Neurodegenerative diseases are a heterogeneous group of complex disorders linked by the degeneration of neurons in either the peripheral nervous system or the central nervous system. Their underlying causes are extremely variable and complicated by various genetic and/or environmental factors. These diseases cause progressive deterioration of the neuron resulting in decreased signal transduction and in some cases even neuronal death. Peripheral nervous system diseases may be further categorized by the type of nerve cell (motor, sensory, or both) affected by the disorder. Effective treatment of these diseases is often prevented by lack of understanding of the underlying molecular and genetic pathology. Epigenetic therapy is being investigated as a method of correcting the expression levels of misregulated genes in neurodegenerative diseases.
Neurodengenerative diseases of motor neurons can cause degeneration of motor neurons involved in voluntary muscle control such as muscle contraction and relaxation. This article will cover the epigenetics and treatment of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and spinal muscular atrophy (SMA). See the Motor Neuron Fact Sheet for details regarding other motor neuron diseases. Neurodegenerative diseases of the central nervous system can affect the brain and spinal cord. This article will cover the epigenetics and treatment of Alzheimer's disease (AD), Huntington's disease (HD), and Parkinson's disease (PD). These diseases are characterized by chronic and progressive neuronal dysfunction, sometimes leading to behavioral abnormalities (as with PD), and, ultimately, neuronal death, resulting in dementia.
Neurodegenerative diseases of sensory neurons can cause degeneration of sensory neurons involved in transmitting sensory information such as hearing and seeing. The main group of sensory neuron diseases are hereditary sensory and autonomic neuropathies (HSAN) such as HSAN I, HSAN II, and Charcot-Marie-Tooth Type 2B (CMT2B). Though some sensory neuron diseases are recognized as neurodegenerative, epigenetic factors have not yet been clarified in the molecular pathology.
Epigenetics and epigenetic drugs
The term epigenetics refers to three levels of gene regulation: (1) DNA methylation, (2) histone modifications, and (3) non-coding RNA (ncRNA) function. Briefly, histone-mediated transcriptional control occurs by the wrapping of DNA around a histone core. This DNA-histone structure is called a nucleosome; the more tightly the DNA is bound by the nucleosome, and the more tightly a string of nucleosomes are compressed among each other, the greater the repressive effect on transcription of genes in the DNA sequences near or wrapped around the histones, and vice versa (i.e. looser DNA binding and relaxed compaction leads to a comparatively derepressed state, resulting in facultative heterochromatin or, even further derepressed, euchromatin). At its most repressive state, involving many folds into itself and other scaffolding proteins, DNA-histone structures form constitutive heterochromatin. This chromatin structure is mediated by these three levels of gene regulation. The most relevant epigenetic modifications to treatment of neurodegenerative diseases are DNA methylation and histone protein modifications via methylation or acetylation. In mammals, methylation occurs on DNA and histone proteins. DNA methylation occurs on the cytosine of CpG dinucleotides in the genomic sequence, and protein methylation occurs on the amino termini of the core histone proteins – most commonly on lysine residues. CpG refers to a dinucleotide composed of a cytosine deoxynucleotide immediately adjacent to a guanine deoxynucleotide. A cluster of CpG dinucleotides clustered together is called a CpG island, and in mammals, these CpG islands are one of the major classes of gene promoters, onto or around which transcription factors may bind and transcription can begin. Methylation of CpG dinucleotides and/or islands within gene promoters is associated with transcriptional repression via interference of transcription factor binding and recruitment of transcriptional repressors with methyl binding domains. Methylation of intragenic regions is associated with increased transcription. The group of enzymes responsible for addition of methyl groups to DNA are called DNA methyltransferases (DNMTs). The enzyme responsible for removal of methyl group are called DNA demethylases. The effects of histone methylation are residue dependent (e.g. which amino acid on which histone tail is methylated) therefore the resulting transcriptional activity and chromatin regulation can vary. The enzymes responsible for the addition of methyl groups to histones are called histone methyltransferases (HMTs). The enzymes responsible for the removal of methyl groups from histone are histone demethylases. Acetylation occurs on the lysine residues found at the amino N-terminal of histone tails. Histone acetylation is most commonly associated with relaxed chromatin, transcriptional derepression, and thus actively transcribed genes. Histone acetyltransferases (HATs) are enzymes responsible for the addition of acetyl groups, and histone deacetylases (HDACs) are enzymes responsible for the removal of acetyl groups. Therefore, the addition or removal of an acetyl group to a histone can alter the expression of nearby genes. The majority of drugs being investigated are inhibitors of proteins that remove acetyl from histones or histone deacetylases (HDACs). Briefly, ncRNAs are involved in signaling cascades with epigenetic marking enzymes such as HMTs, and/or with RNA interference(RNAi) machinery. Frequently these signaling cascades result in epigenetic repression (for one example, see X-chromosome inactivation), though there are some cases in which the opposite is true. For example, BACE1-AS ncRNA expression is upregulated in Alzheimer's disease patients and results in increased stability of BACE1 – the mRNA precursor to an enzyme involved in Alzheimer's disease.
