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Aguilar GR, Vidal B, Ji H, Evenblij J, Ji H, Valperga G, Liao CP, Fang-Yen C, Hobert O. Functional analysis of conserved C. elegans bHLH family members uncovers lifespan control by a peptidergic hub neuron. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.07.12.603289. [PMID: 39071424 PMCID: PMC11275782 DOI: 10.1101/2024.07.12.603289] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/30/2024]
Abstract
Throughout the animal kingdom, several members of the basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) family act as proneural genes during early steps of nervous system development. Roles of bHLH genes in specifying terminal differentiation of postmitotic neurons have been less extensively studied. We analyze here the function of five C. elegans bHLH genes, falling into three phylogenetically conserved subfamilies, which are continuously expressed in a very small number of postmitotic neurons in the central nervous system. We show (a) that two orthologs of the vertebrate bHLHb4/b5 genes, called hlh-17 and hlh-32, function redundantly to specify the identity of a single head interneuron (AUA), as well as an individual motor neuron (VB2), (b) that the PTF1a ortholog hlh-13 acts as a terminal selector to control terminal differentiation and function of the sole octopaminergic neuron class in C. elegans , RIC, and (c) that the NHLH1/2 ortholog hlh-15 controls terminal differentiation and function of the peptidergic AVK head interneuron class, a known neuropeptidergic signaling hub in the animal. Strikingly, through null mutant analysis and cell-specific rescue experiments, we find that loss of hlh-15/NHLH in the peptidergic AVK neurons and the resulting abrogation of neuropeptide secretion causes a substantially expanded lifespan of the animal, revealing an unanticipated impact of a central, peptidergic hub neuron in regulating lifespan, which we propose to be akin to hypothalamic control of lifespan in vertebrates. Taken together, our functional analysis reveals themes of bHLH gene function during terminal differentiation that are complementary to the earlier lineage specification roles of other bHLH family members. However, such late functions are much more sparsely employed by members of the bHLH transcription factor family, compared to the function of the much more broadly employed homeodomain transcription factor family.
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Ma M, Ganapathi M, Zheng Y, Tan KL, Kanca O, Bove KE, Quintanilla N, Sag SO, Temel SG, LeDuc CA, McPartland AJ, Pereira EM, Shen Y, Hagen J, Thomas CP, Nguyen Galván NT, Pan X, Lu S, Rosenfeld JA, Calame DG, Wangler MF, Lupski JR, Pehlivan D, Hertel PM, Chung WK, Bellen HJ. Homozygous missense variants in YKT6 result in loss of function and are associated with developmental delay, with or without severe infantile liver disease and risk for hepatocellular carcinoma. Genet Med 2024; 26:101125. [PMID: 38522068 DOI: 10.1016/j.gim.2024.101125] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2023] [Revised: 03/15/2024] [Accepted: 03/18/2024] [Indexed: 03/26/2024] Open
Abstract
PURPOSE YKT6 plays important roles in multiple intracellular vesicle trafficking events but has not been associated with Mendelian diseases. METHODS We report 3 unrelated individuals with rare homozygous missense variants in YKT6 who exhibited neurological disease with or without a progressive infantile liver disease. We modeled the variants in Drosophila. We generated wild-type and variant genomic rescue constructs of the fly ortholog dYkt6 and compared their ability in rescuing the loss-of-function phenotypes in mutant flies. We also generated a dYkt6KozakGAL4 allele to assess the expression pattern of dYkt6. RESULTS Two individuals are homozygous for YKT6 [NM_006555.3:c.554A>G p.(Tyr185Cys)] and exhibited normal prenatal course followed by failure to thrive, developmental delay, and progressive liver disease. Haplotype analysis identified a shared homozygous region flanking the variant, suggesting a common ancestry. The third individual is homozygous for YKT6 [NM_006555.3:c.191A>G p.(Tyr64Cys)] and exhibited neurodevelopmental disorders and optic atrophy. Fly dYkt6 is essential and is expressed in the fat body (analogous to liver) and central nervous system. Wild-type genomic rescue constructs can rescue the lethality and autophagic flux defects, whereas the variants are less efficient in rescuing the phenotypes. CONCLUSION The YKT6 variants are partial loss-of-function alleles, and the p.(Tyr185Cys) is more severe than p.(Tyr64Cys).
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Affiliation(s)
- Mengqi Ma
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX
| | - Mythily Ganapathi
- Department of Pathology and Cell Biology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY
| | - Yiming Zheng
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX
| | - Kai-Li Tan
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX
| | - Oguz Kanca
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX
| | - Kevin E Bove
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH
| | - Norma Quintanilla
- Department of Pathology and Immunology, Texas Children's Hospital, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX
| | - Sebnem O Sag
- Department of Medical Genetics, Faculty of Medicine, Uludag University, Bursa, Turkey
| | - Sehime G Temel
- Department of Medical Genetics, Faculty of Medicine, Uludag University, Bursa, Turkey
| | | | | | | | - Yufeng Shen
- Department of Systems Biology, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY
| | - Jacob Hagen
- Department of Systems Biology, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY
| | - Christie P Thomas
- Department of Internal Medicine, Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA
| | | | - Xueyang Pan
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX
| | - Shenzhao Lu
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX
| | - Jill A Rosenfeld
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX; Baylor Genetics Laboratories, Houston, TX
| | - Daniel G Calame
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX; Division of Neurology and Developmental Neuroscience, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX; Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX
| | - Michael F Wangler
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX
| | - James R Lupski
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX; Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX; Human Genome Sequencing Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX
| | - Davut Pehlivan
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX; Division of Neurology and Developmental Neuroscience, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX; Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX
| | - Paula M Hertel
- Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX; Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Nutrition, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX
| | - Wendy K Chung
- Department of Pediatrics, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA.
| | - Hugo J Bellen
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX.
