Members of the low-density-lipoprotein (LDL) receptor gene family have recently been found to participate in signal transduction pathways during the development of the brain. Reelin, a large secreted protein that bears no resemblance to lipoproteins and is not involved in lipid transport, binds to the extracellular domains of two members of this gene family, termed VLDL receptor (VLDLR) and ApoE receptor 2 (ApoER2). Binding of this ligand activates a cytoplasmic signaling cascade that apparently involves tyrosine kinases as well as the serine/threonine kinases Cdk5 and GSK-3beta. Disruption of this pathway results in abnormal phosphorylation of the microtubule-associated protein tau and therefore is likely to impair axonal transport processes, which are dependent on the normal function of microtubules. ApoER2 and VLDLR both are expressed abundantly on the surface of embryonic neurons as well as on neurons in the mature brain, where they can also function as receptors for Apolipoprotein E (ApoE). ApoE exists in three major isoforms. One of these isoforms, ApoE4 is genetically associated with late-onset Alzheimer disease. The biochemical basis by which ApoE4 predisposes its carriers to late-onset Alzheimer disease is poorly understood. We hypothesize that ApoE4 acts as a competitor for signaling molecules such as Reelin and reduces their binding to the receptors on the neuronal surface, thereby impairing physiological signaling pathways that regulate neuronal transport and synaptic protein transport. This model would provide a mechanistic basis on which the loss of synapses, which correlates with dementia and precedes the formation of plaques and neurofibrillary tangles, could be explained. The goal of the current proposal is to elucidate the cytoplasmic signaling pathways that are activated by the binding of Reelin to its receptors on the neuronal cell surface and to study the effect of Reelin on axonal transport, the activity of molecular motors such as dynein and kinesin, and the transport of synaptic proteins to their target sites.
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