Progressive Motor Deficit is Mediated by the Denervation of Neuromuscular Junctions and Axonal Degeneration in Transgenic Mice Expressing Mutant (P301S) Tau Protein
Tauopathies include a variety of neurodegenerative diseases associated with the pathological aggregation of hyperphosphorylated tau, resulting in progressive cognitive decline and motor impairment. The underlying mechanism for motor deficits related to tauopathy is not yet fully understood. Here, we use a novel transgenic tau mouse line, Tau 58/4, with enhanced neuron-specific expression of P301S mutant tau to investigate the motor abnormalities in association with the peripheral nervous system. Using stationary beam, gait, and rotarod tests, motor deficits were found in Tau 58/4 mice already 3 months after birth, which deteriorated during aging. Hyperphosphorylated tau was detected in the cell bodies and axons of motor neurons. At the age of 9 and 12 months, significant denervation of the neuromuscular junction in the extensor digitorum longus muscle was observed in Tau 58/4 mice, compared to wild-type mice. Muscle hypotrophy was observed in Tau 58/4 mice at 9 and 12 months. Using electron microscopy, we observed ultrastructural changes in the sciatic nerve of 12-month-old Tau 58/4 mice indicative of the loss of large axonal fibers and hypomyelination (assessed by g-ratio). We conclude that the accumulated hyperphosphorylated tau in the axon terminals may induce dying-back axonal degeneration, myelin abnormalities, neuromuscular junction denervation, and muscular atrophy, which may be the mechanisms responsible for the deterioration of the motor function in Tau 58/4 mice. Tau 58/4 mice represent an interesting neuromuscular degeneration model, and the pathological mechanisms might be responsible for motor signs observed in some human tauopathies.
基金:
China Scholarship Council [201206160050, 2015506610008]; Deltaplan Dementie [686180]; Research Foundation-Flanders (FWO); Interuniversity Attraction Poles (IAP) Network of the Belgian Federal Science Policy Office [P7/16]; Medical Research Foundation Antwerp; Thomas Riellaerts research fund; Belgian Alzheimer Research Foundation (SAO-FRA); Alzheimer Research Center of the University Medical Center Groningen (UMCG); Neurosearch Antwerp
第一作者单位:[1]Univ Groningen, Univ Med Ctr Groningen, Dept Neurosci, Sect Med Physiol, Antonius Deusinglaan 1, NL-9713 AV Groningen, Netherlands[2]Huazhong Univ Sci & Technol, Tongji Med Coll, Tongji Hosp, Dept Med Ultrasound, Wuhan, Hubei, Peoples R China
通讯作者:
推荐引用方式(GB/T 7714):
Yin Zhuoran,Valkenburg Femke,Hornix Betty E.,et al.Progressive Motor Deficit is Mediated by the Denervation of Neuromuscular Junctions and Axonal Degeneration in Transgenic Mice Expressing Mutant (P301S) Tau Protein[J].JOURNAL OF ALZHEIMERS DISEASE.2017,60:S41-S57.doi:10.3233/JAD-161206.
APA:
Yin, Zhuoran,Valkenburg, Femke,Hornix, Betty E.,Mantingh-Otter, Ietje,Zhou, Xingdong...&Boddeke, Erik.(2017).Progressive Motor Deficit is Mediated by the Denervation of Neuromuscular Junctions and Axonal Degeneration in Transgenic Mice Expressing Mutant (P301S) Tau Protein.JOURNAL OF ALZHEIMERS DISEASE,60,
MLA:
Yin, Zhuoran,et al."Progressive Motor Deficit is Mediated by the Denervation of Neuromuscular Junctions and Axonal Degeneration in Transgenic Mice Expressing Mutant (P301S) Tau Protein".JOURNAL OF ALZHEIMERS DISEASE 60.(2017):S41-S57