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BMS3052 > 37. Neurodegenerative Disorders - Introduction > Flashcards

37. Neurodegenerative Disorders - Introduction Flashcards

1
Q

Define

Oxidative stress

A

an imbalance of free radicals and antioxidants in the body, which can lead to cell and tissue damage

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2
Q

Define

Epigenetics

A

the study of changes in organisms caused by modification of gene expression rather than alteration of the genetic code itself

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3
Q

Define

Chromatin remodelling

A

molecules attach to tails of histone, altering the extent to which DNA is wrapped around it, changing the state of chromatin

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4
Q

Define

DNA methylation

A

methyl groups added to region near the promoter of the gene, activating or repressing gene transcription

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5
Q

Define

Alzheimer’s disease (AD)

A

a degenerative brain disease of unknown cause that is the most common form of dementia, that usually starts in late middle age or in old age, that results in progressive memory loss, impaired thinking, disorientation, and changes in personality and mood, and that is marked histologically by the degeneration of brain neurons especially in the cerebral cortex and by the presence of neurofibrillary tangles and plaques containing beta-amyloid

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6
Q

Define

Parkinson’s disease (PD)

A

a chronic progressive neurological disease chiefly of later life that is linked to decreased dopamine production in the substantia nigra and is marked especially by tremor of resting muscles, rigidity, slowness of movement, impaired balance, and a shuffling gait

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7
Q

Define

Amyotrophic Lateral Schlerosis (ALS)

A

a rare progressive degenerative fatal disease affecting the motor neurons, usually beginning in middle age, and characterized especially by increasing and spreading muscular weakness and atrophy

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8
Q

Define

Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD)

A

a rare progressive fatal encephalopathy caused by a prion and marked by development of porous brain tissue, premature dementia in middle age, and gradual loss of muscular coordination

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9
Q

Define

Huntington’s disease (HD)

A

a hereditary brain disorder that is a progressive, neurodegenerative condition marked especially by impairments in thinking and reasoning, disturbances of emotion and behavior, and the involuntary spasmodic movements of chorea and that is associated with the loss or atrophy of nerve cells in the basal ganglia especially of the caudate nucleus and putamen

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10
Q

Define

Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA)

A

any of several inherited disorders (as Kugelberg-Welander disease) that are characterized by the degeneration of motor neurons in the spinal cord resulting in muscular weakness and atrophy and that in some forms (as Werdnig-Hoffmann disease) are fatal

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11
Q

Definition

an imbalance of free radicals and antioxidants in the body, which can lead to cell and tissue damage

A

Oxidative stress

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12
Q

Definition

the study of changes in organisms caused by modification of gene expression rather than alteration of the genetic code itself

A

Epigenetics

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13
Q

Definition

molecules attach to tails of histone, altering the extent to which DNA is wrapped around it, changing the state of chromatin

A

Chromatin remodelling

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14
Q

Definition

methyl groups added to region near the promoter of the gene, activating or repressing gene transcription

A

DNA methylation

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15
Q

Definition

a degenerative brain disease of unknown cause that is the most common form of dementia, that usually starts in late middle age or in old age, that results in progressive memory loss, impaired thinking, disorientation, and changes in personality and mood, and that is marked histologically by the degeneration of brain neurons especially in the cerebral cortex and by the presence of neurofibrillary tangles and plaques containing beta-amyloid

A

Alzheimer’s disease (AD)

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16
Q

Definition

a chronic progressive neurological disease chiefly of later life that is linked to decreased dopamine production in the substantia nigra and is marked especially by tremor of resting muscles, rigidity, slowness of movement, impaired balance, and a shuffling gait

A

Parkinson’s disease (PD)

How well did you know this?
1
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3
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17
Q

Definition

a rare progressive degenerative fatal disease affecting the motor neurons, usually beginning in middle age, and characterized especially by increasing and spreading muscular weakness and atrophy

A

Amyotrophic Lateral Schlerosis (ALS)

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18
Q

Definition

a rare progressive fatal encephalopathy caused by a prion and marked by development of porous brain tissue, premature dementia in middle age, and gradual loss of muscular coordination

A

Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD)

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1
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19
Q

Definition

a hereditary brain disorder that is a progressive, neurodegenerative condition marked especially by impairments in thinking and reasoning, disturbances of emotion and behavior, and the involuntary spasmodic movements of chorea and that is associated with the loss or atrophy of nerve cells in the basal ganglia especially of the caudate nucleus and putamen

A

Huntington’s disease (HD)

How well did you know this?
1
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20
Q

Definition

any of several inherited disorders (as Kugelberg-Welander disease) that are characterized by the degeneration of motor neurons in the spinal cord resulting in muscular weakness and atrophy and that in some forms (as Werdnig-Hoffmann disease) are fatal

A

Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA)

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21
Q

Brain is very sensitive to __________ during normal aging because of its high energy metabolism and relative low activity of antioxidative defense mechanisms

A

Brain is very sensitive to oxidative damage during normal aging because of its high energy metabolism and relative low activity of antioxidative defense mechanisms

22
Q

What happens as a result of oxidative stress?

