1
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Shum C, Han SY, Thiruvahindrapuram B, Wang Z, de Rijke J, Zhang B, Sundberg M, Chen C, Buttermore ED, Makhortova N, Howe J, Sahin M, Scherer SW. Combining Off-flow, a Nextflow-coded program, and whole genome sequencing reveals unintended genetic variation in CRISPR/Cas-edited iPSCs. Comput Struct Biotechnol J 2024; 23:638-647. [PMID: 38283851 PMCID: PMC10819409 DOI: 10.1016/j.csbj.2023.12.036] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2023] [Revised: 12/22/2023] [Accepted: 12/23/2023] [Indexed: 01/30/2024] Open
Abstract
Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats (CRISPR)-Cas nucleases and human induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) technology can reveal deep insight into the genetic and molecular bases of human biology and disease. Undesired editing outcomes, both on-target (at the edited locus) and off-target (at other genomic loci) hinder the application of CRISPR-Cas nucleases. We developed Off-flow, a Nextflow-coded bioinformatic workflow that takes a specific guide sequence and Cas protein input to call four separate off-target prediction programs (CHOPCHOP, Cas-Offinder, CRISPRitz, CRISPR-Offinder) to output a comprehensive list of predicted off-target sites. We applied it to whole genome sequencing (WGS) data to investigate the occurrence of unintended effects in human iPSCs that underwent repair or insertion of disease-related variants by homology-directed repair. Off-flow identified a 3-base-pair-substitution and a mono-allelic genomic deletion at the target loci, KCNQ2, in 2 clones. Unbiased WGS analysis further identified off-target missense variants and a mono-allelic genomic deletion at the targeted locus, GNAQ, in 10 clones. On-target substitution and deletions had escaped standard PCR and Sanger sequencing analysis, while missense variants at other genomic loci were not detected by Off-flow. We used these results to filter out iPSC clones for subsequent functional experiments. Off-flow, which we make publicly available, works for human and mouse genomes currently and can be adapted for other genomes. Off-flow and WGS analysis can improve the integrity of studies using CRISPR/Cas-edited cells and animal models.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carole Shum
- The Centre for Applied Genomics, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON M5G 0A4, Canada
- Program in Genetics and Genome Biology, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON M5G 0A4, Canada
| | - Sang Yeon Han
- The Centre for Applied Genomics, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON M5G 0A4, Canada
| | | | - Zhuozhi Wang
- The Centre for Applied Genomics, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON M5G 0A4, Canada
| | - Jill de Rijke
- The Centre for Applied Genomics, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON M5G 0A4, Canada
| | - Benjamin Zhang
- The Centre for Applied Genomics, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON M5G 0A4, Canada
- Program in Genetics and Genome Biology, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON M5G 0A4, Canada
| | - Maria Sundberg
- Department of Neurology, FM Kirby Neurobiology Center, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Cidi Chen
- Human Neuron Core, Boston Children’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | | | - Nina Makhortova
- Human Neuron Core, Boston Children’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Jennifer Howe
- The Centre for Applied Genomics, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON M5G 0A4, Canada
- Program in Genetics and Genome Biology, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON M5G 0A4, Canada
| | - Mustafa Sahin
- Department of Neurology, FM Kirby Neurobiology Center, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Rosamund Stone Zander Translational Neuroscience Center, Boston Children’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Stephen W. Scherer
- The Centre for Applied Genomics, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON M5G 0A4, Canada
- Program in Genetics and Genome Biology, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON M5G 0A4, Canada
- Department of Molecular Genetics and McLaughlin Centre, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 1A8, Canada
- Lead contact
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2
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Arichi T. Characterizing Large-Scale Human Circuit Development with In Vivo Neuroimaging. Cold Spring Harb Perspect Biol 2024; 16:a041496. [PMID: 38438187 PMCID: PMC11146311 DOI: 10.1101/cshperspect.a041496] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/06/2024]
Abstract
Large-scale coordinated patterns of neural activity are crucial for the integration of information in the human brain and to enable complex and flexible human behavior across the life span. Through recent advances in noninvasive functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) methods, it is now possible to study this activity and how it emerges in the living fetal brain across the second half of human gestation. This work has demonstrated that functional activity in the fetal brain has several features in keeping with highly organized networks of activity, which are undergoing a highly programmed and rapid sequence of development before birth, in which long-range connections emerge and core features of the mature functional connectome (such as hub regions and a gradient organization) are established. In this review, the findings of these studies are summarized, their relationship to the known changes in developmental neurobiology is considered, and considerations for future work in the context of limitations to the fMRI approach are presented.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tomoki Arichi
- Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, King's College London, St Thomas' Hospital, London SE1 7EH, United Kingdom
- MRC Centre for Neurodevelopmental Disorders, King's College London, New Hunt's House, Guy's Campus, London SE1 1UL, United Kingdom
- Children's Neurosciences, Evelina London Children's Hospital, Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust, London SE1 7EH, United Kingdom
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3
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Singh K, Sethi P, Datta S, Chaudhary JS, Kumar S, Jain D, Gupta JK, Kumar S, Guru A, Panda SP. Advances in gene therapy approaches targeting neuro-inflammation in neurodegenerative diseases. Ageing Res Rev 2024; 98:102321. [PMID: 38723752 DOI: 10.1016/j.arr.2024.102321] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2024] [Revised: 05/03/2024] [Accepted: 05/03/2024] [Indexed: 05/20/2024]
Abstract
Over the last three decades, neurodegenerative diseases (NDs) have increased in frequency. About 15% of the world's population suffers from NDs in some capacity, which causes cognitive and physical impairment. Neurodegenerative diseases, including Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, and others represent a significant and growing global health challenge. Neuroinflammation is recognized to be related to all NDs, even though NDs are caused by a complex mix of genetic, environmental, and lifestyle factors. Numerous genes and pathways such as NFκB, p38 MAPK, Akt/mTOR, caspase, nitric oxide, and COX are involved in triggering brain immune cells like astrocytes and microglia to secrete inflammatory cytokines such as tumor necrosis factor-α, interleukin (IL)-1β, and IL-6. In AD, the binding of Aβ with CD36, TLR4, and TLR6 receptors results in activation of microglia which start to produce proinflammatory cytokines and chemokines. Consequently, the pro-inflammatory cytokines worsen and spread neuroinflammation, causing the deterioration of healthy neurons and the impairment of brain functions. Gene therapy has emerged as a promising therapeutic approach to modulate the inflammatory response in NDs, offering potential neuroprotective effects and disease-modifying benefits. This review article focuses on recent advances in gene therapy strategies targeting neuroinflammation pathways in NDs. We discussed the molecular pathways involved in neuroinflammation, highlighted key genes and proteins implicated in these processes, and reviewed the latest preclinical and clinical studies utilizing gene therapy to modulate neuroinflammatory responses. Additionally, this review addressed the prospects and challenges in translating gene therapy approaches into effective treatments for NDs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kuldeep Singh
- Department of Pharmacology, Institue of Pharmaceutical Research, GLA University, Mathura, Uttar Pradesh, India
| | - Pranshul Sethi
- Department of Pharmacology, College of Pharmacy, Shri Venkateshwara University, Gajraula, Uttar Pradesh, India
| | - Samaresh Datta
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Birbhum Pharmacy School, Sadaipur, Dist-Birbhum, West Bengal, India
| | | | - Sunil Kumar
- Faculty of Pharmacy, P. K. University, Village, Thanra, District, Karera, Shivpuri, Madhya Pradesh, India
| | - Divya Jain
- Department of Microbiology, School of Applied and Life Sciences, Uttaranchal University, Dehradun, Uttarakhand, India
| | - Jeetendra Kumar Gupta
- Department of Pharmacology, Institue of Pharmaceutical Research, GLA University, Mathura, Uttar Pradesh, India
| | - Shivendra Kumar
- Department of Pharmacology, Rajiv Academy for Pharmacy, Mathura, Uttar Pradesh, India
| | - Ajay Guru
- Department of Cariology, Saveetha Dental College and Hospitals, Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences, Saveetha University, Chennai, India
| | - Siva Prasad Panda
- Department of Pharmacology, Institue of Pharmaceutical Research, GLA University, Mathura, Uttar Pradesh, India.
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4
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Deneault E. Recent Therapeutic Gene Editing Applications to Genetic Disorders. Curr Issues Mol Biol 2024; 46:4147-4185. [PMID: 38785523 PMCID: PMC11119904 DOI: 10.3390/cimb46050255] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2024] [Revised: 04/18/2024] [Accepted: 04/26/2024] [Indexed: 05/25/2024] Open
Abstract
Recent years have witnessed unprecedented progress in therapeutic gene editing, revolutionizing the approach to treating genetic disorders. In this comprehensive review, we discuss the progression of milestones leading to the emergence of the clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)-based technology as a powerful tool for precise and targeted modifications of the human genome. CRISPR-Cas9 nuclease, base editing, and prime editing have taken center stage, demonstrating remarkable precision and efficacy in targeted ex vivo and in vivo genomic modifications. Enhanced delivery systems, including viral vectors and nanoparticles, have further improved the efficiency and safety of therapeutic gene editing, advancing their clinical translatability. The exploration of CRISPR-Cas systems beyond the commonly used Cas9, such as the development of Cas12 and Cas13 variants, has expanded the repertoire of gene editing tools, enabling more intricate modifications and therapeutic interventions. Outstandingly, prime editing represents a significant leap forward, given its unparalleled versatility and minimization of off-target effects. These innovations have paved the way for therapeutic gene editing in a multitude of previously incurable genetic disorders, ranging from monogenic diseases to complex polygenic conditions. This review highlights the latest innovative studies in the field, emphasizing breakthrough technologies in preclinical and clinical trials, and their applications in the realm of precision medicine. However, challenges such as off-target effects and ethical considerations remain, necessitating continued research to refine safety profiles and ethical frameworks.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eric Deneault
- Regulatory Research Division, Centre for Oncology, Radiopharmaceuticals and Research, Biologic and Radiopharmaceutical Drugs Directorate, Health Products and Food Branch, Health Canada, Ottawa, ON K1A 0K9, Canada
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5
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Mao M, Mattei C, Rollo B, Byars S, Cuddy C, Berecki G, Heighway J, Pachernegg S, Menheniott T, Apted D, Jia L, Dalby K, Nemiroff A, Mullen S, Reid CA, Maljevic S, Petrou S. Distinctive In Vitro Phenotypes in iPSC-Derived Neurons From Patients With Gain- and Loss-of-Function SCN2A Developmental and Epileptic Encephalopathy. J Neurosci 2024; 44:e0692232023. [PMID: 38148154 PMCID: PMC10883610 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.0692-23.2023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/17/2023] [Revised: 11/07/2023] [Accepted: 11/09/2023] [Indexed: 12/28/2023] Open
Abstract
SCN2A encodes NaV1.2, an excitatory neuron voltage-gated sodium channel and a major monogenic cause of neurodevelopmental disorders, including developmental and epileptic encephalopathies (DEE) and autism. Clinical presentation and pharmocosensitivity vary with the nature of SCN2A variant dysfunction and can be divided into gain-of-function (GoF) cases with pre- or peri-natal seizures and loss-of-function (LoF) patients typically having infantile spasms after 6 months of age. We established and assessed patient induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) - derived neuronal models for two recurrent SCN2A DEE variants with GoF R1882Q and LoF R853Q associated with early- and late-onset DEE, respectively. Two male patient-derived iPSC isogenic pairs were differentiated using Neurogenin-2 overexpression yielding populations of cortical-like glutamatergic neurons. Functional properties were assessed using patch clamp and multielectrode array recordings and transcriptomic profiles obtained with total mRNA sequencing after 2-4 weeks in culture. At 3 weeks of differentiation, increased neuronal activity at cellular and network levels was observed for R1882Q iPSC-derived neurons. In contrast, R853Q neurons showed only subtle changes in excitability after 4 weeks and an overall reduced network activity after 7 weeks in vitro. Consistent with the reported efficacy in some GoF SCN2A patients, phenytoin (sodium channel blocker) reduced the excitability of neurons to the control levels in R1882Q neuronal cultures. Transcriptomic alterations in neurons were detected for each variant and convergent pathways suggested potential shared mechanisms underlying SCN2A DEE. In summary, patient iPSC-derived neuronal models of SCN2A GoF and LoF pathogenic variants causing DEE show specific functional and transcriptomic in vitro phenotypes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Miaomiao Mao
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria 3052, Australia
| | - Cristiana Mattei
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria 3052, Australia
| | - Ben Rollo
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria 3052, Australia
- Department of Neuroscience, Central Clinical School, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria 3800, Australia
| | - Sean Byars
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria 3052, Australia
| | - Claire Cuddy
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria 3052, Australia
| | - Geza Berecki
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria 3052, Australia
| | - Jacqueline Heighway
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria 3052, Australia
| | - Svenja Pachernegg
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria 3052, Australia
- Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Royal Children's Hospital, Melbourne, Victoria 3052, Australia
| | - Trevelyan Menheniott
- Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Royal Children's Hospital, Melbourne, Victoria 3052, Australia
| | - Danielle Apted
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria 3052, Australia
| | - Linghan Jia
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria 3052, Australia
| | - Kelley Dalby
- Rogcon Biosciences, Cambridge, MA 02142
- Praxis Precision Medicines, Inc., Cambridge, MA 02142
| | - Alex Nemiroff
- Rogcon Biosciences, Cambridge, MA 02142
- Praxis Precision Medicines, Inc., Cambridge, MA 02142
| | - Saul Mullen
- Austin Health, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria 3084, Australia
| | - Christopher A Reid
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria 3052, Australia
| | - Snezana Maljevic
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria 3052, Australia
| | - Steven Petrou
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria 3052, Australia
- Praxis Precision Medicines, Inc., Cambridge, MA 02142
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6
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Rylaarsdam L, Rakotomamonjy J, Pope E, Guemez-Gamboa A. iPSC-derived models of PACS1 syndrome reveal transcriptional and functional deficits in neuron activity. Nat Commun 2024; 15:827. [PMID: 38280846 PMCID: PMC10821916 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-44989-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/13/2022] [Accepted: 01/11/2024] [Indexed: 01/29/2024] Open
Abstract
PACS1 syndrome is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by intellectual disability and distinct craniofacial abnormalities resulting from a de novo p.R203W variant in phosphofurin acidic cluster sorting protein 1 (PACS1). PACS1 is known to have functions in the endosomal pathway and nucleus, but how the p.R203W variant affects developing neurons is not fully understood. Here we differentiated stem cells towards neuronal models including cortical organoids to investigate the impact of the PACS1 syndrome-causing variant on neurodevelopment. While few deleterious effects were detected in PACS1(+/R203W) neural precursors, mature PACS1(+/R203W) glutamatergic neurons exhibited impaired expression of genes involved in synaptic signaling processes. Subsequent characterization of neural activity using calcium imaging and multielectrode arrays revealed the p.R203W PACS1 variant leads to a prolonged neuronal network burst duration mediated by an increased interspike interval. These findings demonstrate the impact of the PACS1 p.R203W variant on developing human neural tissue and uncover putative electrophysiological underpinnings of disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lauren Rylaarsdam
- Department of Neuroscience, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Jennifer Rakotomamonjy
- Department of Neuroscience, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Eleanor Pope
- Department of Neuroscience, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Alicia Guemez-Gamboa
- Department of Neuroscience, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, USA.
