Cited by 78Alzheimer's disease research and treatmentsAldose Reductase and TaurineMitochondrial Function and Pathology

Insoluble tau aggregates induce neuronal death through modification of membrane ion conductance, activation of voltage‐gated calcium channels and NADPH oxidase

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Esteras, Noemi, Kundel, Franziska, Amodeo, Giuseppe F., Pavlov, Evgeny V., Klenerman, David, Abramov, Andrey Y.·2021·The FEBS Journal

Abstract

Most neurodegenerative disorders are associated with aggregation and accumulation of misfolded proteins. One of these proteins, tau, is involved in a number of pathologies including Alzheimer's disease and frontotemporal dementia. Aggregation and phosphorylation of tau have been shown to be a trigger for abnormal signal transduction and disruption of cellular homeostasis. Here, we have studied the effect of extracellular tau at different stages of aggregation in cortical co‐cultures of neurons and astrocytes, to understand how this process affects tau pathogenicity. We found that the species formed after prolonged in vitro aggregation of tau (longer than 1 day) are able to stimulate reactive oxygen species (ROS) production through the activation of NADPH oxidase without decreasing the level of the endogenous antioxidant glutathione. The same late insoluble aggregates of tau induced calcium signals in neurons and a gradual increase in the ionic current of artificial membranes. Both tau‐induced calcium signals and ROS production in NADPH oxidase were reduced in the presence of the inhibitor of voltage‐gated calcium channels (VGCC) nifedipine. This suggests that insoluble aggregates of tau incorporate into the membrane and modify ionic currents, changing plasma membrane potential and activating VGCCs, which induces a calcium influx that triggers ROS production in NADPH oxidase. The combination of all these effects likely leads to toxicity, as only the same insoluble tau aggregates which demonstrated membrane‐active properties produced neuronal cell death.

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Authors
Esteras, N., Kundel, F., Amodeo, G. F., Pavlov, E. V., Klenerman, D., & Abramov, A. Y.
Affiliations
  • Department of Clinical and Movement Neurosciences UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology London UK
  • University of Cambridge (GB)
  • New York University (US)
  • UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology (GB)
Corresponding author
Abramov, Andrey Y.
Venue
The FEBS Journal
Publisher
Wiley
Published
2020-06-08
Volume
288
Issue
1
Pages
127-141
ISSN
  • 1742-464X (ISSN-L)
  • 1742-4658
OpenAlex
W3017944168
Cited by
78
References
26
Citations by year
2026: 11 · 2025: 9 · 2024: 12 · 2023: 13 · 2022: 11 · 2021: 13 · 2020: 9
FWCI
6.89
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • FEBS Journal (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • UCL Discovery (University College London) (submittedVersion)
  • Apollo (University of Cambridge) (submittedVersion)
  • Apollo
Funders
Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EP/R024898/1)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Alzheimer's disease research and treatments
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Cell Biology › Aldose Reductase and Taurine
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Mitochondrial Function and Pathology
Keywords
tau protein, tau aggregation, neuronal cell death, voltage-gated calcium channels, NADPH oxidase, reactive oxygen species, glutathione, calcium signaling, nifedipine, neurodegeneration, Alzheimer's disease, frontotemporal dementia, membrane incorporation
MeSH terms
Animals, Animals, Newborn, Astrocytes, Calcium, Gene Expression Regulation, Humans, Neurons, Nifedipine, Oxidation-Reduction, Verapamil, Calcium Channels, Amyloid beta-Peptides, tau Proteins, Cell Death, Rats, Sprague-Dawley, Reactive Oxygen Species, Coculture Techniques, NADPH Oxidases, Thapsigargin, Rats, Primary Cell Culture, Protein Aggregates

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