51
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Addis L, Sproviero W, Thomas SV, Caraballo RH, Newhouse SJ, Gomez K, Hughes E, Kinali M, McCormick D, Hannan S, Cossu S, Taylor J, Akman CI, Wolf SM, Mandelbaum DE, Gupta R, van der Spek RA, Pruna D, Pal DK. Identification of new risk factors for rolandic epilepsy: CNV at Xp22.31 and alterations at cholinergic synapses. J Med Genet 2018; 55:607-616. [PMID: 29789371 PMCID: PMC6119347 DOI: 10.1136/jmedgenet-2018-105319] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/08/2018] [Revised: 04/18/2018] [Accepted: 04/28/2018] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
Background Rolandic epilepsy (RE) is the most common genetic childhood epilepsy, consisting of focal, nocturnal seizures and frequent neurodevelopmental impairments in speech, language, literacy and attention. A complex genetic aetiology is presumed in most, with monogenic mutations in GRIN2A accounting for >5% of cases. Objective To identify rare, causal CNV in patients with RE. Methods We used high-density SNP arrays to analyse the presence of rare CNVs in 186 patients with RE from the UK, the USA, Sardinia, Argentina and Kerala, India. Results We identified 84 patients with one or more rare CNVs, and, within this group, 14 (7.5%) with recurrent risk factor CNVs and 15 (8.0%) with likely pathogenic CNVs. Nine patients carried recurrent hotspot CNVs including at 16p13.11 and 1p36, with the most striking finding that four individuals (three from Sardinia) carried a duplication, and one a deletion, at Xp22.31. Five patients with RE carried a rare CNV that disrupted genes associated with other epilepsies (KCTD7, ARHGEF15, CACNA2D1, GRIN2A and ARHGEF4), and 17 cases carried CNVs that disrupted genes associated with other neurological conditions or that are involved in neuronal signalling/development. Network analysis of disrupted genes with high brain expression identified significant enrichment in pathways of the cholinergic synapse, guanine-exchange factor activation and the mammalian target of rapamycin. Conclusion Our results provide a CNV profile of an ethnically diverse cohort of patients with RE, uncovering new areas of research focus, and emphasise the importance of studying non-western European populations in oligogenic disorders to uncover a full picture of risk variation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Addis
- Department of Basic and Clinical Neuroscience, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, Maurice Wohl Clinical Neuroscience Institute, King's College London, London, UK.,Neuroscience Discovery Research, Eli Lilly and Company, Surrey, UK
| | - William Sproviero
- Department of Basic and Clinical Neuroscience, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, Maurice Wohl Clinical Neuroscience Institute, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Sanjeev V Thomas
- Department of Neurology, Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology, Trivandrum, Kerala, India
| | - Roberto H Caraballo
- Department of Neurology, Hospital de Pediatría Prof. Dr. J.P. Garrahan, Combate de los Pozos 1881, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Stephen J Newhouse
- Department of Biostatistics and Health Informatics, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.,NIHR Biomedical Research Centre at South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, Bethlem Royal Hospital, Beckenham, UK.,Farr Institute of Health Informatics Research, UCL Institute of Health Informatics, University College London, London, UK
| | - Kumudini Gomez
- Department of Paediatrics, University Hospital Lewisham, Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust, London, UK
| | - Elaine Hughes
- Department of Paediatric Neurosciences, Evelina London Children's Hospital, St Thomas' Hospital, London, UK
| | - Maria Kinali
- Department of Paediatric Neurology, Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, London, UK
| | - David McCormick
- Department of Paediatric Neurosciences, Evelina London Children's Hospital, St Thomas' Hospital, London, UK
| | - Siobhan Hannan
- Department of Paediatric Neurology, Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, London, UK
| | - Silvia Cossu
- Neurosurgery Unit, Neuroscience and Neurorehabilitation Department, Bambino Gesù Children Hospital, Rome, Italy.,Neurology Unit, Pediatric Hospital A. Cao, Brotzu Hospital Trust, Cagliari, Italy
| | | | - Cigdem I Akman
- Division of Pediatric Neurology, College of Physicians and Surgeons of Columbia University, New York City, New York, USA
| | - Steven M Wolf
- Department of Neurology, Mount Sinai Health System, New York City, New York, USA
| | - David E Mandelbaum
- Departments of Pediatrics, Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island, USA
