Mitochondria are highly dynamic organelles which undergo constant fusion and fission as part of the mitochondrial quality control. In genetic diseases and age-related neurodegenerative disorders, altered mitochondrial fission-fusion dynamics have been linked to impaired mitochondrial quality control, disrupted organelle integrity and function, thereby promoting neural dysfunction and death. The key enzyme regulating mitochondrial fission is the GTPase Dynamin-related Protein 1 (Drp1), which is also considered as a key player in mitochondrial pathways of regulated cell death.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIn a bioprospection for new antivirals, we tested nonribosomally biosynthesized polypeptide antibiotics in MDCK II cells for their actions on influenza A and B viruses (IAV/IBV). Only tolypin, a mixture of closely related 16-residue peptaibiotics from the fungus Tolypocladium inflatum IE 1897, showed promising activity. It was selected for further investigation and structural characterization by ultrahigh performance liquid chromatography coupled to high-resolution mass spectrometry (UHPLC-HR-MS/MS) and ultrahigh performance liquid chromatography coupled to in-source collision-induced dissociation tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-isCID-HR-MS/MS), revealing 12 partially co-eluting individual peptides that were fully sequenced.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe prevalence of age-related neurodegenerative diseases, such as Parkinson's disease (PD) and related disorders continues to grow worldwide. Increasing evidence links intracellular inclusions of misfolded alpha-synuclein (α-syn) aggregates, so-called Lewy bodies (LB) and Lewy neuritis, to the progressive pathology of PD and other synucleinopathies. Our previous findings established that α-syn oligomers induce S-nitrosylation and deregulation of the E3-ubiquitin ligase Parkin, leading to mitochondrial disturbances in neuronal cells.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPolypharmacy is common among patients with antithrombotic medication, giving rise to concerns about Drug-Related Problems (DRPs). Therefore, these patients would benefit from a Medication Review (MR) along with pharmacist counselling to reduce the risks accompanying polymedication. This prospective study presents a concept for MRs that are applicable in German community pharmacies and can efficiently support pharmacist counselling and improve the safety of drug therapy.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAlzheimer's disease (AD) is prevalent around the world, yet our understanding of the disease is still very limited. Recent work suggests that the cornerstone of AD may include the inflammation that accompanies it. Failure of a normal pro-inflammatory immune response to resolve may lead to persistent central inflammation that contributes to unsuccessful clearance of amyloid-beta plaques as they form, neuronal death, and ultimately cognitive decline.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFextracts (CREs) have gained well-established use for the treatment of menopausal symptoms such as hot flushes and excessive sweating, and weight gain. While the clinical effects of CREs have been well documented, the mechanisms underlying these effects are largely unknown. More recently, the metabolic effects of the CRE Ze 450 were demonstrated in cultured cells in vitro and in mouse models of obesity in vivo.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCinnamic acid, ferulic acid, and the flavonoids quercetin and taxifolin (dihydroquercetin) are naturally occurring compounds found in plants. They are often referred to as polyphenols and are known, among others, for their pharmacological effects supporting health through the inhibition of aging processes and oxidative stress. To improve their bioavailability, pharmacological activities, and safety, the creation of novel flavonoid-phenolic acid hybrids is an area of active research.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInflammation involves the activation of innate immune cells and is believed to play an important role in the development and progression of both infectious and non-infectious diseases such as neurodegeneration, autoimmune diseases, pulmonary and cancer. Inflammation in the brain is marked by the upregulation of translocator protein (TSPO) in microglia. High TSPO levels are also found, for example, in macrophages in cases of rheumatoid arthritis and in malignant tumor cells compared to their relatively low physiological expression.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInt J Mol Sci
August 2023
Specialized pro-resolving mediators (SPMs) and especially Resolvin E1 (RvE1) can actively terminate inflammation and promote healing during lung diseases such as acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Although ARDS primarily affects the lung, many ARDS patients also develop neurocognitive impairments. To investigate the connection between the lung and brain during ARDS and the therapeutic potential of SPMs and its derivatives, mice were crossbred with RvE1 receptor knockout mice.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Modern oral antineoplastic and immune-modulating drugs offer an array of therapeutic advantages, and yet pose challenges in daily use for patients, physicians and pharmacists. In contrast to intravenous administration, these drugs are not subject to direct medical control. Recently, we have seen a huge rise in sales of non-prescription over-the-counter (OTC) medicines the internet without any advice from a healthcare professional.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFFerroptosis is a form of oxidative cell death that is characterized by enhanced lipid peroxidation and mitochondrial impairment. The enzymes acyl-CoA synthetase long-chain family member 4 (ACSL4) and lysophosphatidylcholine acyltransferase (LPCAT) play an essential role in the biosynthesis of polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA)-containing phospholipids, thereby providing the substrates for lipid peroxidation and promoting ferroptosis. To examine the impact of mitochondria in ACSL4/LPCAT2-driven ferroptosis, HEK293T cells overexpressing ACSL4 and LPCAT2 (OE) or empty vector controls (LV) were exposed to 1S, 3R-RSL3 (RSL3) for induction of ferroptosis.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFFerroptosis is a type of oxidative cell death that can occur in neurodegenerative diseases and involves damage to mitochondria. Previous studies demonstrated that preventing mitochondrial dysfunction can rescue cells from ferroptotic cell death. However, the complexity of mitochondrial dysfunction and the timing of therapeutic interventions make it difficult to develop an effective treatment strategy against ferroptosis in neurodegeneration conditions.