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Stepan J, Heinz DE, Dethloff F, Wiechmann S, Martinelli S, Hafner K, Ebert T, Junglas E, Häusl AS, Pöhlmann ML, Jakovcevski M, Pape JC, Zannas AS, Bajaj T, Hermann A, Ma X, Pavenstädt H, Schmidt MV, Philipsen A, Turck CW, Deussing JM, Rammes G, Robinson AC, Payton A, Wehr MC, Stein V, Murgatroyd C, Kremerskothen J, Kuster B, Wotjak CT, Gassen NC. Inhibiting Hippo pathway kinases releases WWC1 to promote AMPAR-dependent synaptic plasticity and long-term memory in mice. Sci Signal 2024; 17:eadj6603. [PMID: 38687825 DOI: 10.1126/scisignal.adj6603] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/03/2023] [Accepted: 04/11/2024] [Indexed: 05/02/2024]
Abstract
The localization, number, and function of postsynaptic AMPA-type glutamate receptors (AMPARs) are crucial for synaptic plasticity, a cellular correlate for learning and memory. The Hippo pathway member WWC1 is an important component of AMPAR-containing protein complexes. However, the availability of WWC1 is constrained by its interaction with the Hippo pathway kinases LATS1 and LATS2 (LATS1/2). Here, we explored the biochemical regulation of this interaction and found that it is pharmacologically targetable in vivo. In primary hippocampal neurons, phosphorylation of LATS1/2 by the upstream kinases MST1 and MST2 (MST1/2) enhanced the interaction between WWC1 and LATS1/2, which sequestered WWC1. Pharmacologically inhibiting MST1/2 in male mice and in human brain-derived organoids promoted the dissociation of WWC1 from LATS1/2, leading to an increase in WWC1 in AMPAR-containing complexes. MST1/2 inhibition enhanced synaptic transmission in mouse hippocampal brain slices and improved cognition in healthy male mice and in male mouse models of Alzheimer's disease and aging. Thus, compounds that disrupt the interaction between WWC1 and LATS1/2 might be explored for development as cognitive enhancers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jens Stepan
- Department of Translational Research in Psychiatry, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, 80804 Munich, Germany
- Research Group Neurohomeostasis, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Bonn, 53127 Bonn, Germany
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Paracelsus Medical University, 5020 Salzburg, Austria
- Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Technical University of Munich, 81675 Munich, Germany
| | - Daniel E Heinz
- Research Group Neurohomeostasis, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Bonn, 53127 Bonn, Germany
- Research Group Neuronal Plasticity, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, 80804 Munich, Germany
- Max Planck School of Cognition, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
| | - Frederik Dethloff
- Department of Translational Research in Psychiatry, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, 80804 Munich, Germany
- Metabolomics Core Facility, Max Planck Institute for Biology of Ageing, 50931 Cologne, Germany
| | - Svenja Wiechmann
- Chair of Proteomics and Bioanalytics, Technical University of Munich, 85354 Freising, Germany
- German Cancer Consortium (DKTK), 80336 Munich, Germany
- German Cancer Center (DKFZ), 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Silvia Martinelli
- Department of Translational Research in Psychiatry, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, 80804 Munich, Germany
| | - Kathrin Hafner
- Department of Translational Research in Psychiatry, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, 80804 Munich, Germany
| | - Tim Ebert
- Research Group Neurohomeostasis, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Bonn, 53127 Bonn, Germany
- Research Group Neuronal Plasticity, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, 80804 Munich, Germany
| | - Ellen Junglas
- Research Group Neurohomeostasis, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Bonn, 53127 Bonn, Germany
| | - Alexander S Häusl
- Research Group Neurobiology of Stress Resilience, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, 80804 Munich, Germany
| | - Max L Pöhlmann
- Research Group Neurobiology of Stress Resilience, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, 80804 Munich, Germany
| | - Mira Jakovcevski
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, 80804 Munich, Germany
| | - Julius C Pape
- Department of Translational Research in Psychiatry, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, 80804 Munich, Germany
| | - Anthony S Zannas
- Department of Translational Research in Psychiatry, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, 80804 Munich, Germany
- Department of Psychiatry, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27514, USA
- Department of Genetics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27514, USA
| | - Thomas Bajaj
- Research Group Neurohomeostasis, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Bonn, 53127 Bonn, Germany
| | - Anke Hermann
- Department of Medicine D, Division of General Internal Medicine, Nephrology, and Rheumatology, University Hospital Münster, 48149 Münster, Germany
| | - Xiao Ma
- Research Group Cell Signalling, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, LMU University Hospital, LMU Munich, 80336 Munich, Germany
| | - Hermann Pavenstädt
- Department of Medicine D, Division of General Internal Medicine, Nephrology, and Rheumatology, University Hospital Münster, 48149 Münster, Germany
| | - Mathias V Schmidt
- Research Group Neurobiology of Stress Resilience, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, 80804 Munich, Germany
| | - Alexandra Philipsen
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Bonn, 53127 Bonn, Germany
| | - Christoph W Turck
- Proteomics and Biomarkers, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, 80804 Munich, Germany
- Key Laboratory of Animal Models and Human Disease Mechanisms of the Chinese Academy of Sciences & Yunnan Province, Kunming Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, 650223 Yunnan, China
| | - Jan M Deussing
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, 80804 Munich, Germany
- Research Group Molecular Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, 80804 Munich, Germany
| | - Gerhard Rammes
- Department of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine, Klinikum rechts der Isar, Technical University of Munich, 81675 Munich, Germany
| | - Andrew C Robinson
- Division of Neuroscience, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, School of Biological Sciences, University of Manchester, Salford Royal Hospital, Salford M6 8HD, UK
- Geoffrey Jefferson Brain Research Centre, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre (MAHSC), Salford M6 8HD, UK
| | - Antony Payton
- Division of Informatics, Imaging and Data Sciences, University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9NT, UK
| | - Michael C Wehr
- Research Group Cell Signalling, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, LMU University Hospital, LMU Munich, 80336 Munich, Germany
| | - Valentin Stein
- Institute of Physiology II, Medical Faculty University of Bonn, 53115 Bonn, Germany
| | | | - Joachim Kremerskothen
- Department of Medicine D, Division of General Internal Medicine, Nephrology, and Rheumatology, University Hospital Münster, 48149 Münster, Germany
| | - Bernhard Kuster
- Chair of Proteomics and Bioanalytics, Technical University of Munich, 85354 Freising, Germany
- German Cancer Consortium (DKTK), 80336 Munich, Germany
- German Cancer Center (DKFZ), 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
- Bavarian Center for Biomolecular Mass Spectrometry, Technical University of Munich, 85354 Freising, Germany
| | - Carsten T Wotjak
- Research Group Neuronal Plasticity, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, 80804 Munich, Germany
- Central Nervous System Diseases Research, Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals GmbH & Co. KG, 88397 Biberach an der Riß, Germany
| | - Nils C Gassen
- Department of Translational Research in Psychiatry, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, 80804 Munich, Germany
- Research Group Neurohomeostasis, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Bonn, 53127 Bonn, Germany
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Yildiz CB, Kundu T, Gehrmann J, Koesling J, Ravaei A, Wolff P, Kraft F, Maié T, Jakovcevski M, Pensold D, Zimmermann O, Rossetti G, Costa IG, Zimmer-Bensch G. EphrinA5 regulates cell motility by modulating Snhg15/DNA triplex-dependent targeting of DNMT1 to the Ncam1 promoter. Epigenetics Chromatin 2023; 16:42. [PMID: 37880732 PMCID: PMC10601256 DOI: 10.1186/s13072-023-00516-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2023] [Accepted: 10/13/2023] [Indexed: 10/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Cell-cell communication is mediated by membrane receptors and their ligands, such as the Eph/ephrin system, orchestrating cell migration during development and in diverse cancer types. Epigenetic mechanisms are key for integrating external "signals", e.g., from neighboring cells, into the transcriptome in health and disease. Previously, we reported ephrinA5 to trigger transcriptional changes of lncRNAs and protein-coding genes in cerebellar granule cells, a cell model for medulloblastoma. LncRNAs represent important adaptors for epigenetic writers through which they regulate gene expression. Here, we investigate a lncRNA-mediated targeting of DNMT1 to specific gene loci by the combined power of in silico modeling of RNA/DNA interactions and wet lab approaches, in the context of the clinically relevant use case of ephrinA5-dependent regulation of cellular motility of cerebellar granule cells. We provide evidence that Snhg15, a cancer-related lncRNA, recruits DNMT1 to the Ncam1 promoter through RNA/DNA triplex structure formation and the interaction with DNMT1. This mediates DNA methylation-dependent silencing of Ncam1, being abolished by ephrinA5 stimulation-triggered reduction of Snhg15 expression. Hence, we here propose a triple helix recognition mechanism, underlying cell motility regulation via lncRNA-targeted DNA methylation in a clinically relevant context.
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Affiliation(s)
- Can Bora Yildiz
- Institute of Zoology (Biology 2), Division of Neuroepigenetics, RWTH Aachen University, Worringerweg 3, 52074, Aachen, Germany
- Research Training Group 2416 Multi Senses - Multi Scales, RWTH Aachen University, 52074, Aachen, Germany
| | - Tathagata Kundu
- Jülich Supercomputing Centre, Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, 52425, Jülich, Germany
| | - Julia Gehrmann
- Institute for Computational Genomics, RWTH Aachen University, Medical Faculty, 52074, Aachen, Germany
| | - Jannis Koesling
- Institute of Zoology (Biology 2), Division of Neuroepigenetics, RWTH Aachen University, Worringerweg 3, 52074, Aachen, Germany
| | - Amin Ravaei
- Institute of Zoology (Biology 2), Division of Neuroepigenetics, RWTH Aachen University, Worringerweg 3, 52074, Aachen, Germany
- Department of Neurosciences and Rehabilitation, Section of Medical Biochemistry, Molecular Biology and Genetics, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
| | - Philip Wolff
- Institute of Zoology (Biology 2), Division of Neuroepigenetics, RWTH Aachen University, Worringerweg 3, 52074, Aachen, Germany
| | - Florian Kraft
- Institute for Human Genetics and Genomic Medicine, Medical Faculty, RWTH Aachen University, 52074, Aachen, Germany
| | - Tiago Maié
- Institute for Computational Genomics, RWTH Aachen University, Medical Faculty, 52074, Aachen, Germany
| | - Mira Jakovcevski
- Institute of Zoology (Biology 2), Division of Neuroepigenetics, RWTH Aachen University, Worringerweg 3, 52074, Aachen, Germany
| | - Daniel Pensold
- Institute of Zoology (Biology 2), Division of Neuroepigenetics, RWTH Aachen University, Worringerweg 3, 52074, Aachen, Germany
| | - Olav Zimmermann
- Jülich Supercomputing Centre, Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, 52425, Jülich, Germany
| | - Giulia Rossetti
- Jülich Supercomputing Centre, Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, 52425, Jülich, Germany
- Department of Neurology, University Hospital Aachen, RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany
- Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-9)/Institute of Advanced Simulations (IAS-5), Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, 52425, Jülich, Germany
| | - Ivan G Costa
- Institute for Computational Genomics, RWTH Aachen University, Medical Faculty, 52074, Aachen, Germany
| | - Geraldine Zimmer-Bensch
- Institute of Zoology (Biology 2), Division of Neuroepigenetics, RWTH Aachen University, Worringerweg 3, 52074, Aachen, Germany.
