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Chang YT, Lee YJ, Haque M, Chang HC, Javed S, Lin YC, Cho Y, Abramovitz J, Chin G, Khamis A, Raja R, Murai KK, Huang WH. Comparative analyses of the Smith-Magenis syndrome protein RAI1 in mice and common marmoset monkeys. J Comp Neurol 2024; 532:e25589. [PMID: 38289192 DOI: 10.1002/cne.25589] [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: 04/13/2023] [Revised: 11/11/2023] [Accepted: 12/17/2023] [Indexed: 02/01/2024]
Abstract
Retinoic acid-induced 1 (RAI1) encodes a transcriptional regulator critical for brain development and function. RAI1 haploinsufficiency in humans causes a syndromic autism spectrum disorder known as Smith-Magenis syndrome (SMS). The neuroanatomical distribution of RAI1 has not been quantitatively analyzed during the development of the prefrontal cortex, a brain region critical for cognitive function and social behaviors and commonly implicated in autism spectrum disorders, including SMS. Here, we performed comparative analyses to uncover the evolutionarily convergent and divergent expression profiles of RAI1 in major cell types during prefrontal cortex maturation in common marmoset monkeys (Callithrix jacchus) and mice (Mus musculus). We found that while RAI1 in both species is enriched in neurons, the percentage of excitatory neurons that express RAI1 is higher in newborn mice than in newborn marmosets. By contrast, RAI1 shows similar neural distribution in adult marmosets and adult mice. In marmosets, RAI1 is expressed in several primate-specific cell types, including intralaminar astrocytes and MEIS2-expressing prefrontal GABAergic neurons. At the molecular level, we discovered that RAI1 forms a protein complex with transcription factor 20 (TCF20), PHD finger protein 14 (PHF14), and high mobility group 20A (HMG20A) in the marmoset brain. In vitro assays in human cells revealed that TCF20 regulates RAI1 protein abundance. This work demonstrates that RAI1 expression and protein interactions are largely conserved but with some unique expression in primate-specific cells. The results also suggest that altered RAI1 abundance could contribute to disease features in disorders caused by TCF20 dosage imbalance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ya-Ting Chang
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Centre for Research in Neuroscience, McGill University, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- Brain Repair and Integrative Neuroscience Program, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Yu-Ju Lee
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Centre for Research in Neuroscience, McGill University, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- Brain Repair and Integrative Neuroscience Program, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Minza Haque
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Centre for Research in Neuroscience, McGill University, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- Brain Repair and Integrative Neuroscience Program, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Hao-Cheng Chang
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Centre for Research in Neuroscience, McGill University, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- Brain Repair and Integrative Neuroscience Program, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Sehrish Javed
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Centre for Research in Neuroscience, McGill University, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- Brain Repair and Integrative Neuroscience Program, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Yu Cheng Lin
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Centre for Research in Neuroscience, McGill University, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- Brain Repair and Integrative Neuroscience Program, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Yoobin Cho
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Centre for Research in Neuroscience, McGill University, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- Brain Repair and Integrative Neuroscience Program, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Joseph Abramovitz
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Centre for Research in Neuroscience, McGill University, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- Brain Repair and Integrative Neuroscience Program, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Gabriella Chin
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Centre for Research in Neuroscience, McGill University, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- Brain Repair and Integrative Neuroscience Program, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Asma Khamis
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Centre for Research in Neuroscience, McGill University, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- Brain Repair and Integrative Neuroscience Program, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Reesha Raja
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Centre for Research in Neuroscience, McGill University, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- Brain Repair and Integrative Neuroscience Program, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Keith K Murai
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Centre for Research in Neuroscience, McGill University, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- Brain Repair and Integrative Neuroscience Program, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Wei-Hsiang Huang
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Centre for Research in Neuroscience, McGill University, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- Brain Repair and Integrative Neuroscience Program, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre, Montréal, Québec, Canada
