Affiliations: The Adams Super Center for Brain Studies and Sagol School of Neuroscience; The Lily and Avraham Gildor Chair for the Investigation of Growth Factors, The Dr. Diana and Zelman Elton (Elbaum) Laboratory for Neuroendocrinology, Department of Human Molecular Genetics and Biochemistry, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
Correspondence:
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Correspondence to: Illana Gozes, PhD, Professor of Clinical Biochemistry, The Lily and Avraham Gildor Chair for the Investigation of Growth Factors, Director, The Adams Super Center for Brain Studies and The Edersheim Levie-Gitter fMRI Institute, Head, the Dr. Diana and Zelman Elton (Elbaum) Laboratory for Molecular Neuroendocrinology, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel. Tel.: +972 3 640 7240; Fax: +972 3 640 8541; E-mail: igozes@post.tau.ac.il.
Abstract: NAP (NAPVSIPQ, davunetide) is a microtubule stabilizing peptide drug candidate. Here, we set out to identify NAP-like peptides that provide neuroprotection and reduce tau pathology. NAP-like peptides were derived using publically available search engines, which identified sequence homologies in the microtubule subunit tubulin and in the microtubule associated protein, tau. NATLSIHQ (NAT) and STPTAIPQ were derived from tubulin, and TAPVPMPD (TAP) was derived from tau. All peptides provided neuroprotection against the Alzheimer's disease (AD) toxin, the amyloid-β 1–42 peptide, although NAT and TAP were much more potent than STPTAIPQ. NAT also protected astrocytes, while STPTAIPQ was active only at micromolar concentrations. Because NAT and TAP were much more potent than STPTAIPQ in neuroprotection, those peptides were also tested for inhibition of tau-like aggregation (the second protein hallmark pathology of AD). Both NAT and TAP inhibited tau-like aggregation, with NAT being active over a very broad concentration range. NAT also protected in vivo in a frontotemporal dementia transgenic mouse model (Tau-Tg), when tested at the age of ~10 months. Results showed significantly decreased levels of the NAP parent protein, activity-dependent neuroprotective protein in the cerebral cortex of the Tau-Tg which was increased back to normal levels by NAT treatment. This was coupled to protection of Brain-Body weight ratio in the compromised Tau-Tg. With AD being the major tauopathy and with tau taking part in frontotemporal dementia, novel NAP derivatives that reduce tauopathy and provide neuroprotection are of basic and clinical interest.
Keywords: Activity-dependent neuroprotective protein (ADNP), aggregation, microtubules, NAP (davunetide), neuroprotection, peptides, tau, tauopathy, tubulin
