Crystallin-Derived Mini-Chaperones as Protein Aggregation Inhibitors

描述（由申请人提供）：现在已知大量不同的疾病，包括白内障、某些类型的青光眼、阿尔茨海默病、糖尿病和癌症，仅举几例，都具有聚集、错误折叠或修饰的蛋白质沉积物的共同特征。这组疾病的病理学标志是蛋白质聚集和沉积在特定细胞、组织或器官中。病理学的相似性表明，共同的原则，管理蛋白质相互作用的蛋白质错误折叠退行性疾病的基础。因此，当蛋白质折叠/聚集问题在每种疾病中相同时，为一种构象疾病开发的治疗方式也可能适用于另一种构象疾病。透镜晶体蛋白聚集和白内障发生是蛋白质错误折叠和聚集疾病的典型例子。随着时间的推移，透镜中晶状体蛋白聚集的累积效应导致年龄相关性白内障形成。在某些形式的青光眼中，蛋白质myocilin错误折叠并聚集在小梁网中，干扰房水的流出并引起眼内压升高。该项目的目标是开发对蛋白质错误折叠和聚集发挥抑制作用的治疗分子。我们的体外研究表明，向聚集蛋白中加入α-晶状体蛋白阻止了变性/解折叠蛋白的聚集和光散射的进一步增加。我们还发现α-晶状体蛋白亚基中的特定序列具有抑制变性蛋白聚集的能力。然而，α-晶状体蛋白衍生肽（迷你分子伴侣）的全部潜力尚未实现。我们建议开发1-堆叠衍生肽，并测试它们作为能够抑制晶状体蛋白和肌球蛋白蛋白聚集的活性迷你分子伴侣的功能。具体目标如下：具体目标1。a）基于aA-晶状体蛋白衍生的微型伴侣序列设计和合成蛋白质-蛋白质相互作用的肽调节剂。B）使用基于细胞培养的测定方法表征新鉴定的微型分子伴侣的体内活性。具体目的2：研究mini-aA-晶状体蛋白伴侣抑制引起青光眼的突变型肌球蛋白聚集的潜力。基于肽的蛋白质聚集疾病治疗方法的成功开发将提供新的治疗方法。这些创新的研究将为我们提供新的见解，以了解蛋白质错误折叠疾病的潜在干预措施，不仅是眼睛，而且是身体的其他部位。这一努力将扩大广泛的蛋白质错误折叠疾病的治疗策略。 公共卫生相关性：白内障和青光眼，沿着许多其他疾病，是由细胞中蛋白质的异常相互作用引起的。本研究的目的是开发和测试透镜蛋白1-堆叠衍生肽作为能够抑制蛋白质聚集的活性小分子伴侣。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): A large number of diverse diseases, including cataract, some types of glaucoma, Alzheimer disease, diabetes and cancer to name only a few, are now known to share the common feature of aggregated, misfolded or modified protein deposits. The pathological hallmark in this group of diseases is protein aggregation and deposition in specific cells, tissues or organs. The pathological similarities indicate that common principles that govern protein interactions underlie protein misfolding degenerative diseases. Therefore, a therapeutic modality developed for one conformational disease might also be applicable to another conformational disease when the protein folding/aggregation problem is the same in each disease. Lens crystallin aggregation and cataractogenesis is a classic example of a protein misfolding and aggregation disease. Over time, the cumulative effects of crystallin aggregation in the lens results in age-related cataract formation. In certain forms of glaucoma, the protein myocilin misfolds and aggregates in the trabecular meshwork, interfering with the outflow of aqueous humor and causing elevated intraocular pressure. The goal of this project is to develop therapeutic molecules that exert inhibitory actions on protein misfolding and aggregation. Our in vitro studies have shown that the addition of a-crystallin to aggregating proteins stops a further increase in aggregation and light scattering of denaturing/unfolding proteins. We have also found that specific sequences in a-crystallin subunits have the capacity to suppress aggregation of denaturing proteins. However, the full potential of a-crystallin-derived peptides (mini-chaperones) is yet to be realized. We propose to develop 1-crystallin-derived peptides and test their function as active mini-chaperones capable of suppressing crystallin and myocilin protein aggregation. The Specific Aims are the following: Specific Aim 1. a) Design and synthesize peptide modulator(s) of protein-protein interactions based on the aA-crystallin-derived mini-chaperone sequence. b) Characterize the in vivo activity of the newly identified mini-chaperone(s) using cell culture-based assay methods. Specific Aim 2: Investigate the potential of mini-aA-crystallin chaperone for suppressing aggregation of glaucoma-causing mutant myocilin. Successful development of peptide-based therapeutics for protein aggregation diseases will offer new therapeutic approaches. These innovative studies will give us new insights into potential interventions for protein misfolding diseases, not only of the eye but also of other parts of the body. This effort would expand the therapeutic strategies for wide range of protein misfolding diseases. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: Cataract and glaucoma, along with a host of other diseases, result from abnormal interaction of proteins in the cells. The goals of this research are to develop and test lens protein 1-crystallin-derived peptides as active mini-chaperones capable of suppressing protein aggregation.