Cited by 106Alzheimer's disease research and treatmentsDementia and Cognitive Impairment ResearchProtein purification and stability

Amino-terminal domain stability mediates apolipoprotein E aggregation into neurotoxic fibrils

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Hatters, Danny M., Zhong, Ning, Rutenber, Earl, Weisgraber, Karl H.·2006·Journal of Molecular Biology

Abstract

The three isoforms of apolipoprotein (apo) E are strongly associated with different risks for Alzheimer's disease: apoE4>apoE3>apoE2. Here, we show at physiological salt concentrations and pH that native tetramers of apoE form soluble aggregates in vitro that bind the amyloid dyes thioflavin T and Congo red. However, unlike classic amyloid fibrils, the aggregates adopt an irregular protofilament-like morphology and are seemingly highly alpha-helical. The aggregates formed at substantially different rates (apoE4>apoE3>apoE2) and were significantly more toxic to cultured neuronal cells than the tetramer. Since the three isoforms have large differences in conformational stability that can influence aggregation and amyloid pathways, we tested the effects of mutations that increased or decreased stability. Decreasing the conformational stability of the amino-terminal domain of apoE increased aggregation rates and vice versa. Our findings provide a new perspective for an isoform-specific pathogenic role for apoE aggregation in which differences in the conformational stability of the amino-terminal domain mediate neurodegeneration.

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Crossref · 10.1016/j.jmb.2006.06.080

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  • ThT fluorescence intensity is low in aqueous solution but increases upon binding of the probe to amyloid aggregates.

    “ThT fluorescence intensity is low in aqueous solution, but it increases upon binding of the probe to amyloid aggregates”

    From Thermodynamic destabilization and aggregation propensity as the mechanism behind the association of apoE3 mutants and lipoprotein glomerulopathy (2018) · cites this paper as [39]

    In “ApoE aggregates adopt certain amyloid-like properties but are distinctly unique” (page unavailable), the paper states that thioflavin T fluorescence increases upon binding to amyloid fibrils. It does not state that the dye’s fluorescence is low in aqueous solution without aggregates. (LLM, conf=0.84)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
  • ThT has been used previously to monitor the aggregation and amyloidogenic propensity of apolipoproteins.

    “has been used previously to monitor the aggregation and amyloidogenic propensity of apolipoproteins (39,40)”
  • The presence of an arginine at position 112 promotes the formation of a salt bridge between Arg-61 and Glu-255, leading to a domain interaction between the N- and C-terminals. As a result, ApoE4 has a greater tendency to form molten globules over the other ApoE isoforms, as well as a greater propensity to aggregate at 37°C.

    “The presence of an arginine at position 112 promotes the formation of a salt bridge between Arg-61 and Glu-255, leading to a “domain interaction” between the N- and C-terminals. As a result, ApoE4 has a greater tendency to form molten globules over the other ApoE isoforms, as well as a greater propensity to aggregate at 37°C [69, 70].”

    From ApoE, ApoE Receptors, and the Synapse in Alzheimer's Disease (2017) · cites this paper as [70]

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Authors
Hatters, D. M., Zhong, N., Rutenber, E., & Weisgraber, K. H.
Affiliations
Gladstone Institutes (US)
Corresponding author
Weisgraber, Karl H.
Venue
Journal of Molecular Biology
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2006-09
Volume
361
Issue
5
Pages
932-944
ISSN
0022-2836 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W2087532566
Cited by
105
References
83
Citations by year
2026: 3 · 2025: 4 · 2024: 3 · 2023: 11 · 2022: 9 · 2021: 2 · 2020: 6 · 2019: 10 · 2018: 4 · 2017: 6 · 2016: 6 · 2015: 5 · 2014: 4 · 2013: 3 · 2012: 4
FWCI
1.77
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Journal of Molecular Biology (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • eScholarship (California Digital Library) (submittedVersion)
Funders
  • National Institutes of Health
  • National Institute on Aging (R01AG020235, P01AG022074)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Alzheimer's disease research and treatments
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Dementia and Cognitive Impairment Research
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Protein purification and stability
Keywords
apolipoprotein E, APOE isoforms, amyloid fibril formation, N-terminal domain, conformational stability, Alzheimer's disease, neurotoxicity, protofilaments, thioflavin T binding, Congo red binding, APOE ε4
MeSH terms
Animals, Apolipoproteins E, Cells, Cultured, Congo Red, Models, Biological, Neurons, Structure-Activity Relationship, Thermodynamics, Thiazoles, Protein Structure, Tertiary, Protein Isoforms, Protein Structure, Quaternary, Mice, Benzothiazoles, Apolipoprotein E3, Apolipoprotein E4, Apolipoprotein E2

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