| First Author | Nakata Y | Year | 2012 |
| Journal | J Neurosci | Volume | 32 |
| Issue | 48 | Pages | 17186-96 |
| PubMed ID | 23197711 | Mgi Jnum | J:193057 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:5467470 | Doi | 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.2220-12.2012 |
| Citation | Nakata Y, et al. (2012) Accumulation of alpha-synuclein triggered by presynaptic dysfunction. J Neurosci 32(48):17186-96 |
| abstractText | Pathological examination of dementia with Lewy bodies patients identified the presence of abnormal alpha-synuclein (alphaSyn) aggregates in the presynaptic terminals. alphaSyn is involved in the regulation of soluble N-ethylmaleimide-sensitive factor attachment protein receptor (SNARE) complex. Importantly, alphaSyn-transgenic mouse and postmortem examination of patients with Parkinson's disease have demonstrated the abnormal distribution of SNARE protein in presynaptic terminals. In this study, we investigated the effects of SNARE dysfunction on endogenous alphaSyn using Snap25(S187A/S187A) mutant mice. These mice have homozygous knock-in gene encoding unphosphorylatable S187A-substituted synaptosomal-associated protein of 25 kDa (SNAP-25). The mice displayed a significant age-dependent change in the distribution of alphaSyn and its Ser(129)-phosphorylated form in abnormally hypertrophied glutamatergic nerve terminals in the striatum. Electron-microscopic analysis revealed the abnormally condensed synaptic vesicles with concomitant mislocalization of alphaSyn protein to the periactive zone in the glutamatergic nerve terminals. However, the Snap25(S187A/S187A) mutant mouse harbored no abnormalities in the nigrostriatal dopaminergic neurons. Our present results suggest that SNARE dysfunction is the initial trigger of mislocalization and accumulation of alphaSyn, and probably is an important pathomechanism of alpha-synucleinopathies. |
