CHARACTERIZATION OF THE BINDING OF AMYLOID-BETA PEPTIDE TO CELL CULTURE-DERIVED NATIVE APOLIPOPROTEIN E2, E3, AND E4 ISOFORMS AND TO ISOFORMS FROM HUMAN PLASMA

The epsilon 4 allele of apolipoprotein E (apoE, protein; APOE, gene) i s a major risk factor for Alzheimer's disease (AD). Genetically, the f requency of the epsilon 4 allele is enriched in early-onset sporadic, late-onset familiar, and common late-onset sporadic AD. ApoE is found in the extracellular amyloid-beta (A beta) deposits that are character istic features of AD. In this study, we examined the interaction betwe en A beta and apoE isoforms, The apoE isoforms used in this study were either produced by stably transfected Chinese hamster ovary cells (CH O) or were from human plasma. We report that when similar concentratio ns of the apoE isoforms were used, native nonpurified apoE3 from recom binant CHO-derived sources bound A beta, but apoE4 did not, In fact, i n our system, binding of recombinant apoE4 to A beta was never detecta ble, even after incubation for 4 days, Furthermore, using the same ass ay conditions, native apoE2, like apoE3, binds A beta avidly. Furtherm ore, when human plasma apoE isoforms are tested in A beta binding expe riments, apoE3 bound A beta more avidly than apoE4, and a major apoE/A beta complex (the 40-kDa form) was observed with plasma apoE3 but not apoE4, These data extend our understanding of apoE isoform-dependent binding of A beta by associating apoE2 with efficient apoE/A beta comp lex formation and demonstrate that native apoE3 (whether recombinant o r derived from human plasma) forms sodium dodecyl sulfate-stable apoE/ A beta complexes more readily than native apoE4, The different A beta- binding properties of native apoE4 versus native apoE3 provide insight into the molecular mechanisms by which the APOE epsilon 4 allele exer ts its risk factor effects in AD.