Protein Folding And Misfolding Neurodegenerative Diseases

Offering all the latest in the study of neurodegenerative diseases, this book reviews the molecular events initiated by unfolded or misfolded proteins leading to conformational human diseases, especially those found in Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s diseases.

Research focused on protein folding, misfolding, and aggregation is leading to major advances across biochemistry and medicine. The elucidation of a folding code is proving to be of extreme importance in the postgenomic era, where a number of orphan genes have been identified for which no clear function has yet been established. This research is starting to shed light on the molecular and biochemical basis of a number of neurodegenerative diseases of dramatic impact. Protein Misfolding in Neurodegenerative Diseases: Mechanisms and Therapeutic Strategies addresses key issues concerning protein misfolding and aggregation in neurodegenerative diseases. Building on recent developments, including the recognition of protein misfolding as both a marker and a causal agent, the text presents the work of those who are actively pursuing more effective treatments, as well as preventative measures, and a possible cure. These include the use of molecular chaperones to control misfolding and novel pharmaceuticals, as well as the potential role of various inhibitors and NSAIDS. A Comprehensive Multifaceted Examination of the Complex Causal Agents Implicated in Protein Misfolding Divided into five sections, this groundbreaking text provides up-to-date accounts for Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, Huntington’s, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and Transmissible Spongiform Encephalitis. It also explores the highly likelihood that multiple factors, including oxidative stress, play a role in these complex diseases.

This eBook is a collection of articles from a Frontiers Research Topic. Frontiers Research Topics are very popular trademarks of the Frontiers Journals Series: they are collections of at least ten articles, all centered on a particular subject. With their unique mix of varied contributions from Original Research to Review Articles, Frontiers Research Topics unify the most influential researchers, the latest key findings and historical advances in a hot research area! Find out more on how to host your own Frontiers Research Topic or contribute to one as an author by contacting the Frontiers Editorial Office: frontiersin.org/about/contact.

The health of the proteome depends upon protein quality control to regulate the proper synthesis, folding, translocation, and clearance of proteins. The cell is challenged constantly by environmental and physiological stress, aging, and the chronic expressions of disease associated misfolded proteins. Substantial evidence supports the hypothesis that the expression of damaged proteins initiates a cascade of molecular events that leads to Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Huntington's disease, and other diseases of protein conformation.

This exciting new book explores the dark side of the molecular protein assembly bringing an updated view of how failures in the homeostatic mechanisms that efficiently regulate protein folding leads to the accumulation of structurally abnormal pathogenic assemblies, encompassing an emerging group of diseases collectively known as "Protein Folding Disorders." This complex and diverse group of chronic and progressive entities are bridged together by their relationship to structural transitions in the native state of specific proteinaceous components, which for reasons poorly understood, convert into polymeric aggregates that generate poorly soluble tissue deposits and which are considered today the culprit of the disease pathogenesis in their respective diseases. Despite the diversity in the amino acid sequence of the different proteins involved in these heterogeneous disorders, all the pathologic conformers can trigger cascades of events ultimately resulting in cell dysfunction and death with devastating clinical consequences in many of the most precious aspects of human existence including personality, cognition, memory, and skilled movements. This book, which is composed of a compilation of chapters authored by outstanding and well-published scientists in the respective fields currently performing active investigations at world renowned universities and research centers, focuses on the growing number of diseases associated with protein misfolding in the central nervous system. Individual chapters are dedicated to the most common neurodegenerative diseases associated with protein aggregation/fibrillization focusing on the nature of the pathogenic species and the cellular pathways involved in the molecular pathogenesis of Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and Huntington's diseases as well as in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, and Prion disorders. A group of contributions is centered on the current knowledge of the intracellular pathways and subcellular organelles affected by the different disease conditions, while others are focused in the emerging pathogenic role of misfolded subunits assembled into neurotoxic soluble oligomers, and in the novel notion of the transmissibility of the protein misfolded species, an innovative concept until recently only accepted for Prion diseases. Lastly, a different set of chapters is dedicated to the evaluation of novel therapeutic strategies for these devastating diseases. Contents: Misfolding, Aggregation, and Amyloid Formation: The Dark Side of Proteins (Agueda Rostagno and Jorge A Ghiso)Oligomers at the Synapse: Synaptic Dysfunction and Neurodegeneration (Emily Vogler, Matthew Mahavongtrakul, and Jorge Busciglio)Prion-Like Protein Seeding and the Pathobiology of Alzheimer's Disease (Lary C Walker)The Tau Misfolding Pathway to Dementia (Alejandra D Alonso, Leah S Cohen, and Viktoriya Morozova)The Biology and Pathobiology of α-Synuclein (Joel C Watts, Anurag Tandon, and Paul E Fraser)Impact of Loss of Proteostasis on Central Nervous System Disorders (Sentiljana Gumeni, Eleni N Tsakiri, Christina-Maria Cheimonidi, Zoi Evangelakou, Despoina Gianniou, Kostantinos Tallas, Eleni-Dimitra Papanagnou, Aimilia D Sklirou, and Ioannis P Trougakos)Protein Misfolding and Mitochondrial Dysfunction in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (Giovanni Manfredi and Hibiki Kawamata)Impact of Mitostasis and the Role of the Anti-Oxidant Responses on Central Nervous System Disorders (Sentiljana Gumeni, Eleni N Tsakiri, Christina-Maria Cheimonidi, Zoi Evangelakou, Despoina Gianniou, Kostantinos Tallas, Eleni-Dimitra Papanagnou, Aimilia D Sklirou, and Ioannis P Trougakos)Propagation of Misfolded Proteins in Neurodegeneration: Insights and Cautions from the Study of Prion Disease Prototypes (Robert C C Mercer, Nathalie Daude,

