TY - JOUR
T1 - Therapeutic effects of PKC activators in Alzheimer's disease transgenic mice
AU - Etcheberrigaray, René
AU - Tan, Mathew
AU - Dewachtert, Ilse
AU - Kuipéri, Cuno
AU - Van Der Auwera, Ingrid
AU - Wera, Stefaan
AU - Qiao, Lixin
AU - Bank, Barry
AU - Nelson, Thomas J.
AU - Kozikowski, Alan P.
AU - Van Leuven, Fred
AU - Alkon, Daniel L.
PY - 2004/7/27
Y1 - 2004/7/27
N2 - Alzheimer's disease (AD) characteristically presents with early memory loss. Regulation of K+ channels, calcium homeostasis, and protein kinase C (PKC) activation are molecular events that have been implicated during associative memory which are also altered or defective in AD. PKC is also involved in the processing of the amyloid precursor protein (APP), a central element in AD pathophysiology. In previous studies, we demonstrated that benzolactam (BL), a novel PKC activator, reversed K+ channels defects and enhanced secretion of APPα in AD cells. In this study we present data showing that another PKC activator, bryostatin 1, at subnanomolar concentrations dramatically enhances the secretion of the α-secretase product sAPPα in fibroblasts from AD patients. We also show that BL significantly increased the amount of sAPPα and reduced Aβ40 in the brains of APP[V717I] transgenic mice. In a more recently developed AD double-transgenic mouse, bryostatin was effective in reducing both brain Aβ40 and Aβ42. In addition, bryostatin ameliorated the rate of premature death and improved behavioral outcomes. Collectively, these data corroborate PKC and its activation as a potentially important means of ameliorating AD pathophysiology and perhaps cognitive impairment, thus offering a promising target for drug development. Because bryostatin 1 is devoid of tumor-promoting activity and is undergoing numerous clinical studies for cancer treatment in humans, it might be readily tested in patients as a potential therapeutic agent for Alzheimer's disease.
AB - Alzheimer's disease (AD) characteristically presents with early memory loss. Regulation of K+ channels, calcium homeostasis, and protein kinase C (PKC) activation are molecular events that have been implicated during associative memory which are also altered or defective in AD. PKC is also involved in the processing of the amyloid precursor protein (APP), a central element in AD pathophysiology. In previous studies, we demonstrated that benzolactam (BL), a novel PKC activator, reversed K+ channels defects and enhanced secretion of APPα in AD cells. In this study we present data showing that another PKC activator, bryostatin 1, at subnanomolar concentrations dramatically enhances the secretion of the α-secretase product sAPPα in fibroblasts from AD patients. We also show that BL significantly increased the amount of sAPPα and reduced Aβ40 in the brains of APP[V717I] transgenic mice. In a more recently developed AD double-transgenic mouse, bryostatin was effective in reducing both brain Aβ40 and Aβ42. In addition, bryostatin ameliorated the rate of premature death and improved behavioral outcomes. Collectively, these data corroborate PKC and its activation as a potentially important means of ameliorating AD pathophysiology and perhaps cognitive impairment, thus offering a promising target for drug development. Because bryostatin 1 is devoid of tumor-promoting activity and is undergoing numerous clinical studies for cancer treatment in humans, it might be readily tested in patients as a potential therapeutic agent for Alzheimer's disease.
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U2 - 10.1073/pnas.0403921101
DO - 10.1073/pnas.0403921101
M3 - Article
C2 - 15263077
AN - SCOPUS:3342934646
SN - 0027-8424
VL - 101
SP - 11141
EP - 11146
JO - Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
JF - Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
IS - 30
ER -