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Mitochondrial superoxide generation induces a parkinsonian phenotype in zebrafish and huntingtin aggregation in human cells.

Accepted version
Peer-reviewed

Type

Article

Change log

Authors

Pinho, Brígida R 
Reis, Sara D 
Hartley, Richard C 
Murphy, Michael P 
Oliveira, Jorge MA 

Abstract

Superoxide generation by mitochondria respiratory complexes is a major source of reactive oxygen species (ROS) which are capable of initiating redox signaling and oxidative damage. Current understanding of the role of mitochondrial ROS in health and disease has been limited by the lack of experimental strategies to selectively induce mitochondrial superoxide production. The recently-developed mitochondria-targeted redox cycler MitoParaquat (MitoPQ) overcomes this limitation, and has proven effective in vitro and in Drosophila. Here we present an in vivo study of MitoPQ in the vertebrate zebrafish model in the context of Parkinson's disease (PD), and in a human cell model of Huntington's disease (HD). We show that MitoPQ is 100-fold more potent than non-targeted paraquat in both cells and in zebrafish in vivo. Treatment with MitoPQ induced a parkinsonian phenotype in zebrafish larvae, with decreased sensorimotor reflexes, spontaneous movement and brain tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) levels, without detectable effects on heart rate or atrioventricular coordination. Motor phenotypes and TH levels were partly rescued with antioxidant or monoaminergic potentiation strategies. In a HD cell model, MitoPQ promoted mutant huntingtin aggregation without increasing cell death, contrasting with the complex I inhibitor rotenone that increased death in cells expressing either wild-type or mutant huntingtin. These results show that MitoPQ is a valuable tool for cellular and in vivo studies of the role of mitochondrial superoxide generation in redox biology, and as a trigger or co-stressor to model metabolic and neurodegenerative disease phenotypes.

Description

Keywords

Huntington's disease, MitoParaquat, Mitochondria, Parkinson's disease, Superoxide, Zebrafish, Animals, Antioxidants, Brain, Humans, Huntingtin Protein, Huntington Disease, Mitochondria, Oxidation-Reduction, Oxidative Stress, Paraquat, Parkinson Disease, Phenotype, Protein Aggregation, Pathological, Reactive Oxygen Species, Rotenone, Superoxides, Tyrosine 3-Monooxygenase, Zebrafish

Journal Title

Free Radic Biol Med

Conference Name

Journal ISSN

0891-5849
1873-4596

Volume Title

130

Publisher

Elsevier BV
Sponsorship
Medical Research Council (MC_UU_00015/3)
Wellcome Trust (110159/Z/15/Z)
Medical Research Council (MC_U105663142)