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNeural stem and progenitor cell (NSPC) transplants provide neuroprotection in models of acute brain injury, but the underlying mechanisms are not fully understood. Here, we provide evidence that caspase-dependent apoptotic cell death of NSPCs is required for sending survival signals to the injured brain. The secretome of dying NSPCs contains heat-stable proteins, which protect neurons against glutamate-induced toxicity and trophic factor withdrawal in vitro, and from ischemic brain damage in vivo.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIn the central nervous system (CNS), insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) regulates myelination by oligodendrocyte (ODC) precursor cells and shows anti-apoptotic properties in neuronal cells in different in vitro and in vivo systems. Previous work also suggests that IGF-1 protects ODCs from cell death and enhances remyelination in models of toxin-induced and autoimmune demyelination. However, since evidence remains controversial, the therapeutic potential of IGF-1 in demyelinating CNS conditions is unclear.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Cimicifuga racemosa extracts (CRE) have obtained a "well-established use status" in the treatment of postmenopausal (i.e., climacteric) complaints, which predominantly include vasomotor symptoms such as hot flushes and sweating, as well as nervousness, irritability, and metabolic changes.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThis study addresses the eventual consequence of cytochrome c oxidase (CytOx) inhibition by ATP at high ATP/ADP ratio in isolated rat heart mitochondria. Earlier, it has been demonstrated that the mechanism of allosteric ATP inhibition of CytOx is one of the key regulations of mitochondrial functions. It is relevant that aiming to maintain a high ATP/ADP ratio for the measurement of CytOx activity effectuating the enzymatic inhibition as well as mitochondrial respiration, optimal concentration of mitochondria is critically important.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPurpose: Previously, we have shown that CyPPA (cyclohexyl-[2-(3,5-dimethyl-pyrazol-1-yl)-6-methyl-pyrimidin-4-yl]-amine), a pharmacological small-conductance calcium-activated potassium (SK)-channel positive modulator, antagonizes lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced cytokine expression in microglial cells. Here, we aimed to test its therapeutic potential for brain-controlled sickness symptoms, brain inflammatory response during LPS-induced systemic inflammation, and peripheral metabolic pathways in mice.
Methods: Mice were pretreated with CyPPA (15 mg/kg IP) 24 hours before and simultaneously with LPS stimulation (2.
About 95% of Glioblastoma (GBM) patients experience tumor relapse as a consequence of resistance to the first-line standard chemotherapy using temozolomide (TMZ). Recent studies reported consistently elevated expression levels of carbonic anhydrase CA2 in recurrent glioblastoma and temozolomide-resistant glioblastoma stem-like cells (GSCs). Here we show that CA2 is preferentially expressed in GSCs and upregulated by TMZ treatment.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMany cell death pathways, including apoptosis, regulated necrosis, and ferroptosis, are relevant for neuronal cell death and share common mechanisms such as the formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and mitochondrial damage. Here, we present the role of the actin-regulating protein cofilin1 in regulating mitochondrial pathways in oxidative neuronal death. Cofilin1 deletion in neuronal HT22 cells exerted increased mitochondrial resilience, assessed by quantification of mitochondrial ROS production, mitochondrial membrane potential, and ATP levels.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFRecently, we reported that the extract Ze 450 mediated protection from oxidative cell damage through a metabolic shift from oxidative phosphorylation to glycolysis. Here, we investigated the molecular mechanisms underlying the effects of Ze 450 against ferroptosis in neuronal cells, with a particular focus on mitochondria. The effects of Ze 450 on respiratory complex activity and hallmarks of ferroptosis were studied in isolated mitochondria and in cultured neuronal cells, respectively.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTraumatic brain injury (TBI) causes acute and subacute tissue damage, but is also associated with chronic inflammation and progressive loss of brain tissue months and years after the initial event. The trigger and the subsequent molecular mechanisms causing chronic brain injury after TBI are not well understood. The aim of the current study was therefore to investigate the hypothesis that necroptosis, a form a programmed cell death mediated by the interaction of Receptor Interacting Protein Kinases (RIPK) 1 and 3, is involved in this process.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Med Chem
August 2021
Blocking the interaction between the apoptosis-inducing factor (AIF) and cyclophilin A (CypA) by the AIF fragment AIF(370-394) is protective against glutamate-induced neuronal cell death and brain injury in mice. Starting from AIF(370-394), we report the generation of the disulfide-bridged and shorter variant AIF(381-389) and its structural characterization by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) in the free and CypA-bound state. AIF(381-389) in both the free and bound states assumes a β-hairpin conformation similar to that of the fragment in the AIF protein and shows a highly reduced conformational flexibility.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAberrant secretion and accumulation of α-synuclein (α-Syn) as well as the loss of parkin function are associated with the pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease (PD). Our previous study suggested a functional interaction between those two proteins, showing that the extracellular α-Syn evoked post-translational modifications of parkin, leading to its autoubiquitination and degradation. While parkin plays an important role in mitochondrial biogenesis and turnover, including mitochondrial fission/fusion as well as mitophagy, the involvement of parkin deregulation in α-Syn-induced mitochondrial damage is largely unknown.
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