- Research Training Group 2416 Multi Senses - Multi Scales, RWTH Aachen University, 52074, Aachen, Germany.
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Chang S, Fermani F, Lao CL, Huang L, Jakovcevski M, Di Giaimo R, Gagliardi M, Menegaz D, Hennrich AA, Ziller M, Eder M, Klein R, Cai N, Deussing JM. Tripartite extended amygdala-basal ganglia CRH circuit drives locomotor activation and avoidance behavior. Sci Adv 2022; 8:eabo1023. [PMID: 36383658 PMCID: PMC9668302 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abo1023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2022] [Accepted: 09/30/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
An adaptive stress response involves various mediators and circuits orchestrating a complex interplay of physiological, emotional, and behavioral adjustments. We identified a population of corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) neurons in the lateral part of the interstitial nucleus of the anterior commissure (IPACL), a subdivision of the extended amygdala, which exclusively innervate the substantia nigra (SN). Specific stimulation of this circuit elicits hyperactivation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, locomotor activation, and avoidance behavior contingent on CRH receptor type 1 (CRHR1) located at axon terminals in the SN, which originate from external globus pallidus (GPe) neurons. The neuronal activity prompting the observed behavior is shaped by IPACLCRH and GPeCRHR1 neurons coalescing in the SN. These results delineate a previously unidentified tripartite CRH circuit functionally connecting extended amygdala and basal ganglia nuclei to drive locomotor activation and avoidance behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simon Chang
- Molecular Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
| | - Federica Fermani
- Molecules-Signaling-Development, Max Planck Institute for Biological Intelligence (in foundation), Martinsried, Germany
| | - Chu-Lan Lao
- Collaborative Research Centre/Sonderforschungsbereich (SFB) 870, Viral Vector Facility, Munich, Germany
| | - Lianyun Huang
- Translational Genetics, Helmholtz Pioneer Campus, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Munich, Germany
| | - Mira Jakovcevski
- Molecular Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
| | - Rossella Di Giaimo
- Developmental Neurobiology, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
- Department of Biology, University of Naples Federico II, Naples Italy
| | - Miriam Gagliardi
- Genomics of Complex Diseases, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
| | - Danusa Menegaz
- Scientific Core Unit Electrophysiology, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
| | - Alexandru Adrian Hennrich
- Max von Pettenkofer-Institute Virology, Medical Faculty, and Gene Center, Ludwig Maximilians University Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Michael Ziller
- Scientific Core Unit Electrophysiology, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
| | - Matthias Eder
- Scientific Core Unit Electrophysiology, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
| | - Rüdiger Klein
- Molecules-Signaling-Development, Max Planck Institute for Biological Intelligence (in foundation), Martinsried, Germany
| | - Na Cai
- Translational Genetics, Helmholtz Pioneer Campus, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Munich, Germany
| | - Jan M. Deussing
- Molecular Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
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4
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Jiang Y, Schulze-Hentrich JM, Jakovcevski M. Editorial: Neuroepigenetics of Neuropsychiatric Disease—Hope, Success and Obstacles for Translational Findings and Applications. Front Neurosci 2022; 16:886695. [PMID: 35431770 PMCID: PMC9011190 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2022.886695] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2022] [Accepted: 03/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Yan Jiang
- Institute of Brain Science, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Julia M. Schulze-Hentrich
- Centre for Rare Diseases, Institute of Medical Genetics and Applied Genomics, University Hospital and Faculty of Medicine, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Mira Jakovcevski
- Institute of Biology II - Functional Epigenetics in the Animal Model, RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany
- *Correspondence: Mira Jakovcevski
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Kähler B, Romswinkel EV, Jakovcevski M, Moses A, Schachner M, Morellini F. Hyperfunction of the stress response system and novelty-induced hyperactivity correlate with enhanced cocaine-induced conditioned place preference in NCAM-deficient mice. Addict Biol 2021; 26:e12887. [PMID: 32124535 DOI: 10.1111/adb.12887] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/09/2019] [Revised: 01/30/2020] [Accepted: 02/12/2020] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
Several studies in humans and rodents suggest an association between impulsivity and activity of the stress response on the one hand and addiction vulnerability on the other. The neural cell adhesion molecule (NCAM) has been related to several neuropsychiatric disorders in humans. Constitutively NCAM-deficient (-/-) mice display enhanced novelty-induced behavior and hyperfunction of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis. Here we hypothesize that NCAM deficiency causes an altered response to cocaine. Cocaine-induced behaviors of NCAM-/- mice and wild-type (+/+) littermates were analyzed in the conditioned place preference (CPP) test. c-fos mRNA levels were investigated by quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) to measure neural activation after exposure to the cocaine-associated context. NCAM-/- mice showed an elevated cocaine-induced sensitization, enhanced CPP, impaired extinction, and potentiated cocaine-induced hyperlocomotion and CPP after extinction. NCAM-/- showed no potentiated CPP as compared with NCAM+/+ littermates when a natural rewarding stimulus (ie, an unfamiliar female) was used, suggesting that the behavioral alterations of NCAM-/- mice observed in the CPP test are specific to the effects of cocaine. Activation of the prefrontal cortex and nucleus accumbens induced by the cocaine-associated context was enhanced in NCAM-/- compared with NCAM+/+ mice. Finally, cocaine-induced behavior correlated positively with novelty-induced behavior and plasma corticosterone levels in NCAM-/- mice and negatively with NCAM mRNA levels in the hippocampus and nucleus accumbens in wild-type mice. Our findings indicate that NCAM deficiency affects cocaine-induced CPP in mice and support the view that hyperfunction of the stress response system and reactivity to novelty predict the behavioral responses to cocaine.
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Affiliation(s)
- Birgit Kähler
- Institute for Biosynthesis of Neural Structures, Center for Molecular Neurobiology Hamburg, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Eva Viktoria Romswinkel
- Behavioral Biology, Center for Molecular Neurobiology Hamburg, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Mira Jakovcevski
- Institute for Biosynthesis of Neural Structures, Center for Molecular Neurobiology Hamburg, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Ashley Moses
- Behavioral Biology, Center for Molecular Neurobiology Hamburg, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Melitta Schachner
- Institute for Biosynthesis of Neural Structures, Center for Molecular Neurobiology Hamburg, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
- Center for Neuroscience, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou, Guangdong, 515041, China
- Keck Center for Collaborative Neuroscience and Department of Cell Biology and Neuroscience, Rutgers University, Piscataway, NJ 08554, USA
| | - Fabio Morellini
- Institute for Biosynthesis of Neural Structures, Center for Molecular Neurobiology Hamburg, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
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6
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Minic M, Zivanovic-Macuzic I, Jakovcevski M, Kovacevic M, Minic S, Jeremic D. The influence of the morphometric parameters of the intercondylar notch on occurrence of meniscofemoral ligaments. Folia Morphol (Warsz) 2021; 81:190-195. [PMID: 33438187 DOI: 10.5603/fm.a2020.0151] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2020] [Revised: 11/02/2020] [Accepted: 11/09/2020] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to examine the existence of correlation between the morphometric parameters of the intercondylar notch of the femur and the occurrence of meniscofemoral ligaments (MFLs) and if there is any relationship in the running angle (RA) value between narrowed and normal sized intercondylar notch. Coronal, sagittal and horizontal MR images of 90 patients with specified exclusion criteria were included in this study. The x² test was used for statistical analysis. In our research either one or both meniscofemoral ligament was identified in 70 (77.8%) of the 90 coronal MR images. In normal sized intercondylar notch, MFLs was seen in 39 (43.3%) cases and on 31 MR images (34.4%) with narrowed intercondylar notch. A significant correlation was established between the occurrence of the meniscofemoral ligament and morphometric parameters of the intercondylar notch (p<0.05). In normal sized intercondylar notch, 12 posterior meniscofemoral ligaments (pMFLs) of type I were detected (RA value = 42°), 8 of type II (RA value = 33°), 5 of type III (RA value = 23°) and two were of indeterminate type, whilst 10 anterior meniscofemoral ligaments (aMFLs) were of type I (RA value = 39°), 7 of type II (RA value = 31°), 2 of type III (RA value = 25°) and the remaining 6 were indeterminate. In narrowed intercondylar notch, 10 ligaments of pMFLs were of type I (RA value = 30°), 8 of type II (RA value = 25°), 5 of type III (RA value = 20°), 10 ligaments of aMFLs were of type I (RA value = 35°) and 9 were indeterminate. Statistically significant differences in the value of the running angle of pMFL type I and of type II were evaluated between two groups with different shaped intercondylar notch (p<0.05). The results shown in our study may be useful in medical clinical practice, reconstructive surgery, interpretation of knee MR images as well as genetic research.
