Evidence that Formation of an Intermediate Filament-Protein Complex Plays a Primary Role in Aggregation of Neurofilaments, Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein (GFAP)-Filaments and Vimentin-Filaments by 2,5-Hexanedione

Using a variety of cell types in culture, we have investigated the relevance of intermolecular crosslinking involving intermediate filament proteins (IF-proteins) to the changes in distribution of intermediate filaments induced by the neurotoxicant, 2,5-hexanedione (2,5HD). Aggregation of vimentin-filaments (vimentin-IF), glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP)-IF and neurofilaments was preceded by appearance on immunoblots of a high molecular weight complex (IF-complex) labeled by antibodies against the IF-protein of the cell typepV-170 from human skin flbroblasts and pV-130 from 3T3 mouse fibroblasts, which were labeled by anti-vimentin and, from cultures of dissociated mouse spinal cord and dorsal root ganglia, pNFH-300 labeled by antibody against the 200 kDa neurofilament protein (NF-200 or NF-H) and a doublet labeled by antiserum to GFAP (pGFAP-145). pV-170 was detected in human skin fibroblasts within one hour of exposure to 2,5HD and the amount of both pV-170 and pNFH-300 was related to the concentration of 2.5HD and the duration of exposure. Intermediate filament-complexes were not detected in PtK.1 epithelial cells by labeling of transblots with anti-cytokeratin, nor are keratin-IF aggregated by 2.5HD. Intermediate filament-complexes were not detected in fibroblasts with IF-aggregates secondary to disruption of microtubules by colchicine or in fibroblasts from patients with giant axonal neuropathy.