A

DNA is damaged, proteins are oxidized, lipids are degraded and more ROS are produced = significant cell injury

23
Q

What are endogenous sources of oxidative stress?

A

Mitochondria

Peroxisomes

Lipoxygenases

NADPH oxidase

Cytochrome P450

24
Q

What antioxidant defences do we have?

A

Ezymatic systems (CAT, SOD, GPx)

Non-enzymatic systems (Glutathione, Vitamins A, C and E)

25
Q

What are exogenous sources of oxidative stress?

A

UV light

Ionising radiation

Chemotherapeutics

Inflammatory cytokines

Environmental toxins

26
Q

What happens when we have too little reactive oxygen species?

A

Impaired physiological function

  • Decreased proliferative response
  • Defective host defences
27
Q

What happens when we have too much reactive oxygen species?

A

Impaired physiological function

  • Random cellular damage
28
Q

What are the 9 hallmarks of ageing?

A
  1. Genomic instability
  2. Telomere attrition
  3. Epigenetic alterations
  4. Loss of proteostasis
  5. Reregulated nutrient-sensing
  6. Mitochondrial dysfunction
  7. Cellular senescence
  8. Stem cell exhaustion
  9. Altered intercellular communication
29
Q

What happens to the mitochondria as we age?

A

reduced efficiency of complexes I and IV of the respiratory chain and mutations in mitochondrial DNA

30
Q

What happens to telomeres as we age?

A

Telomeres shorten with each round of cell division to limit number of cycles of cell division. Therefore, they shorten as we age

31
Q

What are some examples of epigenetic mechanisms?

A

DNA methylation, histone modifications (acetylation, methylation, ubiquitylation, phosphorylation….) and higher order chromatin remodelling, protects the DNA from damage

32
Q

What happens to histones (and epigenetic mechanisms) as we age?

A

During aging, histones are lost and global hypomethylation and focal hypermethylation occur.

Abnormalities in function of histone modifying enzymes and chromatin remodelling also occur leading to neurodegeneration

33
Q

How does loss of proteostasis contribute to ageing?

A

reduced clearance of misfolded proteins due to defects in the proteasomal and autophagy pathways

34
Q

Molecular pathways that are involved in nutrient sensing and growth also modulate what?

A

Ageing and senescence

35
Q

Which pathways modulate both nutrient sensing and growth as well as aging and senescence?

A

Insulin/insulin-like growth factor 1(IGF-I) signaling pathway - attenuation of which extends life span

mTOR pathway – inhibition of which extends life span

36
Q

What is the relationship between calorie restriction and ageing?

A

Caloric restriction can improve longevity

37
Q

What are the common features of neurodegenerative diseases?

A

Delayed onset; age is a major risk factor

Abnormal protein processing and aggregation

Selective neuronal vulnerability, despite widespread expression of diseaserelated proteins during the whole lifetime;

Cellular toxic effects involving both cell autonomous and cell-cell interaction mechanism

Most neurodegenerative diseases have unknown etiology - AD, PD

38
Q

What are the candidate genes for longevity?

A

Sir1, 2 and 3

FOXO 1 and 3 transcription factor

Akt1

39
Q

What is the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative diseases?

A

Accumulation of aberrant or misfolded proteins —aggregating to form inclusion bodies — is a common feature of several neurodegenerative diseases,

Defective protein handling – degradation

Aberrant epigenetic mechanisms e.g. DNA methylation, histone modification

Metabolic dysfunction – mitochondrial, mTOR, (Reactive oxygen species, ER stress)

Neuroinflammation – cause or effect?

40
Q

Which two pathways are responsible for misfolded protein clearance?

A

ubiquitinproteasome system and autophagy

41
Q

Which neurodegenerative diseases have a relatively unknown etiology (predominantly sporadic with small proportion genetic)?

A

Alzheimer’s

Parkinson’s

ALS

CJD

42
Q

Which neurodegenerative disorders have a strong genetic cause?

A

Huntington’s

SMA

43
Q

What is the biological cause of Alzheimer’s?

A

– degeneration of the cholinergic neurones esp projections from the basal forebrain to the hippocampus and atrophy of the hippocampus

44
Q

What is the biological cause of Parkinson’s?

A

degeneration of the dopaminergic projections from the substantia nigra to the striatum

45
Q

What is the biological cause of ALS?

A

degeneration of motor neurones in the spinal cord, brainstem and cortex

46
Q

What is the biological cause of CJD?

A

caused by the infectious agent, prions

47
Q

What is the biological cause of Huntington’s?

A

genetic disorder, loss of striatal neurones

48
Q

What is the biological cause of SMA?

A

degeneration of motor neurones in spinal cord and brain stem

49
Q

Inhibition of the mTor complex 1 leads to what?

A

Enhanced stress resistance

Autophagy

Improved mitochondrial function

(lifespan extension)

50
Q

What is mTor?

A

master regulator of cellular growth and metabolism in response to nutrient and hormonal cues

51
Q

What can inhibit mTor complex 1?

A

AMPK (metformin)

Dietary restriction

Rapamycin

BMS3052 (26 decks)

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