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Affiliation(s)
- M Minic
- Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Kragujevac, Kragujevac, Serbia
| | - I Zivanovic-Macuzic
- Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Kragujevac, Kragujevac, Serbia.
| | - M Jakovcevski
- Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Kragujevac, Kragujevac, Serbia
| | - M Kovacevic
- Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Kragujevac, Kragujevac, Serbia
| | - S Minic
- College of Applied Health Sciences, Ćuprija, Serbia
| | - D Jeremic
- Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Kragujevac, Kragujevac, Serbia
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Zhu Y, Sun D, Jakovcevski M, Jiang Y. Epigenetic mechanism of SETDB1 in brain: implications for neuropsychiatric disorders. Transl Psychiatry 2020; 10:115. [PMID: 32321908 PMCID: PMC7176658 DOI: 10.1038/s41398-020-0797-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2019] [Revised: 03/13/2020] [Accepted: 03/26/2020] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Neuropsychiatric disorders are a collective of cerebral conditions with a multifactorial and polygenetic etiology. Dysregulation of epigenetic profiles in the brain is considered to play a critical role in the development of neuropsychiatric disorders. SET domain, bifurcate 1 (SETDB1), functioning as a histone H3K9 specific methyltransferase, is not only critically involved in transcriptional silencing and local heterochromatin formation, but also affects genome-wide neuronal epigenetic profiles and is essential for 3D genome integrity. Here, we provide a review of recent advances towards understanding the role of SETDB1 in the central nervous system during early neurodevelopment as well as in the adult brain, with a particular focus on studies that link its functions to neuropsychiatric disorders and related behavioral changes, and the exploration of novel therapeutic strategies targeting SETDB1.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yueyan Zhu
- Institutes of Brain Science, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology and MOE Frontier Center for Brain Science, Fudan University, 200032, Shanghai, China
| | - Daijing Sun
- Institutes of Brain Science, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology and MOE Frontier Center for Brain Science, Fudan University, 200032, Shanghai, China
| | - Mira Jakovcevski
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
| | - Yan Jiang
- Institutes of Brain Science, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology and MOE Frontier Center for Brain Science, Fudan University, 200032, Shanghai, China.
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8
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Stojadinovic D, Zivanovic-Macuzic I, Sazdanovic P, Jeremic D, Jakovcevski M, Minic M, Kovacevic M. Concomitant multiple anomalies of renal vessels and collecting system. Folia Morphol (Warsz) 2019; 79:627-633. [PMID: 31617578 DOI: 10.5603/fm.a2019.0108] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2019] [Revised: 09/19/2019] [Accepted: 09/27/2019] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Although anomalies of renal vessels and collecting system are relatively frequent, their concomitant occurrence is a rare event. During dissection of a 75-year-old male formalin-embalmed cadaver, we found multiple variations in the renal vessels and renal collecting system. Both kidneys were normal in size and anteriorly malrotated, with duplex collecting system and duplex ureter. One ureter drained the upper part of the kidney and the second ureter drained the lower part of the kidney. Superior and inferior collecting systems were separated by renal parenchyma. The right kidney had two renal arteries, the first renal artery (main renal artery) originating from the abdominal aorta, passing behind the inferior vena cava (IVC) and entering the kidney through the superior and inferior renal hilum. The second artery was the inferior polar artery. In addition, the right kidney had two renal veins as well. Three renal tributaries emerged from the upper and lower portion of the right renal hilum, and they joined to form the main renal vein which drained into the IVC. The lower renal vein was the inferior polar vein. The left kidney had four renal arteries (two hilar arteries and two polar arteries). The main left renal vein emerged from both superior and inferior left renal hilum, passed in front of the abdominal aorta and drained into the IVC. The left kidney also had the inferior polar vein which was divided behind the aorta (retro aortic vein) into two venous trunks. These venous trunks drained separately into posteromedial aspect of the IVC. Finally, the right testicular vein was formed by two tributaries and drained into the IVC, whereas the two left testicular veins drained separately into the left main renal vein.
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Affiliation(s)
- D Stojadinovic
- Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Kragujevac, Kragujevac, Serbia
| | - I Zivanovic-Macuzic
- Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Kragujevac, Kragujevac, Serbia.
| | - P Sazdanovic
- Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Kragujevac, Kragujevac, Serbia
| | - D Jeremic
- Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Kragujevac, Kragujevac, Serbia
| | - M Jakovcevski
- Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Kragujevac, Kragujevac, Serbia
| | - M Minic
- Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Kragujevac, Kragujevac, Serbia
| | - M Kovacevic
- Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Kragujevac, Kragujevac, Serbia
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9
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Engel M, Eggert C, Kaplick PM, Eder M, Röh S, Tietze L, Namendorf C, Arloth J, Weber P, Rex-Haffner M, Geula S, Jakovcevski M, Hanna JH, Leshkowitz D, Uhr M, Wotjak CT, Schmidt MV, Deussing JM, Binder EB, Chen A. The Role of m 6A/m-RNA Methylation in Stress Response Regulation. Neuron 2019; 99:389-403.e9. [PMID: 30048615 PMCID: PMC6069762 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2018.07.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 251] [Impact Index Per Article: 50.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/27/2017] [Revised: 05/04/2018] [Accepted: 07/05/2018] [Indexed: 12/04/2022]
Abstract
N6-methyladenosine (m6A) and N6,2′-O-dimethyladenosine (m6Am) are abundant mRNA modifications that regulate transcript processing and translation. The role of both, here termed m6A/m, in the stress response in the adult brain in vivo is currently unknown. Here, we provide a detailed analysis of the stress epitranscriptome using m6A/m-seq, global and gene-specific m6A/m measurements. We show that stress exposure and glucocorticoids region and time specifically alter m6A/m and its regulatory network. We demonstrate that deletion of the methyltransferase Mettl3 or the demethylase Fto in adult neurons alters the m6A/m epitranscriptome, increases fear memory, and changes the transcriptome response to fear and synaptic plasticity. Moreover, we report that regulation of m6A/m is impaired in major depressive disorder patients following glucocorticoid stimulation. Our findings indicate that brain m6A/m represents a novel layer of complexity in gene expression regulation after stress and that dysregulation of the m6A/m response may contribute to the pathophysiology of stress-related psychiatric disorders. m6A/m mRNA methylation in the adult mouse brain is regulated by stress m6A/m mRNA regulation is brain region, time, and gene specific Mettl3 and Fto cKO alter m6A/m, fear memory, expression, and synaptic plasticity The m6A/m glucocorticoid response is impaired in major depressive disorder patients
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Affiliation(s)
- Mareen Engel
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich 80804, Germany
| | - Carola Eggert
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich 80804, Germany
| | - Paul M Kaplick
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich 80804, Germany
| | - Matthias Eder
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich 80804, Germany
| | - Simone Röh
- Department of Translational Research in Psychiatry, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich 80804, Germany
| | - Lisa Tietze
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich 80804, Germany
| | - Christian Namendorf
- Clinical Laboratory, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich 80804, Germany
| | - Janine Arloth
- Department of Translational Research in Psychiatry, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich 80804, Germany
| | - Peter Weber
- Department of Translational Research in Psychiatry, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich 80804, Germany
| | - Monika Rex-Haffner
- Department of Translational Research in Psychiatry, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich 80804, Germany
| | - Shay Geula
- Department of Molecular Genetics, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 76100, Israel
| | - Mira Jakovcevski
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich 80804, Germany; Department of Translational Research in Psychiatry, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich 80804, Germany
| | - Jacob H Hanna
- Department of Molecular Genetics, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 76100, Israel
| | - Dena Leshkowitz
- Bioinformatics Unit, Department of Life Sciences Core Facilities, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 76100, Israel
| | - Manfred Uhr
- Clinical Laboratory, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich 80804, Germany
| | - Carsten T Wotjak
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich 80804, Germany
| | - Mathias V Schmidt
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich 80804, Germany
| | - Jan M Deussing
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich 80804, Germany
| | - Elisabeth B Binder
- Department of Translational Research in Psychiatry, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich 80804, Germany; Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Alon Chen
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich 80804, Germany; Department of Neurobiology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 76100, Israel.
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10
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Schroeder M, Jakovcevski M, Polacheck T, Drori Y, Ben-Dor S, Röh S, Chen A. Sex dependent impact of gestational stress on predisposition to eating disorders and metabolic disease. Mol Metab 2018; 17:1-16. [PMID: 30174229 PMCID: PMC6197785 DOI: 10.1016/j.molmet.2018.08.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2018] [Revised: 08/08/2018] [Accepted: 08/14/2018] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Vulnerability to eating disorders (EDs) is broadly assumed to be associated with early life stress. However, a careful examination of the literature shows that susceptibility to EDs may depend on the type, severity and timing of the stressor and the sex of the individual. We aimed at exploring the link between chronic prenatal stress and predisposition to EDs and metabolic disease. METHODS We used a chronic variable stress protocol during gestation to explore the metabolic response of male and female offspring to food restriction (FR), activity-based anorexia (ABA), binge eating (BE) and exposure to high fat (HF) diet. RESULTS Contrary to controls, prenatally stressed (PNS) female offspring showed resistance to ABA and BE and displayed a lower metabolic rate leading to hyperadiposity and obesity on HF diet. Male PNS offspring showed healthy responses to FR and ABA, increased propensity to binge and improved coping with HF compared to controls. We found that long-lasting abnormal responses to metabolic challenge are linked to fetal programming and adult hypothalamic dysregulation in PNS females, resulting from sexually dimorphic adaptations in placental methylation and gene expression. CONCLUSIONS Our results show that maternal stress may have variable and even opposing effects on ED risk, depending on the ED and the sex of the offspring.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mariana Schroeder
- Department of Neurobiology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, 76100, Israel; Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, 80804, Germany.
| | - Mira Jakovcevski
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, 80804, Germany
| | - Tamar Polacheck
- Department of Neurobiology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, 76100, Israel
| | - Yonat Drori
- Department of Neurobiology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, 76100, Israel
| | - Shifra Ben-Dor
- Bioinformatics and Biological Computing Unit, Biological Services, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, 76100, Israel
| | - Simone Röh
- Department of Translational Research in Psychiatry, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, 80804, Germany
| | - Alon Chen
- Department of Neurobiology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, 76100, Israel; Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, 80804, Germany.
