Nuclear distribution protein nudE-like 1

Nuclear distribution protein nudE-like 1 (NDEL1) is a 345-amino-acid cytoplasmic protein essential for organizing the cellular microtubule array and anchoring microtubules at the centrosome (UniProt: Q9GZM8). It regulates dynein motor activity and is required for dynein-dependent processes including Golgi integrity, vesicle transport, and nuclear-centrosome coupling. NDEL1 also plays critical roles in neuronal migration during brain development and, together with DISC1, regulates neurite outgrowth.

In the central nervous system, NDEL1's functions are particularly relevant to neuronal development and intracellular trafficking. UniProt reports no explicitly listed disease associations for NDEL1, though mutations in related genes (NDE1, DISC1) are implicated in neurodevelopmental disorders. The protein's involvement in neuronal migration and cytoskeletal dynamics positions it within pathways fundamental to brain development.

NDEL1 is significantly downregulated in Alzheimer's disease brain tissue, with a mean log2 fold-change of −0.97 in human post-mortem AD brain compared to age-matched controls (Chaparral AD proteomics, TMT-labeled proteomics across subcellular fractions). This reduction may compromise dynein-mediated trafficking and microtubule organization, processes disrupted in AD pathology.