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7
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Brown CO, Uy JA, Murtaza N, Rosa E, Alfonso A, Dave BM, Kilpatrick S, Cheng AA, White SH, Scherer SW, Singh KK. Disruption of the autism-associated gene SCN2A alters synaptic development and neuronal signaling in patient iPSC-glutamatergic neurons. Front Cell Neurosci 2024; 17:1239069. [PMID: 38293651 PMCID: PMC10824931 DOI: 10.3389/fncel.2023.1239069] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2023] [Accepted: 12/14/2023] [Indexed: 02/01/2024] Open
Abstract
SCN2A is an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) risk gene and encodes a voltage-gated sodium channel. However, the impact of ASD-associated SCN2A de novo variants on human neuron development is unknown. We studied SCN2A using isogenic SCN2A-/- induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), and patient-derived iPSCs harboring a de novo R607* truncating variant. We used Neurogenin2 to generate excitatory (glutamatergic) neurons and found that SCN2A+/R607* and SCN2A-/- neurons displayed a reduction in synapse formation and excitatory synaptic activity. We found differential impact on actional potential dynamics and neuronal excitability that reveals a loss-of-function effect of the R607* variant. Our study reveals that a de novo truncating SCN2A variant impairs the development of human neuronal function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chad O. Brown
- Department of Biochemistry and Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada
- Krembil Research Institute, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Jarryll A. Uy
- Krembil Research Institute, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Nadeem Murtaza
- Department of Biochemistry and Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada
- Krembil Research Institute, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Elyse Rosa
- Department of Biochemistry and Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada
| | - Alexandria Alfonso
- Department of Biochemistry and Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada
| | - Biren M. Dave
- Department of Molecular Genetics, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
- SickKids Research Institute, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Savannah Kilpatrick
- Department of Biochemistry and Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada
- Krembil Research Institute, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Annie A. Cheng
- Krembil Research Institute, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Sean H. White
- Department of Biochemistry and Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada
| | - Stephen W. Scherer
- Department of Molecular Genetics, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
- SickKids Research Institute, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Karun K. Singh
- Department of Biochemistry and Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada
- Krembil Research Institute, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
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8
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Chen Y, Cheng W, Tang J, Xiao B, Kuang M, Xu L, Liu H. Mitigating cognitive impairment in aging mice: Exploring the therapeutic potential of ischelium. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 2023; 687:149173. [PMID: 37944469 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbrc.2023.149173] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/18/2023] [Accepted: 10/26/2023] [Indexed: 11/12/2023]
Abstract
To deeply explore the intervention effects of ischelium on the cognitive memory decline in naturally aging mice and its potential mechanisms, we randomly divided mice into four groups: young control group (C), elderly group (M), ischelium low-dose group (L), and ischelium high-dose group (H). The experiment lasted for 12 weeks. We employed the Y-maze test, open field test, and conditioned fear test to evaluate the memory functions of each group. Through HE staining and electron microscopy, we observed morphological changes in the mouse hippocampus. RT-PCR was used to detect changes in the expression of factors related to cognitive function in the hippocampus of elderly mice. We analyzed the changes in the Nrf2/HO-1 pathway and the inflammatory factors IL-1β and TNF-α using elisa. Additionally, we examined the enzymatic activities of SOD, CAT, GSH-Px, and MDA in the hippocampus and analyzed the compositional changes of gut microbiota in mice using 16S technology. Our results indicate that ischelium effectively ameliorates cognitive impairments in elderly mice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yanhong Chen
- Laboratory Animal Center of Zhejiang University, Zhejiang, China
| | - Wei Cheng
- Hangzhou Kang Ming Information Technology Co., Ltd, Zhejiang, China
| | - Jia Tang
- Hangzhou Kang Ming Information Technology Co., Ltd, Zhejiang, China
| | - Boneng Xiao
- Laboratory Animal Center of Zhejiang University, Zhejiang, China
| | - Ming Kuang
- Hangzhou Kang Ming Information Technology Co., Ltd, Zhejiang, China
| | - Liaoyi Xu
- Department of Integrative Biology, The University of Texas at Austin, Texas, USA
| | - Hongying Liu
- Hangzhou Kang Ming Information Technology Co., Ltd, Zhejiang, China.
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Lotfi M, Morshedi Rad D, Mashhadi SS, Ashouri A, Mojarrad M, Mozaffari-Jovin S, Farrokhi S, Hashemi M, Lotfi M, Ebrahimi Warkiani M, Abbaszadegan MR. Recent Advances in CRISPR/Cas9 Delivery Approaches for Therapeutic Gene Editing of Stem Cells. Stem Cell Rev Rep 2023; 19:2576-2596. [PMID: 37723364 PMCID: PMC10661828 DOI: 10.1007/s12015-023-10585-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 06/30/2023] [Indexed: 09/20/2023]
Abstract
Rapid advancement in genome editing technologies has provided new promises for treating neoplasia, cardiovascular, neurodegenerative, and monogenic disorders. Recently, the clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/CRISPR-associated protein 9 (Cas9) system has emerged as a powerful gene editing tool offering advantages, including high editing efficiency and low cost over the conventional approaches. Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs), with their great proliferation and differentiation potential into different cell types, have been exploited in stem cell-based therapy. The potential of hPSCs and the capabilities of CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing has been paradigm-shifting in medical genetics for over two decades. Since hPSCs are categorized as hard-to-transfect cells, there is a critical demand to develop an appropriate and effective approach for CRISPR/Cas9 delivery into these cells. This review focuses on various strategies for CRISPR/Cas9 delivery in stem cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Malihe Lotfi
- Student Research Committee, Faculty of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran
- Medical Genetics Research Center, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran
- Department of Medical Genetics and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran
| | - Dorsa Morshedi Rad
- School of Biomedical Engineering, University of Technology Sydney, Sydney, Australia
| | - Samaneh Sharif Mashhadi
- Medical Genetics Research Center, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran
- Department of Medical Genetics and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran
| | - Atefeh Ashouri
- Medical Genetics Research Center, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran
- Department of Medical Genetics and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran
| | - Majid Mojarrad
- Medical Genetics Research Center, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran
- Department of Medical Genetics and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran
| | - Sina Mozaffari-Jovin
- Medical Genetics Research Center, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran
- Department of Medical Genetics and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran
| | - Shima Farrokhi
- Student Research Committee, Faculty of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran
- Department of Medical Genetics and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran
| | - Maryam Hashemi
- Nanotechnology Research Center, Pharmaceutical Technology Institute, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran
- Department of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, School of Pharmacy, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran
| | - Marzieh Lotfi
- Department of Medical Genetics, School of Medicine, Shahid Sadoughi University of Medical Sciences and Health Services, Yazd, Iran
| | - Majid Ebrahimi Warkiani
- School of Biomedical Engineering, University of Technology Sydney, Sydney, Australia.
- Institute for Biomedical Materials and Devices (IBMD), Faculty of Science, University of Technology Sydney, Sydney, Australia.
| | - Mohammad Reza Abbaszadegan
- Medical Genetics Research Center, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran.
- Department of Medical Genetics and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran.
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10
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Zamponi M, Mollica PA, Khodour Y, Bjerring JS, Bruno RD, Sachs PC. Combined 3D bioprinting and tissue-specific ECM system reveals the influence of brain matrix on stem cell differentiation. Front Cell Dev Biol 2023; 11:1258993. [PMID: 37928905 PMCID: PMC10623327 DOI: 10.3389/fcell.2023.1258993] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2023] [Accepted: 10/09/2023] [Indexed: 11/07/2023] Open
Abstract
We have previously shown that human and murine breast extracellular matrix (ECM) can significantly impact cellular behavior, including stem cell fate determination. It has been established that tissue-specific extracellular matrix from the central nervous system has the capacity to support neuronal survival. However, the characterization of its influence on stem cell differentiation and its adaptation to robust 3D culture models is underdeveloped. To address these issues, we combined our 3D bioprinter with hydrogels containing porcine brain extracellular matrix (BMX) to test the influence of the extracellular matrix on stem cell differentiation. Our 3D bioprinting system generated reproducible 3D neural structures derived from mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs). We demonstrate that the addition of BMX preferentially influences 3D bioprinted mESCs towards neural lineages compared to standard basement membrane (Geltrex/Matrigel) hydrogels alone. Furthermore, we demonstrate that we can transplant these 3D bioprinted neural cellular structures into a mouse's cleared mammary fat pad, where they continue to grow into larger neural outgrowths. Finally, we demonstrate that direct injection of human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCS) and neural stem cells (NSCs) suspended in pure BMX formed neural structures in vivo. Combined, these findings describe a unique system for studying brain ECM/stem cell interactions and demonstrate that BMX can direct pluripotent stem cells to differentiate down a neural cellular lineage without any additional specific differentiation stimuli.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martina Zamponi
- School of Medical Diagnostic and Translational Sciences, College of Health Sciences, Old Dominion University, Norfolk, VA, United States
| | - Peter A. Mollica
- School of Medical Diagnostic and Translational Sciences, College of Health Sciences, Old Dominion University, Norfolk, VA, United States
| | - Yara Khodour
- School of Medical Diagnostic and Translational Sciences, College of Health Sciences, Old Dominion University, Norfolk, VA, United States
| | - Julie S. Bjerring
- School of Medical Diagnostic and Translational Sciences, College of Health Sciences, Old Dominion University, Norfolk, VA, United States
| | - Robert D. Bruno
- School of Medical Diagnostic and Translational Sciences, College of Health Sciences, Old Dominion University, Norfolk, VA, United States
| | - Patrick C. Sachs
- School of Medical Diagnostic and Translational Sciences, College of Health Sciences, Old Dominion University, Norfolk, VA, United States
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11
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Shi X, Lu C, Corman A, Nikish A, Zhou Y, Platt RJ, Iossifov I, Zhang F, Pan JQ, Sanjana NE. Heterozygous deletion of the autism-associated gene CHD8 impairs synaptic function through widespread changes in gene expression and chromatin compaction. Am J Hum Genet 2023; 110:1750-1768. [PMID: 37802044 PMCID: PMC10577079 DOI: 10.1016/j.ajhg.2023.09.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/14/2023] [Revised: 08/31/2023] [Accepted: 09/06/2023] [Indexed: 10/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Whole-exome sequencing of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) probands and unaffected family members has identified many genes harboring de novo variants suspected to play a causal role in the disorder. Of these, chromodomain helicase DNA-binding protein 8 (CHD8) is the most recurrently mutated. Despite the prevalence of CHD8 mutations, we have little insight into how CHD8 loss affects genome organization or the functional consequences of these molecular alterations in neurons. Here, we engineered two isogenic human embryonic stem cell lines with CHD8 loss-of-function mutations and characterized differences in differentiated human cortical neurons. We identified hundreds of genes with altered expression, including many involved in neural development and excitatory synaptic transmission. Field recordings and single-cell electrophysiology revealed a 3-fold decrease in firing rates and synaptic activity in CHD8+/- neurons, as well as a similar firing-rate deficit in primary cortical neurons from Chd8+/- mice. These alterations in neuron and synapse function can be reversed by CHD8 overexpression. Moreover, CHD8+/- neurons displayed a large increase in open chromatin across the genome, where the greatest change in compaction was near autism susceptibility candidate 2 (AUTS2), which encodes a transcriptional regulator implicated in ASD. Genes with changes in chromatin accessibility and expression in CHD8+/- neurons have significant overlap with genes mutated in probands for ASD, intellectual disability, and schizophrenia but not with genes mutated in healthy controls or other disease cohorts. Overall, this study characterizes key molecular alterations in genome structure and expression in CHD8+/- neurons and links these changes to impaired neuronal and synaptic function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xi Shi
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA; Department of Bioengineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA; Broad Institute, Cambridge, MA, USA; Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Congyi Lu
- New York Genome Center, New York, NY, USA; Department of Biology, New York University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Alba Corman
- New York Genome Center, New York, NY, USA; Department of Biology, New York University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Alexandra Nikish
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA; Department of Bioengineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA; Broad Institute, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Yang Zhou
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada; Montreal Neurological Institute, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Randy J Platt
- Department of Biosystems Science and Engineering, ETH Zürich, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Ivan Iossifov
- New York Genome Center, New York, NY, USA; Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY, USA
| | - Feng Zhang
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA; Department of Bioengineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA; Broad Institute, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Jen Q Pan
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute, Cambridge, MA, USA.
| | - Neville E Sanjana
- New York Genome Center, New York, NY, USA; Department of Biology, New York University, New York, NY, USA.
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12
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LaMarca EA, Saito A, Plaza-Jennings A, Espeso-Gil S, Hellmich A, Fernando MB, Javidfar B, Liao W, Estill M, Townsley K, Florio A, Ethridge JE, Do C, Tycko B, Shen L, Kamiya A, Tsankova NM, Brennand KJ, Akbarian S. R-loop landscapes in the developing human brain are linked to neural differentiation and cell-type specific transcription. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.07.18.549494. [PMID: 37503149 PMCID: PMC10370098 DOI: 10.1101/2023.07.18.549494] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/29/2023]
Abstract
Here, we construct genome-scale maps for R-loops, three-stranded nucleic acid structures comprised of a DNA/RNA hybrid and a displaced single strand of DNA, in the proliferative and differentiated zones of the human prenatal brain. We show that R-loops are abundant in the progenitor-rich germinal matrix, with preferential formation at promoters slated for upregulated expression at later stages of differentiation, including numerous neurodevelopmental risk genes. RNase H1-mediated contraction of the genomic R-loop space in neural progenitors shifted differentiation toward the neuronal lineage and was associated with transcriptomic alterations and defective functional and structural neuronal connectivity in vivo and in vitro. Therefore, R-loops are important for fine-tuning differentiation-sensitive gene expression programs of neural progenitor cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elizabeth A LaMarca
- Graduate School of Biomedical Science, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
- Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Department of Genetics and Genomics, Icahn Institute of Genomics and Multiscale Biology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
- Black Family Stem Cell Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Atsushi Saito
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA
| | - Amara Plaza-Jennings
- Graduate School of Biomedical Science, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Sergio Espeso-Gil
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Allyse Hellmich
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
- Black Family Stem Cell Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Michael B Fernando
- Graduate School of Biomedical Science, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
- Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Department of Genetics and Genomics, Icahn Institute of Genomics and Multiscale Biology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
- Black Family Stem Cell Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Behnam Javidfar
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Will Liao
- New York Genome Center, New York, NY 10013, USA
| | - Molly Estill
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Kayla Townsley
- Graduate School of Biomedical Science, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
- Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Department of Genetics and Genomics, Icahn Institute of Genomics and Multiscale Biology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
- Black Family Stem Cell Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Anna Florio
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA
| | - James E Ethridge
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Catherine Do
- Center for Discovery and Innovation, Hackensack Meridian Health, 111 Ideation Way, Nutley, NJ 07110, USA
| | - Benjamin Tycko
- Center for Discovery and Innovation, Hackensack Meridian Health, 111 Ideation Way, Nutley, NJ 07110, USA
| | - Li Shen
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Atsushi Kamiya
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA
| | - Nadejda M Tsankova
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
- Department of Pathology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Kristen J Brennand
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
- Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Department of Genetics and Genomics, Icahn Institute of Genomics and Multiscale Biology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
- Black Family Stem Cell Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
- Current affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511, USA
| | - Schahram Akbarian
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
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13
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Spirito G, Filosi M, Domenici E, Mangoni D, Gustincich S, Sanges R. Exploratory analysis of L1 retrotransposons expression in autism. Mol Autism 2023; 14:22. [PMID: 37381037 DOI: 10.1186/s13229-023-00554-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2022] [Accepted: 06/15/2023] [Indexed: 06/30/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a set of highly heterogeneous neurodevelopmental diseases whose genetic etiology is not completely understood. Several investigations have relied on transcriptome analysis from peripheral tissues to dissect ASD into homogenous molecular phenotypes. Recently, analysis of changes in gene expression from postmortem brain tissues has identified sets of genes that are involved in pathways previously associated with ASD etiology. In addition to protein-coding transcripts, the human transcriptome is composed by a large set of non-coding RNAs and transposable elements (TEs). Advancements in sequencing technologies have proven that TEs can be transcribed in a regulated fashion, and their dysregulation might have a role in brain diseases. METHODS We exploited published datasets comprising RNA-seq data from (1) postmortem brain of ASD subjects, (2) in vitro cell cultures where ten different ASD-relevant genes were knocked out and (3) blood of discordant siblings. We measured the expression levels of evolutionarily young full-length transposable L1 elements and characterized the genomic location of deregulated L1s assessing their potential impact on the transcription of ASD-relevant genes. We analyzed every sample independently, avoiding to pool together the disease subjects to unmask the heterogeneity of the molecular phenotypes. RESULTS We detected a strong upregulation of intronic full-length L1s in a subset of postmortem brain samples and in in vitro differentiated neurons from iPSC knocked out for ATRX. L1 upregulation correlated with an high number of deregulated genes and retained introns. In the anterior cingulate cortex of one subject, a small number of significantly upregulated L1s overlapped with ASD-relevant genes that were significantly downregulated, suggesting the possible existence of a negative effect of L1 transcription on host transcripts. LIMITATIONS Our analyses must be considered exploratory and will need to be validated in bigger cohorts. The main limitation is given by the small sample size and by the lack of replicates for postmortem brain samples. Measuring the transcription of locus-specific TEs is complicated by the repetitive nature of their sequence, which reduces the accuracy in mapping sequencing reads to the correct genomic locus. CONCLUSIONS L1 upregulation in ASD appears to be limited to a subset of subjects that are also characterized by a general deregulation of the expression of canonical genes and an increase in intron retention. In some samples from the anterior cingulate cortex, L1s upregulation seems to directly impair the expression of some ASD-relevant genes by a still unknown mechanism. L1s upregulation may therefore identify a group of ASD subjects with common molecular features and helps stratifying individuals for novel strategies of therapeutic intervention.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giovanni Spirito
- Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati (SISSA), Area of Neuroscience, Via Bonomea 265, 34136, Trieste, Italy
- Central RNA Laboratory, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia - IIT, Via Enrico Melen 83, Building B, 16152, Genoa, Italy
- CMP3vda, Via Lavoratori Vittime del Col Du Mont 28, Aosta, Italy
| | - Michele Filosi
- Department of Cellular, Computational and Integrative Biology (CIBIO), University of Trento, Trento, TN, Italy
- Eurac Research, Institute for Biomedicine, Bolzano, BZ, Italy
| | - Enrico Domenici
- Department of Cellular, Computational and Integrative Biology (CIBIO), University of Trento, Trento, TN, Italy
- Fondazione The Microsoft Research - University of Trento Centre for Computational and Systems Biology (COSBI), Rovereto, TN, Italy
| | - Damiano Mangoni
- Central RNA Laboratory, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia - IIT, Via Enrico Melen 83, Building B, 16152, Genoa, Italy
| | - Stefano Gustincich
- Central RNA Laboratory, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia - IIT, Via Enrico Melen 83, Building B, 16152, Genoa, Italy.