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11
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Athanasoulia-Kaspar AP, Auer MK, Stalla GK, Jakovcevski M. Shorter telomeres associated with high doses of glucocorticoids: the link to increased mortality? Endocr Connect 2018; 7:/journals/ec/aop/ec-18-0362.xml. [PMID: 30352410 PMCID: PMC6215799 DOI: 10.1530/ec-18-0362] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2018] [Accepted: 08/30/2018] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Patients with non-functioning pituitary adenomas exhibit high morbidity and mortality rates. Growth hormone deficiency and high doses of glucocorticoid substitution therapy have been identified as corresponding risk factors. Interestingly, high levels of endogenous cortisol in, e.g., patients with post-traumatic stress disorder or patients with Cushing's disease have been linked to shorter telomere length. Telomeres are noncoding DNA regions located at the end of chromosomes consisting of repetitive DNA sequences which shorten with ageing and hereby determine cell survival. Therefore, telomere length can serve as a predictor for the onset of disease and mortality in some endocrine disorders (e.g., Cushing's disease). DESIGN/METHODS We examine telomere length from blood in patients (n = 115) with non-functioning pituitary adenomas (NFPA) in a cross-sectional case control (n = 106, age-, gender- matched) study using qPCR. Linear regression models were used to identify independent predictors of telomere length. RESULTS We show that patients with NFPA exhibited shorter telomeres than controls. No significant association of indices of growth hormone deficiency (IGF-1-level-SDS, years of unsubstituted growth hormone deficiency etc.) with telomere length was detected. Interestingly, linear regression analysis showed that hydrocortisone replacement dosage in patients with adrenal insufficiency (n = 52) was a significant predictor for shorter telomere length (β = 0.377; p = 0.018) independent of potential confounders. Median split analysis revealed that higher hydrocortisone intake (> 20 mg) was associated with significantly shorter telomeres. CONCLUSION These observations strengthen the importance of adjusted glucocorticoid treatment in NFPA patients with respect to morbidity and mortality rates.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Matthias K Auer
- Clinical NeuroendocrinologyMax Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
- Medizinische Klinik und Poliklinik IVKlinikum der Universität München, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Munich, Germany
| | - Günter K Stalla
- Clinical NeuroendocrinologyMax Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
| | - Mira Jakovcevski
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and NeurogeneticsMax Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
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12
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Dedic N, Kühne C, Jakovcevski M, Hartmann J, Genewsky AJ, Gomes KS, Anderzhanova E, Pöhlmann ML, Chang S, Kolarz A, Vogl AM, Dine J, Metzger MW, Schmid B, Almada RC, Ressler KJ, Wotjak CT, Grinevich V, Chen A, Schmidt MV, Wurst W, Refojo D, Deussing JM. Chronic CRH depletion from GABAergic, long-range projection neurons in the extended amygdala reduces dopamine release and increases anxiety. Nat Neurosci 2018; 21:803-807. [PMID: 29786085 DOI: 10.1038/s41593-018-0151-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 75] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/10/2017] [Accepted: 04/10/2018] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
The interplay between corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) and the dopaminergic system has predominantly been studied in addiction and reward, while CRH-dopamine interactions in anxiety are scarcely understood. We describe a new population of CRH-expressing, GABAergic, long-range-projecting neurons in the extended amygdala that innervate the ventral tegmental area and alter anxiety following chronic CRH depletion. These neurons are part of a distinct CRH circuit that acts anxiolytically by positively modulating dopamine release.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nina Dedic
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
| | - Claudia Kühne
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
| | - Mira Jakovcevski
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
| | - Jakob Hartmann
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany.,Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School and McLean Hospital, Belmont, MA, USA
| | - Andreas J Genewsky
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
| | - Karina S Gomes
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany.,Laboratory of Neuropsychopharmacology, Paulista State University, Araraquara, Brazil
| | - Elmira Anderzhanova
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
| | - Max L Pöhlmann
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
| | - Simon Chang
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
| | - Adam Kolarz
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
| | - Annette M Vogl
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
| | - Julien Dine
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
| | - Michael W Metzger
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
| | - Bianca Schmid
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
| | - Rafael C Almada
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
| | - Kerry J Ressler
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School and McLean Hospital, Belmont, MA, USA
| | - Carsten T Wotjak
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
| | - Valery Grinevich
- Schaller Research Group on Neuropeptides, German Cancer Research Center, Central Institute of Mental Health, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Alon Chen
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
| | - Mathias V Schmidt
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
| | - Wolfgang Wurst
- Institute of Developmental Genetics, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Munich, Germany.,Technische Universität München, Chair of Developmental Genetics, Munich, Germany.,German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), Site Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Damian Refojo
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany.,Instituto de Investigacion en Biomedicina de Buenos Aires (IBioBA)-CONICET-Partner Institute of the Max Planck Society, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Jan M Deussing
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany.
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13
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Roeh S, Weber P, Rex-Haffner M, Deussing JM, Binder EB, Jakovcevski M. Sequencing on the SOLiD 5500xl System - in-depth characterization of the GC bias. Nucleus 2017; 8:370-380. [PMID: 28448740 DOI: 10.1080/19491034.2017.1320461] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Different types of sequencing biases have been described and subsequently improved for a variety of sequencing systems, mostly focusing on the widely used Illumina systems. Similar studies are missing for the SOLiD 5500xl system, a sequencer which produced many data sets available to researchers today. Describing and understanding the bias is important to accurately interpret and integrate these published data in various ongoing research projects. We report a particularly strong GC bias for this sequencing system when analyzing a defined gDNA mix of 5 microbes with a wide range of different GC contents (20-72%) when comparing to the expected distribution and Illumina MiSeq data from the same DNA pool. Since we observed this bias already under PCR-free conditions, changing the PCR conditions during library preparation - a common strategy to handle bias in the Illumina system - was not relevant. Source of the bias appeared to be an uneven heat distribution during the SOLiD emulsion PCR (ePCR) - for enrichment of libraries prior loading - since ePCR in either small pouches or in 96-well plates improved the GC bias. Sequencing of chromatin immunoprecipitated DNA (ChIP-seq) is a common approach in epigenetics. ChIP-seq of the mixed source histone mark H3K9ac (acetyl Histone H3 lysine 9), typically found on promoter regions and on gene bodies, including CpG islands, performed on a SOLiD 5500xl machine, resulted in major loss of reads at GC rich loci (GC content ≥ 62%), not explained by low sequencing depth. This was improved with adaptations of the ePCR.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simone Roeh
- a Department of Translational Research in Psychiatry , Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry , Munich , Germany
| | - Peter Weber
- a Department of Translational Research in Psychiatry , Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry , Munich , Germany
| | - Monika Rex-Haffner
- a Department of Translational Research in Psychiatry , Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry , Munich , Germany
| | - Jan M Deussing
- b Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics , Munich , Germany
| | - Elisabeth B Binder
- a Department of Translational Research in Psychiatry , Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry , Munich , Germany.,c Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences , Emory University School of Medicine , Atlanta , GA , USA
| | - Mira Jakovcevski
- a Department of Translational Research in Psychiatry , Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry , Munich , Germany.,b Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics , Munich , Germany
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14
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Schroeder M, Jakovcevski M, Polacheck T, Lebow M, Drori Y, Engel M, Ben-Dor S, Chen A. A Methyl-Balanced Diet Prevents CRF-Induced Prenatal Stress-Triggered Predisposition to Binge Eating-like Phenotype. Cell Metab 2017; 25:1269-1281.e6. [PMID: 28576418 DOI: 10.1016/j.cmet.2017.05.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/26/2016] [Revised: 01/30/2017] [Accepted: 05/08/2017] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Binge eating (BE) is a common aberrant form of eating behavior, characterized by overconsumption of food in a brief period of time. Recurrent episodes of BE constitute the BE disorder, which mostly affects females and is associated with early-life adversities. Here, we show that corticotropin releasing factor (CRF)-induced prenatal stress (PNS) in late gestation predisposes female offspring to BE-like behavior that coincides with hypomethylation of hypothalamic miR-1a and downstream dysregulation of the melanocortin system through Pax7/Pax3. Moreover, exposing the offspring to a methyl-balanced diet during adolescence prevents the dysregulation and predisposition from being triggered. We demonstrate that gestational programming, per se, will not lead to BE-like behavior, but pre-existing alterations due to prenatal programming are revealed only when challenged during adolescence. We provide experimental evidence for long-term epigenetic abnormalities stemming from PNS in predisposing female offspring to BE disorder as well as a potential non-invasive prevention strategy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mariana Schroeder
- Department of Neurobiology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 76100, Israel; Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max-Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich 80804, Germany
| | - Mira Jakovcevski
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max-Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich 80804, Germany
| | - Tamar Polacheck
- Department of Neurobiology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 76100, Israel; Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max-Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich 80804, Germany
| | - Maya Lebow
- Department of Neurobiology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 76100, Israel; Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max-Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich 80804, Germany
| | - Yonat Drori
- Department of Neurobiology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 76100, Israel; Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max-Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich 80804, Germany
| | - Mareen Engel
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max-Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich 80804, Germany
| | - Shifra Ben-Dor
- Bioinformatics and Biological Computing Unit, Biological Services, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 76100, Israel
| | - Alon Chen
- Department of Neurobiology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 76100, Israel; Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max-Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich 80804, Germany.
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15
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Abstract
Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a multifactorial disease, weakly linked to multiple genetic risk factors. In contrast to that, environmental factors and "gene × environment" interaction between specific risk genes and environmental factors, such as severe or early stress exposure, have been strongly linked to MDD vulnerability. Stressors can act on the interface between an organism and the environment, the epigenome. The molecular foundation for the impact of stressors on the risk to develop MDD is based on the hormonal stress response itself: the glucocorticoid receptor (GR, encoded by NR3C1). NR3C1 can directly interact with the epigenome in the cell nucleus. Besides DNA methylation, histone modifications have been reported to be crucial targets for the interaction with the stress response system. Here, we review critical findings on the impact of the most relevant histone modifications, i.e. histone acetylation and methylation, in the context of MDD and related animal models. We discuss new treatment options which have been based on these findings, including histone deacetylase inhibitors (HDACis) and drugs targeting specific histone marks, closely linked to psychiatric disease. In this context we talk about contemporary and future approaches required to fully understand (1) the epigenetics of stress-related disease and (2) the mode of action of potential MDD drugs targeting histone modifications. This includes harnessing the unprecedented potentials of genome-wide analysis of the epigenome and transcriptome, in a cell type-specific manner, and the use of epigenome editing technologies to clearly link epigenetic marks on specific genomic loci to functional relevance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jan M Deussing
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Kraepelinstr. 2, 80804, Munich, Bavaria, Germany
| | - Mira Jakovcevski
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Kraepelinstr. 2, 80804, Munich, Bavaria, Germany.