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Javed S, Chang YT, Cho Y, Lee YJ, Chang HC, Haque M, Lin YC, Huang WH. Smith-Magenis syndrome protein RAI1 regulates body weight homeostasis through hypothalamic BDNF-producing neurons and neurotrophin downstream signalling. eLife 2023; 12:RP90333. [PMID: 37956053 PMCID: PMC10642964 DOI: 10.7554/elife.90333] [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] [Indexed: 11/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Retinoic acid-induced 1 (RAI1) haploinsufficiency causes Smith-Magenis syndrome (SMS), a genetic disorder with symptoms including hyperphagia, hyperlipidemia, severe obesity, and autism phenotypes. RAI1 is a transcriptional regulator with a pan-neural expression pattern and hundreds of downstream targets. The mechanisms linking neural Rai1 to body weight regulation remain unclear. Here we find that hypothalamic brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and its downstream signalling are disrupted in SMS (Rai1+/-) mice. Selective Rai1 loss from all BDNF-producing cells or from BDNF-producing neurons in the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus (PVH) induced obesity in mice. Electrophysiological recordings revealed that Rai1 ablation decreased the intrinsic excitability of PVHBDNF neurons. Chronic treatment of SMS mice with LM22A-4 engages neurotrophin downstream signalling and delayed obesity onset. This treatment also partially rescued disrupted lipid profiles, insulin intolerance, and stereotypical repetitive behaviour in SMS mice. These data argue that RAI1 regulates body weight and metabolic function through hypothalamic BDNF-producing neurons and that targeting neurotrophin downstream signalling might improve associated SMS phenotypes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sehrish Javed
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Centre for Research in Neuroscience, McGill UniversityMontréalCanada
- Brain Repair and Integrative Neuroscience Program, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health CentreMontréalCanada
| | - Ya-Ting Chang
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Centre for Research in Neuroscience, McGill UniversityMontréalCanada
- Brain Repair and Integrative Neuroscience Program, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health CentreMontréalCanada
| | - Yoobin Cho
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Centre for Research in Neuroscience, McGill UniversityMontréalCanada
- Brain Repair and Integrative Neuroscience Program, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health CentreMontréalCanada
| | - Yu-Ju Lee
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Centre for Research in Neuroscience, McGill UniversityMontréalCanada
- Brain Repair and Integrative Neuroscience Program, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health CentreMontréalCanada
| | - Hao-Cheng Chang
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Centre for Research in Neuroscience, McGill UniversityMontréalCanada
- Brain Repair and Integrative Neuroscience Program, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health CentreMontréalCanada
| | - Minza Haque
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Centre for Research in Neuroscience, McGill UniversityMontréalCanada
- Brain Repair and Integrative Neuroscience Program, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health CentreMontréalCanada
| | - Yu Cheng Lin
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Centre for Research in Neuroscience, McGill UniversityMontréalCanada
- Brain Repair and Integrative Neuroscience Program, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health CentreMontréalCanada
| | - Wei-Hsiang Huang
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Centre for Research in Neuroscience, McGill UniversityMontréalCanada
- Brain Repair and Integrative Neuroscience Program, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health CentreMontréalCanada
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Yu R, Liu L, Chen C, Lin ZJ, Xu JM, Fan LL. A de novo mutation (p.S1419F) of Retinoic acid induced 1 is responsible for a patient with Smith-Magenis syndrome exhibiting schizophrenia. Gene 2023; 851:147028. [DOI: 10.1016/j.gene.2022.147028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2022] [Revised: 10/16/2022] [Accepted: 10/28/2022] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
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Purushotham SS, Reddy NMN, D'Souza MN, Choudhury NR, Ganguly A, Gopalakrishna N, Muddashetty R, Clement JP. A perspective on molecular signalling dysfunction, its clinical relevance and therapeutics in autism spectrum disorder. Exp Brain Res 2022; 240:2525-2567. [PMID: 36063192 DOI: 10.1007/s00221-022-06448-x] [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: 06/01/2022] [Accepted: 08/18/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Intellectual disability (ID) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are neurodevelopmental disorders that have become a primary clinical and social concern, with a prevalence of 2-3% in the population. Neuronal function and behaviour undergo significant malleability during the critical period of development that is found to be impaired in ID/ASD. Human genome sequencing studies have revealed many genetic variations associated with ASD/ID that are further verified by many approaches, including many mouse and other models. These models have facilitated the identification of fundamental mechanisms underlying the pathogenesis of ASD/ID, and several studies have proposed converging molecular pathways in ASD/ID. However, linking the mechanisms of the pathogenic genes and their molecular characteristics that lead to ID/ASD has progressed slowly, hampering the development of potential therapeutic strategies. This review discusses the possibility of recognising the common molecular causes for most ASD/ID based on studies from the available models that may enable a better therapeutic strategy to treat ID/ASD. We also reviewed the potential biomarkers to detect ASD/ID at early stages that may aid in diagnosis and initiating medical treatment, the concerns with drug failure in clinical trials, and developing therapeutic strategies that can be applied beyond a particular mutation associated with ASD/ID.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sushmitha S Purushotham
- Neuroscience Unit, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research, Bengaluru, 560064, India
| | - Neeharika M N Reddy
- Neuroscience Unit, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research, Bengaluru, 560064, India
| | - Michelle Ninochka D'Souza
- Centre for Brain Research, Indian Institute of Science Campus, CV Raman Avenue, Bangalore, 560 012, India.,The University of Trans-Disciplinary Health Sciences and Technology (TDU), Bangalore, 560064, India
| | - Nilpawan Roy Choudhury
- Neuroscience Unit, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research, Bengaluru, 560064, India
| | - Anusa Ganguly
- Neuroscience Unit, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research, Bengaluru, 560064, India
| | - Niharika Gopalakrishna
- Neuroscience Unit, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research, Bengaluru, 560064, India
| | - Ravi Muddashetty
- Centre for Brain Research, Indian Institute of Science Campus, CV Raman Avenue, Bangalore, 560 012, India.,The University of Trans-Disciplinary Health Sciences and Technology (TDU), Bangalore, 560064, India
| | - James P Clement
- Neuroscience Unit, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research, Bengaluru, 560064, India.