- CMP3vda, Via Lavoratori Vittime del Col Du Mont 28, Aosta, Italy.
| | - Remo Sanges
- Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati (SISSA), Area of Neuroscience, Via Bonomea 265, 34136, Trieste, Italy.
- Central RNA Laboratory, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia - IIT, Via Enrico Melen 83, Building B, 16152, Genoa, Italy.
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14
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Molloy CJ, Cooke J, Gatford NJF, Rivera-Olvera A, Avazzadeh S, Homberg JR, Grandjean J, Fernandes C, Shen S, Loth E, Srivastava DP, Gallagher L. Bridging the translational gap: what can synaptopathies tell us about autism? Front Mol Neurosci 2023; 16:1191323. [PMID: 37441676 PMCID: PMC10333541 DOI: 10.3389/fnmol.2023.1191323] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2023] [Accepted: 05/24/2023] [Indexed: 07/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Multiple molecular pathways and cellular processes have been implicated in the neurobiology of autism and other neurodevelopmental conditions. There is a current focus on synaptic gene conditions, or synaptopathies, which refer to clinical conditions associated with rare genetic variants disrupting genes involved in synaptic biology. Synaptopathies are commonly associated with autism and developmental delay and may be associated with a range of other neuropsychiatric outcomes. Altered synaptic biology is suggested by both preclinical and clinical studies in autism based on evidence of differences in early brain structural development and altered glutamatergic and GABAergic neurotransmission potentially perturbing excitatory and inhibitory balance. This review focusses on the NRXN-NLGN-SHANK pathway, which is implicated in the synaptic assembly, trans-synaptic signalling, and synaptic functioning. We provide an overview of the insights from preclinical molecular studies of the pathway. Concentrating on NRXN1 deletion and SHANK3 mutations, we discuss emerging understanding of cellular processes and electrophysiology from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) models derived from individuals with synaptopathies, neuroimaging and behavioural findings in animal models of Nrxn1 and Shank3 synaptic gene conditions, and key findings regarding autism features, brain and behavioural phenotypes from human clinical studies of synaptopathies. The identification of molecular-based biomarkers from preclinical models aims to advance the development of targeted therapeutic treatments. However, it remains challenging to translate preclinical animal models and iPSC studies to interpret human brain development and autism features. We discuss the existing challenges in preclinical and clinical synaptopathy research, and potential solutions to align methodologies across preclinical and clinical research. Bridging the translational gap between preclinical and clinical studies will be necessary to understand biological mechanisms, to identify targeted therapies, and ultimately to progress towards personalised approaches for complex neurodevelopmental conditions such as autism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ciara J. Molloy
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Jennifer Cooke
- Forensic and Neurodevelopmental Sciences, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Nicholas J. F. Gatford
- Kavli Institute for Nanoscience Discovery, Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford, Medical Sciences Division, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Alejandro Rivera-Olvera
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Behaviour, Radboud University Medical Centre, Nijmegen, Netherlands
| | - Sahar Avazzadeh
- Physiology and Cellular Physiology Research Laboratory, CÚRAM SFI Centre for Research in Medical Devices, School of Medicine, Human Biology Building, University of Galway, Galway, Ireland
| | - Judith R. Homberg
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Behaviour, Radboud University Medical Centre, Nijmegen, Netherlands
| | - Joanes Grandjean
- Physiology and Cellular Physiology Research Laboratory, CÚRAM SFI Centre for Research in Medical Devices, School of Medicine, Human Biology Building, University of Galway, Galway, Ireland
- Department of Medical Imaging, Radboud University Medical Centre, Nijmegen, Netherlands
| | - Cathy Fernandes
- Social, Genetic and Developmental Psychiatry Centre, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London, London, United Kingdom
- MRC Centre for Neurodevelopmental Disorders, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Sanbing Shen
- Regenerative Medicine Institute, School of Medicine, University of Galway, Galway, Ireland
- FutureNeuro, The SFI Research Centre for Chronic and Rare Neurological Diseases, Royal College of Surgeons, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Eva Loth
- Forensic and Neurodevelopmental Sciences, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Deepak P. Srivastava
- MRC Centre for Neurodevelopmental Disorders, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London, London, United Kingdom
- Department of Basic and Clinical Neuroscience, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Louise Gallagher
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
- The Hospital for SickKids, Toronto, ON, Canada
- The Peter Gilgan Centre for Research and Learning, SickKids Research Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada
- The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry, Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
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15
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Kilpatrick S, Irwin C, Singh KK. Human pluripotent stem cell (hPSC) and organoid models of autism: opportunities and limitations. Transl Psychiatry 2023; 13:217. [PMID: 37344450 DOI: 10.1038/s41398-023-02510-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2022] [Revised: 05/09/2023] [Accepted: 06/05/2023] [Indexed: 06/23/2023] Open
Abstract
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a complex neurodevelopmental disorder caused by genetic or environmental perturbations during early development. Diagnoses are dependent on the identification of behavioral abnormalities that likely emerge well after the disorder is established, leaving critical developmental windows uncharacterized. This is further complicated by the incredible clinical and genetic heterogeneity of the disorder that is not captured in most mammalian models. In recent years, advancements in stem cell technology have created the opportunity to model ASD in a human context through the use of pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs), which can be used to generate 2D cellular models as well as 3D unguided- and region-specific neural organoids. These models produce profoundly intricate systems, capable of modeling the developing brain spatiotemporally to reproduce key developmental milestones throughout early development. When complemented with multi-omics, genome editing, and electrophysiology analysis, they can be used as a powerful tool to profile the neurobiological mechanisms underlying this complex disorder. In this review, we will explore the recent advancements in hPSC-based modeling, discuss present and future applications of the model to ASD research, and finally consider the limitations and future directions within the field to make this system more robust and broadly applicable.
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Affiliation(s)
- Savannah Kilpatrick
- Donald K. Johnson Eye Institute, Krembil Research Institute, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Biochemistry and Biomedical Science, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada
| | - Courtney Irwin
- Donald K. Johnson Eye Institute, Krembil Research Institute, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Karun K Singh
- Donald K. Johnson Eye Institute, Krembil Research Institute, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada.
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
- Department of Ophthalmology and Vision Sciences, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
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16
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Asadollahi R, Delvendahl I, Muff R, Tan G, Rodríguez DG, Turan S, Russo M, Oneda B, Joset P, Boonsawat P, Masood R, Mocera M, Ivanovski I, Baumer A, Bachmann-Gagescu R, Schlapbach R, Rehrauer H, Steindl K, Begemann A, Reis A, Winkler J, Winner B, Müller M, Rauch A. Pathogenic SCN2A variants cause early-stage dysfunction in patient-derived neurons. Hum Mol Genet 2023; 32:2192-2204. [PMID: 37010102 PMCID: PMC10281746 DOI: 10.1093/hmg/ddad048] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/14/2022] [Revised: 02/23/2023] [Accepted: 03/19/2023] [Indexed: 04/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Pathogenic heterozygous variants in SCN2A, which encodes the neuronal sodium channel NaV1.2, cause different types of epilepsy or intellectual disability (ID)/autism without seizures. Previous studies using mouse models or heterologous systems suggest that NaV1.2 channel gain-of-function typically causes epilepsy, whereas loss-of-function leads to ID/autism. How altered channel biophysics translate into patient neurons remains unknown. Here, we investigated iPSC-derived early-stage cortical neurons from ID patients harboring diverse pathogenic SCN2A variants [p.(Leu611Valfs*35); p.(Arg937Cys); p.(Trp1716*)] and compared them with neurons from an epileptic encephalopathy (EE) patient [p.(Glu1803Gly)] and controls. ID neurons consistently expressed lower NaV1.2 protein levels. In neurons with the frameshift variant, NaV1.2 mRNA and protein levels were reduced by ~ 50%, suggesting nonsense-mediated decay and haploinsufficiency. In other ID neurons, only protein levels were reduced implying NaV1.2 instability. Electrophysiological analysis revealed decreased sodium current density and impaired action potential (AP) firing in ID neurons, consistent with reduced NaV1.2 levels. In contrast, epilepsy neurons displayed no change in NaV1.2 levels or sodium current density, but impaired sodium channel inactivation. Single-cell transcriptomics identified dysregulation of distinct molecular pathways including inhibition of oxidative phosphorylation in neurons with SCN2A haploinsufficiency and activation of calcium signaling and neurotransmission in epilepsy neurons. Together, our patient iPSC-derived neurons reveal characteristic sodium channel dysfunction consistent with biophysical changes previously observed in heterologous systems. Additionally, our model links the channel dysfunction in ID to reduced NaV1.2 levels and uncovers impaired AP firing in early-stage neurons. The altered molecular pathways may reflect a homeostatic response to NaV1.2 dysfunction and can guide further investigations.
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Affiliation(s)
- R Asadollahi
- Institute of Medical Genetics, University of Zurich, Schlieren-Zurich 8952, Switzerland
- Faculty of Engineering and Science, University of Greenwich London, Medway Campus, Chatham Maritime ME4 4TB, UK
| | - I Delvendahl
- Department of Molecular Life Sciences, University of Zurich, Zurich 8057, Switzerland
- Neuroscience Center Zurich, University of Zurich, Zurich 8057, Switzerland
| | - R Muff
- Institute of Medical Genetics, University of Zurich, Schlieren-Zurich 8952, Switzerland
| | - G Tan
- Functional Genomics Center Zurich, ETH Zurich and University of Zurich, Zurich 8057, Switzerland
| | - D G Rodríguez
- Functional Genomics Center Zurich, ETH Zurich and University of Zurich, Zurich 8057, Switzerland
| | - S Turan
- Department of Stem Cell Biology, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Erlangen 91054, Germany
| | - M Russo
- Institute of Medical Genetics, University of Zurich, Schlieren-Zurich 8952, Switzerland
| | - B Oneda
- Institute of Medical Genetics, University of Zurich, Schlieren-Zurich 8952, Switzerland
| | - P Joset
- Institute of Medical Genetics, University of Zurich, Schlieren-Zurich 8952, Switzerland
| | - P Boonsawat
- Institute of Medical Genetics, University of Zurich, Schlieren-Zurich 8952, Switzerland
| | - R Masood
- Institute of Medical Genetics, University of Zurich, Schlieren-Zurich 8952, Switzerland
| | - M Mocera
- Institute of Medical Genetics, University of Zurich, Schlieren-Zurich 8952, Switzerland
| | - I Ivanovski
- Institute of Medical Genetics, University of Zurich, Schlieren-Zurich 8952, Switzerland
| | - A Baumer
- Institute of Medical Genetics, University of Zurich, Schlieren-Zurich 8952, Switzerland
| | - R Bachmann-Gagescu
- Institute of Medical Genetics, University of Zurich, Schlieren-Zurich 8952, Switzerland
| | - R Schlapbach
- Functional Genomics Center Zurich, ETH Zurich and University of Zurich, Zurich 8057, Switzerland
| | - H Rehrauer
- Functional Genomics Center Zurich, ETH Zurich and University of Zurich, Zurich 8057, Switzerland
| | - K Steindl
- Institute of Medical Genetics, University of Zurich, Schlieren-Zurich 8952, Switzerland
| | - A Begemann
- Institute of Medical Genetics, University of Zurich, Schlieren-Zurich 8952, Switzerland
| | - A Reis
- Institute of Human Genetics, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Erlangen 91054, Germany
| | - J Winkler
- Department of Molecular Neurology, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Erlangen 91054, Germany
- Center for Rare Diseases Erlangen, University Hospital Erlangen, Erlangen 91054, Germany
| | - B Winner
- Department of Stem Cell Biology, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Erlangen 91054, Germany
- Center for Rare Diseases Erlangen, University Hospital Erlangen, Erlangen 91054, Germany
| | - M Müller
- Department of Molecular Life Sciences, University of Zurich, Zurich 8057, Switzerland
- Neuroscience Center Zurich, University of Zurich, Zurich 8057, Switzerland
- University of Zurich Clinical Research Priority Program (CRPP) Praeclare – Personalized prenatal and reproductive medicine, Zurich 8006, Switzerland
- University of Zurich Research Priority Program (URPP) AdaBD: Adaptive Brain Circuits in Development and Learning, Zurich 8006, Switzerland
| | - A Rauch
- Institute of Medical Genetics, University of Zurich, Schlieren-Zurich 8952, Switzerland
- Neuroscience Center Zurich, University of Zurich, Zurich 8057, Switzerland
- University of Zurich Clinical Research Priority Program (CRPP) Praeclare – Personalized prenatal and reproductive medicine, Zurich 8006, Switzerland
- University of Zurich Research Priority Program (URPP) AdaBD: Adaptive Brain Circuits in Development and Learning, Zurich 8006, Switzerland
- University of Zurich Research Priority Program (URPP) ITINERARE: Innovative Therapies in Rare Diseases, Zurich 8006, Switzerland
- Zurich Center for Integrative Human Physiology, University of Zurich, Zurich 8057, Switzerland
- University Children's Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Zurich 8032, Switzerland
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17
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Sandhu A, Kumar A, Rawat K, Gautam V, Sharma A, Saha L. Modernising autism spectrum disorder model engineering and treatment via CRISPR-Cas9: A gene reprogramming approach. World J Clin Cases 2023; 11:3114-3127. [PMID: 37274051 PMCID: PMC10237133 DOI: 10.12998/wjcc.v11.i14.3114] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/28/2022] [Revised: 02/13/2023] [Accepted: 04/06/2023] [Indexed: 05/16/2023] Open
Abstract
A neurological abnormality called autism spectrum disorder (ASD) affects how a person perceives and interacts with others, leading to social interaction and communication issues. Limited and recurring behavioural patterns are another feature of the illness. Multiple mutations throughout development are the source of the neurodevelopmental disorder autism. However, a well-established model and perfect treatment for this spectrum disease has not been discovered. The rising era of the clustered regularly interspaced palindromic repeats (CRISPR)-associated protein 9 (Cas9) system can streamline the complexity underlying the pathogenesis of ASD. The CRISPR-Cas9 system is a powerful genetic engineering tool used to edit the genome at the targeted site in a precise manner. The major hurdle in studying ASD is the lack of appropriate animal models presenting the complex symptoms of ASD. Therefore, CRISPR-Cas9 is being used worldwide to mimic the ASD-like pathology in various systems like in vitro cell lines, in vitro 3D organoid models and in vivo animal models. Apart from being used in establishing ASD models, CRISPR-Cas9 can also be used to treat the complexities of ASD. The aim of this review was to summarize and critically analyse the CRISPR-Cas9-mediated discoveries in the field of ASD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arushi Sandhu
- Department of Pharmacology, Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh 0172, Chandigarh, India
| | - Anil Kumar
- Department of Pharmacology, Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh 0172, Chandigarh, India
| | - Kajal Rawat
- Department of Pharmacology, Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh 0172, Chandigarh, India
| | - Vipasha Gautam
- Department of Pharmacology, Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh 0172, Chandigarh, India
| | - Antika Sharma
- Department of Pharmacology, Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh 0172, Chandigarh, India
| | - Lekha Saha
- Department of Pharmacology, Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh 0172, Chandigarh, India
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18
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Berryer MH, Rizki G, Nathanson A, Klein JA, Trendafilova D, Susco SG, Lam D, Messana A, Holton KM, Karhohs KW, Cimini BA, Pfaff K, Carpenter AE, Rubin LL, Barrett LE. High-content synaptic phenotyping in human cellular models reveals a role for BET proteins in synapse assembly. eLife 2023; 12:80168. [PMID: 37083703 PMCID: PMC10121225 DOI: 10.7554/elife.80168] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2022] [Accepted: 04/10/2023] [Indexed: 04/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Resolving fundamental molecular and functional processes underlying human synaptic development is crucial for understanding normal brain function as well as dysfunction in disease. Based upon increasing evidence of species-divergent features of brain cell types, coupled with emerging studies of complex human disease genetics, we developed the first automated and quantitative high-content synaptic phenotyping platform using human neurons and astrocytes. To establish the robustness of our platform, we screened the effects of 376 small molecules on presynaptic density, neurite outgrowth, and cell viability, validating six small molecules that specifically enhanced human presynaptic density in vitro. Astrocytes were essential for mediating the effects of all six small molecules, underscoring the relevance of non-cell-autonomous factors in synapse assembly and their importance in synaptic screening applications. Bromodomain and extraterminal (BET) inhibitors emerged as the most prominent hit class and global transcriptional analyses using multiple BET inhibitors confirmed upregulation of synaptic gene expression. Through these analyses, we demonstrate the robustness of our automated screening platform for identifying potent synaptic modulators, which can be further leveraged for scaled analyses of human synaptic mechanisms and drug discovery efforts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martin H Berryer
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, United States
- Department of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, United States
| | - Gizem Rizki
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, United States
- Department of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, United States
| | - Anna Nathanson
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, United States
- Department of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, United States
| | - Jenny A Klein
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, United States
- Department of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, United States
| | - Darina Trendafilova
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, United States
- Department of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, United States
| | - Sara G Susco
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, United States
- Department of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, United States
| | - Daisy Lam
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, United States
| | - Angelica Messana
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, United States
| | - Kristina M Holton
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, United States
- Department of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, United States
| | - Kyle W Karhohs
- Imaging Platform, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, United States
| | - Beth A Cimini
- Imaging Platform, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, United States
| | - Kathleen Pfaff
- Department of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, United States
| | - Anne E Carpenter
- Imaging Platform, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, United States
| | - Lee L Rubin
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, United States
- Department of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, United States
| | - Lindy E Barrett
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, United States
- Department of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, United States
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19
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Deans PJM, Seah C, Johnson J, Gonzalez JG, Townsley K, Cao E, Schrode N, Stahl E, O’Reilly P, Huckins LM, Brennand KJ. Non-additive effects of schizophrenia risk genes reflect convergent downstream function. MEDRXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR HEALTH SCIENCES 2023:2023.03.20.23287497. [PMID: 36993466 PMCID: PMC10055596 DOI: 10.1101/2023.03.20.23287497] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/31/2023]
Abstract
Genetic studies of schizophrenia (SCZ) reveal a complex polygenic risk architecture comprised of hundreds of risk variants, the majority of which are common in the population at-large and confer only modest increases in disorder risk. Precisely how genetic variants with individually small predicted effects on gene expression combine to yield substantial clinical impacts in aggregate is unclear. Towards this, we previously reported that the combinatorial perturbation of four SCZ risk genes ("eGenes", whose expression is regulated by common variants) resulted in gene expression changes that were not predicted by individual perturbations, being most non-additive among genes associated with synaptic function and SCZ risk. Now, across fifteen SCZ eGenes, we demonstrate that non-additive effects are greatest within groups of functionally similar eGenes. Individual eGene perturbations reveal common downstream transcriptomic effects ("convergence"), while combinatorial eGene perturbations result in changes that are smaller than predicted by summing individual eGene effects ("sub-additive effects"). Unexpectedly, these convergent and sub-additive downstream transcriptomic effects overlap and constitute a large proportion of the genome-wide polygenic risk score, suggesting that functional redundancy of eGenes may be a major mechanism underlying non-additivity. Single eGene perturbations likewise fail to predict the magnitude or directionality of cellular phenotypes resulting from combinatorial perturbations. Overall, our results indicate that polygenic risk cannot be extrapolated from experiments testing one risk gene at a time and must instead be empirically measured. By unravelling the interactions between complex risk variants, it may be possible to improve the clinical utility of polygenic risk scores through more powerful prediction of symptom onset, clinical trajectory, and treatment response, or to identify novel targets for therapeutic intervention.
