Cholesterol as a factor regulating intracellular localization of annexin A6 in Niemann–Pick type C human skin fibroblasts

Lysosome-like storage organelles (LSOs) play a crucial role in excessive accumulation of cholesterol in the Niemann–Pick type C (NPC) disease characterized by altered vesicular traffic of lipids. Annexin A6 (AnxA6) is mainly present in cytosol but upon elevation of [Ca2+]in binds to membranes. In addition, a pH or cholesterol-dependent mechanism of AnxA6 interaction with membranes was described. We found a several fold enrichment of AnxA6 in LSO compartment in fibroblasts isolated from NPC patients in comparison with fibroblasts from healthy individuals. We observed that AnxA6 relocates from cytosol to LSOs in a cholesterol-dependent manner. Cholesterol depletion caused reduction in the binding of AnxA6. Moreover, we found that in NPC cells AnxA6 translocates to the perinuclear region containing late endosomes (LE) loaded with cholesterol. We conclude that AnxA6 may participate in formation of cholesterol-rich platforms on LE and therefore may contribute to the pathology of the NPC disease.