Superoxide dismutase isozymes in cerebral organoids from autism spectrum disorder patients

PX-478 Alleviated the Autism Spectrum Disorder Progression of Offspring Rats Induced by Prenatal Hypoxia

BACKGROUND

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental condition characterized by deficits in social interaction, communication, repetitive behaviors, and narrow interests. This study aimed to investigate the impact of the Hypoxia-inducible factor-1 alpha (HIF-1α) inhibitor (PX-478) on ASD-like behaviors in rat offspring exposed to prenatal hypoxia (PH).

METHODS

Pregnant rats were randomly assigned to control or PH groups, with the latter experiencing six hours of hypoxia on the 17th day of gestation. Offspring were further treated with PX-478 treatment initiated at one week (+1 w) or three weeks (+3 w) after birth. Hippocampal histology was assessed using hematoxylin and eosin (HE) staining, while protein levels of HIF-1α and phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) were analyzed via western blotting. The concentration of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) was measured using an Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) kit.

RESULTS

PX-478 treatment significantly improved spatial memory, learning, and social ability, while reducing anxiety-like behavior in PH-exposed offspring rats. HE staining revealed that PX-478 treatment decreased the number of hippocampal neurons necrosis in offspring. However, PX-478 treatment at one week post-birth led to decreased body weight and elevated levels of alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and Alanine aminotransferase (ALT) in offspring rats, whereas no significant effect was observed after three weeks of treatment. Additionally, PX-478 treatment resulted in reduced HIF-1α protein levels in the hippocampus and VEGF concentration in the serum of PH-exposed offspring rats, along with elevated PTEN protein levels.

CONCLUSIONS

The findings suggest that PX-478 treatment attenuated autism-like behavior in offspring. HIF-1α might play an important role in autism-like behavior induced by prenatal hypoxia, which may be realized by inhibiting PTEN activity.

Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells and Organoids in Advancing Neuropathology Research and Therapies

This review delves into the groundbreaking impact of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) and three-dimensional organoid models in propelling forward neuropathology research. With a focus on neurodegenerative diseases, neuromotor disorders, and related conditions, iPSCs provide a platform for personalized disease modeling, holding significant potential for regenerative therapy and drug discovery. The adaptability of iPSCs, along with associated methodologies, enables the generation of various types of neural cell differentiations and their integration into three-dimensional organoid models, effectively replicating complex tissue structures in vitro. Key advancements in organoid and iPSC generation protocols, alongside the careful selection of donor cell types, are emphasized as critical steps in harnessing these technologies to mitigate tumorigenic risks and other hurdles. Encouragingly, iPSCs show promising outcomes in regenerative therapies, as evidenced by their successful application in animal models.

Cerebral organoids as an in vitro model to study autism spectrum disorders

Autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) are a set of disorders characterised by social and communication deficits caused by numerous genetic lesions affecting brain development. Progress in ASD research has been hampered by the lack of appropriate models, as both 2D cell culture as well as animal models cannot fully recapitulate the developing human brain or the pathogenesis of ASD. Recently, cerebral organoids have been developed to provide a more accurate, 3D in vitro model of human brain development. Cerebral organoids have been shown to recapitulate the foetal brain gene expression profile, transcriptome, epigenome, as well as disease dynamics of both idiopathic and syndromic ASDs. They are thus an excellent tool to investigate development of foetal stage ASDs, as well as interventions that can reverse or rescue the altered phenotypes observed. In this review, we discuss the development of cerebral organoids, their recent applications in the study of both syndromic and idiopathic ASDs, their use as an ASD drug development platform, as well as limitations of their use in ASD research.