Heat Shock Proteins And The Brain Implications For Neurodegenerative Diseases And Neuroprotection

With the prevalence of neurodegenerative diseases on the rise as average life expectancy increases, the hunt for effective treatments and preventive measures for these disorders is a pressing challenge. Neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease, Huntington’s disease, Parkinson’s disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis have been termed ‘protein misfolding disorders’ that are char- terized by the neural accumulation of protein aggregates. Manipulation of the cellular stress response involving the induction of heat shock proteins offers a the- peutic strategy to counter conformational changes in neural proteins that trigger pathogenic cascades resulting in neurodegenerative diseases. Heat shock proteins are protein repair agents that provide a line of defense against misfolded, aggregati- prone proteins. Heat Shock Proteins and the Brain: Implications for Neurodegenerative Diseases and Neuroprotection reviews current progress on neural heat shock proteins (HSP) in relation to neurodegenerative diseases (Part I), neuroprotection (Part II), ext- cellular HSP (Part III) and aging and control of life span (Part IV). Key basic and clinical research laboratories from major universities and hospitals around the world contribute chapters that review present research activity and importantly project the field into the future. The book is a must read for researchers, postdoctoral fellows and graduate students in the fields of Neuroscience, Neurodegenerative Diseases, Molecular Medicine, Aging, Physiology, Pharmacology and Pathology.

This work is concerned with a group of proteins which were originally consid ered to be an esoteric phenomenon but which have now been shown to play critical roles both in normal and stressed cells as well as being involved in a variety of human diseases. It is the purpose of this work to give a comprehen sive view of these proteins and their various aspects. After an introductory chapter providing an overview of these proteins, the work is divided into four main sections each of which deals with one important aspect of these proteins. Thus, the first section contains a series of chapters which describe individual stress proteins and their roles in particular biological phenomena. Evidently, the induction of these proteins by elevated tempera ture or other stresses is their defining feature and the second section of this book therefore considers the regulation of stress protein gene expression both by stressful stimuli such as elevated temperature or ischaemia and by non stressful stimuli such as cytokines.

This valuable new title addresses the role of heat shock proteins and cellular stress responses in the brain, with a major focus on nerve cells and glia, namely oligodendrocytes and astrocytes. Heat shock proteins are involved in many physiological processes, including development and differentiation, organisation of the cytoarchitecture by binding to cytoskeletal elements, and regulation of the balance between cell death and survival.

The book Heat Shock Proteins in Neuroscience provides the most comprehensive review on contemporary knowledge on the role of HSP in signaling pathways relevant to a number of diseases. Using an integrative approach, the contributors provide a synopsis of novel mechanisms, signal transduction pathways. To enhance the ease of reading and comprehension, this book has been subdivided into various section including; Section I, reviews current progress on our understanding of Neurological Aspects of HSP; Section II, focuses on Aspects of HSP in Neurodegenerative Diseases and Disorders, Section III, emphasizes the importance of HSP in Multiple Sclerosis; Section IV, reviews critical Aspects of HSP in Alzheimer’s Disease and Section V, gives a comprehensive update of the Development of HSP-Based Therapies for Neurological Disorders. Key basic and clinical research laboratories from major universities, academic medical hospitals, biotechnology and pharmaceutical laboratories around the world have contributed chapters that review present research activity and importantly project the field into the future. The book is a must read for starters and professionals in the fields of Neurology and Neurosciences, Translational Medicine, Clinical Research, Human Physiology, Biotechnology, Cell & Molecular Medicine, Pharmaceutical Scientists and Researchers involved in Drug Discovery.

Neuroscience Perspectives provides multidisciplinary reviews of topics in one of the most diverse and rapidly advancing fields in the life sciences. Cells respond to temperature elevation and other traumas by inducing a set of genes (cell stream genes) encoding cell stress (heat shock) proteins which may play important roles in cellular repair and/or protective mechanisms. This book surveys the current state of knowledge concerning the expression of heat shock genes and proteins in the nervous system following such traumatic events as hyperthermia, ischemia, and tissue wounding. The possible neuroprotective effects of the heat shock response are discussed. In addition to reviewing progress in animal model systems, this book discusses heat shock proteins such as ubiquitin in relation to human neurodegenerative diseases. Each chapter presents an overview of a specific subject area and includes current results from each authors laboratory and a viewpoint on future research directions. The book is organized in two parts: the first part deals with cell stress genes and their protein products; the second part deals with ubiquitin and the nervous system. The chapters are grouped so that each of the two sections begins with a description of the basic molecular cell biology of heat shock proteins or ubiquitin. Whether you are a new recruit to neuroscience or an established expert, look to this series for one-stop sources for the historical, physiological, pharmacological, biochemical, molecular biology and therapeutic aspects of your chosen research areas.

Given the very limited capacity of regeneration in the brain, protecting neurons that are on the brink of death is a major challenge for basic and clinical neuroscience, with implications for a broad spectrum of acute and chronic neurological and psychiatric diseases. This book brings together leading experts from neurobiology, neurophysiology, neuropharmacology, neuroimmunology and clinical neuroscience to highlight the most recent milestones in this rapidly evolving field. The book will serve as a reference for both basic neuroscientists and clinicians interested in an authoritative update on the molecular and cellular biology of neuroprotection and its promises for new therapeutic strategies.

Oxidative stress is the result of an imbalance in pro-oxidant/antioxidant homeostasis that leads to the generation of toxic reactive oxygen species. Brain cells are continuously exposed to reactive oxygen species generated by oxidative metabolism, and in certain pathological conditions defense mechanisms against oxygen radicals may be weakened and/or overwhelmed. DNA is a potential target for oxidative damage, and genomic damage can contribute to neuropathogenesis. It is important therefore to identify tools for the quantitative analysis of DNA damage in models on neurological disorders. This book presents detailed information on various neurodegenerative disorders and their connection with oxidative stress. This information will provide clinicians with directions to treat these disorders with appropriate therapy and is also of vital importance for the drug industries for the design of new drugs for treatment of degenerative disorders. * Contains the latest information on the subject of neurodegenerative disorders * Reflects on various factors involved in degeneration and gives suggestions for how to tackle these problems

Protein carbonylation has attracted the interest of a great number of laboratories since the pioneering studies at the Earl Stadtman’s lab at NIH started in early 1980s. Since then, detecting protein carbonyls in oxidative stress situations became a highly efficient tool to uncover biomarkers of oxidative damage in normal and altered cell physiology. In this book, research groups from several areas of interest have contributed to update the knowledge regarding detection, analyses and identification of carbonylated proteins and the sites where these modifications occur. The scientific community will benefit from these reviews since they deal with specific, detailed technical approaches to study formation and detection of protein carbonyls. Moreover, the biological impact of such modifications in metabolic, physiologic and structural functions and, how these alterations can help understanding the downstream effects on cell function are discussed. Oxidative stress occurs in all living organisms and affects proteins and other macromolecules: Protein carbonylation is a measure of oxidative stress in biological systems Mass spectrometry, fluorescent labelling, antibody based detection, biotinylated protein selection and other methods for detecting protein carbonyls and modification sites in proteins are described Aging, neurodegenerative diseases, obstructive pulmonary diseases, malaria, cigarette smoke, adipose tissue and its relationship with protein carbonylation Direct oxidation, glycoxidation and modifications by lipid peroxidation products as protein carbonylation pathways Emerging methods for characterizing carbonylated protein networks and affected metabolic pathways