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16
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Shen EY, Jiang Y, Javidfar B, Kassim B, Loh YHE, Ma Q, Mitchell AC, Pothula V, Stewart AF, Ernst P, Yao WD, Martin G, Shen L, Jakovcevski M, Akbarian S. Neuronal Deletion of Kmt2a/Mll1 Histone Methyltransferase in Ventral Striatum is Associated with Defective Spike-Timing-Dependent Striatal Synaptic Plasticity, Altered Response to Dopaminergic Drugs, and Increased Anxiety. Neuropsychopharmacology 2016; 41:3103-3113. [PMID: 27485686 PMCID: PMC5101561 DOI: 10.1038/npp.2016.144] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/06/2016] [Revised: 07/25/2016] [Accepted: 07/27/2016] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
Lysine (K) methyltransferase 2a (Kmt2a) and other regulators of H3 lysine 4 methylation, a histone modification enriched at promoters and enhancers, are widely expressed throughout the brain, but molecular and cellular phenotypes in subcortical areas remain poorly explored. We report that Kmt2a conditional deletion in postnatal forebrain is associated with excessive nocturnal activity and with absent or blunted responses to stimulant and dopaminergic agonist drugs, in conjunction with near-complete loss of spike-timing-dependent long-term potentiation in medium spiny neurons (MSNs). Selective ablation of Kmt2a, but not the ortholog Kmt2b, in adult ventral striatum/nucleus accumbens neurons markedly increased anxiety scores in multiple behavioral paradigms. Striatal transcriptome sequencing in adult mutants identified 262 Kmt2a-sensitive genes, mostly downregulated in Kmt2a-deficient mice. Transcriptional repression includes the 5-Htr2a serotonin receptor, strongly associated with anxiety- and depression-related disorders in human and animal models. Consistent with the role of Kmt2a in promoting gene expression, the transcriptional regulators Bahcc1, Isl1, and Sp9 were downregulated and affected by H3K4 promoter hypomethylation. Therefore, Kmt2a regulates synaptic plasticity in striatal neurons and provides an epigenetic drug target for anxiety and dopamine-mediated behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Yan Jiang
- Department of Psychiatry, New York, NY, USA
| | | | | | - Yong-Hwee E Loh
- Department of Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Hess Center for Science and Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Qi Ma
- Brudnick Neuropsychiatric Research Institute, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA, USA
| | | | | | | | - Patricia Ernst
- University of Colorado School of Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Aurora, CO, USA
| | - Wei-Dong Yao
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, USA
| | - Gilles Martin
- Brudnick Neuropsychiatric Research Institute, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA, USA
| | - Li Shen
- Department of Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Hess Center for Science and Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Mira Jakovcevski
- Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany,Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Kraepelinstrasse 2, 80804 Munich, Germany, Tel: +49 89 30622 643, E-mail:
| | - Schahram Akbarian
- Department of Psychiatry, New York, NY, USA,Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Hess Center for Science and Medicine, Floor 9 Room 105, 1470 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10029, USA, Tel: +1 212 824 8984, E-mail:
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17
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Peter CJ, Fischer LK, Kundakovic M, Garg P, Jakovcevski M, Dincer A, Amaral AC, Ginns EI, Galdzicka M, Bryce CP, Ratner C, Waber DP, Mokler D, Medford G, Champagne FA, Rosene DL, McGaughy JA, Sharp AJ, Galler JR, Akbarian S. DNA Methylation Signatures of Early Childhood Malnutrition Associated With Impairments in Attention and Cognition. Biol Psychiatry 2016; 80:765-774. [PMID: 27184921 PMCID: PMC5036982 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2016.03.2100] [Citation(s) in RCA: 89] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/19/2015] [Revised: 03/10/2016] [Accepted: 03/12/2016] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Early childhood malnutrition affects 113 million children worldwide, impacting health and increasing vulnerability for cognitive and behavioral disorders later in life. Molecular signatures after childhood malnutrition, including the potential for intergenerational transmission, remain unexplored. METHODS We surveyed blood DNA methylomes (~483,000 individual CpG sites) in 168 subjects across two generations, including 50 generation 1 individuals hospitalized during the first year of life for moderate to severe protein-energy malnutrition, then followed up to 48 years in the Barbados Nutrition Study. Attention deficits and cognitive performance were evaluated with the Connors Adult Attention Rating Scale and Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence. Expression of nutrition-sensitive genes was explored by quantitative reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction in rat prefrontal cortex. RESULTS We identified 134 nutrition-sensitive, differentially methylated genomic regions, with most (87%) specific for generation 1. Multiple neuropsychiatric risk genes, including COMT, IFNG, MIR200B, SYNGAP1, and VIPR2 showed associations of specific methyl-CpGs with attention and IQ. IFNG expression was decreased in prefrontal cortex of rats showing attention deficits after developmental malnutrition. CONCLUSIONS Early childhood malnutrition entails long-lasting epigenetic signatures associated with liability for attention and cognition, and limited potential for intergenerational transmission.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cyril J. Peter
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029
| | - Laura K. Fischer
- The Chester M. Pierce, MD Division of Global Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Charlestown MA 02129
| | - Marija Kundakovic
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029
| | - Paras Garg
- Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029
| | - Mira Jakovcevski
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029,Max-Planck Institute for Psychiatry, D-Munich 80804
| | - Aslihan Dincer
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029,Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029
| | - Ana C. Amaral
- Department of Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA 02129
| | - Edward I Ginns
- Departments of Psychiatry, Neurology, and Clinical Pathology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Shrewsbury, MA 01545
| | - Marzena Galdzicka
- Department of Pathology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Shrewsbury, MA 01545
| | | | - Chana Ratner
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029
| | - Deborah P Waber
- Boston Children’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115
| | - David Mokler
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, College of Osteopathic Medicine, University of New England, Biddeford, ME
| | | | | | - Douglas L. Rosene
- Department of Anatomy & Neurobiology, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston MA 02118
| | - Jill A. McGaughy
- Department of Psychology, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH 03077
| | - Andrew J. Sharp
- Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029
| | - Janina R. Galler
- The Chester M. Pierce, MD Division of Global Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Charlestown MA 02129
| | - Schahram Akbarian
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York.
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18
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Jakovcevski M, Akbarian S, Di Benedetto B. Pharmacological modulation of astrocytes and the role of cell type-specific histone modifications for the treatment of mood disorders. Curr Opin Pharmacol 2015; 26:61-6. [PMID: 26515273 DOI: 10.1016/j.coph.2015.10.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/15/2015] [Revised: 10/01/2015] [Accepted: 10/02/2015] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
Astrocytes orchestrate arrangement and functions of neuronal circuits and of the blood-brain barrier. Dysfunctional astrocytes characterize mood disorders, here showcased by deregulation of the astrocyte end-feet protein Aquaporin-4 around blood vessels and, hypothetically, of the astrocyte-specific phagocytic protein MEGF10 to shape synapses. Development of mood disorders is often a result of 'gene × environment' interactions, regulated among others by histone modifications and related modulator enzymes, which rapidly promote adaptive responses. Thus, they represent ideal targets of drugs aimed at inducing stable effects with quick onsets. One of the prevalent features of histone modifications and their modulators is their cell-type specificity. Investigating cell type-specific epigenetic modulations upon drug administration might therefore help to implement therapeutic treatments.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Schahram Akbarian
- Department of Psychiatry and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Barbara Di Benedetto
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Clinic of Regensburg, Regensbrug, Germany.
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19
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Auer MK, Sack M, Lenz JN, Jakovcevski M, Biedermann SV, Falfán-Melgoza C, Deussing J, Steinle J, Bielohuby M, Bidlingmaier M, Pfister F, Stalla GK, Ende G, Weber-Fahr W, Fuss J, Gass P. Effects of a high-caloric diet and physical exercise on brain metabolite levels: a combined proton MRS and histologic study. J Cereb Blood Flow Metab 2015; 35:554-64. [PMID: 25564238 PMCID: PMC4420876 DOI: 10.1038/jcbfm.2014.231] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2014] [Revised: 11/17/2014] [Accepted: 11/25/2014] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Excessive intake of high-caloric diets as well as subsequent development of obesity and diabetes mellitus may exert a wide range of unfavorable effects on the central nervous system (CNS). It has been suggested that one mechanism in this context is the promotion of neuroinflammation. The potentially harmful effects of such diets were suggested to be mitigated by physical exercise. Here, we conducted a study investigating the effects of physical exercise in a cafeteria-diet mouse model on CNS metabolites by means of in vivo proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy ((1)HMRS). In addition postmortem histologic and real-time (RT)-PCR analyses for inflammatory markers were performed. Cafeteria diet induced obesity and hyperglycemia, which was only partially moderated by exercise. It also induced several changes in CNS metabolites such as reduced hippocampal glutamate (Glu), choline-containing compounds (tCho) and N-acetylaspartate (NAA)+N-acetyl-aspartyl-glutamic acid (NAAG) (tNAA) levels, whereas opposite effects were seen for running. No association of these effects with markers of central inflammation could be observed. These findings suggest that while voluntary wheel running alone is insufficient to prevent the unfavorable peripheral sequelae of the diet, it counteracted many changes in brain metabolites. The observed effects seem to be independent of neuroinflammation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthias K Auer
- 1] RG Neuroendocrinology, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany [2] RG Animal Models in Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Markus Sack
