Penalva Ylauna Christine Mégane, Paschkowsky Sandra, Yang Jingyun, Recinto Sherilyn Junelle, Cinkornpumin Jessica K, Ruelas Marina, Xiao Bin, Nitu Albert, Kwon Sin Young, Wu Helen Yee-Li, Munter Hans Markus, Michalski Bernadeta, Fahnestock Margaret, Pastor William A, Bennett David A, Munter Lisa Marie
Department of Pharmacology & Therapeutics, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada.
Integrated Program in Neuroscience, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada.
Cell Death Dis. 2025 Apr 12;16(1):280. doi: 10.1038/s41419-025-07579-z.
Characteristic cerebral pathological changes of Alzheimer's disease (AD) such as glucose hypometabolism or the accumulation of cleavage products of the amyloid precursor protein (APP), known as Aβ peptides, lead to sustained endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress and neurodegeneration. To preserve ER homeostasis, cells activate their unfolded protein response (UPR). The rhomboid-like-protease 4 (RHBDL4) is an enzyme that participates in the UPR by targeting proteins for proteasomal degradation. We demonstrated previously that RHBDL4 cleaves APP in HEK293T cells, leading to decreased total APP and Aβ. More recently, we showed that RHBDL4 processes APP in mouse primary mixed cortical cultures as well. Here, we aim to examine the physiological relevance of RHBDL4 in the brain. We first found that brain samples from AD patients and an AD mouse model (APPtg) showed increased RHBDL4 mRNA and protein expression. To determine the effects of RHBDL4's absence on APP physiology in vivo, we crossed APPtg mice to a RHBDL4 knockout (R4) model. RHBDL4 deficiency in APPtg mice led to increased total cerebral APP and amyloidogenic processing when compared to APPtg controls. Contrary to expectations, as assessed by cognitive tests, RHBDL4 absence rescued cognition in 5-month-old female APPtg mice. Informed by unbiased RNA-seq data, we demonstrated in vitro and in vivo that RHBDL4 absence leads to greater levels of active β-catenin due to decreased proteasomal clearance. Decreased β-catenin activity is known to underlie cognitive defects in APPtg mice and AD. Our work suggests that RHBDL4's increased expression in AD, in addition to regulating APP levels, leads to aberrant degradation of β-catenin, contributing to cognitive impairment.
阿尔茨海默病(AD)典型的大脑病理变化,如葡萄糖代谢减退或淀粉样前体蛋白(APP)的裂解产物(即Aβ肽)的积累,会导致内质网(ER)持续应激和神经退行性变。为维持内质网稳态,细胞会激活其未折叠蛋白反应(UPR)。类菱形蛋白酶4(RHBDL4)是一种通过将蛋白质靶向蛋白酶体降解来参与未折叠蛋白反应的酶。我们之前证明,RHBDL4在HEK293T细胞中裂解APP,导致总APP和Aβ减少。最近,我们还表明,RHBDL4在小鼠原代混合皮质培养物中也能处理APP。在此,我们旨在研究RHBDL4在大脑中的生理相关性。我们首先发现,来自AD患者和AD小鼠模型(APPtg)的脑样本显示RHBDL4 mRNA和蛋白表达增加。为了确定RHBDL4缺失对体内APP生理功能的影响,我们将APPtg小鼠与RHBDL4基因敲除(R4)模型杂交。与APPtg对照组相比,APPtg小鼠中RHBDL4的缺失导致全脑APP总量增加和淀粉样生成过程增强。与预期相反,通过认知测试评估发现,RHBDL4缺失挽救了5月龄雌性APPtg小鼠的认知能力。基于无偏RNA测序数据,我们在体外和体内证明,RHBDL4的缺失由于蛋白酶体清除减少导致活性β-连环蛋白水平升高。已知β-连环蛋白活性降低是APPtg小鼠和AD认知缺陷的基础。我们的研究表明,AD中RHBDL4表达增加,除了调节APP水平外,还会导致β-连环蛋白异常降解,从而导致认知障碍。
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