For decades it has been known that structured conformations are important for the proper functioning of most cellular proteins. However, appreciation that protein folding to the functional conformations as well as the structural maintenance of protein molecules are very complex processes has only emerged during the last ten years. The intimate interplay uncovered by this scientific development led us to realize that perturbations of the protein folding process and disturbances of conformational maintenance are major disease mechanisms. This development has given rise to the concept of conformational diseases and the broader signature of protein folding diseases, comprising diseases in which mutations or environmental stresses may result in a partial misfolding that leads then to alternative conformations capable of disturbing cellular processes. This may happen by self-association (aggregation), as in prion and Alzheimer’s diseases, or by incorporation of alternatively folded subunits into structural entities, as in collagen diseases. Another possibility is that folding to the native structure is impaired or abolished, resulting in decreased stea- state levels of the correctly folded protein, as is observed in cystic fibrosis and 1-antitrypsin deficiency, as well as in many enzyme deficiencies. In addition, deficiencies of proteins that are engaged in assisting and supervising protein folding (protein quality control) may impair the folding of many other proteins, resulting in pathological phenotypes. Examples of this are the spastic paraplegia attributable to mutations in mitochondrial protease/chaperone complexes.

Neurodegenerative disorders such as Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Alzheimer’s disease (AD), Parkinson’s disease (PD), Prion-related disorders (PrD) and Huntington’s disease (HD) share a common neuropathology, primarily featuring the presence of abnormal protein inclusions containing specific misfolded proteins. These groups of diseases are now classified as Protein Misfolding Disorders. This book gives a comprehensive overview of the possible mechanisms involved in Protein Misfolding Disorders and possible therapeutic strategies to treat these diseases. The Ebook provides the most recent evidence addressing the role of cellular stress responses to neurological diseases, along with therapeutic strategies to alleviate ER stress in a disease context. -- Publisher.

Aimed at "drug discoverers" – i.e. any scientist who is interested in neurodegenerative diseases in general, and in finding disease-modifying treatments in particular – the first edition of Molecular Targets in Protein Misfolding and Neurodegenerative Disease will contain both a detailed, discipline-specific coverage (paragraphs on medicinal chemistry, on clinical and preclinical characterization of compounds in development, on target identification and validation, on genetic factors influencing a pathology, etc.) and a drug discovery-oriented, overall evaluation of each target (validation, druggability, existing leads, etc.). Together these will satisfy the needs of various audiences, including in vitro biologists, pharmacologists, medicinal chemists, etc. Written to provide a comprehensive coverage of disease-modifying mechanisms and compounds against neurodegenerative diseases Provides a “drug discovery application oriented perspective, evaluating targets and candidates for their overall therapeutic potential Provides discipline-specific chapters (medicinal chemistry, target validation, preclinical and clinical development Provides an overview on a number of molecular mechanisms (e.g. phosphorylation, chaperon refolding, ubiquitination, autophagy, microtubule transportation, protease cleavage, etc.) with relevance for any disease area Contains a more thorough description of the therapeutic relevance of ~10 specific molecular targets