Abstract
TAR DNA-binding protein of 43 kDa (TDP-43) has been identified as the major component of ubiquitin-positive neuronal and glial inclusions in frontotemporal lobar degeneration and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Aggregation of TDP-43 to amyloid-like fibrils and spreading of the aggregates are suggested to account for the pathogenesis and progression of these diseases. To investigate the molecular mechanisms of TDP-43 aggregation, we attempted to identify the amino acid sequence required for the aggregation. By expressing a series of deletion mutants lacking 20 amino acid residues in the C-terminal region in SH-SY5Y cells, we established that residues 274-313 in the glycine-rich region are essential for aggregation. In vitro aggregation experiments using synthetic peptides of 40 amino acids from this sequence and adjacent regions showed that peptides 274-313 and 314-353 formed amyloid-like fibrils. Transduction of these fibrils induced seed-dependent aggregation of TDP-43 in cells expressing wild-type TDP-43 or TDP-43 lacking nuclear localization signal. These cells showed different phosphorylated C-terminal fragments of TDP-43 and different trypsin-resistant bands. These results suggest that residues 274-353 are responsible for the conversion of TDP-43 to amyloid-like fibrils and that templated aggregation of TDP-43 by seeding with different peptides induces various types of TDP-43 pathologies, i.e. the peptides appear to act like prion strains.