- 1] RG Translational Imaging, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, University of Heidelberg, Mannheim, Germany [2] Department of Neuroimaging, Central Institute of Mental Health Mannheim, Medical Faculty Mannheim, University of Heidelberg, Mannheim, Germany
| | - Jenny N Lenz
- 1] RG Neuroendocrinology, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany [2] RG Animal Models in Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Mira Jakovcevski
- RG Molecular Neurogenetics, Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
| | - Sarah V Biedermann
- Department of Neuroimaging, Central Institute of Mental Health Mannheim, Medical Faculty Mannheim, University of Heidelberg, Mannheim, Germany
| | - Claudia Falfán-Melgoza
- 1] RG Translational Imaging, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, University of Heidelberg, Mannheim, Germany [2] Department of Neuroimaging, Central Institute of Mental Health Mannheim, Medical Faculty Mannheim, University of Heidelberg, Mannheim, Germany
| | - Jan Deussing
- RG Molecular Neurogenetics, Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
| | - Jörg Steinle
- RG Animal Models in Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Maximilian Bielohuby
- Endocrine Research Unit, Medizinische Klinik und Poliklinik IV, Klinikum der Universität, Ludwig-Maximilians University, Munich, Germany
| | - Martin Bidlingmaier
- Endocrine Research Unit, Medizinische Klinik und Poliklinik IV, Klinikum der Universität, Ludwig-Maximilians University, Munich, Germany
| | - Frederik Pfister
- Department of Nephropathology, Institute of Pathology, Universitätsklinikum Erlangen, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Erlangen, Germany
| | - Günter K Stalla
- RG Neuroendocrinology, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
| | - Gabriele Ende
- Department of Neuroimaging, Central Institute of Mental Health Mannheim, Medical Faculty Mannheim, University of Heidelberg, Mannheim, Germany
| | - Wolfgang Weber-Fahr
- 1] RG Translational Imaging, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, University of Heidelberg, Mannheim, Germany [2] Department of Neuroimaging, Central Institute of Mental Health Mannheim, Medical Faculty Mannheim, University of Heidelberg, Mannheim, Germany
| | - Johannes Fuss
- RG Animal Models in Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Peter Gass
- RG Animal Models in Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
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20
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Bai G, Cheung I, Shulha HP, Coelho JE, Li P, Dong X, Jakovcevski M, Wang Y, Grigorenko A, Jiang Y, Hoss A, Patel K, Zheng M, Rogaev E, Myers RH, Weng Z, Akbarian S, Chen JF. Epigenetic dysregulation of hairy and enhancer of split 4 (HES4) is associated with striatal degeneration in postmortem Huntington brains. Hum Mol Genet 2014; 24:1441-56. [PMID: 25480889 DOI: 10.1093/hmg/ddu561] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
To investigate epigenetic contributions to Huntington's disease (HD) pathogenesis, we carried out genome-wide mapping of the transcriptional mark, trimethyl-histone H3-lysine 4 (H3K4me3) in neuronal nuclei extracted from prefrontal cortex of HD cases and controls using chromatin immunoprecipitation followed by deep-sequencing. Neuron-specific mapping of the genome-wide distribution of H3K4me3 revealed 136 differentially enriched loci associated with genes implicated in neuronal development and neurodegeneration, including GPR3, TMEM106B, PDIA6 and the Notch signaling genes hairy and enhancer of split 4 (HES4) and JAGGED2, supporting the view that the neuronal epigenome is affected in HD. Importantly, loss of H3K4me3 at CpG-rich sequences on the HES4 promoter was associated with excessive DNA methylation, reduced binding of nuclear proteins to the methylated region and altered expression of HES4 and HES4 targeted genes MASH1 and P21 involved in striatal development. Moreover, hypermethylation of HES4 promoter sequences was strikingly correlated with measures of striatal degeneration and age-of-onset in a cohort of 25 HD brains (r = 0.56, P = 0.006). Lastly, shRNA knockdown of HES4 in human neuroblastoma cells altered MASH1 and P21 mRNA expression and markedly increased mutated HTT-induced aggregates and cell death. These findings, taken together, suggest that epigenetic dysregulation of HES4 could play a critical role in modifying HD disease pathogenesis and severity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guang Bai
- Department of Neural and Pain Sciences, University of Maryland Dental School, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA
| | - Iris Cheung
- Brudnick Neuropsychiatric Research Institute
| | - Hennady P Shulha
- Program in Bioinformatics and Integrative Biology, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA 01604, USA
| | - Joana E Coelho
- Department of Neurology, Boston University School of Medicine, 715 Albany Street, Boston, MA 02118, USA
| | - Ping Li
- Department of Neurology, Boston University School of Medicine, 715 Albany Street, Boston, MA 02118, USA
| | - Xianjun Dong
- Program in Bioinformatics and Integrative Biology, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA 01604, USA
| | | | - Yumei Wang
- Department of Neurology, Boston University School of Medicine, 715 Albany Street, Boston, MA 02118, USA
| | | | - Yan Jiang
- Friedman Brain Institute, Department of Psychiatry, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Andrew Hoss
- Department of Neurology, Boston University School of Medicine, 715 Albany Street, Boston, MA 02118, USA
| | - Krupal Patel
- Department of Neural and Pain Sciences, University of Maryland Dental School, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA
| | - Ming Zheng
- Department of Neural and Pain Sciences, University of Maryland Dental School, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA
| | | | - Richard H Myers
- Department of Neurology, Boston University School of Medicine, 715 Albany Street, Boston, MA 02118, USA, Genome Science Institute, Boston University School of Medicine, 72 East Concord Street, Boston, MA 02118, USA
| | - Zhiping Weng
- Program in Bioinformatics and Integrative Biology, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA 01604, USA
| | - Schahram Akbarian
- Brudnick Neuropsychiatric Research Institute, Friedman Brain Institute, Department of Psychiatry, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Jiang-Fan Chen
- Department of Neurology, Boston University School of Medicine, 715 Albany Street, Boston, MA 02118, USA,
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21
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Gascon E, Lynch K, Ruan H, Almeida S, Verheyden J, Seeley WW, Dickson DW, Petrucelli L, Sun D, Jiao J, Zhou H, Jakovcevski M, Akbarian S, Yao WD, Gao FB. Alterations in microRNA-124 and AMPA receptors contribute to social behavioral deficits in frontotemporal dementia. Nat Med 2014; 20:1444-51. [PMID: 25401692 PMCID: PMC4257887 DOI: 10.1038/nm.3717] [Citation(s) in RCA: 147] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/22/2014] [Accepted: 09/11/2014] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Neurodegenerative diseases, such as frontotemporal dementia (FTD), are often associated with behavioral deficits, but the underlying anatomical and molecular causes remain poorly understood. Here we show that forebrain-specific expression of FTD-associated mutant CHMP2B in mice causes several age-dependent neurodegenerative phenotypes, including social behavioral impairments. The social deficits were accompanied by a change in AMPA receptor (AMPAR) composition, leading to an imbalance between Ca(2+)-permeable and Ca(2+)-impermeable AMPARs. Expression of most AMPAR subunits was regulated by the brain-enriched microRNA miR-124, whose abundance was markedly decreased in the superficial layers of the cerebral cortex of mice expressing the mutant CHMP2B. We found similar changes in miR-124 and AMPAR levels in the frontal cortex and induced pluripotent stem cell-derived neurons from subjects with behavioral variant FTD. Moreover, ectopic miR-124 expression in the medial prefrontal cortex of mutant mice decreased AMPAR levels and partially rescued behavioral deficits. Knockdown of the AMPAR subunit Gria2 also alleviated social impairments. Our results identify a previously undescribed mechanism involving miR-124 and AMPARs in regulating social behavior in FTD and suggest a potential therapeutic avenue.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eduardo Gascon
- Department of Neurology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA, 01605 USA
| | - Kelleen Lynch
- Department of Neurology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA, 01605 USA
| | - Hongyu Ruan
- Division of Neurosciences, New England Primate Research Center, Harvard Medical School, Southborough, MA, 01772 USA
| | - Sandra Almeida
- Department of Neurology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA, 01605 USA
| | - Jamie Verheyden
- Gladstone Institute of Neurological Disease, San Francisco, CA 94158 USA
| | - William W. Seeley
- Memory and Aging Center, Department of Neurology, University of California, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA
| | - Dennis W. Dickson
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic Florida, Jacksonville, FL 32224, USA
| | - Leonard Petrucelli
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic Florida, Jacksonville, FL 32224, USA
| | - Danqiong Sun
- Gladstone Institute of Neurological Disease, San Francisco, CA 94158 USA
| | - Jian Jiao
- Gladstone Institute of Neurological Disease, San Francisco, CA 94158 USA
| | - Hongru Zhou
- Department of Neurology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA, 01605 USA
| | - Mira Jakovcevski
- Brudnick Neuropsychiatric Research Institute, Department of Psychiatry, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA 01604, USA
| | - Schahram Akbarian
- Brudnick Neuropsychiatric Research Institute, Department of Psychiatry, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA 01604, USA
| | - Wei-Dong Yao
- Division of Neurosciences, New England Primate Research Center, Harvard Medical School, Southborough, MA, 01772 USA
| | - Fen-Biao Gao
- Department of Neurology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA, 01605 USA
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22
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Amaral AC, Jakovcevski M, McGaughy JA, Calderwood SK, Mokler DJ, Rushmore RJ, Galler JR, Akbarian SA, Rosene DL. Prenatal protein malnutrition decreases KCNJ3 and 2DG activity in rat prefrontal cortex. Neuroscience 2014; 286:79-86. [PMID: 25446346 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2014.11.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2014] [Revised: 10/08/2014] [Accepted: 11/04/2014] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
Abstract
Prenatal protein malnutrition (PPM) in rats causes enduring changes in brain and behavior including increased cognitive rigidity and decreased inhibitory control. A preliminary gene microarray screen of PPM rat prefrontal cortex (PFC) identified alterations in KCNJ3 (GIRK1/Kir3.1), a gene important for regulating neuronal excitability. Follow-up with polymerase chain reaction and Western blot showed decreased KCNJ3 expression in the PFC, but not hippocampus or brainstem. To verify localization of the effect to the PFC, baseline regional brain activity was assessed with (14)C-2-deoxyglucose. Results showed decreased activation in the PFC but not hippocampus. Together these findings point to the unique vulnerability of the PFC to the nutritional insult during early brain development, with enduring effects in adulthood on KCNJ3 expression and baseline metabolic activity.