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Identification of De Novo JAK2 and MAPK7 Mutations Related to Autism Spectrum Disorder Using Whole-Exome Sequencing in a Chinese Child and Adolescent Trio-Based Sample. J Mol Neurosci 2019; 70:219-229. [PMID: 31838722 PMCID: PMC7018782 DOI: 10.1007/s12031-019-01456-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2019] [Accepted: 11/04/2019] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder with high phenotypic and genetic heterogeneity. Whole-exome sequencing studies have shown that de novo single-nucleotide variations (SNVs) play an important role in sporadic ASD. The present study aimed to search for de novo SNVs using whole-exome sequencing in 59 unrelated Chinese ASD sporadic trios, and found 24 genes (including five reported ASD candidate genes CACNA1D, ACHE, YY1, TTN, and FBXO11) with de novo harmful SNVs. Five genes (CACNA1D, JAK2, ACHE, MAPK7, and PRKAG2) classified as “medium-confidence” genes were found to be related to ASD using the Phenolyzer gene analysis tool, which predicts the correlation between the candidate genes and the ASD phenotype. De novo SNVs in JAK2, MAPK7, and PRKAG2 were first found in ASD. Both JAK2 and MAPK7 were involved in the regulation of the MAPK signaling pathway. Gene co-expression and inter-gene interaction networks were constructed and gene expression data in different brain regions were further extracted, revealing that JAK2 and MAPK7 genes were associated with certain previously reported ASD genes and played an important role in early brain development. The findings of this study suggest that the aforementioned five reported ASD genes and JAK2 and MAPK7 may be related to ASD susceptibility. Further investigations of expression studies in cellular and animal models are needed to explore the mechanism underlying the involvement of JAK2 and MAPK7 in ASD.
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Early adolescent Rai1 reactivation reverses transcriptional and social interaction deficits in a mouse model of Smith-Magenis syndrome. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2018; 115:10744-10749. [PMID: 30275311 PMCID: PMC6196530 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1806796115] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Losing one copy of the RAI1 gene causes Smith–Magenis syndrome (SMS), a neurodevelopmental disorder. Using a newly generated SMS mouse model, this study demonstrates that restoring the Rai1 gene dose in an early postnatal window could repair gene expression and social interaction deficits in this SMS model. The SMS mouse model also showed a reduced density of dendritic spines, anatomical correlates of excitatory synapses, in the prefrontal cortex. Artificial activation of prefrontal cortex neurons partially alleviated the behavioral deficits. These findings suggest that, similar to Rett syndrome, SMS is caused by disruption of a chromatin-modifying gene with reversible developmental phenotypes, highlighting the potential treatment windows in childhood or adolescence. Haploinsufficiency of Retinoic Acid Induced 1 (RAI1) causes Smith–Magenis syndrome (SMS), a syndromic autism spectrum disorder associated with craniofacial abnormalities, intellectual disability, and behavioral problems. There is currently no cure for SMS. Here, we generated a genetic mouse model to determine the reversibility of SMS-like neurobehavioral phenotypes in Rai1 heterozygous mice. We show that normalizing the Rai1 level 3–4 wk after birth corrected the expression of genes related to neural developmental pathways and fully reversed a social interaction deficit caused by Rai1 haploinsufficiency. In contrast, Rai1 reactivation 7–8 wk after birth was not beneficial. We also demonstrated that the correct Rai1 dose is required in both excitatory and inhibitory neurons for proper social interactions. Finally, we found that Rai1 heterozygous mice exhibited a reduction of dendritic spines in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) and that optogenetic activation of mPFC neurons in adults improved the social interaction deficit of Rai1 heterozygous mice. Together, these results suggest the existence of a postnatal temporal window during which restoring Rai1 can improve the transcriptional and social behavioral deficits in a mouse model of SMS. It is possible that circuit-level interventions would be beneficial beyond this critical window.
