Cyclin-dependent kinase-5 is associated with lipofuscin in motor neurones in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

• Published in: Neuroscience letters Vol. 245; no. 1; pp. 45 - 48
• Main Authors: Bajaj, Narinder P.S, Al-Sarraj, Safa T, Anderson, Valerie, Kibble, Mavis, Leigh, Nigel, Miller, Christopher C.J
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Shannon Elsevier Ireland Ltd 27-03-1998; Elsevier
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis; Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis - enzymology; Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis - genetics; Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis - pathology; Apoptosis; Biological and medical sciences; Cyclin-Dependent Kinase 5; Cyclin-Dependent Kinases; Degenerative and inherited degenerative diseases of the nervous system. Leukodystrophies. Prion diseases; Humans; Immunohistochemistry; Lipofuscin; Lipofuscin - metabolism; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; Motor neurone disease; Motor Neurons - enzymology; Neurofilaments; Neurology; Protein-Serine-Threonine Kinases - metabolism; Superoxide Dismutase - genetics; Superoxide Dismutase - metabolism; Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis; Neurofilaments; Cyclin-dependent kinase-5; Lipofuscin; Motor neurone disease; Apoptosis; Human; Oxidative stress; Nervous system diseases; Enzyme; Pathogenesis; Transferases; Postmortem; Motor neuron; Genetic disease; Neurofilament; Cell death; Kinase; Central nervous system disease; Degenerative disease; Spinal cord disease
• ISSN: 0304-3940; 1872-7972
• DOI: 10.1016/S0304-3940(98)00176-1

We have studied the distribution of cyclin dependent kinase-5 (cdk-5) within spinal cord in sporadic and two superoxide dismutase type 1 (SOD1) familial cases of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Although most neurofilament accumulations in ALS motor neurones did not appear to contain high levels of cdk-5, intense cdk-5 immunoreactivity was observed in perikarya of degenerating neurones in many ALS cases. Here, cdk-5 co-localised with lipofuscin. Co-localisation of cdk-5 with lipofuscin was also observed in some aged non-affected controls although this labelling was less intense than the ALS cases. The biogenesis of lipofuscin is believed to be linked to oxidative stress and oxidative stress and free radical damage have been suggested to be part of the pathogenic process of ALS, possibly involving apoptotic mechanisms. cdk-5 has recently been associated with apoptosis. These observations suggest a role for cdk-5 in the pathogenesis of ALS.