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3
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Moulton MJ, Atala K, Zheng Y, Dutta D, Grange DK, Lin WW, Wegner DJ, Wambach JA, Duker AL, Bober MB, Kratz L, Wise CA, Oxendine I, Khanshour A, Wangler MF, Yamamoto S, Cole FS, Rios J, Bellen HJ. Dominant missense variants in SREBF2 are associated with complex dermatological, neurological, and skeletal abnormalities. Genet Med 2024; 26:101174. [PMID: 38847193 DOI: 10.1016/j.gim.2024.101174] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2024] [Revised: 05/28/2024] [Accepted: 05/29/2024] [Indexed: 07/21/2024] Open
Abstract
PURPOSE We identified 2 individuals with de novo variants in SREBF2 that disrupt a conserved site 1 protease (S1P) cleavage motif required for processing SREBP2 into its mature transcription factor. These individuals exhibit complex phenotypic manifestations that partially overlap with sterol regulatory element binding proteins (SREBP) pathway-related disease phenotypes, but SREBF2-related disease has not been previously reported. Thus, we set out to assess the effects of SREBF2 variants on SREBP pathway activation. METHODS We undertook ultrastructure and gene expression analyses using fibroblasts from an affected individual and utilized a fly model of lipid droplet (LD) formation to investigate the consequences of SREBF2 variants on SREBP pathway function. RESULTS We observed reduced LD formation, endoplasmic reticulum expansion, accumulation of aberrant lysosomes, and deficits in SREBP2 target gene expression in fibroblasts from an affected individual, indicating that the SREBF2 variant inhibits SREBP pathway activation. Using our fly model, we discovered that SREBF2 variants fail to induce LD production and act in a dominant-negative manner, which can be rescued by overexpression of S1P. CONCLUSION Taken together, these data reveal a mechanism by which SREBF2 pathogenic variants that disrupt the S1P cleavage motif cause disease via dominant-negative antagonism of S1P, limiting the cleavage of S1P targets, including SREBP1 and SREBP2.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew J Moulton
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX
| | - Kristhen Atala
- Center for Translational Research, Scottish Rite for Children, Dallas, TX
| | - Yiming Zheng
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX; Current address: State Key Laboratory of Cellular Stress Biology, School of Life Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Life Sciences, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
| | - Debdeep Dutta
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX
| | - Dorothy K Grange
- Edward Mallinckrodt Department of Pediatrics, Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine and St. Louis Children's Hospital, St. Louis, MO
| | - Wen-Wen Lin
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX
| | - Daniel J Wegner
- Edward Mallinckrodt Department of Pediatrics, Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine and St. Louis Children's Hospital, St. Louis, MO
| | - Jennifer A Wambach
- Edward Mallinckrodt Department of Pediatrics, Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine and St. Louis Children's Hospital, St. Louis, MO
| | - Angela L Duker
- Skeletal Dysplasia Program, Orthogenetics, Nemours Children's Hospital, Wilmington, DE
| | - Michael B Bober
- Skeletal Dysplasia Program, Orthogenetics, Nemours Children's Hospital, Wilmington, DE
| | - Lisa Kratz
- Kennedy Krieger Institute, Department of Genetic Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD
| | - Carol A Wise
- Center for Translational Research, Scottish Rite for Children, Dallas, TX; Eugene McDermott Center for Human Growth and Development, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX; Department of Pediatrics, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX; Department of Orthopedic Surgery, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX
| | - Ila Oxendine
- Center for Translational Research, Scottish Rite for Children, Dallas, TX
| | - Anas Khanshour
- Center for Translational Research, Scottish Rite for Children, Dallas, TX
| | - Michael F Wangler
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX
| | - Shinya Yamamoto
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX
| | - F Sessions Cole
- Edward Mallinckrodt Department of Pediatrics, Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine and St. Louis Children's Hospital, St. Louis, MO
| | - Jonathan Rios
- Center for Translational Research, Scottish Rite for Children, Dallas, TX; Eugene McDermott Center for Human Growth and Development, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX; Department of Pediatrics, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX; Department of Orthopedic Surgery, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX
| | - Hugo J Bellen
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX.