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Affiliation(s)
- PJ Michael Deans
- Departments of Psychiatry and Genetics, Division of Molecular Psychiatry, Department of Genetics, Wu Tsai Institute, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06511
| | - Carina Seah
- Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Department of Genetics and Genomics, Icahn Institute of Genomics and Multiscale Biology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029
| | - Jessica Johnson
- Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Department of Genetics and Genomics, Icahn Institute of Genomics and Multiscale Biology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029
| | - Judit Garcia Gonzalez
- Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Department of Genetics and Genomics, Icahn Institute of Genomics and Multiscale Biology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029
| | - Kayla Townsley
- Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Department of Genetics and Genomics, Icahn Institute of Genomics and Multiscale Biology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029
| | - Evan Cao
- Departments of Psychiatry and Genetics, Division of Molecular Psychiatry, Department of Genetics, Wu Tsai Institute, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06511
| | - Nadine Schrode
- Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Department of Genetics and Genomics, Icahn Institute of Genomics and Multiscale Biology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029
| | - Eli Stahl
- Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Department of Genetics and Genomics, Icahn Institute of Genomics and Multiscale Biology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029
| | - Paul O’Reilly
- Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Department of Genetics and Genomics, Icahn Institute of Genomics and Multiscale Biology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029
| | - Laura M. Huckins
- Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Department of Genetics and Genomics, Icahn Institute of Genomics and Multiscale Biology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029
| | - Kristen J. Brennand
- Departments of Psychiatry and Genetics, Division of Molecular Psychiatry, Department of Genetics, Wu Tsai Institute, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06511
- Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Department of Genetics and Genomics, Icahn Institute of Genomics and Multiscale Biology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029
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20
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Siecinski SK, Giamberardino SN, Spanos M, Hauser AC, Gibson JR, Chandrasekhar T, Trelles MDP, Rockhill CM, Palumbo ML, Cundiff AW, Montgomery A, Siper P, Minjarez M, Nowinski LA, Marler S, Kwee LC, Shuffrey LC, Alderman C, Weissman J, Zappone B, Mullett JE, Crosson H, Hong N, Luo S, She L, Bhapkar M, Dean R, Scheer A, Johnson JL, King BH, McDougle CJ, Sanders KB, Kim SJ, Kolevzon A, Veenstra-VanderWeele J, Hauser ER, Sikich L, Gregory SG. Genetic and epigenetic signatures associated with plasma oxytocin levels in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder. Autism Res 2023; 16:502-523. [PMID: 36609850 PMCID: PMC10023458 DOI: 10.1002/aur.2884] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2022] [Accepted: 12/19/2022] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
Oxytocin (OT), the brain's most abundant neuropeptide, plays an important role in social salience and motivation. Clinical trials of the efficacy of OT in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have reported mixed results due in part to ASD's complex etiology. We investigated whether genetic and epigenetic variation contribute to variable endogenous OT levels that modulate sensitivity to OT therapy. To carry out this analysis, we integrated genome-wide profiles of DNA-methylation, transcriptional activity, and genetic variation with plasma OT levels in 290 participants with ASD enrolled in a randomized controlled trial of OT. Our analysis identified genetic variants with novel association with plasma OT, several of which reside in known ASD risk genes. We also show subtle but statistically significant association of plasma OT levels with peripheral transcriptional activity and DNA-methylation profiles across several annotated gene sets. These findings broaden our understanding of the effects of the peripheral oxytocin system and provide novel genetic candidates for future studies to decode the complex etiology of ASD and its interaction with OT signaling and OT-based interventions. LAY SUMMARY: Oxytocin (OT) is an abundant chemical produced by neurons that plays an important role in social interaction and motivation. We investigated whether genetic and epigenetic factors contribute to variable OT levels in the blood. To this, we integrated genetic, gene expression, and non-DNA regulated (epigenetic) signatures with blood OT levels in 290 participants with autism enrolled in an OT clinical trial. We identified genetic association with plasma OT, several of which reside in known autism risk genes. We also show statistically significant association of plasma OT levels with gene expression and epigenetic across several gene pathways. These findings broaden our understanding of the factors that influence OT levels in the blood for future studies to decode the complex presentation of autism and its interaction with OT and OT-based treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephen K Siecinski
- Duke Molecular Physiology Institute, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA
| | | | - Marina Spanos
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Annalise C Hauser
- Duke Molecular Physiology Institute, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Jason R Gibson
- Duke Molecular Physiology Institute, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Tara Chandrasekhar
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA
| | - M D Pilar Trelles
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Carol M Rockhill
- Department of Psychiatry, Seattle Children’s Hospital and the University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Michelle L Palumbo
- Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | | | | | - Paige Siper
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Mendy Minjarez
- Department of Psychiatry, Seattle Children’s Hospital and the University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Lisa A Nowinski
- Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Sarah Marler
- Department of Psychiatry, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - Lydia C Kwee
- Duke Molecular Physiology Institute, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA
| | | | - Cheryl Alderman
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA
- Duke Clinical Research Institute, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Jordana Weissman
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Brooke Zappone
- Department of Psychiatry, Seattle Children’s Hospital and the University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Jennifer E Mullett
- Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Hope Crosson
- Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Natalie Hong
- Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Sheng Luo
- Duke Clinical Research Institute, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA
- Department of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Lilin She
- Duke Clinical Research Institute, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Manjushri Bhapkar
- Duke Clinical Research Institute, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Russell Dean
- Department of Psychiatry, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Abby Scheer
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Jacqueline L Johnson
- Department of Psychiatry, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Bryan H King
- Department of Psychiatry, Seattle Children’s Hospital and the University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Christopher J McDougle
- Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Kevin B Sanders
- Department of Psychiatry, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - Soo-Jeong Kim
- Department of Psychiatry, Seattle Children’s Hospital and the University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Alexander Kolevzon
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | | | - Elizabeth R Hauser
- Duke Molecular Physiology Institute, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA
- Department of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Linmarie Sikich
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA
- Duke Clinical Research Institute, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Simon G Gregory
- Duke Molecular Physiology Institute, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA
- Department of Neurology, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA
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21
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Liao C, Moyses-Oliveira M, De Esch CE, Bhavsar R, Nuttle X, Li A, Yu A, Burt ND, Erdin S, Fu JM, Wang M, Morley T, Han L, Dion PA, Rouleau GA, Zhang B, Brennand KJ, Talkowski ME, Ruderfer DM. Convergent coexpression of autism-associated genes suggests some novel risk genes may not be detectable in large-scale genetic studies. CELL GENOMICS 2023; 3:100277. [PMID: 37082147 PMCID: PMC10112287 DOI: 10.1016/j.xgen.2023.100277] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2022] [Revised: 12/01/2022] [Accepted: 02/10/2023] [Indexed: 03/21/2023]
Abstract
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a heritable neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by deficits in social interactions and communication. Protein-altering variants in many genes have been shown to contribute to ASD; however, understanding the convergence across many genes remains a challenge. We demonstrate that coexpression patterns from 993 human postmortem brains are significantly correlated with the transcriptional consequences of CRISPR perturbations in human neurons. Across 71 ASD risk genes, there was significant tissue-specific convergence implicating synaptic pathways. Tissue-specific convergence was further demonstrated across schizophrenia and atrial fibrillation risk genes. The degree of ASD convergence was significantly correlated with ASD association from rare variation and differential expression in ASD brains. Positively convergent genes showed intolerance to functional mutations and had shorter coding lengths than known risk genes even after removing association with ASD. These results indicate that convergent coexpression can identify potentially novel genes that are unlikely to be discovered by sequencing studies.
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22
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Guo M, Fang Z, Chen B, Songyang Z, Xiong Y. Distinct dosage compensations of ploidy-sensitive and -insensitive X chromosome genes during development and in diseases. iScience 2023; 26:105997. [PMID: 36798435 PMCID: PMC9926305 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2023.105997] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2022] [Revised: 12/12/2022] [Accepted: 01/12/2023] [Indexed: 01/20/2023] Open
Abstract
The active X chromosome in mammals is upregulated to balance its dosage to autosomes during evolution. However, it is elusive why the known dosage compensation machinery showed uneven and small influence on X genes. Here, based on >20,000 transcriptomes, we identified two X gene groups (ploidy-sensitive [PSX] and ploidy-insensitive [PIX]), showing distinct but evolutionarily conserved dosage compensations (termed XAR). We demonstrated that XAR-PIX was downregulated whereas XAR-PSX upregulated at both RNA and protein levels across cancer types, in contrast with their trends during stem cell differentiation. XAR-PIX, but not XAR-PSX, was lower and correlated with autoantibodies and inflammation in patients of lupus, suggesting that insufficient dosage of PIX genes contribute to lupus pathogenesis. We further identified and experimentally validated two XAR regulators, TP53 and ATRX. Collectively, we provided insights into X dosage compensation in mammals and demonstrated different regulation of PSX and PIX and their pathophysiological roles in human diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mengbiao Guo
- Key Laboratory of Gene Engineering of the Ministry of Education, Institute of Healthy Aging Research, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510006, China
| | - Zhengwen Fang
- Key Laboratory of Gene Engineering of the Ministry of Education, Institute of Healthy Aging Research, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510006, China
| | - Bohong Chen
- Key Laboratory of Gene Engineering of the Ministry of Education, Institute of Healthy Aging Research, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510006, China
| | - Zhou Songyang
- Key Laboratory of Gene Engineering of the Ministry of Education, Institute of Healthy Aging Research, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510006, China
| | - Yuanyan Xiong
- Key Laboratory of Gene Engineering of the Ministry of Education, Institute of Healthy Aging Research, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510006, China,Corresponding author
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23
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Ravaei A, Emanuele M, Nazzaro G, Fadiga L, Rubini M. Placental DNA methylation profile as predicting marker for autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Mol Med 2023; 29:8. [PMID: 36647002 PMCID: PMC9843962 DOI: 10.1186/s10020-022-00593-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2022] [Accepted: 12/15/2022] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder that impairs normal brain development and socio-cognitive abilities. The pathogenesis of this condition points out the involvement of genetic and environmental factors during in-utero life. Placenta, as an interface tissue between mother and fetus, provides developing fetus requirements and exposes it to maternal environment as well. Therefore, the alteration of DNA methylation as epigenetic consequence of gene-environmental interaction in the placenta could shed light on ASD pathogenesis. In this study, we reviewed the current findings on placental methylation status and its association with ASD. Differentially methylated regions (DMRs) in ASD-developing placenta were found to be mainly enriched in ASD gene loci affecting synaptogenesis, microtubule dynamics, neurogenesis and neuritogenesis. In addition, non-genic DMRs in ASD-placenta proposes an alternative contributing mechanism for ASD development. Our study highlights the importance of placental DNA methylation signature as a biomarker for ASD prediction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amin Ravaei
- grid.8484.00000 0004 1757 2064Medical Genetics Laboratory, Department of Neuroscience and Rehabilitation, University of Ferrara, Via Fossato di Mortara 74, 44121 Ferrara, Italy
| | - Marco Emanuele
- grid.8484.00000 0004 1757 2064Section of Physiology, Department of Neuroscience and Rehabilitation, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy ,grid.25786.3e0000 0004 1764 2907IIT@UniFe Center for Translational Neurophysiology of Speech and Communication (CTNSC), Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Ferrara, Italy
| | - Giovanni Nazzaro
- grid.8484.00000 0004 1757 2064Section of Physiology, Department of Neuroscience and Rehabilitation, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy ,grid.25786.3e0000 0004 1764 2907IIT@UniFe Center for Translational Neurophysiology of Speech and Communication (CTNSC), Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Ferrara, Italy
| | - Luciano Fadiga
- grid.8484.00000 0004 1757 2064Section of Physiology, Department of Neuroscience and Rehabilitation, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy ,grid.25786.3e0000 0004 1764 2907IIT@UniFe Center for Translational Neurophysiology of Speech and Communication (CTNSC), Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Ferrara, Italy
| | - Michele Rubini
- grid.8484.00000 0004 1757 2064Medical Genetics Laboratory, Department of Neuroscience and Rehabilitation, University of Ferrara, Via Fossato di Mortara 74, 44121 Ferrara, Italy
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24
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Faheem M, Deneault E, Alexandrova R, Rodrigues DC, Pellecchia G, Shum C, Zarrei M, Piekna A, Wei W, Howe JL, Thiruvahindrapuram B, Lamoureux S, Ross PJ, Bradley CA, Ellis J, Scherer SW. Disruption of DDX53 coding sequence has limited impact on iPSC-derived human NGN2 neurons. BMC Med Genomics 2023; 16:5. [PMID: 36635662 PMCID: PMC9837974 DOI: 10.1186/s12920-022-01425-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/07/2022] [Accepted: 12/21/2022] [Indexed: 01/14/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The X-linked PTCHD1 locus is strongly associated with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Males who carry chromosome microdeletions of PTCHD1 antisense long non-coding RNA (PTCHD1-AS)/DEAD-box helicase 53 (DDX53) have ASD, or a sub-clinical form called Broader Autism Phenotype. If the deletion extends beyond PTCHD1-AS/DDX53 to the next gene, PTCHD1, which is protein-coding, the individuals typically have ASD and intellectual disability (ID). Three male siblings with a 90 kb deletion that affects only PTCHD1-AS (and not including DDX53) have ASD. We performed a functional analysis of DDX53 to examine its role in NGN2 neurons. METHODS We used the clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) gene editing strategy to knock out DDX53 protein by inserting 3 termination codons (3TCs) into two different induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) lines. DDX53 CRISPR-edited iPSCs were differentiated into cortical excitatory neurons by Neurogenin 2 (NGN-2) directed differentiation. The functional differences of DDX53-3TC neurons compared to isogenic control neurons with molecular and electrophysiological approaches were assessed. RESULTS Isogenic iPSC-derived control neurons exhibited low levels of DDX53 transcripts. Transcriptional analysis revealed the generation of excitatory cortical neurons and DDX53 protein was not detected in iPSC-derived control neurons by western blot. Control lines and DDX53-3TC neurons were active in the multi-electrode array, but no overt electrophysiological phenotype in either isogenic line was observed. CONCLUSION DDX53-3TC mutation does not alter NGN2 neuronal function in these experiments, suggesting that synaptic deficits causing ASD are unlikely in this cell type.
