Neuroprotection by the Inhibition of Apoptosis

Accumulating evidence strongly suggests that apoptosis contributes to neuronal cell death in a variety of neurodegenerative contexts. Activation of the cysteine protease caspase‐3 appears to be a key event in the execution of apoptosis in the central nervous system (CNS). As a result, mice null for caspase‐3 display considerable neuronal expansion usually resulting in death by the second week of life. At present, 14 caspase family members have been identified and subdivided into three subgroups on the basis of preference for specific tetrapeptide motifs using a positional scanning combinatorial substrate library. Caspase‐3 is a group II member (2, 3, 7) categorized by an absolute substrate requirement for aspartic acid in the P4 position of the scissile bond. The preferred cleavage motif (DExD) for group II caspases is found in many structural, metabolic and repair proteins essential for cellular homeostasis. Consistent with the proposal that apoptosis plays a central in role human neurodegenerative disease, caspase‐3 activation has recently been observed in stroke, spinal cord trauma, head injury and Alzheimer's disease. Indeed, peptide‐based caspase inhibitors prevent neuronal loss in animal models of head injury and stroke suggesting that these compounds may be the forerunners of non‐peptide small molecules that halt apoptosis processes implicated in these neurodegenerative disorders. A clear link between an hereditary neurodegenerative disorder and failed caspase inhibition has recently been proposed for spinal muscular atrophy (SMA). In severe SMA, the neuronal specific inhibitor of apoptosis (IAP) family member known as NAIP is often dysfunctional due to missense and truncation mutations. IAPs such as NAIP potently block the enzymatic activity of group II caspases (3 and 7) suggesting that NAIP mutations may permit unopposed developmental apoptosis to occur in sensory and motor systems resulting in lethal muscular atrophy. Conversely, adenovirally‐mediated overexpression of NAIP or the X‐linked IAP called XIAP reduces the loss of CA1 hippocampal neurons following transient forebrain ischemia. Taken together, these findings suggest that anti‐apoptotic strategies may some day have utility in the treatment of neurodegenerative disease. The present review will summarize some of the recent evidence suggesting that apoptosis inhibitors may become a practical therapeutic approach for both acute and chronic neurodegenerative conditions.