Xue Yang

Significance: Cell-to-cell spreading of αS fibrils leads to amyloid seeding of endogenous monomer. Detailed atomic-level mechanistic understanding of the fibril seeding process of αS is essential for design of therapeutic approaches against Parkinson’s disease. In light of its complexity, this process remains ill defined at the molecular level. Using relaxation-based solution NMR experiments, we mapped a common N-terminal binding interface of the Ac-αS intrinsically disordered monomer with Ac-αS fibrils and off-pathway oligomers to elucidate critical monomer–aggregate interactions during seeded aggregation and in equilibrium with mature aggregates. From this work, we propose a paradigm in which Ac-αS monomer recruitment to the fibril is driven by interactions between the intrinsically disordered monomer N terminus and the flanking IDRs on the fibril surface.

Parkinson’s Disease is characterized by the loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta, the extracellular accumulation of toxic α-synuclein (αSYN) aggregates, and neuroinflammation. Microglia, resident macrophages of the brain, are one of the critical cell types involved in neuroinflammation. Upon sensing extracellular stimuli or experiencing oxidative stress, microglia become activated, which further exacerbates neuroinflammation. In addition, as the first line of defense in the central nervous system, microglia play a critical role in αSYN clearance and degradation. While the role of microglia in neurodegenerative pathologies is widely recognized, few therapeutic approaches have been designed to target both microglial activation and αSYN aggregation. Here, we designed nanoparticles (NPs) to deliver aggregation-inhibiting antioxidants to ameliorate αSYN aggregation and attenuate activation of a pro-inflammatory microglial phenotype. Ferulic acid diacid with an adipic acid linker (FAA) and tannic acid (TA) were used as shell and core molecules to form NPs via flash nanoprecipitation. These NPs showed a strong inhibitory effect on αSYN fibrillization, significantly diminishing αSYN fibrillization in vitro compared to untreated αSYN using a Thioflavin T assay. Treating microglia with NPs decreased overall αSYN internalization and intracellular αSYN oligomer formation. NP treatment additionally lowered the in vitro secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines TNF-α and IL-6, and also attenuated nitric oxide and reactive oxygen species production induced by αSYN. NP treatment also significantly decreased Iba-1 expression in αSYN-challenged microglia and suppressed nuclear translocation of nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB). Overall, this work lays the foundation for an antioxidant-based nanotherapeutic candidate to target pathological protein aggregation and neuroinflammation in neurodegenerative diseases.

Alpha-synuclein (αS) fibrils are toxic to cells and contribute to the pathogenesis and progression of Parkinson’s disease and other synucleinopathies. β-Synuclein (βS), which co-localizes with αS, has been shown to provide a neuroprotective effect, but the molecular mechanism by which this occurs remains elusive. Here we show that αS fibrils formed in the presence of βS are less cytotoxic, exhibit reduced cell seeding capacity and are more resistant to fibril shedding compared to αS fibrils alone. Using solid-state NMR, we found that the overall structure of the core of αS fibrils when co-incubated with βS is minimally perturbed, however, the dynamics of Lys and Thr residues, located primarily in the imperfect KTKEGV repeats of the αS N-terminus, are increased. Our results suggest that amyloid fibril dynamics may play a key role in modulating toxicity and seeding. Thus, enhancing the dynamics of amyloid fibrils may be a strategy for future therapeutic targeting of neurodegenerative diseases.

Several intrinsically disordered proteins have been implicated in the process of amyloid fibril formation in neurodegenerative disease, and developing approaches to inhibit the aggregation of these intrinsically disordered proteins is critical for establishing effective therapies against disease progression. The aggregation pathway of the intrinsically disordered protein alpha‐synuclein, which is implicated in several neurodegenerative diseases known as synucleinopathies, has been extensively characterized. Less attention has been leveraged on beta‐synuclein, a homologous intrinsically disordered protein that co‐localizes with alpha‐synuclein and is known to delay alpha‐synuclein fibril formation. In this review, we focus on beta‐synuclein and the molecular‐level interactions between alpha‐synuclein and beta‐synuclein that underlie the delay of fibril formation. We highlight studies that begin to define alpha‐synuclein and beta‐synuclein interactions at the monomer, oligomer, and surface levels, and suggest that beta‐synuclein plays a role in regulation of inhibition at many different stages of alpha‐synuclein aggregation.