Amyloid precursor protein (APP) traffics from the cell surface via endosomes for amyloid ß (Aß) production in the trans-Golgi network.

Amyloid precursor protein (APP) is processed sequentially by the ß-site APP cleaving enzyme and γ-secretase to generate amyloid ß (Aß) peptides, one of the hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease. The intracellular location of Aß production-endosomes or the trans-Golgi network (TGN)-remains uncertain. We investigated the role of different postendocytic trafficking events in Aß(40) production using an RNAi approach. Depletion of Hrs and Tsg101, acting early in the multivesicular body pathway, retained APP in early endosomes and reduced Aß(40) production. Conversely, depletion of CHMP6 and VPS4, acting late in the pathway, rerouted endosomal APP to the TGN for enhanced APP processing. We found that VPS35 (retromer)-mediated APP recycling to the TGN was required for efficient Aß(40) production. An interruption of the bidirectional trafficking of APP between the TGN and endosomes, particularly retromer-mediated retrieval of APP from early endosomes to the TGN, resulted in the accumulation of endocytosed APP in early endosomes with reduced APP processing. These data suggest that Aß(40) is generated predominantly in the TGN, relying on an endocytosed pool of APP recycled from early endosomes to the TGN.

Discovery of Hepatitis B Virus Surface Antigen Suppressor GS-8873.

Chronic hepatitis B (CHB) virus infection afflicts hundreds of millions of people and causes nearly one million deaths annually. The high levels of circulating viral surface antigen (HBsAg) that characterize CHB may lead to T-cell exhaustion, resulting in an impaired antiviral immune response in the host. Agents that suppress HBsAg could help invigorate immunity toward infected hepatocytes and facilitate a functional cure. A series of dihydropyridoisoquinolizinone (DHQ) inhibitors of human poly(A) polymerases PAPD5/7 were reported to suppress HBsAg in vitro. An example from this class, RG7834, briefly entered the clinic. We set out to identify a potent, orally bioavailable, and safe PAPD5/7 inhibitor as a potential component of a functional cure regimen. Our efforts led to the identification of a dihydropyridophthalazinone (DPP) core with improved pharmacokinetic properties. A conformational restriction strategy and optimization of core substitution led to GS-8873, which was projected to provide deep HBsAg suppression with once-daily dosing.

Concurrent Imaging of Receptor Trafficking and Calcium Dynamics by Spinning Disk Confocal Microscopy.

Synaptic activity is modulated by the activation of neuromodulator receptors present in dendrites of neurons. The majority of neuromodulator receptors are G protein coupled receptors (GPCRs), in which membrane trafficking regulates their activities. Membrane trafficking of neuromodulator receptors and their signaling occurs on a rapid time scale and emerging studies indicate that neuromodulator receptors function not just from the plasma membrane but also from the endocytic compartments. Here, we describe a live cell imaging approach using spinning disk confocal microscopy to investigate the effect of neuromodulator receptor activation on synaptic activity by measuring calcium dynamics in primary rat striatal neurons. The advantages of spinning disk confocal microscopy and recent improvements in the genetically encoded calcium sensor, GCaMP6, provide an imaging approach to image both the receptor membrane trafficking to endocytic compartments, and calcium dynamics at a high spatial and temporal resolution. We believe this approach of imaging both the neuromodulator receptor membrane trafficking and synaptic activity using GCaMP6 is a powerful tool to address many questions regarding possible roles of membrane trafficking of neuromodulator receptors in synaptic activity.

Retromer mediates a discrete route of local membrane delivery to dendrites.

A fundamental and still largely unresolved question is how neurons achieve rapid delivery of selected signaling receptors throughout the elaborate dendritic arbor. Here we show that this requires a conserved sorting machinery called retromer. Retromer-associated endosomes are distributed within dendrites in ∼2 µm intervals and supply frequent membrane fusion events into the dendritic shaft domain immediately adjacent to (<300 nm from) the donor endosome and typically without full endosome discharge. Retromer-associated endosomes contain ß-adrenergic receptors as well as ionotropic glutamate receptors, and retromer knockdown reduces extrasynaptic insertion of adrenergic receptors as well as functional expression of AMPA and NMDA receptors at synapses. We propose that retromer supports a broadly distributed network of plasma membrane delivery to dendrites, organized in micron-scale axial territories to render essentially all regions of the postsynaptic surface within rapid diffusion distance of a local exocytic event.

GPR88 reveals a discrete function of primary cilia as selective insulators of GPCR cross-talk.

A number of G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) localize to primary cilia but the functional significance of cilia to GPCR signaling remains incompletely understood. We investigated this question by focusing on the D1 dopamine receptor (D1R) and beta-2 adrenergic receptor (B2AR), closely related catecholamine receptors that signal by stimulating production of the diffusible second messenger cyclic AMP (cAMP) but differ in localization relative to cilia. D1Rs robustly concentrate on cilia of IMCD3 cells, as shown previously in other ciliated cell types, but disrupting cilia did not affect D1R surface expression or ability to mediate a concentration-dependent cAMP response. By developing a FRET-based biosensor suitable for resolving intra- from extra- ciliary cAMP changes, we found that the D1R-mediated cAMP response is not restricted to cilia and extends into the extra-ciliary cytoplasm. Conversely the B2AR, which we show here is effectively excluded from cilia, also generated a cAMP response in both ciliary and extra-ciliary compartments. We identified a distinct signaling effect of primary cilia through investigating GPR88, an orphan GPCR that is co-expressed with the D1R in brain, and which we show here is targeted to cilia similarly to the D1R. In ciliated cells, mutational activation of GPR88 strongly reduced the D1R-mediated cAMP response but did not affect the B2AR-mediated response. In marked contrast, in non-ciliated cells, GPR88 was distributed throughout the plasma membrane and inhibited the B2AR response. These results identify a discrete 'insulating' function of primary cilia in conferring selectivity on integrated catecholamine signaling through lateral segregation of receptors, and suggest a cellular activity of GPR88 that might underlie its effects on dopamine-dependent behaviors.