| | - Rajesh Gupta
- Department of Paediatrics, Tunbridge Wells Hospital, Pembury, UK
| | - Rick A van der Spek
- Department of Neurology, Brain Center Rudolf Magnus, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Dario Pruna
- Neurology Unit, Pediatric Hospital A. Cao, Brotzu Hospital Trust, Cagliari, Italy
| | - Deb K Pal
- Department of Basic and Clinical Neuroscience, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, Maurice Wohl Clinical Neuroscience Institute, King's College London, London, UK
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52
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Lin WH, He M, Fan YN, Baines RA. An RNAi-mediated screen identifies novel targets for next-generation antiepileptic drugs based on increased expression of the homeostatic regulator pumilio. J Neurogenet 2018; 32:106-117. [PMID: 29718742 PMCID: PMC5989157 DOI: 10.1080/01677063.2018.1465570] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
Despite availability of a diverse range of anti-epileptic drugs (AEDs), only about two-thirds of epilepsy patients respond well to drug treatment. Thus, novel targets are required to catalyse the design of next-generation AEDs. Manipulation of neuron firing-rate homoeostasis, through enhancing Pumilio (Pum) activity, has been shown to be potently anticonvulsant in Drosophila. In this study, we performed a genome-wide RNAi screen in S2R + cells, using a luciferase-based dPum activity reporter and identified 1166 genes involved in dPum regulation. Of these genes, we focused on 699 genes that, on knock-down, potentiate dPum activity/expression. Of this subgroup, 101 genes are activity-dependent based on comparison with genes previously identified as activity-dependent by RNA-sequencing. Functional cluster analysis shows these genes are enriched in pathways involved in DNA damage, regulation of cell cycle and proteasomal protein catabolism. To test for anticonvulsant activity, we utilised an RNA-interference approach in vivo. RNAi-mediated knockdown showed that 57/101 genes (61%) are sufficient to significantly reduce seizure duration in the characterized seizure mutant, parabss. We further show that chemical inhibitors of protein products of some of the genes targeted are similarly anticonvulsant. Finally, to establish whether the anticonvulsant activity of identified compounds results from increased dpum transcription, we performed a luciferase-based assay to monitor dpum promoter activity. Third instar larvae exposed to sodium fluoride, gemcitabine, metformin, bestatin, WP1066 or valproic acid all showed increased dpum promoter activity. Thus, this study validates Pum as a favourable target for AED design and, moreover, identifies a number of lead compounds capable of increasing the expression of this homeostatic regulator.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wei-Hsiang Lin
- a Division of Neuroscience and Experimental Psychology, School of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health , University of Manchester, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre , Manchester , UK
| | - Miaomiao He
- a Division of Neuroscience and Experimental Psychology, School of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health , University of Manchester, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre , Manchester , UK
| | - Yuen Ngan Fan
- a Division of Neuroscience and Experimental Psychology, School of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health , University of Manchester, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre , Manchester , UK
| | - Richard A Baines
- a Division of Neuroscience and Experimental Psychology, School of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health , University of Manchester, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre , Manchester , UK
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53
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Wu DM, Zhang YT, Lu J, Zheng YL. Effects of microRNA-129 and its target gene c-Fos on proliferation and apoptosis of hippocampal neurons in rats with epilepsy via the MAPK signaling pathway. J Cell Physiol 2018; 233:6632-6643. [PMID: 29194604 DOI: 10.1002/jcp.26297] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/09/2017] [Accepted: 11/28/2017] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
Abstract
