Cited by 117Alzheimer's disease research and treatmentsNeuroinflammation and Neurodegeneration MechanismsCellular transport and secretion

The DOI matches its Crossref record; 63 of the 63 references it cites were found in a registry or an index; 27 of the 44 sources its claims cite were checked for support.

The Pro-Neurotrophin Receptor Sortilin Is a Major Neuronal Apolipoprotein E Receptor for Catabolism of Amyloid-β Peptide in the Brain

Open access

Abstract

Apolipoprotein E (APOE) is the major risk factor for sporadic Alzheimer's disease. Among other functions, APOE is proposed to sequester neurotoxic amyloid-β (Aβ) peptides in the brain, delivering them to cellular catabolism via neuronal APOE receptors. Still, the receptors involved in this process remain controversial. Here, we identified the pro-neurotrophin receptor sortilin as major endocytic pathway for clearance of APOE/Aβ complexes in neurons. Sortilin binds APOE with high affinity. Lack of receptor expression in mice results in accumulation of APOE and of Aβ in the brain and in aggravated plaque burden. Also, primary neurons lacking sortilin exhibit significantly impaired uptake of APOE/Aβ complexes despite proper expression of other APOE receptors. Despite higher than normal brain APOE levels, sortilin-deficient animals display anomalies in brain lipid metabolism (e.g., accumulation of sulfatides) seen in APOE-deficient mice, indicating functional deficiency in cellular APOE uptake pathways. Together, our findings identified sortilin as an essential neuronal pathway for APOE-containing lipoproteins in vivo and suggest an intriguing link between Aβ catabolism and pro-neurotrophin signaling converging on this receptor.

Overview

AI snapshot

Written from the paper’s full text.

TL;DR

The paper identifies sortilin as a major neuronal APOE receptor that mediates endocytic uptake and catabolism of APOE/Aβ complexes, thereby limiting brain Aβ accumulation and plaque burden. Sortilin deficiency in mice increases brain APOE and Aβ, aggravates early plaque burden, and causes APOE-deficiency-like sulfatide accumulation despite normal expression of other APOE receptors.

Key findings

  • Sortilin binds all human APOE isoforms with high affinity (Kd = 117 nM for APOE2; 44 nM for APOE3; 114 nM for APOE4), but binds isolated Aβ40 poorly (Kd = 0.8 μM); neurotensin blocks APOE binding.
  • In PDAPP and 5xFAD mice, Sort1 deletion increased brain Aβ40 (hippocampus and cortex at 5 and 9 months; 5xFAD at 2 months) and aggravated early plaque burden, without altering sAPPα/sAPPβ, C83/C99, or BACE1 activity.
  • Sortilin-deficient mice showed a two-fold increase in hippocampal/cortical APOE with unchanged Apoe transcription and astrocyte secretion; primary sortilin-null neurons showed 70–80% reduced uptake of APOE/Aβ40 despite normal LRP1 and SORLA. CHO-mSort cells showed an approximate 5-fold increase in APOE3-bound Aβ40 uptake versus parental cells and 3-fold less uptake of free Aβ40.
  • Sortilin-deficient mice had a two-fold increase in hippocampal sulfatide N24:1 at 5 months (also significant at 10 months), resembling Apoe−/− mice; LRP1 deficiency did not affect sulfatides at 5 months.

Methods

  • Mouse models: Sort1−/− crossed with PDAPP and 5xFAD lines; conditional neuronal Lrp1 knockout using Nse-cre; Sorl1−/− and Apoe−/− mice; primary hippocampal neurons and cortical astrocytes.
  • Binding and uptake: surface plasmon resonance/BIAcore with sortilin ectodomain and APOE2/3/4 proteoliposomes; CHO-mSort and HEK293 cells; confocal immunofluorescence, ELISA, Western blot, metabolic labeling, and quantitative RT-PCR.
  • Lipid and pathology analysis: mass spectrometry for sulfatide N24:1; APP processing by ELISA/Western/BACE1 FRET; plaque burden by thioflavin S; statistics by Student’s t-test, Mann-Whitney U test, and one-way or two-way ANOVA with Bonferroni post hoc tests.

