WNT5A Signaling Contributes to A beta-Induced Neuroinflammation and Neurotoxicity
Author
Summary, in English
Neurodegenration is a pathological hallmark of Alzheimer's disease (AD), but the underlying molecular mechanism remains elusive. Here, we present evidence that reveals a crucial role of Wnt5a signaling in this process. We showed that Wnt5a and its receptor Frizzled-5 (Fz5) were up-regulated in the AD mouse brain, and that beta-amyloid peptide (A beta), a major constituent of amyloid plaques, stimulated Wnt5a and Fz5 expression in primary cortical cultures; these observations indicate that Wnt5a signaling could be aberrantly activated during AD pathogenesis. In support of such a possibility, we observed that inhibition of Wnt5a signaling attenuated while activation of Wnt5a signaling enhanced A beta-evoked neurotoxicity, suggesting a role of Wnt5a signaling in AD-related neurodegeneration. Furthermore, we also demonstrated that A beta-induced neurotoxicity depends on inflammatory processes, and that activation of Wnt5a signaling elicited the expression of proinflammatory cytokines IL-1 beta and TNF-alpha whereas inhibition of Wnt5a signaling attenuated the A beta-induced expression of the cytokines in cortical cultures. Our findings collectively suggest that aberrantly up-regulated Wnt5a signaling is a crucial pathological step that contributes to AD-related neurodegeneration by regulating neuroinflammation.
Department/s
- Experimental Pathology, Malmö
- BioCARE: Biomarkers in Cancer Medicine improving Health Care, Education and Innovation
Publishing year
2011
Language
English
Publication/Series
PLoS ONE
Volume
6
Issue
8
Full text
Document type
Journal article
Publisher
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Topic
- Cancer and Oncology
Status
Published
Research group
- Experimental Pathology, Malmö
ISBN/ISSN/Other
- ISSN: 1932-6203