FEBS Letters
Volume 579, Issue 3 , Pages 741-744, 31 January 2005

Extracellular copper ions regulate cellular prion protein (PrPC) expression and metabolism in neuronal cells

Edited by Sandro Sonnino

  • Mattia Toni

      Affiliations

    • Department of Experimental Biology, University of Bologna, Via Selmi 3, 40126 Bologna, Italy
    • ,
  • Maria Lina Massimino

      Affiliations

    • Institute of Neuroscience, CNR, Padova, Italy
    • ,
  • Cristiana Griffoni

      Affiliations

    • Department of Experimental Biology, University of Bologna, Via Selmi 3, 40126 Bologna, Italy
    • ,
  • Benedetto Salvato

      Affiliations

    • Department of Biology, University of Padova, Padova, Italy
    • ,
  • Vittorio Tomasi

      Affiliations

    • Department of Experimental Biology, University of Bologna, Via Selmi 3, 40126 Bologna, Italy
    • ,
  • Enzo Spisni

      Affiliations

    • Department of Experimental Biology, University of Bologna, Via Selmi 3, 40126 Bologna, Italy
    • Corresponding Author InformationCorresponding author. Fax: +39 51 209 42 86

Received 29 November 2004; received in revised form 22 December 2004; accepted 22 December 2004. published online 10 January 2005.

Abstract 

The physiological functions of cellular prion protein (PrPC) remain unclear. It has been demonstrated that PrPC is a copper binding protein and proposed that its functions could be strictly linked to copper metabolism and neuroprotection. The aim of this study was to clarify how extracellular copper modifies PrPC expression and metabolism in cultured neurones. We reported here that copper delivered at physiological concentrations significantly decreases PrPC mRNA expression in GN11 neurones. Moreover, copper increases the release of PrPC into the culture medium. These results indicate that extracellular copper strongly affects the amount of cellular PrP and might represent an interesting strategy to decrease the expression of PrPC in neurones and its conversion in the pathological isoform PrPSc.

Keywords: Copper metabolism, Cellular prion protein physiology, Cellular prion protein expression, GN11 cell

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PII: S0014-5793(05)00008-6

doi:10.1016/j.febslet.2004.12.053

FEBS Letters
Volume 579, Issue 3 , Pages 741-744, 31 January 2005

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