New research could advance treatment of brain disease, injury 

In a library, every book is tagged with a code showing where it goes on the shelf. Our brains use a coding system too, but instead of the alpha-numeric Dewey decimal system, proteins are used to organize information. When the right proteins are in the right place, we can learn and create memories. A new study names the protein cypin as the librarian that manages other proteins.

MSU researchers collaborated with scientists from Rutgers University–New Brunswick to identify this previously unknown role for cypin in the communication between specialized brain cells called neurons. Their findings recently were published in the journal Science Advances.

“Our most recent findings show that cypin tags proteins in the synapses between neurons to ensure they’re positioned correctly,” said Irving E. Vega, associate professor in the MSU College of Human Medicine Department of Translational Neuroscience. “This tagging function is essential for our brains to function correctly.

“Further understanding of cypin’s dynamic role in neuronal function could help identify new ways to enhance communication between neurons, particularly in patients who have Alzheimer’s disease,” Vega added. “Each discovery leads to new testable hypotheses, bringing us closer to better understand how the brain manages complex tasks such as learning and memory.”

This new information could have profound implications for 7.2 million people in the U.S. with Alzheimer’s, 1.1 million people with Parkinson’s and 5 million people with long-term traumatic brain injury.

“Cypin also has a third function,” said Jared Lamp, fellow researcher at the MSU College of Human Medicine. “It increases the activity of the UBE4A protein which contributes to healthy synaptic function. Understanding this relationship could help us find a way to counteract the dysfunction found in patients who have neurodegenerative diseases and brain injuries.”

The Vega lab studies the role of proteins in the development of neurodegenerative disorders. The Integrated Mass Spectrometry Unit, established in 2018 on MSU’s campus in Grand Rapids, Michigan, provides protein identification and quantification services. The team welcomes new opportunities to collaborate on research projects.

Funds for this study were provided by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, part of the National Institutes of Health; the Coalition for Brain Injury Research, a charitable foundation dedicated to the memory of Dennis John Benigno who suffered a traumatic brain injury as a teen; and private donors Jamuna Rajasingham and Dyan Rajasingham.