Toxic effects of endoplasmic reticulum stress transducer BBF2H7-derived small peptide fragments on neuronal cells

Aggregation, fibril formation, and deposition of amyloid β (Aβ) protein are believed to be the central pathogeneses of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Numerous studies have shown that fibril formation is promoted by preformed seeds at the beginning of the aggregation process. Therefore, aggregated molecules that promote fibrillization of Aβ protein as seeds could affect the pathology. We recently found that approximately 40 amino acid hydrophobic peptides, BBF2H7-derived small peptide (BSP) fragments, are generated via intramembranous cleavage under endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress conditions. Interestingly, similar to Aβ protein, the fragments exhibit a high aggregation propensity and form fibril structures. It has been noted that ER stress is involved in the pathogenesis of AD. In this study, we examined the effect of BSP fragments on aggregation and cytotoxicity of Aβ_1-40 protein, which is generated as a major species of Aβ protein, but has a lower aggregative property than Aβ_1-42 protein. We demonstrated that BSP fragments promote aggregation of Aβ_1-40 protein. Aggregates of Aβ_1-40 protein mediated by BSP fragments also exhibited potent neurotoxicity. Our findings suggest the possibility that BSP fragments affect accumulation of Aβ proteins and are involved in the pathogenesis of AD.