Nature Communications (Sep 2018)

Deubiquitinase Usp12 functions noncatalytically to induce autophagy and confer neuroprotection in models of Huntington’s disease

  • Rebecca Aron,
  • Pasquale Pellegrini,
  • Edward W. Green,
  • Daniel C. Maddison,
  • Kwadwo Opoku-Nsiah,
  • Anna Osorio Oliveira,
  • Jinny S. Wong,
  • Aaron C. Daub,
  • Flaviano Giorgini,
  • Paul Muchowski,
  • Steven Finkbeiner

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-018-05653-z
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 9, no. 1
pp. 1 – 14

Abstract

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Abnormal accumulations of toxic proteins are often found in degenerating neurons. Here, Aron and colleagues show that non-enzymatic function of deubiquitinase Usp12 can mitigate neuronal cell death caused by mutant Huntingtin by inducing neuronal autophagic function.