Accelerated amyloid deposition in the brains of transgenic mice coexpressing mutant presenilin 1 and amyloid precursor proteins

Neuron. 1997 Oct;19(4):939-45. doi: 10.1016/s0896-6273(00)80974-5.

Abstract

Missense mutations in two related genes, termed presenilin 1 (PS1) and presenilin 2 (PS2), cause dementia in a subset of early-onset familial Alzheimer's disease (FAD) pedigrees. In a variety of experimental in vitro and in vivo settings, FAD-linked presenilin variants influence the processing of the amyloid precursor protein (APP), leading to elevated levels of the highly fibrillogenic Abeta1-42 peptides that are preferentially deposited in the brains of Alzheimer Disease (AD) patients. In this report, we demonstrate that transgenic animals that coexpress a FAD-linked human PS1 variant (A246E) and a chimeric mouse/human APP harboring mutations linked to Swedish FAD kindreds (APP swe) develop numerous amyloid deposits much earlier than age-matched mice expressing APP swe and wild-type Hu PS1 or APP swe alone. These results provide evidence for the view that one pathogenic mechanism by which FAD-linked mutant PS1 causes AD is to accelerate the rate of beta-amyloid deposition in brain.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Aging / physiology
  • Alzheimer Disease / genetics
  • Alzheimer Disease / metabolism
  • Alzheimer Disease / pathology
  • Amyloid / biosynthesis*
  • Amyloid beta-Peptides / biosynthesis*
  • Amyloid beta-Peptides / genetics
  • Amyloid beta-Protein Precursor / biosynthesis*
  • Animals
  • Brain / metabolism*
  • Brain / pathology
  • Family
  • Humans
  • Membrane Proteins / biosynthesis*
  • Membrane Proteins / genetics
  • Mice
  • Mice, Transgenic
  • Pedigree
  • Presenilin-1
  • Recombinant Fusion Proteins / biosynthesis
  • Sweden

Substances

  • Amyloid
  • Amyloid beta-Peptides
  • Amyloid beta-Protein Precursor
  • Membrane Proteins
  • PSEN1 protein, human
  • Presenilin-1
  • Recombinant Fusion Proteins