| 1. |
- Herrmann, Uli S., et al.
(författare)
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Structure-based drug design identifies polythiophenes as antiprion compounds
- 2015
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Ingår i: Science Translational Medicine. - : AMER ASSOC ADVANCEMENT SCIENCE. - 1946-6234 .- 1946-6242. ; 7:299, s. 299ra123-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Prions cause transmissible spongiform encephalopathies for which no treatment exists. Prions consist of PrPSc, a misfolded and aggregated form of the cellular prion protein (PrPC). We explore the antiprion properties of luminescent conjugated polythiophenes (LCPs) that bind and stabilize ordered protein aggregates. By administering a library of structurally diverse LCPs to the brains of prion-infected mice via osmotic minipumps, we found that antiprion activity required a minimum of five thiophene rings bearing regularly spaced carboxyl side groups. Solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance analyses and molecular dynamics simulations revealed that anionic side chains interacted with complementary, regularly spaced cationic amyloid residues of model prions. These findings allowed us to extract structural rules governing the interaction between LCPs and protein aggregates, which we then used to design a new set of LCPs with optimized binding. The new set of LCPs showed robust prophylactic and therapeutic potency in prion-infected mice, with the lead compound extending survival by greater than80% and showing activity against both mouse and hamster prions as well as efficacy upon intraperitoneal administration into mice. These results demonstrate the feasibility of targeted chemical design of compounds that may be useful for treating diseases of aberrant protein aggregation such as prion disease.
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| 2. |
- Klingstedt, Therése, et al.
(författare)
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Synthesis of a library of oligothiophenes and their utilization as fluorescent ligands for spectral assignment of protein aggregates
- 2011
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Ingår i: Organic and biomolecular chemistry. - : Royal Society of Chemistry. - 1477-0520 .- 1477-0539. ; 9:24, s. 8356-8370
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Molecular probes for selective identification of protein aggregates are important to advance our understanding of the molecular pathogenesis underlying protein aggregation diseases. Here we report the chemical design of a library of anionic luminescent conjugated oligothiophenes (LCOs), which can be utilized as ligands for detection of protein aggregates. Certain molecular requirements were shown to be necessary for detecting (i) early non-thioflavinophilic protein assemblies of A beta 1-42 and insulin preceding the formation of amyloid fibrils and (ii) for obtaining distinct spectral signatures of the two main pathological hallmarks observed in human Alzheimers diease brain tissue (A beta plaques and neurofibrillary tangles). Our findings suggest that a superior anionic LCO-based ligand should have a backbone consisting of five to seven thiophene units and carboxyl groups extending the conjugated thiophene backbone. Such LCOs will be highly useful for studying the underlying molecular events of protein aggregation diseases and could also be utilized for the development of novel diagnostic tools for these diseases.
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| 3. |
- Maria Psonka-Antonczyk, Katarzyna, et al.
(författare)
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Nanoscopic and Photonic Ultrastructural Characterization of Two Distinct Insulin Amyloid States
- 2012
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Ingår i: International Journal of Molecular Sciences. - : MDPI AG, POSTFACH, CH-4005 BASEL, SWITZERLAND. - 1661-6596 .- 1422-0067. ; 13:2, s. 1461-1480
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Two different conformational isoforms or amyloid strains of insulin with different cytotoxic capacity have been described previously. Herein these filamentous and fibrillar amyloid states of insulin were investigated using biophysical and spectroscopic techniques in combination with luminescent conjugated oligothiophenes (LCO). This new class of fluorescent probes has a well defined molecular structure with a distinct number of thiophene units that can adopt different dihedral angles depending on its binding site to an amyloid structure. Based on data from surface charge, hydrophobicity, fluorescence spectroscopy and imaging, along with atomic force microscopy (AFM), we deduce the ultrastructure and fluorescent properties of LCO stained insulin fibrils and filaments. Combined total internal reflection fluorescence microscopy (TIRFM) and AFM revealed rigid linear fibrous assemblies of fibrils whereas filaments showed a short curvilinear morphology which assemble into cloudy deposits. All studied LCOs bound to the filaments afforded more blue-shifted excitation and emission spectra in contrast to those corresponding to the fibril indicating a different LCO binding site, which was also supported by less efficient hydrophobic probe binding. Taken together, the multi-tool approach used here indicates the power of ultrastructure identification applying AFM together with LCO fluorescence interrogation, including TIRFM, to resolve structural differences between amyloid states.
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| 4. |
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| 5. |
- Sjölander, Daniel, et al.
(författare)
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Luminescent conjugated oligothiophenes: A novel dye for amyloid diagnostics
- 2013
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Ingår i: XIIIth International Symposium on Amyloidosis. - : GUARD (Groningen Unit for Amyloidosis Research & Development). - 9789082159301 - 9789082159318 ; , s. 179-182
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- The alkaline Congo red staining method has, for almost half a century, been the gold standard of amyloid diagnosis. Unfortunately, the method is both laborious and requires great skill to achieve proper diagnosis. In this study we are presenting an alternative method that is compatible with immunofluorescence typing. We used a novel dye, h-FTAA, designed and synthesized by us. The dye belongs to the novel class of conformation sensitive dyes known as Luminescent conjugated oligothiophenes (LCOs). We examined 37 different cases of systemic amyloidoses from various tissues. It was found that h-FTAA binds to amyloid with higher sensitivity and greater selectivity than Congo red, as was determined by both fluorescence- and light polarization microscopy. Due to the methods ease of use and performance compared to Congo red, it is concluded that h-FTAA is a better first choice for screening of systemic amyloidoses.
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| 6. |
- Wegenast-Braun, Bettina M., et al.
(författare)
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Spectral Discrimination of Cerebral Amyloid Lesions after Peripheral Application of Luminescent Conjugated Oligothiophenes
- 2012
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Ingår i: American Journal of Pathology. - : Elsevier. - 0002-9440 .- 1525-2191. ; 181:6, s. 1953-1960
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In vivo imaging of pathological protein aggregates provides essential knowledge of the kinetics and implications of these lesions in the progression of proteopathies, such as Alzheimer disease. Luminescent conjugated oligothiophenes are amyloid-specific ligands that bind and spectrally distinguish different types of amyloid aggregates. Herein, we report that heptamer formyl thiophene acetic acid (hFTAA) passes the blood-brain barrier after systemic administration and specifically binds to extracellular beta-amyloid deposits in the brain parenchyma (A beta plaques) and in the vasculature (cerebral beta-amyloid angiopathy) of beta-amyloid precursor protein transgenic APP23 mice. Moreover, peripheral application of hFIAA also stained intracellular lesions of hyperphosphorylated Tau protein in P301S Tau transgenic mice. Spectral profiling of all three amyloid types was acquired ex vivo using two-photon excitation. hFTAA revealed a distinct shift in its emission spectra when bound to A beta plaques versus Tau lesions. Furthermore, a spectral shift was observed for A beta plaques versus cerebral beta-amyloid angiopathy, indicating that different amyloid types and structural variances of a specific amyloid type can be distinguished. In conclusion, by adding spectral signatures to amyloid lesions, our results pave the way for a new area of in vivo amyloid imaging, allowing in vivo differentiation of amyloid (sub)types and monitoring changes of their structure/composition over time. (Am J Pathol 2012, 181: 1953-1960 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ajpath.2012.08.031)
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