Involvement of inhibitory PAS domain protein in neuronal cell death in Parkinson’s disease

Inhibitory PAS domain protein (IPAS), a repressor of hypoxia-inducible factor-dependent transcription under hypoxia, was found to exert pro-apoptotic activity in oxidative stress-induced cell death. However, physiological and pathological processes associated with this activity are not known. Here we show that IPAS is a key molecule involved in neuronal cell death in Parkinson’s disease (PD). IPAS was ubiquitinated by Parkin for proteasomal degradation following carbonyl cyanide m-chlorophenyl hydrazone treatment. Phosphorylation of IPAS at Thr12 by PTEN-induced putative kinase 1 (PINK1) was required for ubiquitination to occur. Activation of the PINK1–Parkin pathway attenuated IPAS-dependent apoptosis. IPAS was markedly induced in the midbrain following 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) administration, and IPAS-deficient mice showed resistance to MPTP-induced degeneration of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta (SNpc). A significant increase in IPAS expression was found in SNpc neurons in patients with sporadic PD. These results indicate a mechanism of neurodegeneration in PD.