Progressive muscular dystrophy in alpha-sarcoglycan-deficient mice.

Limb-girdle muscular dystrophy type 2D (LGMD 2D) is an autosomal recessive disorder caused by mutations in the alpha-sarcoglycan gene. To determine how alpha-sarcoglycan deficiency leads to muscle fiber degeneration, we generated and analyzed alpha-sarcoglycan- deficient mice. Sgca-null mice developed progressive muscular dystrophy and, in contrast to other animal models for muscular dystrophy, showed ongoing muscle necrosis with age, a hallmark of the human disease. Sgca-null mice also revealed loss of sarcolemmal integrity, elevated serum levels of muscle enzymes, increased muscle masses, and changes in the generation of absolute force. Molecular analysis of Sgca-null mice demonstrated that the absence of alpha-sarcoglycan resulted in the complete loss of the sarcoglycan complex, sarcospan, and a disruption of alpha-dystroglycan association with membranes. In contrast, no change in the expression of epsilon-sarcoglycan (alpha-sarcoglycan homologue) was observed. Recombinant alpha-sarcoglycan adenovirus injection into Sgca-deficient muscles restored the sarcoglycan complex and sarcospan to the membrane. We propose that the sarcoglycan-sarcospan complex is requisite for stable association of alpha-dystroglycan with the sarcolemma. The Sgca-deficient mice will be a valuable model for elucidating the pathogenesis of sarcoglycan deficient limb-girdle muscular dystrophies and for the development of therapeutic strategies for this disease.

A synaptic localization domain in the synaptic cleft protein laminin beta 2 (s-laminin)

The basal lamina that ensheaths skeletal muscle fibers traverses the synaptic cleft at the neuromuscular junction. Synaptic and extrasynaptic portions of the basal lamina contain different laminin beta chains: beta 2 (or s) at synapses and beta 1 (or B1) extrasynaptically. Laminin beta 2 is also confined to synapselike patches on myotube surfaces in vitro, whereas beta 1 is present throughout the extracellular matrix. This differential localization of laminin beta chains was analyzed by expression of chimeric beta 1-beta 2 molecules in cultured mouse myotubes. A 16-amino acid carboxyl-terminal sequence in beta 2 was necessary for synaptic localization, and an amino-terminal domain in beta 1 promoted association with extracellular fibrils. The synaptic targeting sequence of beta 2 contains a site previously shown to be adhesive for motor neurons.

epsilon-Sarcoglycan, a broadly expressed homologue of the gene mutated in limb-girdle muscular dystrophy 2D.

The sarcoglycans are transmembrane components of the dystrophin-glycoprotein complex, which links the cytoskeleton to the extracellular matrix in adult muscle fibers. Mutations in all four known sarcoglycan genes (alpha, beta, gamma, and delta) have been found in humans with limb-girdle muscular dystrophy. We have identified a novel protein, epsilon-sarcoglycan, that shares 44% amino acid identity with alpha-sarcoglycan (adhalin). We show that epsilon-sarcoglycan is a membrane-associated glycoprotein and document its expression by Northern blotting, immunoblotting, and immunofluorescence. In contrast to alpha-delta sarcoglycans, which are expressed predominantly or exclusively in striated muscle, epsilon-sarcoglycan is broadly distributed in muscle and nonmuscle cells of both embryos and adults. These results raise the possibility that sarcoglycan-containing complexes mediate membrane-matrix interactions in many cell types.

epsilon-sarcoglycan replaces alpha-sarcoglycan in smooth muscle to form a unique dystrophin-glycoprotein complex.

The sarcoglycan complex has been well characterized in striated muscle, and defects in its components are associated with muscular dystrophy and cardiomyopathy. Here, we have characterized the smooth muscle sarcoglycan complex. By examination of embryonic muscle lineages and biochemical fractionation studies, we demonstrated that epsilon-sarcoglycan is an integral component of the smooth muscle sarcoglycan complex along with beta- and delta-sarcoglycan. Analysis of genetically defined animal models for muscular dystrophy supported this conclusion. The delta-sarcoglycan-deficient cardiomyopathic hamster and mice deficient in both dystrophin and utrophin showed loss of the smooth muscle sarcoglycan complex, whereas the complex was unaffected in alpha-sarcoglycan null mice in agreement with the finding that alpha-sarcoglycan is not expressed in smooth muscle cells. In the cardiomyopathic hamster, the smooth muscle sarcoglycan complex, containing epsilon-sarcoglycan, was fully restored following intramuscular injection of recombinant delta-sarcoglycan adenovirus. Together, these results demonstrate a tissue-dependent variation in the sarcoglycan complex and show that epsilon-sarcoglycan replaces alpha-sarcoglycan as an integral component of the smooth muscle dystrophin-glycoprotein complex. Our results also suggest a molecular basis for possible differential smooth muscle dysfunction in sarcoglycan-deficient patients.