This study aims to investigate the effect of microRNA-129 (miR-129) on proliferation and apoptosis of hippocampal neurons in epilepsy rats by targeting c-Fos via the MAPK signaling pathway. Thirty rats were equally classified into a model group (successfully established as chronic epilepsy models) and a normal group. Expression of miR-129, c-Fos, bax, and MAPK was detected by RT-qPCR and Western blotting. Hippocampal neurons were assigned into normal, blank, negative control (NC), miR-129 mimic, miR-129 inhibitor, siRNA-c-Fos, miR-129 inhibitor+siRNA-c-Fos groups. The targeting relationship between miR-129 and c-Fos was predicted and verified by bioinformatics websites and dual-luciferase reporter gene assay. Cell proliferation after transfection was measured by MTT assay, and cell cycle and apoptosis by flow cytometry. c-Fos is a potential target gene of miR-129. Compared with the normal group, the other six groups showed a decreased miR-129 expression; increased expression of expression of c-Fos, Bax, and MAPK; decreased proliferation; accelerated apoptosis; more cells arrested in the G1 phase; and fewer cells arrested in the S phase. Compared with the blank and NC groups, the miR-129 mimic group and the siRNA-c-Fos group showed decreased expression of c-Fos, Bax, and MAPK, increased cells proliferation, and decreased cell apoptosis, fewer cells arrested in the G1 phase and more cells arrested in the S phase. However, the miR-129 inhibitor groups showed reverse consequences. This study suggests that miR-129 could inhibit the occurrence and development of epilepsy by repressing c-Fos expression through inhibiting the MAPK signaling pathway.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dong-Mei Wu
- Key Laboratory for Biotechnology on Medicinal Plants of Jiangsu Province, School of Life Science, Jiangsu Normal University, Xuzhou, P. R. China
| | - Yu-Tong Zhang
- Department of Neurology, The Fourth Affiliated Hospital of China Medical University, Shenyang, P. R. China
| | - Jun Lu
- Key Laboratory for Biotechnology on Medicinal Plants of Jiangsu Province, School of Life Science, Jiangsu Normal University, Xuzhou, P. R. China
| | - Yuan-Lin Zheng
- Key Laboratory for Biotechnology on Medicinal Plants of Jiangsu Province, School of Life Science, Jiangsu Normal University, Xuzhou, P. R. China
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Follwaczny P, Schieweck R, Riedemann T, Demleitner A, Straub T, Klemm AH, Bilban M, Sutor B, Popper B, Kiebler MA. Pumilio2-deficient mice show a predisposition for epilepsy. Dis Model Mech 2017; 10:1333-1342. [PMID: 29046322 PMCID: PMC5719250 DOI: 10.1242/dmm.029678] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2017] [Accepted: 09/06/2017] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Epilepsy is a neurological disease that is caused by abnormal hypersynchronous activities of neuronal ensembles leading to recurrent and spontaneous seizures in human patients. Enhanced neuronal excitability and a high level of synchrony between neurons seem to trigger these spontaneous seizures. The molecular mechanisms, however, regarding the development of neuronal hyperexcitability and maintenance of epilepsy are still poorly understood. Here, we show that pumilio RNA-binding family member 2 (Pumilio2; Pum2) plays a role in the regulation of excitability in hippocampal neurons of weaned and 5-month-old male mice. Almost complete deficiency of Pum2 in adult Pum2 gene-trap mice (Pum2 GT) causes misregulation of genes involved in neuronal excitability control. Interestingly, this finding is accompanied by the development of spontaneous epileptic seizures in Pum2 GT mice. Furthermore, we detect an age-dependent increase in Scn1a (Nav1.1) and Scn8a (Nav1.6) mRNA levels together with a decrease in Scn2a (Nav1.2) transcript levels in weaned Pum2 GT that is absent in older mice. Moreover, field recordings of CA1 pyramidal neurons show a tendency towards a reduced paired-pulse inhibition after stimulation of the Schaffer-collateral-commissural pathway in Pum2 GT mice, indicating a predisposition to the development of spontaneous seizures at later stages. With the onset of spontaneous seizures at the age of 5 months, we detect increased protein levels of Nav1.1 and Nav1.2 as well as decreased protein levels of Nav1.6 in those mice. In addition, GABA receptor subunit alpha-2 (Gabra2) mRNA levels are increased in weaned and adult mice. Furthermore, we observe an enhanced GABRA2 protein level in the dendritic field of the CA1 subregion in the Pum2 GT hippocampus. We conclude that altered expression levels of known epileptic risk factors such as Nav1.1, Nav1.2, Nav1.6 and GABRA2 result in enhanced seizure susceptibility and manifestation of epilepsy in the hippocampus. Thus, our results argue for a role of Pum2 in epileptogenesis and the maintenance of epilepsy. Summary: Epileptogenic risk factors are misregulated in Pumilio2-deficient mice, determining a predisposition to develop seizures. This article has an associated First Person interview with the first author of the paper as part of the supplementary information.
