Abstract
The presence of the trivalent metallic cations, aluminum and boron, in the culture medium of differentiated human LAN-5 neuroblastoma cells results in increased amounts of specific isomers of microtubule-associated tau proteins. The cells were differentiated to a neuronal phenotype by the addition of retinoic acid. Six-day exposures of the differentiated cells to a 1-mM dose of aluminum or boron yielded increases in tau protein immunoreactivity to the monoclonal antibodies Tau-1 and Alz-50. Significant increases in immunoreactivity were seen at treatment levels of aluminum down to 100 μM. The increases in tau proteins were independent from increases in levels of total cell protein. Control cultures treated with the divalent cations zinc and iron showed no increases in levels of tau proteins.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Argasinski A., Sternberg H., Fingado B., and Huynh P. (1989) Doxorubicin affects tau protein metabolism in human neuroblastoma cells.Neurochem. Res. 14, 927–931.
Baudier J., Lee S-H., and Cole R. D. (1987) Separation of the different microtubule-associated protein species from bovine brain and their mode II phosphorylation by Ca/phospholipid-dependent protein kinase C.J. Biol. Chem. 262, 17584–17590.
Binder L. I., Frankfurter A., and Rebhun L. I. (1985) The distribution of tau in the central nervous system.J. Cell Biol. 101, 1371–1378.
Birchall J. D. and Chappell J. S. (1988) Aluminum, chemical physiology, and Alzheimer’s disease.Lancet 2, 1008–1010.
Brion J. P., Couck A. M., Passareiro E., and Flament-Durand J. (1985) Neurofibrillary tangles of Alzheimer’s disease: An immunohistochemical study.J. Submicrosc. Cytol. 17, 89–96.
Butler M. and Shelanski M. L. (1986) Microheterogeneity of microtubule-associated tau proteins is due to differences in phosphorylation.J. Neurochem. 47, 1517–1522.
Candy J. M., Klinowski J., Perry R. H., Perry E. K., Farbairn A., Oakley A., Carpenter T., Atack J., Blessed G., and Edwardson J. (1986) Aluminosilicates and senile plaque formation in Alzheimer’s disease.Lancet 1, 354–356.
Cleveland D. W., Hwo S-Y., and Kirschner M. W. (1977) Physical and chemical properties of purified tau factor and the role of tau in microtubule assembly.J. Mol. Biol. 116, 227–247.
Crapper D. R., Krishnar S. S., and Quittkat S. (1976) Aluminum neurofibrillary degeneration and Alzheimer’s disease.Brain 99, 67–80.
Francon J., Lennon A. M., Fellous A., Mareck A., Pierre M., and Nunez J. (1982) Heterogeneity of microtubule-associated proteins in brain development.Eur. J. Biochem. 129, 465–471.
Grundke-Iqbal I., Iqbal K., Quinlan M., Tung Y-C., Zaidi M., and Wisniewski H. M. (1986) Microtubule-associated protein tau; a component of Alzheimer paired helical filaments.J. Biol. Chem. 261, 6084–6089.
Hinegardner R. T. (1971) An improved fluorometric assay for DNA.Anal. Biochem. 39, 197–201.
Joachim C. L., Morris J. H., Kosik K. S., and Selkoe D. J. (1987) Tau antisera recognize neurofibrillary tangles in a range of neurodegenerative disordersAnn. Neurol. 22, 514–520.
Kidd M. (1963) Paired helical filaments in electron microscopy of Alzheimer’s disease.Nature 197, 192–193.
Kowall N. W., Pendlebury W. W., Kessler J. B., Perl D. P., and Beal M. F. (1989) Aluminum-induced neurofibrillary degeneration affects a subset of neutrons in rabbit cerebral cortex, basal forebrain, and upper brainstem.Neuroscience 29, 329–337.
