Exploring the role of N-acetyltransferases in diseases:a focus on N-acetyltransferase 9 in neurodegeneration

Acetyltransferases,required to transfer an acetyl group on protein are highly conserved proteins that play a crucial role in development and disease.Protein acetylation is a common post-translational modification pivotal to basic cellular processes.Close to 80%-90%of proteins are acetylated during translation,which is an irreversible process that affects protein structure,function,life,and localization.In this review,we have discussed the various N-acetyltransferases present in humans,their function,and how they might play a role in diseases.Furthermore,we have focused on N-acetyltransferase 9 and its role in microtubule stability.We have shed light on how N-acetyltransferase 9 and acetylation of proteins can potentially play a role in neurodegenerative diseases.We have specifically discussed the N-acetyltransferase 9-acetylation independent function and regulation of c-Jun N-terminal kinase signaling and microtubule stability during development and neurodegeneration.

SARS-CoV2 Nsp3 protein triggers cell death and exacerbates amyloid β42-mediated neurodegeneration

Infection caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2(SARS-CoV2)virus,responsible for the coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19)pandemic,induces symptoms including increased inflammatory response,severe acute respiratory syndrome(SARS),cognitive dysfunction like brain fog,and cardiovascular defects.Long-term effects of SARS-CoV2 COVID-19 syndrome referred to as post-COVID-19 syndrome on age-related progressive neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's disease remain understudied.Using the targeted misexpression of individual SARS-CoV2 proteins in the retinal neurons of the Drosophila melanogaster eye,we found that misexpression of nonstructural protein 3(Nsp3),a papain-like protease,ablates the eye and generates dark necrotic spots.Targeted misexpression of Nsp3 in the eye triggers reactive oxygen species production and leads to apoptosis as shown by cell death reporters,terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase(TdT)dUTP Nick-end labeling(TUNEL)assay,and dihydroethidium staining.Furthermore,Nsp3 misexpression activates both apoptosis and autophagy mechanism(s)to regulate tissue homeostasis.Transient expression of SARS-CoV2 Nsp3 in murine neuroblastoma,Neuro-2a cells,significantly reduced the metabolic activity of these cells and triggers cell death.Misexpression of SARS-CoV2 Nsp3 in an Alzheimer's disease transgenic fly eye model(glass multiple repeats[GMR]>amyloidβ42)further enhances the neurodegenerative rough eye phenotype due to increased cell death.These findings suggest that SARS-CoV2 utilizes Nsp3 protein to potentiate cell death response in a neurodegenerative disease background that has high pre-existing levels of neuroinflammation and cell death.

Exploring the efficacy of natural products in alleviating Alzheimer’s disease

Alzheimer’s disease(hereafter AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder that affects the central nervous system. There are multiple factors that cause AD, viz., accumulation of extracellular Amyloid-beta 42 plaques, intracellular hyper-phosphorylated Tau tangles, generation of reactive oxygen species due to mitochondrial dysfunction and genetic mutations. The plaques and tau tangles trigger aberrant signaling, which eventually cause cell death of the neurons. As a result, there is shrinkage of brain, cognitive defects, behavioral and psychological problems. To date, there is no direct cure for AD. Thus, scientists have been testing various strategies like screening for the small inhibitor molecule library or natural products that may block or prevent onset of AD. Historically, natural products have been used in many cultures for the treatment of various diseases. The research on natural products have gained importance as the active compounds extracted from them have medicinal values with reduced side effects, and they are bioavailable. The natural products may target the proteins or members of signaling pathways that get altered in specific diseases. Many natural products are being tested in various animal model systems for their role as a potential therapeutic target for AD, and to address questions about how these natural products can rescue AD or other neurodegenerative disorders. Some of these products are in clinical trials and results are promising because of their neuroprotective, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, anti-amyloidogenic, anticholinesterase activities and easy availability. This review summarizes the use of animal model systems to identify natural products, which may serve as potential therapeutic targets for AD.

Hippo signaling:bridging the gap between cancer and neurodegenerative disorders

During development,regulation of organ size requires a balance between cell proliferation,growth and cell death.Dysregulation of these fundamental processes can cause a variety of diseases.Excessive cell proliferation results in cancer whereas excessive cell death results in neurodegenerative disorders.Many signaling pathways known-to-date have a role in growth regulation.Among them,evolutionarily conserved Hippo signaling pathway is unique as it controls both cell proliferation and cell death by a variety of mechanisms during organ sculpture and development.Neurodegeneration,a complex process of progressive death of neuronal population,results in fatal disorders with no available cure to date.During normal development,cell death is required for sculpting of an organ.However,aberrant cell death in neuronal cell population can result in neurodegenerative disorders.Hippo pathway has gathered major attention for its role in growth regulation and cancer,however,other functions like its role in neurodegeneration are also emerging rapidly.This review highlights the role of Hippo signaling in cell death and neurodegenerative diseases and provide the information on the chemical inhibitors employed to block Hippo pathway.Understanding Hippo mediated cell death mechanisms will aid in development of reliable and effective therapeutic strategies in future.

Signaling interactions among neurons impact cell fitness and death in Alzheimer's disease

The pathology of Alzheimer’s disease involves a long preclinical period,where the characteristic clinical symptoms of the changes in the brain are undetectable.During the preclinical period,homeostatic mechanisms may help prevent widespread cell death.Evidence has pointed towards selective cell death of diseased neurons playing a potentially protective role.As the disease progresses,dysregulation of signaling pathways that govern cell death contributes to neurodegeneration.Aberrant activation of the c-Jun N-terminal kinase pathway has been established in human and animal models of Alzheimer’s disease caused by amyloid-beta 42-or tau-mediated neurodegeneration.Clonal mosaic studies in Drosophila that examine amyloid-beta 42 in a subset of neurons suggest complex interplay between amyloid-beta 42-expressing and wild-type cells.This review examines the role of c-Jun N-terminal kinase signaling in the context of cell competition and short-range signaling interactions between amyloid-beta 42-expressing and wild-type neurons.Cell competition is a conserved phenomenon regulating tissue integrity by assessing the fitness of cells relative to their neighbors and eliminating suboptimal cells.Somatic clones of amyloid-beta 42 that juxtapose genetically distinct neuronal cell populations show promise for studying neurodegeneration.Generating genetic mosaics with labeled clones of amyloid-beta 42-or tau-expressing and wild-type neurons will allow us to understand how short-range signaling alterations trigger cell death in neurons and thereby contribute to the progression of Alzheimer’s disease.These approaches have the potential to uncover biomarkers for early Alzheimer’s disease detection and new therapeutic targets for intervention.