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Affiliation(s)
- Muhammad Faheem
- grid.42327.300000 0004 0473 9646Genetics & Genome Biology Program, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON Canada ,grid.42327.300000 0004 0473 9646The Centre for Applied Genomics, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON Canada
| | - Eric Deneault
- grid.57544.370000 0001 2110 2143Centre for Oncology, Radiopharmaceuticals and Research; Biologic and Radiopharmaceutical Drugs Directorate, Health Products and Food Branch, Health Canada, Ottawa, ON Canada
| | - Roumiana Alexandrova
- grid.42327.300000 0004 0473 9646Genetics & Genome Biology Program, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON Canada ,grid.42327.300000 0004 0473 9646The Centre for Applied Genomics, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON Canada
| | - Deivid C. Rodrigues
- grid.42327.300000 0004 0473 9646Developmental & Stem Cell Biology Program, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON Canada
| | - Giovanna Pellecchia
- grid.42327.300000 0004 0473 9646Genetics & Genome Biology Program, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON Canada ,grid.42327.300000 0004 0473 9646The Centre for Applied Genomics, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON Canada
| | - Carole Shum
- grid.42327.300000 0004 0473 9646Genetics & Genome Biology Program, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON Canada ,grid.42327.300000 0004 0473 9646The Centre for Applied Genomics, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON Canada
| | - Mehdi Zarrei
- grid.42327.300000 0004 0473 9646Genetics & Genome Biology Program, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON Canada ,grid.42327.300000 0004 0473 9646The Centre for Applied Genomics, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON Canada
| | - Alina Piekna
- grid.42327.300000 0004 0473 9646Developmental & Stem Cell Biology Program, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON Canada
| | - Wei Wei
- grid.42327.300000 0004 0473 9646Developmental & Stem Cell Biology Program, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON Canada
| | - Jennifer L. Howe
- grid.42327.300000 0004 0473 9646Genetics & Genome Biology Program, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON Canada ,grid.42327.300000 0004 0473 9646The Centre for Applied Genomics, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON Canada
| | - Bhooma Thiruvahindrapuram
- grid.42327.300000 0004 0473 9646Genetics & Genome Biology Program, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON Canada ,grid.42327.300000 0004 0473 9646The Centre for Applied Genomics, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON Canada
| | - Sylvia Lamoureux
- grid.42327.300000 0004 0473 9646Genetics & Genome Biology Program, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON Canada ,grid.42327.300000 0004 0473 9646The Centre for Applied Genomics, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON Canada
| | - P. Joel Ross
- grid.42327.300000 0004 0473 9646Developmental & Stem Cell Biology Program, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON Canada ,grid.139596.10000 0001 2167 8433Department of Biology, University of Prince Edward Island, Charlottetown, PE Canada
| | - Clarrisa A. Bradley
- grid.42327.300000 0004 0473 9646Genetics & Genome Biology Program, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON Canada ,grid.42327.300000 0004 0473 9646The Centre for Applied Genomics, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON Canada ,grid.42327.300000 0004 0473 9646Neurosciences & Mental Health Program, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON Canada
| | - James Ellis
- grid.42327.300000 0004 0473 9646Developmental & Stem Cell Biology Program, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON Canada ,grid.17063.330000 0001 2157 2938Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON Canada
| | - Stephen W. Scherer
- grid.42327.300000 0004 0473 9646Genetics & Genome Biology Program, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON Canada ,grid.42327.300000 0004 0473 9646The Centre for Applied Genomics, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON Canada ,grid.17063.330000 0001 2157 2938Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON Canada ,grid.17063.330000 0001 2157 2938McLaughlin Centre, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON Canada
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25
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Impaired OTUD7A-dependent Ankyrin regulation mediates neuronal dysfunction in mouse and human models of the 15q13.3 microdeletion syndrome. Mol Psychiatry 2023; 28:1747-1769. [PMID: 36604605 DOI: 10.1038/s41380-022-01937-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/07/2022] [Revised: 12/15/2022] [Accepted: 12/19/2022] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
Copy number variations (CNVs) are associated with psychiatric and neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs), and most, including the recurrent 15q13.3 microdeletion disorder, have unknown disease mechanisms. We used a heterozygous 15q13.3 microdeletion mouse model and patient iPSC-derived neurons to reveal developmental defects in neuronal maturation and network activity. To identify the underlying molecular dysfunction, we developed a neuron-specific proximity-labeling proteomics (BioID2) pipeline, combined with patient mutations, to target the 15q13.3 CNV genetic driver OTUD7A. OTUD7A is an emerging independent NDD risk gene with no known function in the brain, but has putative deubiquitinase function. The OTUD7A protein-protein interaction network included synaptic, axonal, and cytoskeletal proteins and was enriched for ASD and epilepsy risk genes (Ank3, Ank2, SPTAN1, SPTBN1). The interactions between OTUD7A and Ankyrin-G (Ank3) and Ankyrin-B (Ank2) were disrupted by an epilepsy-associated OTUD7A L233F variant. Further investigation of Ankyrin-G in mouse and human 15q13.3 microdeletion and OTUD7AL233F/L233F models revealed protein instability, increased polyubiquitination, and decreased levels in the axon initial segment, while structured illumination microscopy identified reduced Ankyrin-G nanodomains in dendritic spines. Functional analysis of human 15q13.3 microdeletion and OTUD7AL233F/L233F models revealed shared and distinct impairments to axonal growth and intrinsic excitability. Importantly, restoring OTUD7A or Ankyrin-G expression in 15q13.3 microdeletion neurons led to a reversal of abnormalities. These data reveal a critical OTUD7A-Ankyrin pathway in neuronal development, which is impaired in the 15q13.3 microdeletion syndrome, leading to neuronal dysfunction. Furthermore, our study highlights the utility of targeting CNV genes using cell type-specific proteomics to identify shared and unexplored disease mechanisms across NDDs.
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26
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Esposito M, Gualandi N, Spirito G, Ansaloni F, Gustincich S, Sanges R. Transposons Acting as Competitive Endogenous RNAs: In-Silico Evidence from Datasets Characterised by L1 Overexpression. Biomedicines 2022; 10:biomedicines10123279. [PMID: 36552034 PMCID: PMC9776036 DOI: 10.3390/biomedicines10123279] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2022] [Revised: 12/07/2022] [Accepted: 12/11/2022] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
LINE L1 are transposable elements that can replicate within the genome by passing through RNA intermediates. The vast majority of these element copies in the human genome are inactive and just between 100 and 150 copies are still able to mobilize. During evolution, they could have been positively selected for beneficial cellular functions. Nonetheless, L1 deregulation can be detrimental to the cell, causing diseases such as cancer. The activity of miRNAs represents a fundamental mechanism for controlling transcript levels in somatic cells. These are a class of small non-coding RNAs that cause degradation or translational inhibition of their target transcripts. Beyond this, competitive endogenous RNAs (ceRNAs), mostly made by circular and non-coding RNAs, have been seen to compete for the binding of the same set of miRNAs targeting protein coding genes. In this study, we have investigated whether autonomously transcribed L1s may act as ceRNAs by analyzing public dataset in-silico. We observed that genes sharing miRNA target sites with L1 have a tendency to be upregulated when L1 are overexpressed, suggesting the possibility that L1 might act as ceRNAs. This finding will help in the interpretation of transcriptomic responses in contexts characterized by the specific activation of transposons.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mauro Esposito
- Computational Genomics Laboratory, Area of Neuroscience, Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati (SISSA), 34136 Trieste, Italy
| | - Nicolò Gualandi
- Computational Genomics Laboratory, Area of Neuroscience, Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati (SISSA), 34136 Trieste, Italy
| | - Giovanni Spirito
- Computational Genomics Laboratory, Area of Neuroscience, Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati (SISSA), 34136 Trieste, Italy
- CMP3vda, via Lavoratori Vittime del Col Du Mont 28, 11100 Aosta, Italy
| | - Federico Ansaloni
- Computational Genomics Laboratory, Area of Neuroscience, Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati (SISSA), 34136 Trieste, Italy
- Central RNA Laboratory, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, 16132 Genova, Italy
| | - Stefano Gustincich
- CMP3vda, via Lavoratori Vittime del Col Du Mont 28, 11100 Aosta, Italy
- Central RNA Laboratory, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, 16132 Genova, Italy
| | - Remo Sanges
- Computational Genomics Laboratory, Area of Neuroscience, Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati (SISSA), 34136 Trieste, Italy
- Central RNA Laboratory, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, 16132 Genova, Italy
- Correspondence:
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27
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Murtaza N, Cheng AA, Brown CO, Meka DP, Hong S, Uy JA, El-Hajjar J, Pipko N, Unda BK, Schwanke B, Xing S, Thiruvahindrapuram B, Engchuan W, Trost B, Deneault E, Calderon de Anda F, Doble BW, Ellis J, Anagnostou E, Bader GD, Scherer SW, Lu Y, Singh KK. Neuron-specific protein network mapping of autism risk genes identifies shared biological mechanisms and disease-relevant pathologies. Cell Rep 2022; 41:111678. [DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2022.111678] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2022] [Revised: 08/16/2022] [Accepted: 10/25/2022] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
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28
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Mok RSF, Zhang W, Sheikh TI, Pradeepan K, Fernandes IR, DeJong LC, Benigno G, Hildebrandt MR, Mufteev M, Rodrigues DC, Wei W, Piekna A, Liu J, Muotri AR, Vincent JB, Muller L, Martinez-Trujillo J, Salter MW, Ellis J. Wide spectrum of neuronal and network phenotypes in human stem cell-derived excitatory neurons with Rett syndrome-associated MECP2 mutations. Transl Psychiatry 2022; 12:450. [PMID: 36253345 PMCID: PMC9576700 DOI: 10.1038/s41398-022-02216-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2022] [Revised: 10/01/2022] [Accepted: 10/03/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Rett syndrome (RTT) is a severe neurodevelopmental disorder primarily caused by heterozygous loss-of-function mutations in the X-linked gene MECP2 that is a global transcriptional regulator. Mutations in the methyl-CpG binding domain (MBD) of MECP2 disrupt its interaction with methylated DNA. Here, we investigate the effect of a novel MECP2 L124W missense mutation in the MBD of an atypical RTT patient with preserved speech in comparison to severe MECP2 null mutations. L124W protein had a limited ability to disrupt heterochromatic chromocenters due to decreased binding dynamics. We isolated two pairs of isogenic WT and L124W induced pluripotent stem cells. L124W induced excitatory neurons expressed stable protein, exhibited increased input resistance and decreased voltage-gated Na+ and K+ currents, and their neuronal dysmorphology was limited to decreased dendritic complexity. Three isogenic pairs of MECP2 null neurons had the expected more extreme morphological and electrophysiological phenotypes. We examined development and maturation of L124W and MECP2 null excitatory neural network activity using micro-electrode arrays. Relative to isogenic controls, L124W neurons had an increase in synchronous network burst frequency, in contrast to MECP2 null neurons that suffered a significant decrease in synchronous network burst frequency and a transient extension of network burst duration. A biologically motivated computational neural network model shows the observed changes in network dynamics are explained by changes in intrinsic Na+ and K+ currents in individual neurons. Our multilevel results demonstrate that RTT excitatory neurons show a wide spectrum of morphological, electrophysiological and circuitry phenotypes that are dependent on the severity of the MECP2 mutation.
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Grants
- R01 MH108528 NIMH NIH HHS
- MOP-133423 CIHR
- R01 MH109885 NIMH NIH HHS
- FDN-154336 CIHR
- R01 MH100175 NIMH NIH HHS
- Col Harland Sanders Rett Syndrome Research Fund at the University of Toronto (to J.E.), SFARI (Research grant #514918 to J.E. and J.M-T), CIHR (MOP-133423 to J.E. and M.W.S.; ERARE Team Grant ERT161303 to J.E.), CIHR foundation grant (FDN-154336 to M.W.S), Ontario Brain Institute (POND Network to J.E.), McLaughlin Centre Accelerator grant (to J.E.), John Evans Leadership Fund & Ontario Research Fund (to J.E), Canada Research Chair in Stem Cell Models of Childhood Disease (to J.E.), Beta Sigma Phi International Endowment Fund (to J.E.).
- BrainsCAN at Western University through the Canada First Research Excellence Fund (CFREF) (to GB, KP, LM, JMT). NSERC Postgraduate Scholarship–Doctoral (PGS-D) Scholarship to KP.
- Trainee support was provided by Restracomp (to LCD).
- National Institutes of Health (NIH) grants # R01MH108528, R01MH109885, and R01MH1000175 to ARM.
- Ontario Rett Syndrome Association to JBV.
- SFARI (Research grant #514918 to J.E. and J.M-T), BrainsCAN at Western University through the Canada First Research Excellence Fund (CFREF) (to GB, KP, LM, JMT)
- CIHR (MOP-133423 to J.E. and M.W.S.; CIHR foundation grant (FDN-154336 to M.W.S),
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Affiliation(s)
- Rebecca S F Mok
- Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, M5S 1A8, Canada
- Developmental & Stem Cell Biology Program, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, M5G 0A4, Canada
| | - Wenbo Zhang
- Neurosciences & Mental Health Program, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, M5G 0A4, ON, Canada
| | - Taimoor I Sheikh
- Molecular Neuropsychiatry & Development (MiND) Lab, Campbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, ON, M5T 1R8, Canada
| | - Kartik Pradeepan
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Department of Psychiatry, Neuroscience Graduate Program, Robarts Research and Brain and Mind Institutes, Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, Western University, London, ON, N6A 5B7, Canada
| | - Isabella R Fernandes
- University of California San Diego, School of Medicine, Department of Pediatrics/Rady Children's Hospital San Diego, Department of Cellular & Molecular Medicine, Stem Cell Program, La Jolla, CA, 92037-0695, USA
| | - Leah C DeJong
- Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, M5S 1A8, Canada
- Developmental & Stem Cell Biology Program, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, M5G 0A4, Canada
| | - Gabriel Benigno
- Department of Applied Mathematics, Robarts Research Institute, Brain and Mind Institute, Western University, London, ON, N6A 5B7, Canada
| | - Matthew R Hildebrandt
- Developmental & Stem Cell Biology Program, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, M5G 0A4, Canada
| | - Marat Mufteev
- Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, M5S 1A8, Canada
- Developmental & Stem Cell Biology Program, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, M5G 0A4, Canada
| | - Deivid C Rodrigues
- Developmental & Stem Cell Biology Program, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, M5G 0A4, Canada
| | - Wei Wei
- Developmental & Stem Cell Biology Program, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, M5G 0A4, Canada
| | - Alina Piekna
- Developmental & Stem Cell Biology Program, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, M5G 0A4, Canada
| | - Jiajie Liu
- Developmental & Stem Cell Biology Program, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, M5G 0A4, Canada
| | - Alysson R Muotri
- University of California San Diego, School of Medicine, Department of Pediatrics/Rady Children's Hospital San Diego, Department of Cellular & Molecular Medicine, Stem Cell Program, La Jolla, CA, 92037-0695, USA
- Department of Pediatrics/Rady Children's Hospital, Department of Cellular & Molecular Medicine, Center for Academic Research and Training in Anthropogeny, Archealization Center, Kavli Institute, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, 92037, USA
| | - John B Vincent
- Molecular Neuropsychiatry & Development (MiND) Lab, Campbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, ON, M5T 1R8, Canada
| | - Lyle Muller
- Department of Applied Mathematics, Robarts Research Institute, Brain and Mind Institute, Western University, London, ON, N6A 5B7, Canada
| | - Julio Martinez-Trujillo
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Department of Psychiatry, Neuroscience Graduate Program, Robarts Research and Brain and Mind Institutes, Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, Western University, London, ON, N6A 5B7, Canada
| | - Michael W Salter
- Neurosciences & Mental Health Program, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, M5G 0A4, ON, Canada
- Department of Physiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, M5S 1A8, Canada
| | - James Ellis
- Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, M5S 1A8, Canada.
- Developmental & Stem Cell Biology Program, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, M5G 0A4, Canada.
