PUBLICATION

A {gamma}-secretase inhibitor blocks Notch signaling in vivo and causes a severe neurogenic phenotype in zebrafish

Authors
Geling, A., Steiner, H., Willem, M., Bally-Cuif, L., and Haass, C.
ID
ZDB-PUB-020716-21
Date
2002
Source
EMBO reports   3(7): 688-694 (Journal)
Registered Authors
Bally-Cuif, Laure, Geling, Andrea
Keywords
none
MeSH Terms
  • Alzheimer Disease/metabolism
  • Amyloid Precursor Protein Secretases
  • Amyloid beta-Protein Precursor/metabolism
  • Animals
  • Aspartic Acid Endopeptidases
  • Body Patterning/drug effects
  • Cell Line
  • Endopeptidases/chemistry
  • Endopeptidases/metabolism*
  • Enzyme Inhibitors/pharmacology*
  • Humans
  • In Situ Hybridization
  • Membrane Proteins/metabolism*
  • Microinjections
  • Phenotype
  • Presenilin-1
  • RNA, Messenger/metabolism
  • Receptors, Notch
  • Signal Transduction/drug effects
  • Signal Transduction/physiology*
  • Triglycerides/pharmacology*
  • Zebrafish/embryology
  • Zebrafish/physiology*
  • gamma-Aminobutyric Acid/analogs & derivatives*
  • gamma-Aminobutyric Acid/pharmacology*
PubMed
12101103 Full text @ EMBO Rep.
Abstract
Inhibition of amyloid beta-peptide (Abeta) production by blocking gamma-secretase activity is at present one of the most promising therapeutic strategies to slow progression of Alzheimer's disease pathology. gamma-secretase inhibitors apparently block Abeta generation via interference with presenilin (PS) function. Besides being an essential component of the gamma-secretase complex, PS itself may be an aspartyl protease with gamma-secretase activity, which is not only required for Abeta production but also for a similar proteolytic process involved in Notch signaling. Here we demonstrate that treatment of zebrafish embryos with a known gamma-secretase inhibitor affects embryonic development in a manner indistinguishable from Notch signaling deficiencies at morphological, molecular and biochemical levels. This indicates severe side-effects of gamma-secretase inhibitors in any Notch-dependent cell fate decision and demonstrates that the zebrafish is an ideal vertebrate system to validate compounds that selectively affect Abeta production, but not Notch signaling, under in vivo conditions.
Genes / Markers
Figures
Expression
Phenotype
Mutations / Transgenics
Human Disease / Model
Sequence Targeting Reagents
Fish
Antibodies
Orthology
Engineered Foreign Genes
Mapping