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Zahova SK, Humby T, Davies JR, Morgan JE, Isles AR. Comparison of mouse models reveals a molecular distinction between psychotic illness in PWS and schizophrenia. Transl Psychiatry 2021; 11:433. [PMID: 34417445 PMCID: PMC8379171 DOI: 10.1038/s41398-021-01561-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2021] [Revised: 07/13/2021] [Accepted: 07/28/2021] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Prader-Willi Syndrome (PWS) is a neurodevelopmental disorder caused by mutations affecting paternal chromosome 15q11-q13, and characterized by hypotonia, hyperphagia, impaired cognition, and behavioural problems. Psychotic illness is a challenging problem for individuals with PWS and has different rates of prevalence in distinct PWS genotypes. Previously, we demonstrated behavioural and cognitive endophenotypes of relevance to psychiatric illness in a mouse model for one of the associated PWS genotypes, namely PWS-IC, in which deletion of the imprinting centre leads to loss of paternally imprinted gene expression and over-expression of Ube3a. Here we examine the broader gene expression changes that are specific to the psychiatric endophenotypes seen in this model. To do this we compared the brain transcriptomic profile of the PWS-IC mouse to the PWS-cr model that carries a deletion of the PWS minimal critical interval spanning the snoRNA Snord116 and Ipw. Firstly, we examined the same behavioural and cognitive endophenotypes of relevance to psychiatric illness in the PWS-cr mice. Unlike the PWS-IC mice, PWS-cr exhibit no differences in locomotor activity, sensory-motor gating, and attention. RNA-seq analysis of neonatal whole brain tissue revealed a greater number of transcriptional changes between PWS-IC and wild-type littermates than between PWS-cr and wild-type littermates. Moreover, the differentially expressed genes in the PWS-IC brain were enriched for GWAS variants of episodes of psychotic illness but, interestingly, not schizophrenia. These data illustrate the molecular pathways that may underpin psychotic illness in PWS and have implications for potential therapeutic interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simona K Zahova
- MRC Centre for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics, School of Medicine, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | - Trevor Humby
- School of Psychology, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | - Jennifer R Davies
- MRC Centre for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics, School of Medicine, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | - Joanne E Morgan
- MRC Centre for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics, School of Medicine, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | - Anthony R Isles
- MRC Centre for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics, School of Medicine, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK.
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Schmitz J, Fraenz C, Schlüter C, Friedrich P, Kumsta R, Moser D, Güntürkün O, Genç E, Ocklenburg S. Schizotypy and altered hemispheric asymmetries: The role of cilia genes. Psychiatry Res Neuroimaging 2019; 294:110991. [PMID: 31683112 DOI: 10.1016/j.pscychresns.2019.110991] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/09/2019] [Revised: 10/22/2019] [Accepted: 10/23/2019] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
Schizophrenia patients have a higher probability of altered structural and functional differences between the left and right hemisphere. Schizotypy as its nonclinical manifestation has been related to a higher incidence of non-right-handedness and atypical right-hemispheric language dominance. It has been suggested that genes involved in cilia function might link brain asymmetry and neurodevelopmental disorders. We assessed DNA methylation in the promoter regions of seven candidate genes involved in cilia function and psychiatric disorders from buccal cells and investigated their association with schizotypy and language lateralization in 60 healthy adults. Moreover, we determined microstructural properties of the planum temporale in a subsample of 52 subjects using neurite orientation dispersion and density imaging (NODDI). We found a significant association between schizotypy and DNA methylation in the AHI1 promoter region. Moreover, AHI1 DNA methylation significantly predicted language lateralization and asymmetry in estimated planum temporale neurite density. Finally, stronger leftward asymmetry in estimated neurite density was associated with a more pronounced right ear advantage (left hemisphere dominance) in the forced-right condition of the dichotic listening task, measuring attentional modulation of language lateralization. Our results are in line with a shared molecular basis of schizotypy and functional hemispheric asymmetries that is based on cilia function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Judith Schmitz
- Biopsychology, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, Ruhr University, Bochum, Germany.
