Comprehensive phosphoproteome analysis unravels the core signaling network that initiates the earliest synapse pathology in preclinical Alzheimer's disease brain.

Using a high-end mass spectrometry, we screened phosphoproteins and phosphopeptides in four types of Alzheimer's disease (AD) mouse models and human AD postmortem brains. We identified commonly changed phosphoproteins in multiple models and also determined phosphoproteins related to initiation of amyloid beta (Aβ) deposition in the mouse brain. After confirming these proteins were also changed in and human AD brains, we put the proteins on experimentally verified protein-protein interaction databases. Surprisingly, most of the core phosphoproteins were directly connected, and they formed a functional network linked to synaptic spine formation. The change of the core network started at a preclinical stage even before histological Aβ deposition. Systems biology analyses suggested that phosphorylation of myristoylated alanine-rich C-kinase substrate (MARCKS) by overactivated kinases including protein kinases C and calmodulin-dependent kinases initiates synapse pathology. Two-photon microscopic observation revealed recovery of abnormal spine formation in the AD model mice by targeting a core protein MARCKS or by inhibiting candidate kinases, supporting our hypothesis formulated based on phosphoproteome analysis.