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Abad C, Cook MM, Cao L, Jones JR, Rao NR, Dukes-Rimsky L, Pauly R, Skinner C, Wang Y, Luo F, Stevenson RE, Walz K, Srivastava AK. A Rare De Novo RAI1 Gene Mutation Affecting BDNF-Enhancer-Driven Transcription Activity Associated with Autism and Atypical Smith-Magenis Syndrome Presentation. BIOLOGY 2018; 7:biology7020031. [PMID: 29794985 PMCID: PMC6023015 DOI: 10.3390/biology7020031] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/17/2018] [Revised: 05/20/2018] [Accepted: 05/21/2018] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Deletions and mutations involving the Retinoic Acid Induced 1 (RAI1) gene at 17p11.2 cause Smith-Magenis syndrome (SMS). Here we report a patient with autism as the main clinical presentation, with some SMS-like features and a rare de novo RAI1 gene mutation, c.3440G > A (p.R1147Q). We functionally characterized the RAI1 p.R1147Q mutant protein. The mutation, located near the nuclear localization signal, had no effect on the subcellular localization of the mutant protein. However, similar to previously reported RAI1 missense mutations in SMS patients, the RAI1 p.R1147Q mutant protein showed a significant deficiency in activating in vivo transcription of a reporter gene driven by a BDNF (brain-derived neurotrophic factor) intronic enhancer. In addition, expression of other genes associated with neurobehavioral abnormalities and/or neurodevelopmental disorders were found to be altered in this patient. These results suggest a likely contribution of RAI1, either alone or in combination of other factors, to social behavior and reinforce the RAI1 gene as a candidate gene in patients with autistic manifestations or social behavioral abnormalities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Clemer Abad
- John P. Hussman Institute for Human Genomics, University of Miami, FL 33136, USA.
| | - Melissa M Cook
- J. C. Self Research Institute of Human Genetics, Greenwood Genetic Center, Greenwood, SC 29646, USA.
| | - Lei Cao
- John P. Hussman Institute for Human Genomics, University of Miami, FL 33136, USA.
| | - Julie R Jones
- Molecular Diagnostic Laboratory, Greenwood Genetic Center, Greenwood, SC 29646, USA.
| | - Nalini R Rao
- John P. Hussman Institute for Human Genomics, University of Miami, FL 33136, USA.
| | - Lynn Dukes-Rimsky
- J. C. Self Research Institute of Human Genetics, Greenwood Genetic Center, Greenwood, SC 29646, USA.
| | - Rini Pauly
- J. C. Self Research Institute of Human Genetics, Greenwood Genetic Center, Greenwood, SC 29646, USA.
| | - Cindy Skinner
- J. C. Self Research Institute of Human Genetics, Greenwood Genetic Center, Greenwood, SC 29646, USA.
| | - Yunsheng Wang
- School of Computing, Clemson University, Clemson, SC 29634, USA.
| | - Feng Luo
- School of Computing, Clemson University, Clemson, SC 29634, USA.
| | - Roger E Stevenson
- J. C. Self Research Institute of Human Genetics, Greenwood Genetic Center, Greenwood, SC 29646, USA.
| | - Katherina Walz
- John P. Hussman Institute for Human Genomics, University of Miami, FL 33136, USA.
- Dr. John T. Macdonald Foundation Department of Human Genetics, Miller School of Medicine, University of Miami, FL 33136, USA.
| | - Anand K Srivastava
- J. C. Self Research Institute of Human Genetics, Greenwood Genetic Center, Greenwood, SC 29646, USA.
- Department of Genetics and Biochemsitry, Clemson University, Clemson, SC 29634, USA.
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