Lewy-like aggregation of α-synuclein reduces PP2A activity in vitro and in vivo

• Published in: Neuroscience 2012-01, Vol.207, p.288-297
• Main Authors: Wu, Jianjun, Lou, Haiyan, Alerte, Tshianda N. M., Stachowski, Erin K., Chen, Jie, Singleton, Andrew B., Hamilton, Ronald L., Perez, Ruth G.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 0306-4522; 1873-7544
• DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2012.01.028

α-Synuclein (α-Syn) is a chaperone-like protein that is highly implicated in Parkinson’s disease (PD) as well as in Dementia with Lewy Bodies (DLB). Rare forms of PD occur in individuals with mutations of α-Syn or triplication of wild type α-Syn, and in both PD and DLB the intraneuronal inclusions known as Lewy bodies contain aggregated α-Syn that is highly phosphorylated on serine 129. In neuronal cells and in the brains of α-Syn overexpressing transgenic mice, soluble α-Syn stimulates the activity of protein phosphatase 2A (PP2A), a major serine/threonine phosphatase. Serine 129 phosphorylation of α-Syn attenuates its stimulatory effects on PP2A and also accelerates α-Syn aggregation, however, it is unknown if aggregation of α-Syn into Lewy–bodies impairs PP2A activity. To assess for this, we measured the impact of α-Syn aggregation on PP2A activity in vitro and in vivo. In cell free assays, aggregated α-Syn had ~50 % less PP2A-stimulatory-effects than soluble recombinant α-Syn. Similarly in DLB and α-Syn triplication brains, which contain robust α-Syn aggregation with high levels of serine 129 phosphorylation, PP2A activity was also ~50% attenuated. As α-Syn normally stimulates PP2A activity, our data suggest that overexpression of α-Syn or sequestration of α-Syn into Lewy bodies has the potential to alter the phosphorylation state of key PP2A substrates; raising the possibility that all forms of synucleinopathy will benefit from treatments aimed at optimizing PP2A activity.