| | - Christoph Fraenz
- Biopsychology, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, Ruhr University, Bochum, Germany
| | - Caroline Schlüter
- Biopsychology, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, Ruhr University, Bochum, Germany
| | - Patrick Friedrich
- Brain Connectivity and Behaviour Laboratory (BCBLab), Sorbonne Universities, Paris, France; Groupe d'Imagerie Neurofonctionnelle (GIN), Institut des Maladies Neurodégénératives-UMR 5293, CNRS, CEA University of Bordeaux, Bordeaux, France
| | - Robert Kumsta
- Genetic Psychology, Department of Psychology, Ruhr University, Bochum, Germany
| | - Dirk Moser
- Genetic Psychology, Department of Psychology, Ruhr University, Bochum, Germany
| | - Onur Güntürkün
- Biopsychology, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, Ruhr University, Bochum, Germany
| | - Erhan Genç
- Biopsychology, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, Ruhr University, Bochum, Germany
| | - Sebastian Ocklenburg
- Biopsychology, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, Ruhr University, Bochum, Germany
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Schmitz J, Güntürkün O, Ocklenburg S. Building an Asymmetrical Brain: The Molecular Perspective. Front Psychol 2019; 10:982. [PMID: 31133928 PMCID: PMC6524718 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00982] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/24/2018] [Accepted: 04/15/2019] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
The brain is one of the most prominent examples for structural and functional differences between the left and right half of the body. For handedness and language lateralization, the most widely investigated behavioral phenotypes, only a small fraction of phenotypic variance has been explained by molecular genetic studies. Due to environmental factors presumably also playing a role in their ontogenesis and based on first molecular evidence, it has been suggested that functional hemispheric asymmetries are partly under epigenetic control. This review article aims to elucidate the molecular factors underlying hemispheric asymmetries and their association with inner organ asymmetries. While we previously suggested that epigenetic mechanisms might partly account for the missing heritability of handedness, this article extends this idea by suggesting possible alternatives for transgenerational transmission of epigenetic states that do not require germ line epigenetic transmission. This is in line with a multifactorial model of hemispheric asymmetries, integrating genetic, environmental, and epigenetic influencing factors in their ontogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Judith Schmitz
- Biopsychology, Department of Psychology, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
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Schmitz J, Kumsta R, Moser D, Güntürkün O, Ocklenburg S. DNA methylation of dopamine-related gene promoters is associated with line bisection deviation in healthy adults. Sci Rep 2019; 9:5902. [PMID: 30976054 PMCID: PMC6459813 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-42553-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/27/2018] [Accepted: 04/03/2019] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Handedness and language lateralization are the most investigated phenotypes among functional hemispheric asymmetries, i.e. differences in function between the left and the right half of the human brain. Both phenotypes are left hemisphere-dominant, while investigations of the molecular factors underlying right hemisphere-dominant phenotypes are less prominent. In the classical line bisection task, healthy subjects typically show a leftward attentional bias due to a relative dominance of the right hemisphere for visuospatial attention. Based on findings of variations in dopamine-related genes affecting performance in the line bisection task, we first tested whether DNA methylation in non-neuronal tissue in the promoter regions of DBH, SLC6A3, and DRD2 are associated with line bisection deviation. We replicated the typical behavioral pattern and found an effect of DNA methylation in the DBH promoter region on line bisection deviation in right-aligned trials. A second exploratory analysis indicated that an overall DNA methylation profile of genes involved in dopamine function predicts line bisection performance in right-aligned trials. Genetic variation in dopamine-related genes has been linked to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), a neurodevelopmental trait associated with rightward attentional bias. Overall, our findings point towards epigenetic markers for functional hemispheric asymmetries in non-neuronal tissue not only for left hemisphere-dominant, but also for right hemisphere-dominant phenotypes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Judith Schmitz
- Biopsychology, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, Ruhr University, Bochum, Germany.
| | - Robert Kumsta
- Genetic Psychology, Department of Psychology, Ruhr University, Bochum, Germany
| | - Dirk Moser
- Genetic Psychology, Department of Psychology, Ruhr University, Bochum, Germany
| | - Onur Güntürkün
- Biopsychology, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, Ruhr University, Bochum, Germany
| | - Sebastian Ocklenburg
- Biopsychology, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, Ruhr University, Bochum, Germany
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Ocklenburg S, Anderson C, Gerding WM, Fraenz C, Schlüter C, Friedrich P, Raane M, Mädler B, Schlaffke L, Arning L, Epplen JT, Güntürkün O, Beste C, Genç E. Myelin Water Fraction Imaging Reveals Hemispheric Asymmetries in Human White Matter That Are Associated with Genetic Variation in PLP1. Mol Neurobiol 2018; 56:3999-4012. [PMID: 30242727 DOI: 10.1007/s12035-018-1351-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2018] [Accepted: 09/13/2018] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
Myelination of axons in the central nervous system is critical for human cognition and behavior. The predominant protein in myelin is proteolipid protein-making PLP1, the gene that encodes for proteolipid protein, one of the primary candidate genes for white matter structure in the human brain. Here, we investigated the relation of genetic variation within PLP1 and white matter microstructure as assessed with myelin water fraction imaging, a neuroimaging technique that has the advantage over conventional diffusion tensor imaging in that it allows for a more direct assessment of myelin content. We observed significant asymmetries in myelin water fraction that were strongest and rightward in the parietal lobe. Importantly, these parietal myelin water fraction asymmetries were associated with genetic variation in PLP1. These findings support the assumption that genetic variation in PLP1 affects white matter myelination in the healthy human brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sebastian Ocklenburg
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Biopsychology, Department of Psychology, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany.
