Axon guidance genes modulate neurotoxicity of ALS-associated UBQLN2

Abstract

Mutations in the ubiquitin (Ub) chaperone Ubiquilin 2 (UBQLN2) cause X-linked forms of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD) through unknown mechanisms. Here, we show that aggregation-prone, ALS-associated mutants of UBQLN2 (UBQLN2^ALS) trigger heat stress-dependent neurodegeneration in Drosophila. A genetic modifier screen implicated endolysosomal and axon guidance genes, including the netrin receptor, Unc-5, as key modulators of UBQLN2 toxicity. Reduced gene dosage of Unc-5 or its coreceptor Dcc/frazzled diminished neurodegenerative phenotypes, including motor dysfunction, neuromuscular junction defects, and shortened lifespan, in flies expressing UBQLN2^ALS alleles. Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) harboring UBQLN2^ALS knockin mutations exhibited lysosomal defects while inducible motor neurons (iMNs) expressing UBQLN2^ALS alleles exhibited cytosolic UBQLN2 inclusions, reduced neurite complexity, and growth cone defects that were partially reversed by silencing of UNC5B and DCC. The combined findings suggest that altered growth cone dynamics are a conserved pathomechanism in UBQLN2-associated ALS/FTD.

Keywords: D. melanogaster; UBQLN2; amyotrophic lateral sclerosis; axon guidance; cell biology; genetic screen; human; induced motor neuron; neuroscience; protein aggregation.