Limitations

  • Stated: the authors cannot exclude that sortilin may also clear free Aβ in vivo; whether APOE3 versus APOE4 binding differences explain AD risk remains unresolved; molecular pathways of APOE-dependent brain sulfatide turnover are poorly understood.
  • Evident from the text: findings rely on mouse models and cell lines rather than human tissue or clinical outcomes; the 5xFAD plaque effect was masked at 10 months; some uptake experiments use overexpression systems; sample sizes and sex are not reported in the provided text.

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Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.1523/jneurosci.2425-12.2013

Cites

63 of 63 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

Statistics

Nothing to recompute.

Verification

Claims the paper makes

27 of 44 cited sources checked · 11 supported · 1 flagged · accuracy not yet measured

Show all 91 claims

  • Probably not a substantial claim. 18
  • It may state two separate claims as one. 11
25 of 25
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    APOE is the major risk factor for sporadic Alzheimer disease.

    “Apolipoprotein (APO) E is the major risk factor for sporadic Alzheimer disease.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    APOE sequesters neurotoxic Aβ peptides in the brain, delivering them to cellular catabolism via neuronal APOE receptors.

    “Among other functions, APOE is proposed to sequester neurotoxic amyloid-β peptides (Aβ) in the brain, delivering them to cellular catabolism via neuronal APOE receptors.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    The receptors involved in APOE/Aβ catabolism remain controversial.

    “Still, the receptors involved in this process remain controversial.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Studies on the role of sortilin in AD have so far solely relied on in vitro studies.

    “Although intriguing, studies on the role of sortilin in AD have so far solely relied on in vitro studies.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Astrocytes are the main source of APOE in the brain.

    “astrocytes, the main source of this apolipoprotein in the brain”
5 of 5

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Metadata

Authors
Carlo, A.-S., Gustafsen, C., Mastrobuoni, G., Nielsen, M. S., Burgert, T., Hartl, D., Rohe, M., Nykjaer, A., Herz, J., Heeren, J., Kempa, S., Petersen, C. M., & Willnow, T. E.
Affiliations
  • Max Delbrück Center (DE)
  • Aarhus University (DK)
  • Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin (DE)
  • The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center (US)
Venue
The Journal of Neuroscience
Published
2013-01-02
Volume
33
Issue
1
Pages
358-370
ISSN
  • 0270-6474 (ISSN-L)
  • 1529-2401
OpenAlex
W2095307581
Cited by
117
References
63
Citations by year
2026: 6 · 2025: 10 · 2024: 6 · 2023: 6 · 2022: 5 · 2021: 8 · 2020: 9 · 2019: 12 · 2018: 6 · 2017: 11 · 2016: 9 · 2015: 8 · 2014: 10 · 2013: 11
FWCI
4.57
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Journal of Neuroscience (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-sa)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (acceptedVersion)
  • MDC Repository (Max-Delbrueck-Center for Molecular Medicine) (submittedVersion)
Funders
  • American Health Assistance Foundation
  • European Commission
  • Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung
  • Lundbeckfonden (R54-2010-5281, R62-2010-5361)
  • National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (R01HL063762, R37HL063762, P01HL020948)
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience › Alzheimer's disease research and treatments
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Neurology › Neuroinflammation and Neurodegeneration Mechanisms
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Cell Biology › Cellular transport and secretion
Keywords
sortilin, apolipoprotein E, Alzheimer's disease, endocytosis, sulfatide, brain lipid metabolism, amyloid plaques, lipoprotein uptake
MeSH terms
Sortilin, Animals, Apolipoproteins E, Astrocytes, Brain, Neurons, Amyloid beta-Peptides, Low Density Lipoprotein Receptor-Related Protein-1, Adaptor Proteins, Vesicular Transport, Mice, Plaque, Amyloid

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