Our laboratory studies the molecular mechanisms leading to normal brain aging and the pathological processes that culminate in Alzheimer’s disease and multiple sclerosis by focusing on two neuroprotective proteins. With microarray analysis we identified genes that play crucial roles in brain dysfunction leading to cognitive decline. An example is Klotho, a cytoprotective, anti-aging protein. We found that Klotho expression is considerably decreased in the aged brains of monkeys, rats, and mice. We are now working to comprehensively characterize the role of Klotho in normal aging and disease. Our projects are to identify the signaling pathways by which Klotho exerts its protective effects on neurons and oligodendrocytes, the myelin-producing cells. We are also studying Klotho’s transcriptional regulation and have identified compounds to therapeutically exploit these protective effects. Another line of investigation in our lab is to understand the biology of the amyloid precursor protein (APP), the parent protein of the amyloid beta peptide (Abeta), which accumulates in the brains of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) patients and causes irreversible neurodegeneration. Certain mutations in APP result in autosomal dominant, early onset familial AD due to the increased production of Abeta. In sporadic AD, Abeta accumulates as result of inefficient clearance mechanisms. Since APP phosphorylation is involved in Abeta formation, we searched and identified molecules capable of intervening in this process to reduce the levels of toxic Abeta peptide in the brain.
Representative Publications
- Chen CD, Li Y, Chen AK, Rudy MA, Nasse JS, Zeldich E, Polanco TJ, Abraham CR. Identification of the cleavage sites leading to the shed forms of human and mouse anti-aging and cognition-enhancing protein Klotho. PLoS One. 2020; 15(1):e0226382. PMID: 31929539
- Delitsikou V, Jarad G, Rajaram RD, Ino F, Rutkowski JM, Chen CD, Santos CXC, Scherer PE, Abraham CR, Shah AM, Feraille E, Miner JH, de Seigneux S. Klotho regulation by albuminuria is dependent on ATF3 and endoplasmic reticulum stress. FASEB J. 2020 Feb; 34(2):2087-2104. PMID: 31907991
- Zeldich E, Chen CD, Boden E, Howat B, Nasse JS, Zeldich D, Lambert AG, Yuste A, Cherry JD, Mathias RM, Ma Q, Lau NC, McKee AC, Hatzipetros T, Abraham CR. Klotho Is Neuroprotective in the Superoxide Dismutase (SOD1G93A) Mouse Model of ALS. J Mol Neurosci. 2019 Oct; 69(2):264-285. PMID: 31250273
- McGrath ER, Himali JJ, Levy D, Conner SC, Pase MP, Abraham CR, Courchesne P, Satizabal CL, Vasan RS, Beiser AS, Seshadri S. Circulating fibroblast growth factor 23 levels and incident dementia: The Framingham heart study. PLoS One. 2019; 14(3):e0213321. PMID: 30830941;
- Chen CD, Zeldich E, Khodr C, Camara K, Tung TY, Lauder EC, Mullen P, Polanco TJ, Liu YY, Zeldich D, Xia W, Van Nostrand WE, Brown LE, Porco JA, Abraham CR. Small Molecule Amyloid-ß Protein Precursor Processing Modulators Lower Amyloid-ß Peptide Levels via cKit Signaling. J Alzheimers Dis. 2019; 67(3):1089-1106. PMID: 30776010.
- Ikezu T, Chen C, DeLeo AM, Zeldich E, Fallin MD, Kanaan NM, Lunetta KL, Abraham CR, Logue MW, Farrer LA. Tau Phosphorylation is Impacted by Rare AKAP9 Mutations Associated with Alzheimer Disease in African Americans. J Neuroimmune Pharmacol. 2018 Jun; 13(2):254-264. PMID: 29516269.
- Robinson AA, Abraham CR, Rosene DL. Candidate molecular pathways of white matter vulnerability in the brain of normal aging rhesus monkeys. Geroscience. 2018 02; 40(1):31-47. PMID: 29357021.
- Chen CD, Zeldich E, Li Y, Yuste A, Abraham CR. Activation of the Anti-Aging and Cognition-Enhancing Gene Klotho by CRISPR-dCas9 Transcriptional Effector Complex. J Mol Neurosci. 2018 Feb; 64(2):175-184.PMID: 29352444.
- Abraham CR, Mullen PC, Tucker-Zhou T, Chen CD, Zeldich E. Klotho Is a Neuroprotective and Cognition-Enhancing Protein. Vitam Horm. 2016; 101:215-38. PMID: 27125744.
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Zeldich E, Chen CD, Avila R, Medicetty S, Abraham CR. The Anti-Aging Protein Klotho Enhances Remyelination Following Cuprizone-Induced Demyelination. J Mol Neurosci. 2015 Oct; 57(2):185-96. PMID: 26067431.View in: PubMed
Complete list can be found at BU Profiles