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  • Calpain mediated expansion of CD4+ cytotoxic T cells in rodent models of Parkinson's disease.

Calpain mediated expansion of CD4+ cytotoxic T cells in rodent models of Parkinson's disease.

Experimental neurology (2020-04-18)
Azizul Haque, Supriti Samantaray, Varduhi H Knaryan, Mollie Capone, Azim Hossain, Denise Matzelle, Raghavendar Chandran, Donald C Shields, Ariana Q Farrand, Heather A Boger, Naren L Banik
ABSTRACT

Parkinson's disease (PD), a debilitating progressive degenerative movement disorder associated with loss of dopaminergic (DA) neurons in the substantia nigra (SN), afflicts approximately one million people in the U.S., including a significant number of Veterans. Disease characteristics include tremor, rigidity, postural instability, bradykinesia, and at a cellular level, glial cell activation and Lewy body inclusions in DA neurons. The most potent medical/surgical treatments do not ultimately prevent disease progression. Therefore, new therapies must be developed to halt progression of the disease. While the mechanisms of the degenerative process in PD remain elusive, chronic inflammation, a common factor in many neurodegenerative diseases, has been implicated with associated accumulation of toxic aggregated α-synuclein in neurons. Calpain, a calcium-activated cysteine neutral protease, plays a pivotal role in SN and spinal cord degeneration in PD via its role in α-synuclein aggregation, activation/migration of microglia and T cells, and upregulation of inflammatory processes. Here we report an increased expression of a subset of CD4+ T cells in rodent models of PD, including MPTP (1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine) mice and DSP-4 [N-(2-chloroethyl)-N-ethyl-2-bromobenzylamine hydrochloride]/6-hydroxydopamine rats, which produced higher levels of perforin and granzyme B - typically found in cytotoxic T cells. Importantly, the CD4+ cytotoxic subtype was attenuated following calpain inhibition in MPTP mice, suggesting that calpain and this distinct CD4+ T cell subset may have critical roles in the inflammatory process, disease progression, and neurodegeneration in PD.

MATERIALS
Product Number
Brand
Product Description

Sigma-Aldrich
Anti-Tyrosine Hydroxylase Antibody, Chemicon®, from rabbit
Sigma-Aldrich
1-Methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine hydrochloride, powder
Sigma-Aldrich
6-Hydroxydopamine hydrochloride, ≥97% (titration), powder
Sigma-Aldrich
Anti-NeuN Antibody, clone A60, clone A60, Chemicon®, from mouse
Sigma-Aldrich
Anti-Glyceraldehyde-3-Phosphate Dehydrogenase Antibody, clone 6C5, clone 6C5, Chemicon®, from mouse
Sigma-Aldrich
Calpain Inhibitor Set, The Calpain Inhibitor Set controls the biological activity of Calpain. This small molecule/inhibitor is primarily used for Protease Inhibitors applications.