α-Synuclein and its disease-related mutants interact differentially with the microtubule protein tau and associate with the actin cytoskeleton

Autor: Alessandro Esposito, Christoph P. Dohm, Pawel Kermer, Mathias Bähr, Fred S. Wouters
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2007
Předmět:
Zdroj: Neurobiology of Disease, Vol 26, Iss 3, Pp 521-531 (2007)
Druh dokumentu: article
ISSN: 1095-953X
DOI: 10.1016/j.nbd.2007.01.014
Popis: α-Synuclein is a primarily neuronal protein that is enriched at the pre-synapse. α-Synuclein and the microtubule binding protein tau have been implicated in neurodegenerative diseases. α-Synuclein is known to associate with phospholipid vesicles, regulates dopamine metabolism and exhibits chaperone activity, but its main role remains largely unknown. Furthermore, knowledge on its interactions and post-translational modifications is essential for a molecular understanding of α-synucleinopathies.We investigated α-synuclein mutations, causative for autosomal dominant forms of Parkinson’s disease (A30P, A53T and E46K), and phosphorylation mutants at serine 129 (S129A and S129D) using fluorescently labelled α-synuclein, actin and tau.The investigation of colocalization, and protein–protein interactions by Förster resonance energy transfer and fluorescence lifetime imaging showed that α-synuclein associates with the actin cytoskeleton and interacts with tau. The A30P mutation and cytoskeletal destabilization decreased this interaction. Given the concurrent loss of membrane binding by this mutation, we propose a membrane-bound functional complex with tau that might involve the actin cytoskeleton.
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