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Creators/Authors contains: "McIntyre, Gianna"

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  1. Abstract Purkinje cell (PC) loss occurs at an early age in patients and animal models of Niemann-Pick Type C (NPC), a lysosomal storage disease caused by mutations in theNpc1orNpc2genes. Although degeneration of PCs occurs early in NPC, little is known about how NPC1 deficiency affects the postnatal development of PCs. Using theNpc1nmf164mouse model, we found that NPC1 deficiency significantly affected the postnatal development of PC dendrites and synapses. The developing dendrites of Npc1nmf164PCs were significantly deficient in mitochondria and lysosomes. Furthermore, anabolic (mTORC1) and catabolic (TFEB) signaling pathways were not only perturbed but simultaneously activated in NPC1-deficient PCs, suggesting a loss of metabolic balance. We also found that mice with conditional heterozygous deletion of the Phosphatase and Tensin Homolog Deleted on Chromosome 10 gene (Pten-cHet), an inhibitor of mTORC1, showed similar early dendritic alterations in PCs to those found inNpc1-deficient mice. However, in contrast toNpc1nmf164mice,Pten-cHet mice exhibited the overactivation of the mTORC1 pathway but with a strong inhibition of TFEB signaling, along with no dendritic mitochondrial reductions by the end of their postnatal development. Our data suggest that disruption of the lysosomal-metabolic signaling in PCs causes dendritic and synaptic developmental deficits that precede and promote their early degeneration in NPC. 
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