Epigenetic drugs target the proteins responsible for modifications on DNA or histone. Current epigenetic drugs include but are not limited to: HDAC inhibitors (HDACi), HAT modulators, DNA methyltransferase inhibitors, and histone demethylase inhibitors. The majority of epigenetic drugs tested for use against neurodegenerative diseases are HDAC inhibitors; however, some DNMT inhibitors have been tested as well. While the majority of epigenetic drug treatments have been conducted in mouse models, some experiments have been performed on human cells as well as in human drug trials (see table below). There are inherent risks in using epigenetic drugs as therapies for neurodegenerative disorders as some epigenetic drugs (e.g. HDACis such as sodium butyrate) are non-specific in their targets, which leaves potential for off-target epigenetic marks causing unwanted epigenetic modifications.
+ Epigenetic DrugsFunctionClassificationDrugALSAD HDPDSMADNA-methylation inhibitorchemical analogue of cytidineAzathioprineM (ny)M (ny)HDAC inhibitor (small molecule)benzamideM344MC 19fatty acidSodium butyrateM (y) 5, 6, 7 ; H (ny)D (y) 11M (y) 14; R (y) 15; D (y) 16, 18; H (ny)MC 20; M (y) 21; H (ny)Sodium phenylbutyrateM (y) 1; H (y) 2M (y) 8; H (ny)H (ys) 12MC 20; H (v) 21, 22Valproic acidM (y) 2; H (ni) 3M (y) 9; H (ny)D (y) 11R (y) 17; H (ny)MC 23, 24; M (y) 25; H (v) 26, 27, 28, 29hydroxamic acidTrichostatin AM (y) 4; H (ny)M (y) 10; H (ny)MC 13; D (y) 11M (y) 30, 31; H (ny)Vorinostat (suberanilohydroxamic acid-SAHA)M (y) 9; H (ny)MC 13; D (y) 11D (y) 18MC 32, 33; M (y) 34; H (ny)
Neurodegenerative diseases of motor neurons
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig's disease, is a motor neuron disease that involves neurodegeneration. All skeletal muscles in the body are controlled by motor neurons that communicate signals from the brain to the muscle through a neuromuscular junction. When the motor neurons degenerate, the muscles no longer receive signals from the brain and begin to waste away. ALS is characterized by stiff muscles, muscle twitching, and progressive muscle weakness from muscle wasting. The parts of the body affected by early symptoms of ALS depend on which motor neurons in the body are damaged first, usually the limbs. As the disease progresses most patients are unable to walk or use their arms and eventually develop difficulty speaking, swallowing and breathing. Most patients retain cognitive function and sensory neurons are generally unaffected. Patients are often diagnosed after the age of 40 and the median survival time from onset to death is around 3–4 years. In the final stages, patients can lose voluntary control of eye muscles and often die of respiratory failure or pneumonia as a result of degeneration of the motor neurons and muscles required for breathing. Currently there is no cure for ALS, only treatments that may prolong life.
Genetics and underlying causes
To date, multiple genes and proteins have been implicated in ALS. One of the common themes between many of these genes and their causative mutations is the presence of protein aggregates in motor neurons. Other common molecular features in ALS patients are altered RNA metabolism and general histone hypoacetylation.
SOD1The SOD1 gene on chromosome 21 that codes for the superoxide dismutase protein is associated with 2% of cases and is believed to be transmitted in an autosomal dominant manner. Many different mutations in SOD1 have been documented in ALS patients with varying degrees of progressiveness. SOD1 protein is responsible for destroying naturally occurring, but harmful superoxide radicals produced by the mitochondria. Most of the SOD1 mutations associated with ALS are gain-of-function mutations in which the protein retains its enzymatic activity, but aggregate in motor neurons causing toxicity. Normal SOD protein is also implicated in other cases of ALS due to potentially cellular stress. An ALS mouse model through gain-of-function mutations in SOD1 has been developed. c9orf72 A gene called c9orf72 was found to have a hexanucleotide repeat in the non-coding region of the gene in association with ALS and ALS-FTD. These hexanucleotide repeats may be present in up 40% of familial ALS cases and 10% of sporadic cases. C9orf72 likely functions as a guanine exchange factor for a small GTPase, but this is likely not related to the underlying cause of ALS. The hexanucleotide repeats are likely causing cellular toxicity after they are spliced out of the c9orf72 mRNA transcripts and accumulate in the nuclei of affected cells. UBQLN2 The UBQLN2 gene encodes the protein ubiquilin 2 which is responsible for controlling the degradation of ubiquitinated proteins in the cell. Mutations in UBQLN2 interfere with protein degradation resulting in neurodegeneration through abnormal protein aggregation. This form of ALS is X chromosome-linked and dominantly inherited and can also be associated with dementia.
Epigenetic treatment with HDAC inhibitors
ALS patients and mouse models show general histone hypoacetylation that can ultimately trigger apoptosis of cells. In experiments with mice, HDAC inhibitors counteract this hypoacetylation, reactivate aberrantly down-regulated genes, and counteract apoptosis initiation. Furthermore, HDAC inhibitors are known to prevent SOD1 protein aggregates in vitro. Sodium phenylbutyrate Sodium phenylbutyrate treatment in a SOD1 mouse model of ALS showed improved motor performance and coordination, decreased neural atrophy and neural loss, and increased weight gain. Release of pro-apoptotic factors was also abrogated as well as a general increase in histone acetylation. A human trial using phenylbutyrate in ALS patients showed some increase in histone acetylation, but the study did not report whether ALS symptoms improved with treatment.