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29
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Liu M, Yu C, Zhang Z, Song M, Sun X, Piálek J, Jacob J, Lu J, Cong L, Zhang H, Wang Y, Li G, Feng Z, Du Z, Wang M, Wan X, Wang D, Wang YL, Li H, Wang Z, Zhang B, Zhang Z. Whole-genome sequencing reveals the genetic mechanisms of domestication in classical inbred mice. Genome Biol 2022; 23:203. [PMID: 36163035 PMCID: PMC9511766 DOI: 10.1186/s13059-022-02772-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/26/2021] [Accepted: 09/12/2022] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Background The laboratory mouse was domesticated from the wild house mouse. Understanding the genetics underlying domestication in laboratory mice, especially in the widely used classical inbred mice, is vital for studies using mouse models. However, the genetic mechanism of laboratory mouse domestication remains unknown due to lack of adequate genomic sequences of wild mice. Results We analyze the genetic relationships by whole-genome resequencing of 36 wild mice and 36 inbred strains. All classical inbred mice cluster together distinctly from wild and wild-derived inbred mice. Using nucleotide diversity analysis, Fst, and XP-CLR, we identify 339 positively selected genes that are closely associated with nervous system function. Approximately one third of these positively selected genes are highly expressed in brain tissues, and genetic mouse models of 125 genes in the positively selected genes exhibit abnormal behavioral or nervous system phenotypes. These positively selected genes show a higher ratio of differential expression between wild and classical inbred mice compared with all genes, especially in the hippocampus and frontal lobe. Using a mutant mouse model, we find that the SNP rs27900929 (T>C) in gene Astn2 significantly reduces the tameness of mice and modifies the ratio of the two Astn2 (a/b) isoforms. Conclusion Our study indicates that classical inbred mice experienced high selection pressure during domestication under laboratory conditions. The analysis shows the positively selected genes are closely associated with behavior and the nervous system in mice. Tameness may be related to the Astn2 mutation and regulated by the ratio of the two Astn2 (a/b) isoforms. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s13059-022-02772-1.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ming Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Integrated Management of Pest Insects and Rodents, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.,International Society of Zoological Sciences, Beijing, China.,State Key Laboratory of Stem Cell and Reproductive Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Caixia Yu
- Beijing Institute of Genomics, Chinese Academy of Sciences and China National Center for Bioinformation, Beijing, China.,National Genomics Data Center, Beijing Institute of Genomics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Zhichao Zhang
- Novogene Bioinformatics Institute, Beijing, China.,Glbizzia Biosciences, Beijing, China
| | - Mingjing Song
- Institute of Laboratory Animal Science, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Xiuping Sun
- Institute of Laboratory Animal Science, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Jaroslav Piálek
- House Mouse Group, Research Facility Studenec, Institute of Vertebrate Biology of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Jens Jacob
- Julius Kühn-Institute, Federal Research Centre for Cultivated Plants, Institute for Plant Protection in Horticulture and Forests / Institute for Epidemiology and Pathogen Diagnostics, Münster, Germany
| | - Jiqi Lu
- School of Life Science, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, Henan, China
| | - Lin Cong
- Institute of Plant Protection, Heilongjiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Harbin, Heilongjiang, China
| | - Hongmao Zhang
- School of Life Sciences, Central China Normal University, Wuhan, Hubei, China
| | - Yong Wang
- Institute of Subtropical Agriculture, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changsha, Hunan, China
| | - Guoliang Li
- State Key Laboratory of Integrated Management of Pest Insects and Rodents, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.,CAS Center for Excellence in Biotic Interactions, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Zhiyong Feng
- Plant Protection Research Institute Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
| | - Zhenglin Du
- Beijing Institute of Genomics, Chinese Academy of Sciences and China National Center for Bioinformation, Beijing, China.,National Genomics Data Center, Beijing Institute of Genomics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Meng Wang
- Novogene Bioinformatics Institute, Beijing, China
| | - Xinru Wan
- State Key Laboratory of Integrated Management of Pest Insects and Rodents, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Dawei Wang
- Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Yan-Ling Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Stem Cell and Reproductive Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Hongjun Li
- State Key Laboratory of Integrated Management of Pest Insects and Rodents, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Zuoxin Wang
- Department of Psychology and Program in Neuroscience, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL, 32306, USA
| | - Bing Zhang
- Beijing Institute of Genomics, Chinese Academy of Sciences and China National Center for Bioinformation, Beijing, China.
| | - Zhibin Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Integrated Management of Pest Insects and Rodents, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China. .,International Society of Zoological Sciences, Beijing, China. .,CAS Center for Excellence in Biotic Interactions, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
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30
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Thudium S, Palozola K, L'Her É, Korb E. Identification of a transcriptional signature found in multiple models of ASD and related disorders. Genome Res 2022; 32:gr.276591.122. [PMID: 36104286 PMCID: PMC9528985 DOI: 10.1101/gr.276591.122] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/15/2022] [Accepted: 07/22/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Epigenetic regulation plays a critical role in many neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs), including autism spectrum disorder (ASD). In particular, many such disorders are the result of mutations in genes that encode chromatin-modifying proteins. However, although these disorders share many features, it is unclear whether they also share gene expression disruptions resulting from the aberrant regulation of chromatin. We examined five chromatin modifiers that are all linked to ASD despite their different roles in regulating chromatin. Specifically, we depleted ASH1L, CHD8, CREBBP, EHMT1, and NSD1 in parallel in a highly controlled neuronal culture system. We then identified sets of shared genes, or transcriptional signatures, that are differentially expressed following loss of multiple ASD-linked chromatin modifiers. We examined the functions of genes within the transcriptional signatures and found an enrichment in many neurotransmitter transport genes and activity-dependent genes. In addition, these genes are enriched for specific chromatin features such as bivalent domains that allow for highly dynamic regulation of gene expression. The down-regulated transcriptional signature is also observed within multiple mouse models of NDDs that result in ASD, but not those only associated with intellectual disability. Finally, the down-regulated transcriptional signature can distinguish between control and idiopathic ASD patient iPSC-derived neurons as well as postmortem tissue, demonstrating that this gene set is relevant to the human disorder. This work identifies a transcriptional signature that is found within many neurodevelopmental syndromes, helping to elucidate the link between epigenetic regulation and the underlying cellular mechanisms that result in ASD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Samuel Thudium
- Department of Genetics, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, USA
- Epigenetics Institute, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, USA
| | - Katherine Palozola
- Department of Genetics, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, USA
- Epigenetics Institute, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, USA
| | - Éloïse L'Her
- Department of Genetics, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, USA
- Epigenetics Institute, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, USA
| | - Erica Korb
- Department of Genetics, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, USA
- Epigenetics Institute, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, USA
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Doi M, Li M, Usui N, Shimada S. Genomic Strategies for Understanding the Pathophysiology of Autism Spectrum Disorder. Front Mol Neurosci 2022; 15:930941. [PMID: 35813066 PMCID: PMC9263364 DOI: 10.3389/fnmol.2022.930941] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2022] [Accepted: 06/06/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Recent breakthroughs in sequencing technology and technological developments have made it easier to analyze the entire human genome than ever before. In addition to disease-specific genetic mutations and chromosomal aberrations, epigenetic alterations in individuals can also be analyzed using genomics. Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder (NDD) caused by genetic and/or environmental factors. More than a thousand genes associated with ASD have been identified which are known to be involved in brain development. However, it is difficult to decode the roles of ASD-associated genes without in vitro and in vivo validations, particularly in the process of brain development. In this review, we discuss genomic strategies for understanding the pathological mechanisms underlying ASD. For this purpose, we discuss ASD-associated genes and their functions, as well as analytical strategies and their strengths and weaknesses in cellular and animal models from a basic research perspective.
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Affiliation(s)
- Miyuki Doi
- Department of Neuroscience and Cell Biology, Graduate School of Medicine, Osaka University, Suita, Japan
- Addiction Research Unit, Osaka Psychiatric Research Center, Osaka Psychiatric Medical Center, Osaka, Japan
| | - Mengwei Li
- Department of Neuroscience and Cell Biology, Graduate School of Medicine, Osaka University, Suita, Japan
| | - Noriyoshi Usui
- Department of Neuroscience and Cell Biology, Graduate School of Medicine, Osaka University, Suita, Japan
- Addiction Research Unit, Osaka Psychiatric Research Center, Osaka Psychiatric Medical Center, Osaka, Japan
- United Graduate School of Child Development, Osaka University, Suita, Japan
- Global Center for Medical Engineering and Informatics, Osaka University, Suita, Japan
- *Correspondence: Noriyoshi Usui
| | - Shoichi Shimada
- Department of Neuroscience and Cell Biology, Graduate School of Medicine, Osaka University, Suita, Japan
- Addiction Research Unit, Osaka Psychiatric Research Center, Osaka Psychiatric Medical Center, Osaka, Japan
- United Graduate School of Child Development, Osaka University, Suita, Japan
- Global Center for Medical Engineering and Informatics, Osaka University, Suita, Japan
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32
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Willsey HR, Willsey AJ, Wang B, State MW. Genomics, convergent neuroscience and progress in understanding autism spectrum disorder. Nat Rev Neurosci 2022; 23:323-341. [PMID: 35440779 PMCID: PMC10693992 DOI: 10.1038/s41583-022-00576-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 67] [Impact Index Per Article: 33.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 02/18/2022] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
More than a hundred genes have been identified that, when disrupted, impart large risk for autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Current knowledge about the encoded proteins - although incomplete - points to a very wide range of developmentally dynamic and diverse biological processes. Moreover, the core symptoms of ASD involve distinctly human characteristics, presenting challenges to interpreting evolutionarily distant model systems. Indeed, despite a decade of striking progress in gene discovery, an actionable understanding of pathobiology remains elusive. Increasingly, convergent neuroscience approaches have been recognized as an important complement to traditional uses of genetics to illuminate the biology of human disorders. These methods seek to identify intersection among molecular-level, cellular-level and circuit-level functions across multiple risk genes and have highlighted developing excitatory neurons in the human mid-gestational prefrontal cortex as an important pathobiological nexus in ASD. In addition, neurogenesis, chromatin modification and synaptic function have emerged as key potential mediators of genetic vulnerability. The continued expansion of foundational 'omics' data sets, the application of higher-throughput model systems and incorporating developmental trajectories and sex differences into future analyses will refine and extend these results. Ultimately, a systems-level understanding of ASD genetic risk holds promise for clarifying pathobiology and advancing therapeutics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Helen Rankin Willsey
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, UCSF Weill Institute for Neurosciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - A Jeremy Willsey
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, UCSF Weill Institute for Neurosciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
- Quantitative Biosciences Institute, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
| | - Belinda Wang
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, UCSF Weill Institute for Neurosciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Langley Porter Psychiatric Institute, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Matthew W State
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, UCSF Weill Institute for Neurosciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
- Quantitative Biosciences Institute, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
- Langley Porter Psychiatric Institute, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
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Brooks IR, Garrone CM, Kerins C, Kiar CS, Syntaka S, Xu JZ, Spagnoli FM, Watt FM. Functional genomics and the future of iPSCs in disease modeling. Stem Cell Reports 2022; 17:1033-1047. [PMID: 35487213 PMCID: PMC9133703 DOI: 10.1016/j.stemcr.2022.03.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2021] [Revised: 03/30/2022] [Accepted: 03/31/2022] [Indexed: 10/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) are valuable in disease modeling because of their potential to expand and differentiate into virtually any cell type and recapitulate key aspects of human biology. Functional genomics are genome-wide studies that aim to discover genotype-phenotype relationships, thereby revealing the impact of human genetic diversity on normal and pathophysiology. In this review, we make the case that human iPSCs (hiPSCs) are a powerful tool for functional genomics, since they provide an in vitro platform for the study of population genetics. We describe cutting-edge tools and strategies now available to researchers, including multi-omics technologies, advances in hiPSC culture techniques, and innovations in drug development. Functional genomics approaches based on hiPSCs hold great promise for advancing drug discovery, disease etiology, and the impact of genetic variation on human biology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Imogen R Brooks
- St John's Institute of Dermatology, King's College London, London, SE1 9RT, UK
| | - Cristina M Garrone
- Centre for Gene Therapy and Regenerative Medicine, King's College London, London, SE1 9RT, UK
| | - Caoimhe Kerins
- Centre for Craniofacial and Regenerative Biology, King's College London, London, SE1 9RT, UK
| | - Cher Shen Kiar
- Peter Gorer Department of Immunobiology, King's College London, London, SE1 9RT, UK
| | - Sofia Syntaka
- Centre for Gene Therapy and Regenerative Medicine, King's College London, London, SE1 9RT, UK
| | - Jessie Z Xu
- Centre for Gene Therapy and Regenerative Medicine, King's College London, London, SE1 9RT, UK
| | - Francesca M Spagnoli
- Centre for Gene Therapy and Regenerative Medicine, King's College London, London, SE1 9RT, UK.
| | - Fiona M Watt
- Centre for Gene Therapy and Regenerative Medicine, King's College London, London, SE1 9RT, UK; Directors' Research Unit, European Molecular Biology Laboratory, Heidelberg, Germany.
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34
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Eigenhuis KN, Somsen HB, van den Berg DLC. Transcription Pause and Escape in Neurodevelopmental Disorders. Front Neurosci 2022; 16:846272. [PMID: 35615272 PMCID: PMC9125161 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2022.846272] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2021] [Accepted: 04/11/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Transcription pause-release is an important, highly regulated step in the control of gene expression. Modulated by various factors, it enables signal integration and fine-tuning of transcriptional responses. Mutations in regulators of pause-release have been identified in a range of neurodevelopmental disorders that have several common features affecting multiple organ systems. This review summarizes current knowledge on this novel subclass of disorders, including an overview of clinical features, mechanistic details, and insight into the relevant neurodevelopmental processes.
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Brennand KJ. Using Stem Cell Models to Explore the Genetics Underlying Psychiatric Disorders: Linking Risk Variants, Genes, and Biology in Brain Disease. Am J Psychiatry 2022; 179:322-328. [PMID: 35491564 DOI: 10.1176/appi.ajp.20220235] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
There is an urgent and unmet need to advance our ability to translate genetic studies of psychiatric disorders into clinically actionable information, which could transform diagnostics and even one day lead to novel (and potentially presymptomatic) therapeutic interventions. Today, although there are hundreds of significant loci associated with psychiatric disorders, resolving the target gene(s) and pathway(s) impacted by each is a major challenge. Integrating human induced pluripotent stem cell-based approaches with CRISPR-mediated genomic engineering strategies makes it possible to study the impact of patient-specific variants within the cell types of the brain. As the scale and scope of functional genomic studies expands, so does our ability to resolve the complex interplay of the many risk variants linked to psychiatric disorders. In this review, the author discusses some of the technological advances that make it possible to ask exciting questions that are fundamental to our understanding of psychiatric disorders. How do distinct risk variants converge and interact with each other (and the environment) across the diverse cell types that comprise the human brain? Can clinical trajectories and/or therapeutic response be predicted from genetic profiles? Just as critically, by spreading the message that genetic risk for psychiatric disorders is biological and fundamentally no different than for other human conditions, we can dispel the stigma associated with mental illness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kristen J Brennand
- Department of Psychiatry, Department of Genetics, Wu Tsai Institute at Yale, and Yale Stem Cell Center, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Conn
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36
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Li C, Liang X, Cheng S, Wen Y, Pan C, Zhang H, Chen Y, Zhang J, Zhang Z, Yang X, Meng P, Zhang F. A multi-environments-gene interaction study of anxiety, depression and self-harm in the UK Biobank cohort. J Psychiatr Res 2022; 147:59-66. [PMID: 35026594 DOI: 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2022.01.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2021] [Revised: 12/26/2021] [Accepted: 01/03/2022] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
The effects of gene-by-environment (G×E) interactions on complex diseases are significant, especially the superimposed effects of multiple environmental factors. However, research on the multi-environments-gene interactions of anxiety, depression, and self-harm is still limited. This study included white individuals (N = 66,041-74,482) from the UK Biobank. We fitted all environmental factors to a single environmental score (ES), and the estimated ES was used to calculate the multiplicative interaction effects between ES and genome-wide SNPs. Heritability was stratified by minor allele frequency (MAF) and linkage disequilibrium (LD). Our research found 10 loci with significant interaction effects, such as rs114830993 (PRICKLE2, P = 2.30 × 10-8), rs151323364 (ASTN2, P = 2.71 × 10-10) and rs536631793 (SYN3, P = 4.09 × 10-8). In addition, we found that G×E heritability has a significant contribution to the depression of Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) scores (h2G×E (female) = 6.1%, h2G×E (male) = 8.7%). Our research supported the important influence of multi-environments-gene interactions on anxiety, depression, and self-harm and provided clues for the prevention and etiological research of them.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chun'e Li
- Key Laboratory of Trace Elements and Endemic Diseases of National Health and Family Planning Commission, School of Public Health, Health Science Center, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, China
| | - Xiao Liang
- Key Laboratory of Trace Elements and Endemic Diseases of National Health and Family Planning Commission, School of Public Health, Health Science Center, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, China
| | - Shiqiang Cheng
- Key Laboratory of Trace Elements and Endemic Diseases of National Health and Family Planning Commission, School of Public Health, Health Science Center, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, China
| | - Yan Wen
- Key Laboratory of Trace Elements and Endemic Diseases of National Health and Family Planning Commission, School of Public Health, Health Science Center, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, China
| | - Chuyu Pan
- Key Laboratory of Trace Elements and Endemic Diseases of National Health and Family Planning Commission, School of Public Health, Health Science Center, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, China
| | - Huijie Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Trace Elements and Endemic Diseases of National Health and Family Planning Commission, School of Public Health, Health Science Center, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, China
| | - Yujing Chen
- Key Laboratory of Trace Elements and Endemic Diseases of National Health and Family Planning Commission, School of Public Health, Health Science Center, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, China
| | - Jingxi Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Trace Elements and Endemic Diseases of National Health and Family Planning Commission, School of Public Health, Health Science Center, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, China
| | - Zhen Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Trace Elements and Endemic Diseases of National Health and Family Planning Commission, School of Public Health, Health Science Center, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, China
| | - Xuena Yang
- Key Laboratory of Trace Elements and Endemic Diseases of National Health and Family Planning Commission, School of Public Health, Health Science Center, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, China
| | - Peilin Meng
- Key Laboratory of Trace Elements and Endemic Diseases of National Health and Family Planning Commission, School of Public Health, Health Science Center, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, China
| | - Feng Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Trace Elements and Endemic Diseases of National Health and Family Planning Commission, School of Public Health, Health Science Center, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, China.
