PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Jerry P. Melchor
AU  - Robert Pawlak
AU  - Sidney Strickland
TI  - The Tissue Plasminogen Activator-Plasminogen Proteolytic Cascade Accelerates Amyloid-β (Aβ) Degradation and Inhibits Aβ-Induced Neurodegeneration
AID  - 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.23-26-08867.2003
DP  - 2003 Oct 01
TA  - The Journal of Neuroscience
PG  - 8867--8871
VI  - 23
IP  - 26
4099  - http://www.jneurosci.org/content/23/26/8867.short
4100  - http://www.jneurosci.org/content/23/26/8867.full
SO  - J. Neurosci.2003 Oct 01; 23
AB  - Accumulation of the amyloid-β (Aβ) peptide depends on both its generation and clearance. To better define clearance pathways, we have evaluated the role of the tissue plasminogen activator (tPA)-plasmin system in Aβ degradation in vivo. In two different mouse models of Alzheimer's disease, chronically elevated Aβ peptide in the brain correlates with the upregulation of plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1) and inhibition of the tPA-plasmin system. In addition, Aβ injected into the hippocampus of mice lacking either tPA or plasminogen persists, inducing PAI-1 expression and causing activation of microglial cells and neuronal damage. Conversely, Aβ injected into wild-type mice is rapidly cleared and does not cause neuronal degeneration. Thus, the tPA-plasmin proteolytic cascade aids in the clearance of Aβ, and reduced activity of this system may contribute to the progression of Alzheimer's disease.