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Affiliation(s)
- Philipp Follwaczny
- Biomedical Center (BMC), Department for Cell Biology, Faculty of Medicine, LMU, Munich, 82152 Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Rico Schieweck
- Biomedical Center (BMC), Department for Cell Biology, Faculty of Medicine, LMU, Munich, 82152 Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Therese Riedemann
- Biomedical Center (BMC), Department of Physiological Genomics, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, 82152 Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Antonia Demleitner
- Biomedical Center (BMC), Department for Cell Biology, Faculty of Medicine, LMU, Munich, 82152 Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Tobias Straub
- Biomedical Center (BMC), Core Facility Bioinformatics, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, 82152 Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Anna H Klemm
- Biomedical Center (BMC), Core Facility Bioimaging, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, 82152 Planegg-Martinsried, Germany.,Walter Brendel Centre of Experimental Medicine, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Martin Bilban
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Core Facility Genomics, Medical University of Vienna, 1090 Vienna, Austria
| | - Bernd Sutor
- Biomedical Center (BMC), Department of Physiological Genomics, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, 82152 Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Bastian Popper
- Biomedical Center (BMC), Department for Cell Biology, Faculty of Medicine, LMU, Munich, 82152 Planegg-Martinsried, Germany .,Biomedical Center (BMC), Core Facility Animal Models, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, 82152 Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Michael A Kiebler
- Biomedical Center (BMC), Department for Cell Biology, Faculty of Medicine, LMU, Munich, 82152 Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
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55
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Salman MM, Sheilabi MA, Bhattacharyya D, Kitchen P, Conner AC, Bill RM, Woodroofe MN, Conner MT, Princivalle AP. Transcriptome analysis suggests a role for the differential expression of cerebral aquaporins and the MAPK signalling pathway in human temporal lobe epilepsy. Eur J Neurosci 2017; 46:2121-2132. [PMID: 28715131 DOI: 10.1111/ejn.13652] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2017] [Revised: 07/10/2017] [Accepted: 07/11/2017] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
Abstract
Epilepsies are common disorders of the central nervous system (CNS), affecting up to 2% of the global population. Pharmaco-resistance is a major clinical challenge affecting about 30% of temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) patients. Water homeostasis has been shown crucial for regulation of neuronal excitability. The control of water movement is achieved through a family of small integral membrane channel proteins called aquaporins (AQPs). Despite the fact that changes in water homeostasis occur in sclerotic hippocampi of people with TLE, the expression of AQPs in the epileptic brain is not fully characterised. This study uses microarray and ELISA methods to analyse the mRNA and protein expression of the human cerebral AQPs in sclerotic hippocampi (TLE-HS) and adjacent neocortex tissue (TLE-NC) of TLE patients. The expression of AQP1 and AQP4 transcripts was significantly increased, while that of the AQP9 transcript was significantly reduced in TLE-HS compared to TLE-NC. AQP4 protein expression was also increased while expression of AQP1 protein remained unchanged, and AQP9 was undetected. Microarray data analysis identified 3333 differentially regulated genes and suggested the involvement of the MAPK signalling pathway in TLE pathogenesis. Proteome array data validated the translational profile for 26 genes and within the MAPK pathway (e.g. p38, JNK) that were identified as differentially expressed from microarray analysis. ELISA data showed that p38 and JNK inhibitors decrease AQP4 protein levels in cultured human primary cortical astrocytes. Elucidating the mechanism of selective regulation of different AQPs and associated regulatory proteins may provide a new therapeutic approach to epilepsy treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mootaz M Salman
- Biomolecular Sciences Research Centre (BMRC), Sheffield Hallam University, Howard Street, Sheffield, S1 1WB, UK