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McCready FP, Gordillo-Sampedro S, Pradeepan K, Martinez-Trujillo J, Ellis J. Multielectrode Arrays for Functional Phenotyping of Neurons from Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell Models of Neurodevelopmental Disorders. BIOLOGY 2022; 11:biology11020316. [PMID: 35205182 PMCID: PMC8868577 DOI: 10.3390/biology11020316] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2022] [Revised: 02/11/2022] [Accepted: 02/14/2022] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Simple Summary Multielectrode array technology allows researchers to record the spontaneous firing activity of cultured neurons over a period of multiple weeks or months. These data can be valuable for understanding how the functional relationships between neurons evolve as they begin to form connections and wire into a functional network. This technology has been adopted by researchers using stem cells to produce human neurons in culture to study neurodevelopmental disorders. However, the dizzying complexity and scale of the data generated have posed some challenges with the analysis and interpretation of experimental results. Here, we first provide historical context as to why multielectrode array platforms were originally developed, and use this perspective to explore some of the challenges currently facing the field. We then highlight new analysis methods, provide some guidance for improving the analysis of multielectrode array data, and discuss standardizing how these findings are communicated in scientific publications. Abstract In vitro multielectrode array (MEA) systems are increasingly used as higher-throughput platforms for functional phenotyping studies of neurons in induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) disease models. While MEA systems generate large amounts of spatiotemporal activity data from networks of iPSC-derived neurons, the downstream analysis and interpretation of such high-dimensional data often pose a significant challenge to researchers. In this review, we examine how MEA technology is currently deployed in iPSC modeling studies of neurodevelopmental disorders. We first highlight the strengths of in vitro MEA technology by reviewing the history of its development and the original scientific questions MEAs were intended to answer. Methods of generating patient iPSC-derived neurons and astrocytes for MEA co-cultures are summarized. We then discuss challenges associated with MEA data analysis in a disease modeling context, and present novel computational methods used to better interpret network phenotyping data. We end by suggesting best practices for presenting MEA data in research publications, and propose that the creation of a public MEA data repository to enable collaborative data sharing would be of great benefit to the iPSC disease modeling community.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fraser P. McCready
- Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 1A8, Canada; (F.P.M.); (S.G.-S.)
- Developmental & Stem Cell Biology Program, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON M5G 0A4, Canada
| | - Sara Gordillo-Sampedro
- Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 1A8, Canada; (F.P.M.); (S.G.-S.)
- Developmental & Stem Cell Biology Program, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON M5G 0A4, Canada
| | - Kartik Pradeepan
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Department of Psychiatry, Robarts Research and Brain and Mind Institutes, Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, Western University, London, ON N6A 5B7, Canada; (K.P.); (J.M.-T.)
| | - Julio Martinez-Trujillo
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Department of Psychiatry, Robarts Research and Brain and Mind Institutes, Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, Western University, London, ON N6A 5B7, Canada; (K.P.); (J.M.-T.)
| | - James Ellis
- Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 1A8, Canada; (F.P.M.); (S.G.-S.)
- Developmental & Stem Cell Biology Program, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON M5G 0A4, Canada
- Correspondence:
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38
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Panagiotakos G, Pasca SP. A matter of space and time: Emerging roles of disease-associated proteins in neural development. Neuron 2022; 110:195-208. [PMID: 34847355 PMCID: PMC8776599 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2021.10.035] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2021] [Revised: 10/11/2021] [Accepted: 10/25/2021] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
Recent genetic studies of neurodevelopmental disorders point to synaptic proteins and ion channels as key contributors to disease pathogenesis. Although many of these proteins, such as the L-type calcium channel Cav1.2 or the postsynaptic scaffolding protein SHANK3, have well-studied functions in mature neurons, new evidence indicates that they may subserve novel, distinct roles in immature cells as the nervous system is assembled in prenatal development. Emerging tools and technologies, including single-cell sequencing and human cellular models of disease, are illuminating differential isoform utilization, spatiotemporal expression, and subcellular localization of ion channels and synaptic proteins in the developing brain compared with the adult, providing new insights into the regulation of developmental processes. We propose that it is essential to consider the temporally distinct and cell-specific roles of these proteins during development and maturity in our framework for understanding neuropsychiatric disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Georgia Panagiotakos
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA; Kavli Institute for Fundamental Neuroscience, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA; Eli and Edythe Broad Center of Regeneration Medicine and Stem Cell Research, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
| | - Sergiu P Pasca
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA; Stanford Brain Organogenesis, Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA.
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Hulme AJ, Maksour S, St-Clair Glover M, Miellet S, Dottori M. Making neurons, made easy: The use of Neurogenin-2 in neuronal differentiation. Stem Cell Reports 2021; 17:14-34. [PMID: 34971564 PMCID: PMC8758946 DOI: 10.1016/j.stemcr.2021.11.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2021] [Revised: 11/27/2021] [Accepted: 11/29/2021] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Directed neuronal differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs), neural progenitors, or fibroblasts using transcription factors has allowed for the rapid and highly reproducible differentiation of mature and functional neurons. Exogenous expression of the transcription factor Neurogenin-2 (NGN2) has been widely used to generate different populations of neurons, which have been used in neurodevelopment studies, disease modeling, drug screening, and neuronal replacement therapies. Could NGN2 be a “one-glove-fits-all” approach for neuronal differentiations? This review summarizes the cellular roles of NGN2 and describes the applications and limitations of using NGN2 for the rapid and directed differentiation of neurons.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amy J Hulme
- Illawarra Health and Medical Research Institute, Wollongong, NSW, Australia; School of Medicine, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW, Australia; Molecular Horizons, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW, Australia
| | - Simon Maksour
- Illawarra Health and Medical Research Institute, Wollongong, NSW, Australia; School of Medicine, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW, Australia; Molecular Horizons, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW, Australia
| | - Mitchell St-Clair Glover
- Illawarra Health and Medical Research Institute, Wollongong, NSW, Australia; School of Medicine, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW, Australia; Molecular Horizons, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW, Australia
| | - Sara Miellet
- Illawarra Health and Medical Research Institute, Wollongong, NSW, Australia; School of Medicine, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW, Australia; Molecular Horizons, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW, Australia
| | - Mirella Dottori
- Illawarra Health and Medical Research Institute, Wollongong, NSW, Australia; School of Medicine, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW, Australia; Molecular Horizons, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW, Australia.
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40
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Abstract
Chromatin is highly dynamic, undergoing continuous global changes in its structure and type of histone and DNA modifications governed by processes such as transcription, repair, replication, and recombination. Members of the chromodomain helicase DNA-binding (CHD) family of enzymes are ATP-dependent chromatin remodelers that are intimately involved in the regulation of chromatin dynamics, altering nucleosomal structure and DNA accessibility. Genetic studies in yeast, fruit flies, zebrafish, and mice underscore essential roles of CHD enzymes in regulating cellular fate and identity, as well as proper embryonic development. With the advent of next-generation sequencing, evidence is emerging that these enzymes are subjected to frequent DNA copy number alterations or mutations and show aberrant expression in malignancies and other human diseases. As such, they might prove to be valuable biomarkers or targets for therapeutic intervention.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrej Alendar
- Division of Molecular Genetics, The Netherlands Cancer Institute, Amsterdam 1066CX, The Netherlands
| | - Anton Berns
- Division of Molecular Genetics, The Netherlands Cancer Institute, Amsterdam 1066CX, The Netherlands
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41
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McTague A, Rossignoli G, Ferrini A, Barral S, Kurian MA. Genome Editing in iPSC-Based Neural Systems: From Disease Models to Future Therapeutic Strategies. Front Genome Ed 2021; 3:630600. [PMID: 34713254 PMCID: PMC8525405 DOI: 10.3389/fgeed.2021.630600] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2020] [Accepted: 02/19/2021] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Therapeutic advances for neurological disorders are challenging due to limited accessibility of the human central nervous system and incomplete understanding of disease mechanisms. Many neurological diseases lack precision treatments, leading to significant disease burden and poor outcome for affected patients. Induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) technology provides human neuronal cells that facilitate disease modeling and development of therapies. The use of genome editing, in particular CRISPR-Cas9 technology, has extended the potential of iPSCs, generating new models for a number of disorders, including Alzheimers and Parkinson Disease. Editing of iPSCs, in particular with CRISPR-Cas9, allows generation of isogenic pairs, which differ only in the disease-causing mutation and share the same genetic background, for assessment of phenotypic differences and downstream effects. Moreover, genome-wide CRISPR screens allow high-throughput interrogation for genetic modifiers in neuronal phenotypes, leading to discovery of novel pathways, and identification of new therapeutic targets. CRISPR-Cas9 has now evolved beyond altering gene expression. Indeed, fusion of a defective Cas9 (dCas9) nuclease with transcriptional repressors or activation domains allows down-regulation or activation of gene expression (CRISPR interference, CRISPRi; CRISPR activation, CRISPRa). These new tools will improve disease modeling and facilitate CRISPR and cell-based therapies, as seen for epilepsy and Duchenne muscular dystrophy. Genome engineering holds huge promise for the future understanding and treatment of neurological disorders, but there are numerous barriers to overcome. The synergy of iPSC-based model systems and gene editing will play a vital role in the route to precision medicine and the clinical translation of genome editing-based therapies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amy McTague
- Developmental Neurosciences, Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, University College London, London, United Kingdom.,Department of Neurology, Great Ormond Street Hospital, London, United Kingdom
| | - Giada Rossignoli
- Developmental Neurosciences, Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Arianna Ferrini
- Developmental Neurosciences, Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Serena Barral
- Developmental Neurosciences, Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Manju A Kurian
- Developmental Neurosciences, Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, University College London, London, United Kingdom.,Department of Neurology, Great Ormond Street Hospital, London, United Kingdom
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CHD8 safeguards early neuroectoderm differentiation in human ESCs and protects from apoptosis during neurogenesis. Cell Death Dis 2021; 12:981. [PMID: 34686651 PMCID: PMC8536677 DOI: 10.1038/s41419-021-04292-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2021] [Revised: 10/01/2021] [Accepted: 10/08/2021] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
The chromatin remodeler CHD8, which belongs to the ATP-dependent chromatin remodelers CHD family, is one of the most high-risk mutated genes in autism spectrum disorders. However, the role of CHD8 in neural differentiation and the mechanism of CHD8 in autism remains unclear, despite there are a few studies based on the CHD8 haploinsufficient models. Here, we generate the CHD8 knockout human ESCs by CRISPR/Cas9 technology and characterize the effect of loss-of-function of CHD8 on pluripotency maintenance and lineage determination by utilizing efficient directed differentiation protocols. The results show loss-of-function of CHD8 does not affect human ESC maintenance although having slight effect on proliferation and cell cycle. Interestingly, CHD8 depletion results in defective neuroectoderm differentiation, along with severe cell death in neural progenitor stage. Transcriptome analysis also indicates CHD8 does not alter the expression of pluripotent genes in ESC stage, but in neural progenitor cells depletion of CHD8 induces the abnormal expression of the apoptosis genes and suppresses neuroectoderm-related genes. These results provide the evidence that CHD8 plays an essential role in the pluripotency exit and neuroectoderm differentiation as well as the regulation of apoptosis during neurogenesis.
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43
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Deneault E, Chaineau M, Nicouleau M, Castellanos Montiel MJ, Franco Flores AK, Haghi G, Chen CXQ, Abdian N, Shlaifer I, Beitel LK, Durcan TM. A streamlined CRISPR workflow to introduce mutations and generate isogenic iPSCs for modeling amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Methods 2021; 203:297-310. [PMID: 34500068 DOI: 10.1016/j.ymeth.2021.09.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/17/2021] [Revised: 08/28/2021] [Accepted: 09/03/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) represents a complex neurodegenerative disorder with significant genetic heterogeneity. To date, both the genetic etiology and the underlying molecular mechanisms driving this disease remain poorly understood, although in recent years several studies have highlighted a number of genetic mutations causative for ALS. With these mutations pointing to potential pathways that may be affected within individuals with ALS, having the ability to generate human neurons and other disease relevant cells containing these mutations becomes even more critical if new therapies are to emerge. Recent developments with the advent of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) and clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) gene editing fields gave us the tools to introduce or correct a specific mutation at any site within the genome of an iPSC, and thus model the specific contribution of risk mutations. In this study we describe a rapid and efficient way to either introduce a mutation into a control line, or to correct an allele-specific mutation, generating an isogenic control line from patient-derived iPSCs with a given mutation. The mutations introduced were the G94A (also known as G93A) mutation into SOD1 or H517Q into FUS, and the mutation corrected was a patient iPSC line with I114T mutation in SOD1. A combination of small molecules and growth factors were used to guide a stepwise differentiation of the edited cells into motor neurons in order to demonstrate that disease-relevant cells could be generated for downstream applications. Through a combination of iPSCs and CRISPR editing, the cells generated here will provide fundamental insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying neuron degeneration in ALS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eric Deneault
- The Neuro's Early Drug Discovery Unit (EDDU), McGill University, 3801 University Street, Montreal, Quebec H3A 2B4, Canada
| | - Mathilde Chaineau
- The Neuro's Early Drug Discovery Unit (EDDU), McGill University, 3801 University Street, Montreal, Quebec H3A 2B4, Canada
| | - Michael Nicouleau
- The Neuro's Early Drug Discovery Unit (EDDU), McGill University, 3801 University Street, Montreal, Quebec H3A 2B4, Canada
| | - Maria José Castellanos Montiel
- The Neuro's Early Drug Discovery Unit (EDDU), McGill University, 3801 University Street, Montreal, Quebec H3A 2B4, Canada
| | - Anna Kristyna Franco Flores
- The Neuro's Early Drug Discovery Unit (EDDU), McGill University, 3801 University Street, Montreal, Quebec H3A 2B4, Canada
| | - Ghazal Haghi
- The Neuro's Early Drug Discovery Unit (EDDU), McGill University, 3801 University Street, Montreal, Quebec H3A 2B4, Canada
| | - Carol X-Q Chen
- The Neuro's Early Drug Discovery Unit (EDDU), McGill University, 3801 University Street, Montreal, Quebec H3A 2B4, Canada
| | - Narges Abdian
- The Neuro's Early Drug Discovery Unit (EDDU), McGill University, 3801 University Street, Montreal, Quebec H3A 2B4, Canada
| | - Irina Shlaifer
- The Neuro's Early Drug Discovery Unit (EDDU), McGill University, 3801 University Street, Montreal, Quebec H3A 2B4, Canada
| | - Lenore K Beitel
- The Neuro's Early Drug Discovery Unit (EDDU), McGill University, 3801 University Street, Montreal, Quebec H3A 2B4, Canada
| | - Thomas M Durcan
- The Neuro's Early Drug Discovery Unit (EDDU), McGill University, 3801 University Street, Montreal, Quebec H3A 2B4, Canada.
