Tau phosphorylation suppresses oxidative stress-induced mitophagy via FKBP8 receptor modulation.

Neurodegenerative diseases are often characterized by mitochondrial dysfunction. In Alzheimer's disease, abnormal tau phosphorylation disrupts mitophagy, a quality control process through which damaged organelles are selectively removed from the mitochondrial network. The precise mechanism thro...

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Main Authors: Michael O Isei, Meredith Crockett, Emily Chen, Joel Rodwell-Bullock, Trae Carroll, Peter A Girardi, Keith Nehrke, Gail V W Johnson
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Public Library of Science (PLoS) 2025-01-01
Series:PLoS ONE
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0307358
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author Michael O Isei
Meredith Crockett
Emily Chen
Joel Rodwell-Bullock
Trae Carroll
Peter A Girardi
Keith Nehrke
Gail V W Johnson
author_facet Michael O Isei
Meredith Crockett
Emily Chen
Joel Rodwell-Bullock
Trae Carroll
Peter A Girardi
Keith Nehrke
Gail V W Johnson
author_sort Michael O Isei
collection DOAJ
description Neurodegenerative diseases are often characterized by mitochondrial dysfunction. In Alzheimer's disease, abnormal tau phosphorylation disrupts mitophagy, a quality control process through which damaged organelles are selectively removed from the mitochondrial network. The precise mechanism through which this occurs remains unclear. Previously, we showed that tau which has been mutated at Thr-231 to glutamic acid to mimic an Alzheimer's-relevant phospho-epitope expressed early in disease selectively inhibits oxidative stress-induced mitophagy in Caenorhabditis elegans. Here, we use immortalized mouse hippocampal neuronal cell lines to extend that result into mammalian cells. Specifically, we show that phosphomimetic tau at Ser-396/404 (EC) or Thr-231/Ser-235 (EM) partly inhibits mitophagy induction by paraquat, a potent inducer of mitochondrial oxidative stress. Moreover, a combination of immunologic and biochemical approaches demonstrates that the levels of the mitophagy receptor FKBP8, significantly decrease in response to paraquat in cells expressing EC or EM tau mutants, but not in cells expressing wildtype tau. In contrast, paraquat treatment results in a decrease in the levels of the mitophagy receptors FUNDC1 and BNIP3 in the presence of both wildtype tau and the tau mutants. Interestingly, FKBP8 is normally trafficked to the endoplasmic reticulum during oxidative stress induced mitophagy, and our results support a model where this trafficking is impacted by disease-relevant tau, perhaps through a direct interaction. We provide new insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying tau pathology in Alzheimer's disease and highlight FKBP8 receptor as a potential target for mitigating mitochondrial dysfunction in neurodegenerative diseases.
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spelling doaj-art-e02ab10d97034b4cbbd6245975f82c4c2025-01-08T05:31:50ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032025-01-01201e030735810.1371/journal.pone.0307358Tau phosphorylation suppresses oxidative stress-induced mitophagy via FKBP8 receptor modulation.Michael O IseiMeredith CrockettEmily ChenJoel Rodwell-BullockTrae CarrollPeter A GirardiKeith NehrkeGail V W JohnsonNeurodegenerative diseases are often characterized by mitochondrial dysfunction. In Alzheimer's disease, abnormal tau phosphorylation disrupts mitophagy, a quality control process through which damaged organelles are selectively removed from the mitochondrial network. The precise mechanism through which this occurs remains unclear. Previously, we showed that tau which has been mutated at Thr-231 to glutamic acid to mimic an Alzheimer's-relevant phospho-epitope expressed early in disease selectively inhibits oxidative stress-induced mitophagy in Caenorhabditis elegans. Here, we use immortalized mouse hippocampal neuronal cell lines to extend that result into mammalian cells. Specifically, we show that phosphomimetic tau at Ser-396/404 (EC) or Thr-231/Ser-235 (EM) partly inhibits mitophagy induction by paraquat, a potent inducer of mitochondrial oxidative stress. Moreover, a combination of immunologic and biochemical approaches demonstrates that the levels of the mitophagy receptor FKBP8, significantly decrease in response to paraquat in cells expressing EC or EM tau mutants, but not in cells expressing wildtype tau. In contrast, paraquat treatment results in a decrease in the levels of the mitophagy receptors FUNDC1 and BNIP3 in the presence of both wildtype tau and the tau mutants. Interestingly, FKBP8 is normally trafficked to the endoplasmic reticulum during oxidative stress induced mitophagy, and our results support a model where this trafficking is impacted by disease-relevant tau, perhaps through a direct interaction. We provide new insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying tau pathology in Alzheimer's disease and highlight FKBP8 receptor as a potential target for mitigating mitochondrial dysfunction in neurodegenerative diseases.https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0307358
spellingShingle Michael O Isei
Meredith Crockett
Emily Chen
Joel Rodwell-Bullock
Trae Carroll
Peter A Girardi
Keith Nehrke
Gail V W Johnson
Tau phosphorylation suppresses oxidative stress-induced mitophagy via FKBP8 receptor modulation.
PLoS ONE
title Tau phosphorylation suppresses oxidative stress-induced mitophagy via FKBP8 receptor modulation.
title_full Tau phosphorylation suppresses oxidative stress-induced mitophagy via FKBP8 receptor modulation.
title_fullStr Tau phosphorylation suppresses oxidative stress-induced mitophagy via FKBP8 receptor modulation.
title_full_unstemmed Tau phosphorylation suppresses oxidative stress-induced mitophagy via FKBP8 receptor modulation.
title_short Tau phosphorylation suppresses oxidative stress-induced mitophagy via FKBP8 receptor modulation.
title_sort tau phosphorylation suppresses oxidative stress induced mitophagy via fkbp8 receptor modulation
url https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0307358
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