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Affiliation(s)
- A C Amaral
- Department of Anatomy & Neurobiology, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA 02118, United States.
| | | | - J A McGaughy
- Department of Psychology, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH 03824, United States
| | - S K Calderwood
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02215, United States
| | - D J Mokler
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of New England, Biddeford, ME 02120, United States
| | - R J Rushmore
- Department of Anatomy & Neurobiology, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA 02118, United States
| | - J R Galler
- Judge Baker Children's Center and Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02120, United States
| | - S A Akbarian
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, United States; Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, United States
| | - D L Rosene
- Department of Anatomy & Neurobiology, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA 02118, United States
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23
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Bharadwaj R, Peter CJ, Jiang Y, Roussos P, Vogel-Ciernia A, Shen EY, Mitchell AC, Mao W, Whittle C, Dincer A, Jakovcevski M, Pothula V, Rasmussen TP, Giakoumaki SG, Bitsios P, Sherif A, Gardner PD, Ernst P, Ghose S, Sklar P, Haroutunian V, Tamminga C, Myers RH, Futai K, Wood MA, Akbarian S. Conserved higher-order chromatin regulates NMDA receptor gene expression and cognition. Neuron 2014; 84:997-1008. [PMID: 25467983 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2014.10.032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 66] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 10/14/2014] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Three-dimensional chromosomal conformations regulate transcription by moving enhancers and regulatory elements into spatial proximity with target genes. Here we describe activity-regulated long-range loopings bypassing up to 0.5 Mb of linear genome to modulate NMDA glutamate receptor GRIN2B expression in human and mouse prefrontal cortex. Distal intronic and 3' intergenic loop formations competed with repressor elements to access promoter-proximal sequences, and facilitated expression via a "cargo" of AP-1 and NRF-1 transcription factors and TALE-based transcriptional activators. Neuronal deletion or overexpression of Kmt2a/Mll1 H3K4- and Kmt1e/Setdb1 H3K9-methyltransferase was associated with higher-order chromatin changes at distal regulatory Grin2b sequences and impairments in working memory. Genetic polymorphisms and isogenic deletions of loop-bound sequences conferred liability for cognitive performance and decreased GRIN2B expression. Dynamic regulation of chromosomal conformations emerges as a novel layer for transcriptional mechanisms impacting neuronal signaling and cognition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rahul Bharadwaj
- Friedman Brain Institute and Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Cyril J Peter
- Friedman Brain Institute and Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Yan Jiang
- Friedman Brain Institute and Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Panos Roussos
- Friedman Brain Institute and Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Institute for Multiscale Biology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; James J. Peters Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Bronx, New York, NY 10468, USA
| | - Annie Vogel-Ciernia
- Department of Neurobiology and Behavior, University of California at Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697, USA
| | - Erica Y Shen
- Friedman Brain Institute and Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Amanda C Mitchell
- Friedman Brain Institute and Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Wenjie Mao
- Brudnick Neuropsychiatric Research Institute, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA 01604, USA
| | - Catheryne Whittle
- Brudnick Neuropsychiatric Research Institute, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA 01604, USA
| | - Aslihan Dincer
- Friedman Brain Institute and Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | | | - Venu Pothula
- Friedman Brain Institute and Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Theodore P Rasmussen
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences and U.Conn Stem Cell Institute, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269, USA
| | - Stella G Giakoumaki
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Crete, 71003 Iraklion, Greece; Department of Psychology, University of Crete, 71003 Iraklion, Greece
| | - Panos Bitsios
- Computational Medicine Laboratory, Institute of Computer Science, Foundation for Research and Technology Hellas, 71003 Iraklion, Greece; Department of Psychiatry, University of Crete, 71003 Iraklion, Greece
| | - Ajfar Sherif
- Friedman Brain Institute and Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Paul D Gardner
- Brudnick Neuropsychiatric Research Institute, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA 01604, USA
| | - Patricia Ernst
- Department of Genetics and Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Norris Cotton Cancer Center, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, NH 03755, USA
| | - Subroto Ghose
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390, USA
| | - Pamela Sklar
- Friedman Brain Institute and Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Institute for Multiscale Biology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Vahram Haroutunian
- Friedman Brain Institute and Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; James J. Peters Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Bronx, New York, NY 10468, USA
| | - Carol Tamminga
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390, USA
| | - Richard H Myers
- Department of Neurology, Boston University, Boston, MA 02118, USA
| | - Kensuke Futai
- Brudnick Neuropsychiatric Research Institute, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA 01604, USA
| | - Marcelo A Wood
- Department of Neurobiology and Behavior, University of California at Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697, USA
| | - Schahram Akbarian
- Friedman Brain Institute and Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA.
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24
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Abstract
The neural cell adhesion molecule (NCAM) plays a crucial role in stress-related brain function, emotional behavior and memory formation. In this study, we investigated the functions of the glucocorticoid and serotonergic systems in mice constitutively deficient for NCAM (NCAM-/- mice). Our data provide evidence for a hyperfunction of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, with enlarged adrenal glands and increased stress-induced corticosterone release, but reduced hippocampal glucocorticoid receptor expression in NCAM-/- mice when compared to NCAM+/+ mice. We also obtained evidence for a hypofunction of 5-HT1A autoreceptors as indicated by increased 8-0H-DPAT-induced hypothermia. These findings suggest a disturbance of both humoral and neural stress systems in NCAM-/- mice. Accordingly, we not only confirmed previously observed hyperarousal of NCAM-/- mice in various anxiety tests, but also observed an increased response to novelty exposure in these animals. Spatial learning deficits of the NCAM-/- mice in a Morris Water maze persisted, even when mice were pretrained to prevent effects of novelty or stress. We suggest that NCAM-mediated processes are involved in both novelty/stress-related emotional behavior and in cognitive function during spatial learning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joerg Brandewiede
- Zentrum für Molekulare Neurobiologie, Universität Hamburg , Hamburg , Germany
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25
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Udagawa T, Farny NG, Jakovcevski M, Kaphzan H, Alarcon JM, Anilkumar S, Ivshina M, Hurt JA, Nagaoka K, Nalavadi VC, Lorenz LJ, Bassell GJ, Akbarian S, Chattarji S, Klann E, Richter JD. Genetic and acute CPEB1 depletion ameliorate fragile X pathophysiology. Nat Med 2013; 19:1473-7. [PMID: 24141422 PMCID: PMC3823751 DOI: 10.1038/nm.3353] [Citation(s) in RCA: 93] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2013] [Accepted: 08/20/2013] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
Fragile X Syndrome (FXS), the most common cause of inherited mental retardation and autism, is caused by transcriptional silencing of Fmr1, which encodes the translational repressor protein FMRP. FMRP and CPEB, an activator of translation, are present in neuronal dendrites, are predicted to bind many of the same mRNAs, and may mediate a translational homeostasis that, when imbalanced, results in FXS. Consistent with this possibility, Fmr1-/y Cpeb−/− double knockout mice displayed significant amelioration of biochemical, morphological, electrophysiological, and behavioral phenotypes associated with FXS. Acute depletion of CPEB in the hippocampus of Fmr1 -/y mice rescued working memory deficits, demonstrating reversal of this FXS phenotype in adults. Finally, we find that FMRP and CPEB balance translation at the level of polypeptide elongation. Our results suggest that disruption of translational homeostasis is causal for FXS, and that the maintenance of this homeostasis by FMRP and CPEB is necessary for normal neurologic function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tsuyoshi Udagawa
- 1] Program in Molecular Medicine, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA. [2] [3]
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26
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Bharadwaj R, Jiang Y, Mao W, Jakovcevski M, Dincer A, Krueger W, Garbett K, Whittle C, Tushir JS, Liu J, Sequeira A, Vawter MP, Gardner PD, Casaccia P, Rasmussen T, Bunney WE, Mirnics K, Futai K, Akbarian S. Conserved chromosome 2q31 conformations are associated with transcriptional regulation of GAD1 GABA synthesis enzyme and altered in prefrontal cortex of subjects with schizophrenia. J Neurosci 2013; 33:11839-51. [PMID: 23864674 PMCID: PMC3713726 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.1252-13.2013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/20/2013] [Revised: 05/16/2013] [Accepted: 06/12/2013] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Little is known about chromosomal loopings involving proximal promoter and distal enhancer elements regulating GABAergic gene expression, including changes in schizophrenia and other psychiatric conditions linked to altered inhibition. Here, we map in human chromosome 2q31 the 3D configuration of 200 kb of linear sequence encompassing the GAD1 GABA synthesis enzyme gene locus, and we describe a loop formation involving the GAD1 transcription start site and intergenic noncoding DNA elements facilitating reporter gene expression. The GAD1-TSS(-50kbLoop) was enriched with nucleosomes epigenetically decorated with the transcriptional mark, histone H3 trimethylated at lysine 4, and was weak or absent in skin fibroblasts and pluripotent stem cells compared with neuronal cultures differentiated from them. In the prefrontal cortex of subjects with schizophrenia, GAD1-TSS(-50kbLoop) was decreased compared with controls, in conjunction with downregulated GAD1 expression. We generated transgenic mice expressing Gad2 promoter-driven green fluorescent protein-conjugated histone H2B and confirmed that Gad1-TSS(-55kbLoop), the murine homolog to GAD1-TSS(-50kbLoop), is a chromosomal conformation specific for GABAergic neurons. In primary neuronal culture, Gad1-TSS(-55kbLoop) and Gad1 expression became upregulated when neuronal activity was increased. We conclude that 3D genome architectures, including chromosomal loopings for promoter-enhancer interactions involved in the regulation of GABAergic gene expression, are conserved between the rodent and primate brain, and subject to developmental and activity-dependent regulation, and disordered in some cases with schizophrenia. More broadly, the findings presented here draw a connection between noncoding DNA, spatial genome architecture, and neuronal plasticity in development and disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rahul Bharadwaj
- Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences and
- Brudnick Neuropsychiatric Research Institute, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts 01655
| | - Yan Jiang
- Departments of Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York 10029
| | - Wenjie Mao
- Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences and
- Brudnick Neuropsychiatric Research Institute, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts 01655
| | | | - Aslihan Dincer
- Departments of Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York 10029
| | - Winfried Krueger
- Center for Regenerative Biology and Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut 06269
| | - Krassimira Garbett
- Department of Psychiatry, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee 37232, and
| | - Catheryne Whittle
- Brudnick Neuropsychiatric Research Institute, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts 01655
| | - Jogender Singh Tushir
- Brudnick Neuropsychiatric Research Institute, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts 01655
| | - Jia Liu
- Departments of Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York 10029
| | - Adolfo Sequeira
- Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, University of California, Irvine, California 92697
| | - Marquis P. Vawter
- Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, University of California, Irvine, California 92697
| | - Paul D. Gardner
- Brudnick Neuropsychiatric Research Institute, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts 01655
| | - Patrizia Casaccia
- Departments of Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York 10029
| | - Theodore Rasmussen
- Center for Regenerative Biology and Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut 06269
| | - William E. Bunney
- Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, University of California, Irvine, California 92697
| | - Karoly Mirnics
- Department of Psychiatry, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee 37232, and
| | - Kensuke Futai
- Brudnick Neuropsychiatric Research Institute, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts 01655
| | - Schahram Akbarian
- Brudnick Neuropsychiatric Research Institute, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts 01655
- Departments of Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York 10029
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Djogo N, Jakovcevski I, Müller C, Lee HJ, Xu JC, Jakovcevski M, Kügler S, Loers G, Schachner M. Adhesion molecule L1 binds to amyloid beta and reduces Alzheimer's disease pathology in mice. Neurobiol Dis 2013; 56:104-15. [PMID: 23639788 DOI: 10.1016/j.nbd.2013.04.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2012] [Revised: 03/10/2013] [Accepted: 04/09/2013] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a devastating neurodegenerative disorder and the most common cause of elderly dementia. In an effort to contribute to the potential of molecular approaches to reduce degenerative processes we have tested the possibility that the neural adhesion molecule L1 ameliorates some characteristic cellular and molecular parameters associated with the disease in a mouse model of AD. Three-month-old mice overexpressing mutated forms of amyloid precursor protein and presenilin-1 under the control of a neuron-specific promoter received an injection of adeno-associated virus encoding the neuronal isoform of full-length L1 (AAV-L1) or, as negative control, green fluorescent protein (AAV-GFP) into the hippocampus and occipital cortex. Four months after virus injection, the mice were analyzed for histological and biochemical parameters of AD. AAV-L1 injection decreased the Aβ plaque load, levels of Aβ42, Aβ42/40 ratio and astrogliosis compared with AAV-GFP controls. AAV-L1 injected mice also had increased densities of inhibitory synaptic terminals on pyramidal cells in the hippocampus when compared with AAV-GFP controls. Numbers of microglial cells/macrophages were similar in both groups, but numbers of microglial cells/macrophages per plaque were increased in AAV-L1 injected mice. To probe for a molecular mechanism that may underlie these effects, we analyzed whether L1 would directly and specifically interact with Aβ. In a label-free binding assay, concentration dependent binding of the extracellular domain of L1, but not of the close homolog of L1 to Aβ40 and Aβ42 was seen, with the fibronectin type III homologous repeats 1-3 of L1 mediating this effect. Aggregation of Aβ42 in vitro was reduced in the presence of the extracellular domain of L1. The combined observations indicate that L1, when overexpressed in neurons and glia, reduces several histopathological hallmarks of AD in mice, possibly by reduction of Aβ aggregation. L1 thus appears to be a candidate molecule to ameliorate the pathology of AD, when applied in therapeutically viable treatment schemes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nevena Djogo
- Zentrum für Molekulare Neurobiologie, Universitätsklinikum Hamburg-Eppendorf, Martinistrasse 52, D-20246 Hamburg, Germany
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28
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Meier I, Fellini L, Jakovcevski M, Schachner M, Morellini F. Expression of the snoRNA host gene gas5 in the hippocampus is upregulated by age and psychogenic stress and correlates with reduced novelty-induced behavior in C57BL/6 mice. Hippocampus 2011; 20:1027-36. [PMID: 19739230 DOI: 10.1002/hipo.20701] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
The growth arrest specific 5 (gas5) is a noncoding protein gene that hosts small nucleolar RNAs. Based on the observation that gas5 RNA level in the brain is highest in the hippocampus and remarkably enhanced in aged mice, we tested the hypothesis that gas5 is involved in functions controlled by the hippocampus and known to be affected by age, such as spatial learning and novelty-induced behaviors. We show that aged (22-month-old) C57BL/6 male mice have spatial-learning impairments, reduced novelty-induced exploration, and enhanced gas5 RNA levels in the hippocampus compared to young (3-month-old) mice. At both ages, levels of gas5 RNA in the hippocampus negatively correlated with novelty-induced exploration in the open field and elevated-plus maze tests. No correlations were found between gas5 RNA levels in the hippocampus and performance in the water maze test. The expression of gas5 RNA in the rest of the brain did not correlate with any behavioral parameter analyzed. Because variations in novelty-induced behaviors could be caused by stressfull experiences, we analyzed whether gas5 RNA levels in the hippocampus are regulated by acute stressors. We found that gas5 RNA levels in the hippocampus were upregulated by 50% 24 h after a psychogenic stressor (60-min olfactory contact with a rat) but were unchanged after exposure to an unfamiliar environment or after acquisition of new spatial information in a one-trial learning task. The present results suggest that strong psychogenic stressors upregulate gas5 RNA in the hippocampus, which in turn affects novelty-induced responses controlled by this region. We hypothesize that long-life exposure to stressors causes an age-dependent increase in hippocampal gas5 RNA levels, which could be responsible for age-related reduced novelty-induced behaviors, thus suggesting a new mechanism by which ageing and stress affect hippocampal function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ingo Meier
- Universitätsklinikum Hamburg-Eppendorf, Zentrum für Molekulare Neurobiologie Hamburg, Germany
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Jakovcevski M, Guo Y, Su Q, Gao G, Akbarian S. rAAV9--a human-derived adeno-associated virus vector for efficient transgene expression in mouse cingulate cortex. Cold Spring Harb Protoc 2010; 2010:pdb.prot5417. [PMID: 20360371 DOI: 10.1101/pdb.prot5417] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
The rostro-medial cortex of the mouse and rat, considered the functional homolog to the primate prefrontal cortex (PFC), is of growing importance for preclinical models of schizophrenia and other neurodevelopmental diseases for which symptoms typically emerge in adolescence and early adulthood. Therefore, in order to explore molecular mechanisms operating during these critical stages of PFC development, it will be important to develop an efficient gene delivery system for the PFC of juvenile animals. To this end, adeno-associated virus (AAV)-based systems are increasingly used in mice for targeted gene delivery in specific brain regions such as the hippocampus. Strikingly, there is very little literature on vector-mediated gene expression in the rostro-medial cortex. In addition, multiple AAV serotypes exist based on differences in their envelope capsid proteins. However, to date, the large majority of studies in the central nervous system (CNS) have utilized the AAV2 serotype. This is typically limited to a very focal transduction pattern and therefore is not ideal for the murine PFC, which occupies several square millimeters in the rostral hemisphere. Here, we introduce a protocol for efficient, AAV9-serotype-mediated gene delivery in juvenile (postnatal day 21) and young adult PFC, resulting in long-lasting transgene expression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mira Jakovcevski
- Department of Psychiatry, Brudnick Neuropsychiatric Research Institute, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA 01604, USA.
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Connor C, Cheung I, Simon A, Jakovcevski M, Weng Z, Akbarian S. A simple method for improving the specificity of anti-methyl histone antibodies. Epigenetics 2010; 5:392-5. [PMID: 20458167 DOI: 10.4161/epi.5.5.11874] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Antibodies differentiating between the mono-, di- and trimethylated forms of specific histone lysine residues are a critical tool in epigenome research, but show variable specificity, potentially limiting comparisons across studies and between samples. Using trimethyl histone H3 lysine 4 (H3K4me3)-a mark enriched at transcription start sites (TSS) of active genes-as an example, we describe how simple co-incubation with synthetic peptide of the K4me2 modification leads to increased specificity for K4me3 and a much sharper peak distribution proximal to TSS following chromatin immunoprecipitation and massively parallel sequencing (ChIP-Seq).
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Affiliation(s)
- Caroline Connor
- Brudnick Neuropsychiatric Research Institute, Department of Psychiatry, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA, USA
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31
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Jakovcevski M, Schachner M, Morellini F. Individual variability in the stress response of C57BL/6J male mice correlates with trait anxiety. Genes Brain Behav 2008; 7:235-43. [PMID: 17680803 DOI: 10.1111/j.1601-183x.2007.00345.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Stress strongly alters the physiology and behavior of some individuals, while others are little or not affected. The causes of this individual variability have remained unknown. Here, we hypothesize that epigenetically induced levels of trait anxiety predict the stress response of individual mice in a genetically homogeneous population. Inbred C57BL/6 male mice were selected for their latency to freely enter from their home cage into an unfamiliar arena and classified as having high or low levels of trait anxiety. Mice were then exposed to acute stress (1-h olfactory contact with a rat) or control conditions. After 24 h, acute stress enhanced state anxiety measured in the elevated-plus maze test only in mice previously classified as having high levels of trait anxiety. This anxiogenic effect of acute stress was paralleled by enhanced novelty-induced plasma corticosterone secretion and increased messenger RNA (mRNA) expression for glucocorticoid and mineralocorticoid receptors in the hippocampus. No effects of acute stress were observed in mice classified as having low levels of trait anxiety. Under unstressed control conditions, mice only differed in basal levels of hippocampal mRNA for the glucocorticoid receptor, which were higher in mice with high trait anxiety than in mice with low trait anxiety. In summary, inbred C57BL/6 mice display a remarkably high interindividual variability in their trait anxiety that predicts the behavioral and neuroendocrine response to an acute stressor, indicating that expression of extremely different coping strategies can develop also between genetically identical individuals.
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Affiliation(s)
- M Jakovcevski
- Zentrum für Molekulare Neurobiologie, Universität Hamburg, Falkenried, Hamburg, Germany
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32
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Desarnaud F, Jakovcevski M, Morellini F, Schachner M. Stress downregulates hippocampal expression of the adhesion molecules NCAM and CHL1 in mice by mechanisms independent of DNA methylation of their promoters. Cell Adh Migr 2008; 2:38-44. [PMID: 19262122 DOI: 10.4161/cam.2.1.6013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Stress is an important physiological regulator of brain function in young and adult mammals. The mechanisms underlying regulation of the consequences of stress, and in particular severe chronic stress, are thus important to investigate. These consequences most likely involve changes in synaptic function of brain areas being part of neural networks that regulate responses to stress. Cell adhesion molecules have been shown to regulate synaptic function in the adult and we were thus interested to investigate a regulatory mechanism that could influence expression of three adhesion molecules of the immunoglobulin superfamily (NCAM, L1 and CHL1) after exposure of early postnatal and adult mice to repeated stress. We hypothesized that reduction of adhesion molecule expression after chronic stress, as observed previously in vivo, could be due to gene silencing of the three molecules by DNA methylation. Although adhesion molecule expression was reduced after exposure of C57BL/6 mice to stress, thus validating our stress paradigm as imposing changes in adhesion molecule expression, we did not observe differences in methylation of CpG islands in the promoter regions of NCAM, L1 and CHL1, nor in the promoter region of the glucocorticoid receptor in the hippocampus, the expression of which at the protein level was also reduced after stress. We must therefore infer that severe stress in mice of the C57BL/6 strain downregulates adhesion molecule levels by mechanisms that do not relate to DNA methylation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Frank Desarnaud
- Department of Cell Biology and Neuroscience, WM Keck Center for Collaborative Neuroscience, Rutgers University, Piscataway, New Jersey, USA
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