Extract from the marine seaweed Padina pavonica protects mitochondrial biomembranes from damage by amyloidogenic peptides. - GreenMedInfo Summary
Extract from the Marine SeaweedProtects Mitochondrial Biomembranes from Damage by Amyloidogenic Peptides.
Molecules. 2021 Mar 7 ;26(5). Epub 2021 Mar 7. PMID: 33799979
Mario Caruana
The identification of compounds which protect the double-membrane of mitochondrial organelles from disruption by toxic confomers of amyloid proteins may offer a therapeutic strategy to combat human neurodegenerative diseases. Here, we exploited an extract from the marine brown seaweed(PPE) as a vital source of natural bioactive compounds to protect mitochondrial membranes against insult by oligomeric aggregates of the amyloidogenic proteins amyloid-β (Aβ), α-synuclein (α-syn) and tau, which are currently considered to be major targets for drug discovery in Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Parkinson's disease (PD). We show that PPE manifested a significant inhibitory effect against swelling of isolated mitochondria exposed to the amyloid oligomers, and attenuated the release of cytochromefrom the mitochondria. Using cardiolipin-enriched synthetic lipid membranes, we also show that dye leakage from fluorophore-loaded vesicles and formation of channel-like pores in planar bilayer membranes are largely prevented by incubating the oligomeric aggregates with PPE. Lastly, we demonstrate that PPE curtails the ability of Aβ42 and α-syn monomers to self-assemble into larger β-aggregate structures, as well as potently disrupts their respective amyloid fibrils. In conclusion, the mito-protective and anti-aggregator biological activities ofextract may be of therapeutic value in neurodegenerative proteinopathies, such as AD and PD.