Barbato, G. | Search bioRxiv

bioRxiv2026

The protective effect of NGF mutant CHF6467 in SH SY5Y cells exposed to Aβ(1-42): a pharmacometabolomic approach

Nerve Growth Factor (NGF) supports neuronal survival, plasticity, and growth by binding to p75NTR and TrkA receptors. There is a strong link between NGF and the cholinergic hippocampus, and changes in NGF pathways are observed in Alzheimer's disease (AD). Research shows NGF's neuroprotective and regenerative effects on cholinergic neurons, with positive results in AD models and clinical studies. However, NGF therapy faces challenges: limited blood-brain barrier crossing and dose-dependent pain. To address pain, a mutated NGF called CHF6467 was developed. Thanks to the R100E mutation, it prevents binding to p75NTR while maintaining TrkA affinity, which helps reduce pain side effects. Understanding CHF6467's mechanism remains a challenge. In this context, untargeted metabolomics is effective for uncovering unforeseen responses, making it suitable for assessing CHF6467's overall effects. Building on our previous research and recognizing the importance of amyloid-{beta} peptide as a critical pathological marker of AD, we used NMR-metabolomics to study the effect of CHF6467 on SH-SY5Y cells. The study examined metabolomic profiles of cells treated with CHF6467, with and without A{beta}(1-42), using NMR. Results show CHF6467 influences the metabolic changes caused by A{beta}(1-42), inducing biochemical effects consistent with the promotion of phospholipid precursors, reduced glutamate excitotoxicity, and restored energy metabolism.

cell biology↗

bioRxiv2023

Native extracellular matrix promotes human neuromuscular organoid morphogenesis and function.

Human neuromuscular organoids (NMOs) derived from induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) hold a great potential to study (dys)functional human skeletal muscle (SkM) in vitro. The three-dimensional (3D) self-assembly of NMOs leads to the generation of spheroids, whose 3D organization cannot be controlled. Indeed, proper development, maturation and function of the innervated SkM require a well-defined multiscale 3D organization of the cells in a tissue-specific extracellular matrix (ECM) context. We hypothesized that extracellular structural imprinting along with hiPSC small-molecule-based differentiation could provide self-assembly guidance driving NMO morphogenesis and promoting the maturation and function of the human neuronal-coupled SkM in vitro models. We found that SkM ECM, provided as decellularized skeletal muscle, is able to reproducibly guide the morphogenesis of differentiating hiPSC toward multiscale structured tissue-like NMOs (t-NMOs). T-NMOs show contractile activity and possess functional neuromuscular junctions (NMJs), with mature neuromuscular system upon 30 days of hiPSC differentiation. We found that t-NMO could mimic altered muscle contraction upon administration of neurotoxins that act at NMJ level. Finally, we used hiPSCs derived from patients affected by Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD) to produce DMD t-NMOs that, upon neuronal stimulation, were able to mimic the altered SkM contractility and calcium dynamics typical of the disease. Altogether, our data confirm the ability of t-NMO platform to model in vitro human neuromuscular system (patho)physiology.

cell biology↗