Graduation Year
2022
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree
Ph.D.
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
Degree Granting Department
Medicine
Major Professor
David E. Kang, Ph.D.
Committee Member
Yu Chen, Ph.D.
Committee Member
Robert Deschenes, Ph.D.
Committee Member
Lianchun Wang, MD
Keywords
acetylation, Alzheimer, tauopathy, ubiquitination, USP11, X-inactivation
Abstract
Women experience significantly higher tau burden and increased risk for Alzheimer’s disease (AD) than men, yet the underlying mechanism for this vulnerability has not been explained. Here, we demonstrate through in vitro and in vivo models, as well as human AD brain tissue, that X-linked ubiquitin specific peptidase 11 (USP11) augments pathological tau aggregation via tau deubiquitination initiated at lysine-281. Removal of ubiquitin provides access for enzymatic tau acetylation at lysines 281 and 274. USP11 escapes complete X-inactivation, and female mice and people both exhibit higher USP11 levels than males. Genetic elimination of usp11 in a tauopathy mouse model preferentially protects females from acetylated tau accumulation, tau pathology, and cognitive impairment. USP11 levels also strongly associate positively with tau pathology in females but not males. Thus, inhibiting USP11-mediated tau deubiquitination may provide an effective therapeutic opportunity to protect women from increased vulnerability to AD and other tauopathies.
Scholar Commons Citation
Yan, Yan, "X-linked Ubiquitin-Specific Peptidase 11 Increases Tauopathy Vulnerability in Women" (2022). USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations.
https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/etd/9835
