intracellular acidic compartments in the production of beta A4. Our results therefore demonstrate a double dissociation between the secretion of sAPP and beta A4 in the SH-SY5Y cell line. The effect of phosphoramidon supports previous studies which show that metalloproteases are involved in the biogenesis of beta A4.

Topics: Alzheimer Disease; Ammonium Chloride; Amyloid beta-Peptides; Amyloid beta-Protein Precursor; Amyloid Precursor Protein Secretases; Aspartic Acid Endopeptidases; Chloroquine; Endopeptidases; Enzyme Activation; Glycopeptides; Humans; Immunosorbent Techniques; Kinetics; Neuroblastoma; Phorbol 12,13-Dibutyrate; Protease Inhibitors; Protein Kinase C; Tumor Cells, Cultured