Studies

Ectodomain shedding, which is the proteolytic release of transmembrane proteins from the cell surface, is crucial for cell-to-cell communication and other biological processes. The metalloproteinase ADAM17 mediates ectodomain shedding of over 50 transmembrane proteins ranging from cytokines and growth factors, such as TNF and EGFR ligands, to signalling receptors and adhesion molecules. Yet, the ADAM17 sheddome is only partly defined and biological functions of the protease have not been fully ...

The earliest defining event in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer´s disease (AD) is the intracerebral deposition of Abeta, which starts at least 20 years before the onset of dementia. The link between Abeta and downstream neurodegeneration leading to dementia remains unclear, a critical gap in knowledge at a time when clinical trials are increasingly shifting to pre-symptomatic disease stages. Consequently, the design of preventive treatment strategies based on biomarkers remains an important challenge. ...

Microglial dysfunction is a key pathological feature of Alzheimer´s disease (AD), but little is known about proteome-wide changes in microglia during the course of AD pathogenesis and their consequences for microglial function. Here, we performed an in-depth proteomic characterization of microglia in two AD mouse models, the overexpression APPPS1 and the knock-in AppNL-G-F (APP-KI) model. Proteome changes were followed from pre-deposition to early, middle and advanced stages of amyloid plaque ...

Loss-of-function mutations in CLN3 cause juvenile Batten disease, featuring neurodegeneration and early-stage neuroinflammation. How loss of CLN3 function leads to early neuroinflammation is not yet understood. Here, we have comprehensively studied microglia from Cln3∆ex7/8 mice, a genetically accurate disease model. Loss of CLN3 function in microglia leads to lysosomal storage material accumulation and abnormal morphology of subcellular organelles. Moreover, pathological proteomic signatures are ...

Niemann-Pick type C (NPC) disease is a rare neurodegenerative disorder mainly caused by autosomal recessive mutations in Npc1 which result in abnormal late endosomal/lysosomal lipid storage. Although microgliosis is one of the prominent pathological features, consequences of NPC1 loss on microglial function and disease outcome remain largely unknown. Here, we provide an in-depth characterization of microglial proteomic signatures and phenotypes in an NPC1-deficient (Npc1-/-) murine model. We ...

To study mechanisms of neurodegenerative diseases, neuronal cell lines are important model systems and are often differentiated into postmitotic neuron-like cells to resemble more closely primary neurons obtained from brains. One such cell line is the Lund Human Mesencephalic (LUHMES) cell line which can be differentiated into dopamine-like neurons and is frequently used to study mechanisms of Parkinson’s disease (PD) and neurotoxicity. Neuronal differentiation of LUHMES cells is commonly verified ...

The metalloprotease ADAM10 is a drug target in Alzheimer's disease, where it cleaves the amyloid precursor protein (APP) and lowers amyloid-beta. Yet, ADAM10 has additional substrates, which may cause mechanism-based side effects upon therapeutic ADAM10 activation. However, they may also serve-in addition to APP-as biomarkers to monitor ADAM10 activity in patients and to develop APP-selective ADAM10 activators. Our study demonstrates that one such substrate is the neuronal cell adhesion protein ...