| | - Mariam A Sheilabi
- Biomolecular Sciences Research Centre (BMRC), Sheffield Hallam University, Howard Street, Sheffield, S1 1WB, UK
| | | | - Philip Kitchen
- School of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
| | - Alex C Conner
- School of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
| | - Roslyn M Bill
- School of Life and Health Sciences, Aston University, Birmingham, UK
| | - M Nicola Woodroofe
- Biomolecular Sciences Research Centre (BMRC), Sheffield Hallam University, Howard Street, Sheffield, S1 1WB, UK
| | - Matthew T Conner
- Biomolecular Sciences Research Centre (BMRC), Sheffield Hallam University, Howard Street, Sheffield, S1 1WB, UK.,Research Institute of Health Sciences, School of Sciences, University of Wolverhampton, Wolverhampton, UK
| | - Alessandra P Princivalle
- Biomolecular Sciences Research Centre (BMRC), Sheffield Hallam University, Howard Street, Sheffield, S1 1WB, UK
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56
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Bauer KE, Kiebler MA, Segura I. Visualizing RNA granule transport and translation in living neurons. Methods 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ymeth.2017.06.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022] Open
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57
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Raab-Graham KF, Niere F. mTOR referees memory and disease through mRNA repression and competition. FEBS Lett 2017; 591:1540-1554. [PMID: 28493559 DOI: 10.1002/1873-3468.12675] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/10/2017] [Revised: 05/04/2017] [Accepted: 05/05/2017] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) activity is required for memory and is dysregulated in disease. Activation of mTOR promotes protein synthesis; however, new studies are demonstrating that mTOR activity also represses the translation of mRNAs. Almost three decades ago, Kandel and colleagues hypothesised that memory was due to the induction of positive regulators and removal of negative constraints. Are these negative constraints repressed mRNAs that code for proteins that block memory formation? Herein, we will discuss the mRNAs coded by putative memory suppressors, how activation/inactivation of mTOR repress protein expression at the synapse, how mTOR activity regulates RNA binding proteins, mRNA stability, and translation, and what the possible implications of mRNA repression are to memory and neurodegenerative disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kimberly F Raab-Graham
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston Salem, NC, USA
| | - Farr Niere
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston Salem, NC, USA
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58
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Fernández-Moya SM, Ehses J, Kiebler MA. The alternative life of RNA-sequencing meets single molecule approaches. FEBS Lett 2017; 591:1455-1470. [PMID: 28369835 DOI: 10.1002/1873-3468.12639] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2017] [Revised: 03/15/2017] [Accepted: 03/24/2017] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
The central dogma of RNA processing has started to totter. Single genes produce a variety of mRNA isoforms by mRNA modification, alternative polyadenylation (APA), and splicing. Different isoforms, even those that code for the identical protein, may differ in function or spatiotemporal expression. One option of how this can be achieved is by the selective recruitment of trans-acting factors to the 3'-untranslated region of a given isoform. Recent innovations in high-throughput RNA-sequencing methods allow deep insight into global RNA regulation, whereas novel imaging-based technologies enable researchers to explore single RNA molecules during different stages of development, in different tissues and different compartments of the cell. Resolving the dynamic function of ribonucleoprotein particles in splicing, APA, or RNA modification will enable us to understand their contribution to pathological conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Janina Ehses
- BioMedical Center, Ludwig Maximilians University, Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Michael A Kiebler
- BioMedical Center, Ludwig Maximilians University, Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
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