Study of molecular mechanism(s) underlying neurodegeneration in SCA7 disease : Role of NOX enzymes and oxidative stress

Abstract: Spinocerebellar ataxia type 7 (SCA7) is an autosomal dominant neurodegenerative disorder caused by a CAG trinucleotide expansion in the SCA7/ATXN7 gene resulting in progressive ataxia and retinal dystrophy. SCA7 belongs to a group of neurodegenerative disorders called polyglutamine (polyQ) diseases, that share the common feature of glutamine tract expansions within otherwise unrelated proteins. Common suggested mechanisms by which polyQ disorders induce toxicity include aggregation and induction of oxidative stress.In this work, we examined the connection between oxidative stress and toxicity in SCA7 disease. We showed that expression of mutant ataxin-7 (ATXN7) results in elevated level of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and oxidative stress, leading to toxicity. Our results also revealed that the oxidative stress further contributes to mutant ATXN7 aggregation. We showed, for the first time, that the source of the ROS in mutant ATXN7 cells is thorough the activation of the NOX1 enzyme. Interestingly, our results further revealed that the increased level of NOX1 activity and expression by mutant ATXN7 results in a metabolic shift similar to the Warburg effect. Treatments with antioxidants or a NOX1 specific inhibitor decreased the ROS level, restored the metabolic shift and ameliorated the ATXN7 induced toxicity. Taken together, we suggest that mutant ATXN7 specifically activate NOX1 enzyme and that antioxidants treatment or NOX1 specific inhibition could be a potential therapeutic strategy for SCA7.