Title:Role of Mitochondrial Heat-shock Proteins and Immunophilins in Neuro Degenerative Diseases
Volume: 22
Issue: 14
Author(s): Cristina Daneri-Becerra, Sol M. Ciucci, Gisela Mazaira and Mario D. Galigniana*
Affiliation:
- Departamento de Quimica Biologica, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires,Argentina
Keywords:
Immunophilins, Neurodegeneration, HSP90, FKBP51, FKBP52, Cyclophilin A.
Abstract: Pathophysiologic conditions of neurodegenerative diseases are unquestionably related to
protein misfolding. The accumulation of misfolded proteins into relatively ordered structures such
as fibrillar intracellular and extracellular amyloids results in tissue lesions that lead to neuronal loss
and brain damage. In these pathologies, the occurrence of protein aggregates suggests certain inefficient
or insufficient cellular responses of those molecular chaperones that should properly assist
the folding of the client proteins. In this regard, most experimental models for neurodegenerative
diseases have demonstrated that the overexpression of molecular chaperones provides effective neuroprotection.
A subset of these molecular chaperones corresponds to a group of proteins that exhibit
peptidylprolyl isomerase enzymatic activity, the immunophilins. Most of the family members of
the latter group were first described as being responsible for the immunosuppressive response or
they were reported as members of the chaperone complex associated with HSP90 in steroid receptor
oligomers. In this article, we review some aspects of the liaison between molecular chaperones
and neurodegenerative diseases, in particular heat-shock proteins and immunophilins with demonstrated
influence on the proper function of mitochondria. This article is intended to address a field
that represents a yet critical unmet clinical need for the development of neuroprotective molecules
focused on potentially novel molecular targets.