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44
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Gill PS, Clothier JL, Veerapandiyan A, Dweep H, Porter-Gill PA, Schaefer GB. Molecular Dysregulation in Autism Spectrum Disorder. J Pers Med 2021; 11:848. [PMID: 34575625 PMCID: PMC8466026 DOI: 10.3390/jpm11090848] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2021] [Revised: 08/21/2021] [Accepted: 08/26/2021] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) comprises a heterogeneous group of neurodevelopmental disorders with a strong heritable genetic component. At present, ASD is diagnosed solely by behavioral criteria. Advances in genomic analysis have contributed to numerous candidate genes for the risk of ASD, where rare mutations and s common variants contribute to its susceptibility. Moreover, studies show rare de novo variants, copy number variation and single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) also impact neurodevelopment signaling. Exploration of rare and common variants involved in common dysregulated pathways can provide new diagnostic and therapeutic strategies for ASD. Contributions of current innovative molecular strategies to understand etiology of ASD will be explored which are focused on whole exome sequencing (WES), whole genome sequencing (WGS), microRNA, long non-coding RNAs and CRISPR/Cas9 models. Some promising areas of pharmacogenomic and endophenotype directed therapies as novel personalized treatment and prevention will be discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pritmohinder S. Gill
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR 72202, USA;
- Arkansas Children’s Research Institute, 13 Children’s Way, Little Rock, AR 72202, USA;
| | - Jeffery L. Clothier
- Psychiatric Research Institute, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR 72205, USA;
| | - Aravindhan Veerapandiyan
- Pediatric Neurology, Arkansas Children’s Hospital, 1 Children’s Way, Little Rock, AR 72202, USA;
| | - Harsh Dweep
- The Wistar Institute, 3601 Spruce St., Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA;
| | | | - G. Bradley Schaefer
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR 72202, USA;
- Genetics and Pediatrics, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR 72202, USA
- Arkansas Children’s Hospital NW, Springdale, AR 72762, USA
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Wang HG, Bavley CC, Li A, Jones RM, Hackett J, Bayleyen Y, Lee FS, Rajadhyaksha AM, Pitt GS. Scn2a severe hypomorphic mutation decreases excitatory synaptic input and causes autism-associated behaviors. JCI Insight 2021; 6:150698. [PMID: 34156984 PMCID: PMC8410058 DOI: 10.1172/jci.insight.150698] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/20/2021] [Accepted: 06/17/2021] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
SCN2A, encoding the neuronal voltage-gated Na+ channel NaV1.2, is one of the most commonly affected loci linked to autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). Most ASD-associated mutations in SCN2A are loss-of-function mutations, but studies examining how such mutations affect neuronal function and whether Scn2a mutant mice display ASD endophenotypes have been inconsistent. We generated a protein truncation variant Scn2a mouse model (Scn2aΔ1898/+) by CRISPR that eliminates the NaV1.2 channel's distal intracellular C-terminal domain, and we analyzed the molecular and cellular consequences of this variant in a heterologous expression system, in neuronal culture, in brain slices, and in vivo. We also analyzed multiple behaviors in WT and Scn2aΔ1898/+ mice and correlated behaviors with clinical data obtained in human subjects with SCN2A variants. Expression of the NaV1.2 mutant in a heterologous expression system revealed decreased NaV1.2 channel function, and cultured pyramidal neurons isolated from Scn2aΔ1898/+ forebrain showed correspondingly reduced voltage-gated Na+ channel currents without compensation from other CNS voltage-gated Na+ channels. Na+ currents in inhibitory neurons were unaffected. Consistent with loss of voltage-gated Na+ channel currents, Scn2aΔ1898/+ pyramidal neurons displayed reduced excitability in forebrain neuronal culture and reduced excitatory synaptic input onto the pyramidal neurons in brain slices. Scn2aΔ1898/+ mice displayed several behavioral abnormalities, including abnormal social interactions that reflect behavior observed in humans with ASD and with harboring loss-of-function SCN2A variants. This model and its cellular electrophysiological characterizations provide a framework for tracing how a SCN2A loss-of-function variant leads to cellular defects that result in ASD-associated behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Charlotte C. Bavley
- Feil Family Brain and Mind Research Institute, and
- Pediatric Neurology, Department of Pediatrics, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, New York, USA
| | - Anfei Li
- Feil Family Brain and Mind Research Institute, and
| | - Rebecca M. Jones
- Weill Cornell Medicine, Center for Autism and the Developing Brain, White Plains, New York, USA
- Weill Cornell Autism Research Program and
- Sackler Institute for Developmental Psychobiology, Department of Psychiatry, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, New York, USA
| | - Jonathan Hackett
- Pediatric Neurology, Department of Pediatrics, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, New York, USA
| | | | - Francis S. Lee
- Feil Family Brain and Mind Research Institute, and
- Weill Cornell Autism Research Program and
- Sackler Institute for Developmental Psychobiology, Department of Psychiatry, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, New York, USA
| | - Anjali M. Rajadhyaksha
- Feil Family Brain and Mind Research Institute, and
- Pediatric Neurology, Department of Pediatrics, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, New York, USA
- Weill Cornell Autism Research Program and
| | - Geoffrey S. Pitt
- Cardiovascular Research Institute
- Weill Cornell Autism Research Program and
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Canals I, Quist E, Ahlenius H. Transcription Factor-Based Strategies to Generate Neural Cell Types from Human Pluripotent Stem Cells. Cell Reprogram 2021; 23:206-220. [PMID: 34388027 DOI: 10.1089/cell.2021.0045] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
In the last years, the use of pluripotent stem cells in studies of human biology has grown exponentially. These cells represent an infinite source for differentiation into several human cell types facilitating the investigation on biological processes, functionality of cells, or diseases mechanisms in relevant human models. In the neurobiology field, pluripotent stem cells have been extensively used to generate the main neuronal and glial cells of the brain. Traditionally, protocols following developmental cues have been applied to pluripotent stem cells to drive differentiation toward different cell lineages; however, these protocols give rise to populations with mixed identities. Interestingly, new protocols applying overexpression of lineage-specific transcription factors (TFs) have emerged and facilitated the generation of highly pure populations of specific subtypes of neurons and glial cells in an easy, reproducible, and rapid manner. In this study, we review protocols based on this strategy to generate excitatory, inhibitory, dopaminergic, and motor neurons as well as astrocytes, oligodendrocytes, and microglia. In addition, we will discuss the main applications for cells generated with these protocols, including disease modeling, drug screening, and mechanistic studies. Finally, we will discuss the advantages and disadvantages of TF-based protocols and present our view of the future in this field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Isaac Canals
- Stem Cells, Aging and Neurodegeneration Group, Faculty of Medicine, Lund University, Lund, Sweden.,Division of Neurology, Department of Clinical Sciences, Lund University, Lund, Sweden.,Lund Stem Cell Center, Lund, Sweden
| | - Ella Quist
- Stem Cells, Aging and Neurodegeneration Group, Faculty of Medicine, Lund University, Lund, Sweden.,Division of Neurology, Department of Clinical Sciences, Lund University, Lund, Sweden.,Lund Stem Cell Center, Lund, Sweden
| | - Henrik Ahlenius
- Stem Cells, Aging and Neurodegeneration Group, Faculty of Medicine, Lund University, Lund, Sweden.,Division of Neurology, Department of Clinical Sciences, Lund University, Lund, Sweden.,Lund Stem Cell Center, Lund, Sweden
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47
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Genetic Variation in the ASTN2 Locus in Cardiovascular, Metabolic and Psychiatric Traits: Evidence for Pleiotropy Rather Than Shared Biology. Genes (Basel) 2021; 12:genes12081194. [PMID: 34440368 PMCID: PMC8391428 DOI: 10.3390/genes12081194] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/21/2021] [Revised: 07/28/2021] [Accepted: 07/29/2021] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Background: The link between cardiometabolic and psychiatric illness has long been attributed to human behaviour, however recent research highlights shared biological mechanisms. The ASTN2 locus has been previously implicated in psychiatric and cardiometabolic traits, therefore this study aimed to systematically investigate the genetic architecture of ASTN2 in relation to a wide range of relevant traits. Methods: Baseline questionnaire, assessment and genetic data of 402111 unrelated white British ancestry individuals from the UK Biobank was analysed. Genetic association analyses were conducted using PLINK 1.07, assuming an additive genetic model and adjusting for age, sex, genotyping chip, and population structure. Conditional analyses and linkage disequilibrium assessment were used to determine whether cardiometabolic and psychiatric signals were independent. Results: Associations between genetic variants in the ASTN2 locus and blood pressure, total and central obesity, neuroticism, anhedonia and mood instability were identified. All analyses support the independence of the cardiometabolic traits from the psychiatric traits. In silico analyses provide support for the central obesity signal acting through ASTN2, however most of the other signals are likely acting through other genes in the locus. Conclusions: Our systematic analysis demonstrates that ASTN2 has pleiotropic effects on cardiometabolic and psychiatric traits, rather than contributing to shared pathology.
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Okur V, Hamm L, Kavus H, Mebane C, Robinson S, Levy B, Chung WK. Clinical and genomic characterization of 8p cytogenomic disorders. Genet Med 2021; 23:2342-2351. [PMID: 34282301 DOI: 10.1038/s41436-021-01270-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/27/2020] [Revised: 06/29/2021] [Accepted: 06/29/2021] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
PURPOSE To provide a detailed clinical and cytogenomic summary of individuals with chromosome 8p rearrangements of invdupdel(8p), del(8p), and dup(8p). METHODS We enrolled 97 individuals with invdupdel(8p), del(8p), and dup(8p). Clinical and molecular data were collected to delineate and compare the clinical findings and rearrangement breakpoints. We included additional 5 individuals with dup(8p) from the literature for a total of 102 individuals. RESULTS Eighty-one individuals had recurrent rearrangements of invdupdel(8p) (n = 49), del(8p)_distal (n = 4), del(8p)_proximal (n = 9), del(8p)_proximal&distal (n = 12), and dup(8p)_proximal (n = 7). Twenty-one individuals had nonrecurrent rearrangements. While all individuals had neurodevelopmental features, the frequency and severity of clinical findings were higher in individuals with invdupdel(8p), and with larger duplications. All individuals with GATA4 deletion had structural congenital heart defects; however, the presence of structural heart defects in some individuals with normal GATA4 copy number suggests there are other potentially contributing gene(s) on 8p. CONCLUSION Our study may inform families and health-care providers about the associated clinical findings and severity in individuals with chromosome 8p rearrangements, and guide researchers in investigating the underlying molecular and biological mechanisms by providing detailed clinical and cytogenomic information about individuals with distinct 8p rearrangements.
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Affiliation(s)
- Volkan Okur
- Division of Molecular Genetics, Department of Pediatrics, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY, USA.,Department of Human and Molecular Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Laura Hamm
- Division of Molecular Genetics, Department of Pediatrics, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Haluk Kavus
- Division of Molecular Genetics, Department of Pediatrics, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Caroline Mebane
- Division of Molecular Genetics, Department of Pediatrics, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Scott Robinson
- Division of Molecular Genetics, Department of Pediatrics, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Brynn Levy
- Department of Pathology and Cell Biology, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Wendy K Chung
- Division of Molecular Genetics, Department of Pediatrics, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY, USA. .,Department of Medicine, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY, USA.
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49
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Bahado-Singh RO, Vishweswaraiah S, Aydas B, Radhakrishna U. Placental DNA methylation changes and the early prediction of autism in full-term newborns. PLoS One 2021; 16:e0253340. [PMID: 34260616 PMCID: PMC8279352 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0253340] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2021] [Accepted: 06/03/2021] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is associated with abnormal brain development during fetal life. Overall, increasing evidence indicates an important role of epigenetic dysfunction in ASD. The placenta is critical to and produces neurotransmitters that regulate fetal brain development. We hypothesized that placental DNA methylation changes are a feature of the fetal development of the autistic brain and importantly could help to elucidate the early pathogenesis and prediction of these disorders. Genome-wide methylation using placental tissue from the full-term autistic disorder subtype was performed using the Illumina 450K array. The study consisted of 14 cases and 10 control subjects. Significantly epigenetically altered CpG loci (FDR p-value <0.05) in autism were identified. Ingenuity Pathway Analysis (IPA) was further used to identify molecular pathways that were over-represented (epigenetically dysregulated) in autism. Six Artificial Intelligence (AI) algorithms including Deep Learning (DL) to determine the predictive accuracy of CpG markers for autism detection. We identified 9655 CpGs differentially methylated in autism. Among them, 2802 CpGs were inter- or non-genic and 6853 intragenic. The latter involved 4129 genes. AI analysis of differentially methylated loci appeared highly accurate for autism detection. DL yielded an AUC (95% CI) of 1.00 (1.00-1.00) for autism detection using intra- or intergenic markers by themselves or combined. The biological functional enrichment showed, four significant functions that were affected in autism: quantity of synapse, microtubule dynamics, neuritogenesis, and abnormal morphology of neurons. In this preliminary study, significant placental DNA methylation changes. AI had high accuracy for the prediction of subsequent autism development in newborns. Finally, biologically functional relevant gene pathways were identified that may play a significant role in early fetal neurodevelopmental influences on later cognition and social behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ray O. Bahado-Singh
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine, Royal Oak, MI, United States of America
| | - Sangeetha Vishweswaraiah
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine, Royal Oak, MI, United States of America
| | - Buket Aydas
- Department of Healthcare Analytics, Meridian Health Plans, Detroit, MI, United States of America
| | - Uppala Radhakrishna
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine, Royal Oak, MI, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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50
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Kessi M, Chen B, Peng J, Yan F, Yang L, Yin F. Calcium channelopathies and intellectual disability: a systematic review. Orphanet J Rare Dis 2021; 16:219. [PMID: 33985586 PMCID: PMC8120735 DOI: 10.1186/s13023-021-01850-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2020] [Accepted: 05/04/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Calcium ions are involved in several human cellular processes including corticogenesis, transcription, and synaptogenesis. Nevertheless, the relationship between calcium channelopathies (CCs) and intellectual disability (ID)/global developmental delay (GDD) has been poorly investigated. We hypothesised that CCs play a major role in the development of ID/GDD and that both gain- and loss-of-function variants of calcium channel genes can induce ID/GDD. As a result, we performed a systematic review to investigate the contribution of CCs, potential mechanisms underlying their involvement in ID/GDD, advancements in cell and animal models, treatments, brain anomalies in patients with CCs, and the existing gaps in the knowledge. We performed a systematic search in PubMed, Embase, ClinVar, OMIM, ClinGen, Gene Reviews, DECIPHER and LOVD databases to search for articles/records published before March 2021. The following search strategies were employed: ID and calcium channel, mental retardation and calcium channel, GDD and calcium channel, developmental delay and calcium channel. MAIN BODY A total of 59 reports describing 159 cases were found in PubMed, Embase, ClinVar, and LOVD databases. Variations in ten calcium channel genes including CACNA1A, CACNA1C, CACNA1I, CACNA1H, CACNA1D, CACNA2D1, CACNA2D2, CACNA1E, CACNA1F, and CACNA1G were found to be associated with ID/GDD. Most variants exhibited gain-of-function effect. Severe to profound ID/GDD was observed more for the cases with gain-of-function variants as compared to those with loss-of-function. CACNA1E, CACNA1G, CACNA1F, CACNA2D2 and CACNA1A associated with more severe phenotype. Furthermore, 157 copy number variations (CNVs) spanning calcium genes were identified in DECIPHER database. The leading genes included CACNA1C, CACNA1A, and CACNA1E. Overall, the underlying mechanisms included gain- and/ or loss-of-function, alteration in kinetics (activation, inactivation) and dominant-negative effects of truncated forms of alpha1 subunits. Forty of the identified cases featured cerebellar atrophy. We identified only a few cell and animal studies that focused on the mechanisms of ID/GDD in relation to CCs. There is a scarcity of studies on treatment options for ID/GDD both in vivo and in vitro. CONCLUSION Our results suggest that CCs play a major role in ID/GDD. While both gain- and loss-of-function variants are associated with ID/GDD, the mechanisms underlying their involvement need further scrutiny.
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Affiliation(s)
- Miriam Kessi
- Department of Pediatrics, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, 410008, Hunan, China
- Hunan Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center, Changsha, Hunan, China
- Kilimanjaro Christian Medical University College, Moshi, Tanzania
- Mawenzi Regional Referral Hospital, Moshi, Tanzania
| | - Baiyu Chen
- Department of Pediatrics, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, 410008, Hunan, China
- Hunan Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center, Changsha, Hunan, China
| | - Jing Peng
- Department of Pediatrics, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, 410008, Hunan, China
- Hunan Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center, Changsha, Hunan, China
| | - Fangling Yan
- Department of Pediatrics, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, 410008, Hunan, China
- Hunan Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center, Changsha, Hunan, China
| | - Lifen Yang
- Department of Pediatrics, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, 410008, Hunan, China
- Hunan Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center, Changsha, Hunan, China
| | - Fei Yin
- Department of Pediatrics, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, 410008, Hunan, China.
- Hunan Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center, Changsha, Hunan, China.
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