| | - Catrona Anderson
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Biopsychology, Department of Psychology, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany.,Department of Psychology, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand
| | - Wanda M Gerding
- Department of Human Genetics, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
| | - Christoph Fraenz
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Biopsychology, Department of Psychology, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
| | - Caroline Schlüter
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Biopsychology, Department of Psychology, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
| | - Patrick Friedrich
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Biopsychology, Department of Psychology, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
| | - Maximilian Raane
- Faculty of Health, ZBAF, University of Witten/Herdecke, Witten, Germany
| | | | - Lara Schlaffke
- Department of Neurology, BG-University Hospital Bergmannsheil, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
| | - Larissa Arning
- Department of Human Genetics, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
| | - Jörg T Epplen
- Department of Human Genetics, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany.,Faculty of Health, ZBAF, University of Witten/Herdecke, Witten, Germany
| | - Onur Güntürkün
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Biopsychology, Department of Psychology, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
| | - Christian Beste
- Cognitive Neurophysiology, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, TU Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Erhan Genç
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Biopsychology, Department of Psychology, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
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Ochando A, Zago L. What Are the Contributions of Handedness, Sighting Dominance, Hand Used to Bisect, and Visuospatial Line Processing to the Behavioral Line Bisection Bias? Front Psychol 2018; 9:1688. [PMID: 30258382 PMCID: PMC6143685 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2018.01688] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/05/2018] [Accepted: 08/22/2018] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
In a sample of 60 French participants, we examined whether the variability in the behavioral deviation measured during the classical "paper and pencil" line bisection task was explained by individual laterality factors such as handedness and eye sighting dominance, as well as the hand used to bisect, and the spatial position of the line to bisect. The results showed the expected main effects of line position and hand used to bisect, as well as some interactions between factors. Specifically, the effect of the hand used to bisect on the deviation bias was different as a function of handedness and line position. In right-handers, there was a strong difference between the biases elicited by each hand, producing a hand-used asymmetry, observed for each spatial position of the line. In left-handers, there was no difference in deviation as a function of hand used to perform the bisection, except when all factors triggered attention toward the left side such as bisecting left-displaced lines, with the left dominant hand, producing a strong leftward deviation as compared to the reduced bias exhibited with the right non-dominant hand. Finally, the eye sighting dominance interacted with handedness and line position. Left-handers with a right sighting dominance showed a leftward bias when they bisected left-displaced lines, while right-handers with a left sighting dominance showed an inversed bias when they bisected rightward lines. Taken together, these findings suggest that the behavioral deviation bias relies on the integration of the hemispheric weights of the visuospatial processing of the stimuli, and the motoric component of the hand used to bisect, as well as those linked to individual laterality factors. When all these factors producing asymmetric cerebral activation coincide in the same direction, then their joint effect will provide the strongest asymmetric behavioral biases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Audrey Ochando
- UMR 5293, Institut des Maladies Neurodégénératives, University of Bordeaux, Bordeaux, France
- UMR 5293, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Institut des Maladies Neurodégénératives, Bordeaux, France
- UMR 5293, CEA, Institut des Maladies Neurodégénératives, Bordeaux, France
- UMR 5293, Team 5: GIN Groupe d’Imagerie Neurofonctionnelle, Centre Broca Nouvelle-Aquitaine, Institut des Maladies Neurodégénératives, Bordeaux, France
| | - Laure Zago
- UMR 5293, Institut des Maladies Neurodégénératives, University of Bordeaux, Bordeaux, France
- UMR 5293, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Institut des Maladies Neurodégénératives, Bordeaux, France
- UMR 5293, CEA, Institut des Maladies Neurodégénératives, Bordeaux, France
- UMR 5293, Team 5: GIN Groupe d’Imagerie Neurofonctionnelle, Centre Broca Nouvelle-Aquitaine, Institut des Maladies Neurodégénératives, Bordeaux, France
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