Constitutive XBP-1s-mediated activation of the endoplasmic reticulum unfolded protein response protects against pathological tau.

To endure over the organismal lifespan, neurons utilize multiple strategies to achieve protein homeostasis (proteostasis). Some homeostatic mechanisms act in a subcellular compartment-specific manner, but others exhibit trans-compartmental mechanisms of proteostasis. To identify pathways protecting neurons from pathological tau protein, we employed a transgenic Caenorhabditis elegans model of human tauopathy exhibiting proteostatic disruption. We show normal functioning of the endoplasmic reticulum unfolded protein response (UPRER) promotes clearance of pathological tau, and loss of the three UPRER branches differentially affects tauopathy phenotypes. Loss of function of xbp-1 and atf-6 genes, the two main UPRER transcription factors, exacerbates tau toxicity. Furthermore, constitutive activation of master transcription factor XBP-1 ameliorates tauopathy phenotypes. However, both ATF6 and PERK branches of the UPRER participate in amelioration of tauopathy by constitutively active XBP-1, possibly through endoplasmic reticulum-associated protein degradation (ERAD). Understanding how the UPRER modulates pathological tau accumulation will inform neurodegenerative disease mechanisms.