Ksiezak-Reding H., Binder L. I., and Yen S-H. (1988) Immunochemical and biochemical characterization of tau proteins in normal and Alzheimer’s disease brains with Alz-50 and Tau-1.J. Biol. Chem. 263, 7948–7953.
Laemmli U. K. (1970) Clevage of structural proteins during the assembly of bacteriophage T4.Nature 227, 680–685.
Lindwall G. and Cole R. D. (1984) Phosphorylation affects the ability of tau protein to promote microtubule assembly.J. Biol. Chem. 259, 5301–5305.
Lowry O. H., Rosebrough N. J., Farr A. L., and Randall R. J. (1951) Protein measurement with the Folin phenol reagent.J. Biol. Chem. 193, 265–275.
Macdonald T. L., Humphreys, H. G., and Martin, R. B. (1987) Promotion of tubulin assembly by aluminum ion in vitro.Science 236, 183–186.
Macdonald T. L. and Martin R. B. (1988) Aluminum ion in biological systems.Trends Biol. Sci. 13, 15–19.
Martyn C. N., Barker D. J., Osmond C., Harris E. C., Edwardson J. A., and Lacey R. F. (1989) Geographical relation between Alzheimer’s disease and aluminum in drinking water.Lancet 1, 59–62
Matsuyama S. S., and Jarvik L. F. (1989) Hypothesis: Microtubules, a key to Alzheimer’s Disease.Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 86, 8152–8156.
McLachland D. R., Lukiw W. J., and Kruck T. P. (1989) New evidence for an active role of aluminum in Alzheimer’s disease.Can. J. Neurol. Sci. 16 (Suppl. 4), 490–497.
Naylor G. J., Sheperd B., Treliving L., McHarg A., Smith A., Ward N., and Harper M. (1990) Tissue aluminum concentrations stability over time, relationship to age, and dietary intake.Biol. Psychiatry 27, 884–890.
Papasozomenos S. C., and Binder L. I. (1987) Phosphorylation determines two distinct species of tau in the central nervous system.Cell Motil. Cytoskel. 8, 210–226.
Pollock N. J., Mirra S. S., Binder L. I., Hansen L. A., and Wood J. G. (1986) Filamentous aggregates in Pick’s disease, progressive supranuclear palsy, and Alzheimer’s disease share antigenic determinants with microtubule-associated protein, tau.Lancet Nov. 22:211.
Selkoe D. J. (1988) Biochemistry of altered brain proteins in Alzheimer’s disease.Ann. Rev. Neurosci. 12, 1–39.
Sidell N., Lucas C. A., and Kreutzberg G. W. (1984) Regulation of acetylcholinesterase activity by retinoic acid in a human neuroblastoma cell line.Exp. Cell. Res. 155, 305–309.
Towbin H., Stehelin T., and Gordon J. (1979) Electrophoretic transfer of protein from polyacrylamide gels to nitrocellulose sheets: procedure and some applications.Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 76, 4354–4356.
Troncoso J. C., Hoffman P. N., Griffin J. W., Hess-Kozlow K. M., and Price D. L. (1985) Aluminum intoxication: A disorder of neurofilament transport in motor neurons.Brain Res. 342, 172–175.
Weingarten M. D., Lockwood A. H., Hwo S-Y., and Kirschner M. W. (1975) A protein factor essential for microtubule assembly.Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 72, 1858–1862.
Wolozin B. L., Pruchnicki A., Dickson D. W., and Davies P. (1986) A neuronal antigen in the brains of Alzheimer’s patients.Science 232, 648–650.
Wood J. G., Mirra S. S., Pollock, N. J., and Binder L. (1986) Neurofibrillary tangles of Alzheimer’s disease share antigenic determinants with the axonal microtubule-associated protein tau.Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 83, 4040–4043.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Mesco, E.R., Kachen, C. & Timiras, P.S. Effects of aluminum on Tau proteins in human neuroblastoma cells. Molecular and Chemical Neuropathology 14, 199–212 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03159936
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03159936