NPC1 gene deficiency leads to lack of neural stem cell self-renewal and abnormal differentiation through activation of p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase signaling.

Neural stem cells (NSCs) are capable of giving rise to neurons, glia, and astrocytes. Although self-renewal and differentiation in NSCs are regulated by many genes, such as Notch and Numb, little is known about the role of defective genes on the self-renewal and differentiation of NSCs from developing brain. The Niemann-Pick type C1 (NPC1) disease is a neurodegenerative disease caused by a mutation of the NPC1 gene that affects the function of the NPC1 protein. The ability of NSC self-renewal and differentiation was investigated using a model of NPC1 disease. The NPC1 disorder significantly affected the self-renewal ability of NSCs, as well as the differentiation. NSCs from NPC1-/- mice showed impaired self-renewal ability compared with the NPC1+/+ mice. These alterations were accompanied by the enhanced activity of p38 mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs). Further, the specific p38 MAPK inhibitor SB202190 improved the self-renewal ability of NSCs from NPC-/- mice. This indicated that the NPC1 deficiency can lead to lack of self-renewal and altered differentiation of NSCs mediated by the activation of p38 MAPK, impairing the generation of neurospheres from NPC1-/- Thus, the NPC1 gene may play a crucial role in NSC self-renewal associated with p38 MAPK.