Abstract
BackgroundCurrently, there is no cure for Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Therapeutics that can modify the early stage of AD are urgently needed. Recent studies have shown that the pathogenesis of AD is closely regulated by an endo/lysosomal asparaginyl endopeptidase (AEP). Inhibition of AEP has been reported to prevent neural degeneration in transgenic mouse models of AD. However, more than 90% of AD cases are age-related sporadic AD rather than hereditary AD. The therapeutic efficacy of AEP inhibition in ageing-associated sporadic AD remains unknown.MethodsThe senescence-accelerated mouse prone 8 (SAMP8) was chosen as an approximate model of sporadic AD and treated with a selective AEP inhibitor,: δ-secretase inhibitor 11. Activation of AEP was determined by enzymatic activity assay. Concentration of soluble amyloid β (Aβ) in the brain was determined by ELISA. Morris water maze test was performed to assess the learning and memory-related cognitive ability. Pathological changes in the brain were explored by morphological and western blot analyses.ResultsThe enzymatic activity of AEP in the SAMP8 mouse brain was significantly higher than that in the age-matched SAMR1 mice. The half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) for δ-secretase inhibitor 11 to inhibit AEP in vitro is was around 150 nM. Chronic treatment with δ-secretase inhibitor 11 markedly decreased the brain AEP activity, reduced the generation of Aβ1–40/42 and ameliorated memory loss. The inhibition of AEP with this reagent not only reduced the AEP-cleaved tau fragments and tau hyperphosphorylation, but also attenuated neuroinflammation in the form of microglial activation. Moreover, treatment with δ-secretase inhibitor 11 prevented the synaptic loss and alleviated dendritic disruption in SAMP8 mouse brain.ConclusionsPharmacological inhibition of AEP can intervene and prevent AD-like pathological progress in the model of sporadic AD. The up-regulated AEP in the brain could be a promising target for early treatment of AD. The δ-secretase inhibitor 11 can be used as a lead compound for translational development of AD treatment.
Highlights
There is no cure for Alzheimer’s disease (AD)
The up-regulated asparaginyl endopeptidase (AEP) in the brain could be a promising target for early treatment of AD
The δ-secretase inhibitor 11 can be used as a lead compound for translational development of AD treatment
Summary
There is no cure for Alzheimer’s disease (AD). The therapeutic efficacy of AEP inhibition in ageing-associated sporadic AD remains unknown. Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most common form of dementia in the elderly, featured by amyloid β-proteins (Aβ) accumulation and tau aggregation. By analyzing brain tissues of AD patients and mouse models, they have found that the endo/lysosomal asparaginyl endopeptidase (AEP) or legumain is elevated and activated during ageing [10, 11], and that the activation of AEP is a crucial step that links ageing to tau cleavage and processing of amyloid precursor protein (APP) at the early stage of AD [10, 12]. Interventions targeting AEP may offer potential therapies in the early stage of disease [14]
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