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4
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Sun Y, Zhao X, Fan X, Wang M, Li C, Liu Y, Wu P, Yan Q, Sun L. Assessing the impact of sequencing platforms and analytical pipelines on whole-exome sequencing. Front Genet 2024; 15:1334075. [PMID: 38818042 PMCID: PMC11137314 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2024.1334075] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2023] [Accepted: 04/30/2024] [Indexed: 06/01/2024] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Yanping Sun
- GeneMind Biosciences Company Limited, Shenzhen, China
| | - Xiaochao Zhao
- GeneMind Biosciences Company Limited, Shenzhen, China
| | - Xue Fan
- Clinical Research Institute, Shanghai General Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Miao Wang
- GeneMind Biosciences Company Limited, Shenzhen, China
| | - Chaoyang Li
- GeneMind Biosciences Company Limited, Shenzhen, China
| | - Yongfeng Liu
- GeneMind Biosciences Company Limited, Shenzhen, China
| | - Ping Wu
- GeneMind Biosciences Company Limited, Shenzhen, China
| | - Qin Yan
- GeneMind Biosciences Company Limited, Shenzhen, China
| | - Lei Sun
- GeneMind Biosciences Company Limited, Shenzhen, China
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5
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Copeland I, Wonkam-Tingang E, Gupta-Malhotra M, Hashmi SS, Han Y, Jajoo A, Hall NJ, Hernandez PP, Lie N, Liu D, Xu J, Rosenfeld J, Haldipur A, Desire Z, Coban-Akdemir ZH, Scott DA, Li Q, Chao HT, Zaske AM, Lupski JR, Milewicz DM, Shete S, Posey JE, Hanchard NA. Exome sequencing implicates ancestry-related Mendelian variation at SYNE1 in childhood-onset essential hypertension. JCI Insight 2024; 9:e172152. [PMID: 38716726 PMCID: PMC11141928 DOI: 10.1172/jci.insight.172152] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2023] [Accepted: 03/19/2024] [Indexed: 05/12/2024] Open
Abstract
Childhood-onset essential hypertension (COEH) is an uncommon form of hypertension that manifests in childhood or adolescence and, in the United States, disproportionately affects children of African ancestry. The etiology of COEH is unknown, but its childhood onset, low prevalence, high heritability, and skewed ancestral demography suggest the potential to identify rare genetic variation segregating in a Mendelian manner among affected individuals and thereby implicate genes important to disease pathogenesis. However, no COEH genes have been reported to date. Here, we identify recessive segregation of rare and putatively damaging missense variation in the spectrin domain of spectrin repeat containing nuclear envelope protein 1 (SYNE1), a cardiovascular candidate gene, in 3 of 16 families with early-onset COEH without an antecedent family history. By leveraging exome sequence data from an additional 48 COEH families, 1,700 in-house trios, and publicly available data sets, we demonstrate that compound heterozygous SYNE1 variation in these COEH individuals occurred more often than expected by chance and that this class of biallelic rare variation was significantly enriched among individuals of African genetic ancestry. Using in vitro shRNA knockdown of SYNE1, we show that reduced SYNE1 expression resulted in a substantial decrease in the elasticity of smooth muscle vascular cells that could be rescued by pharmacological inhibition of the downstream RhoA/Rho-associated protein kinase pathway. These results provide insights into the molecular genetics and underlying pathophysiology of COEH and suggest a role for precision therapeutics in the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ian Copeland
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Edmond Wonkam-Tingang
- Childhood Complex Disease Genomics Section, National Human Genome Research Institute, NIH, Bethesda, USA
| | | | - S. Shahrukh Hashmi
- Department of Pediatrics, McGovern Medical School, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Yixing Han
- Childhood Complex Disease Genomics Section, National Human Genome Research Institute, NIH, Bethesda, USA
| | - Aarti Jajoo
- Childhood Complex Disease Genomics Section, National Human Genome Research Institute, NIH, Bethesda, USA
| | - Nancy J. Hall
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
- US Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service Children’s Nutrition Research Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Paula P. Hernandez
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
- US Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service Children’s Nutrition Research Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Natasha Lie
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
- Childhood Complex Disease Genomics Section, National Human Genome Research Institute, NIH, Bethesda, USA
- US Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service Children’s Nutrition Research Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Dan Liu
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Jun Xu
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Jill Rosenfeld
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
- Baylor Genetics, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Aparna Haldipur
- Childhood Complex Disease Genomics Section, National Human Genome Research Institute, NIH, Bethesda, USA
| | - Zelene Desire
- Childhood Complex Disease Genomics Section, National Human Genome Research Institute, NIH, Bethesda, USA
| | - Zeynep H. Coban-Akdemir
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
- Human Genetics Center, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Daryl A. Scott
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
- Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, Texas, USA
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics
| | - Qing Li
- Childhood Complex Disease Genomics Section, National Human Genome Research Institute, NIH, Bethesda, USA
| | - Hsiao-Tuan Chao
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
- Division of Neurology and Developmental Neuroscience, Department of Pediatrics; and
- Department of Neuroscience, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
- Cain Pediatric Neurology Research Foundation Laboratories, Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children’s Hospital and Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
- McNair Medical Institute, The Robert and Janice McNair Foundation, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Ana M. Zaske
- Department of Pediatrics, McGovern Medical School, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - James R. Lupski
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
- Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, Texas, USA
- Human Genome Sequencing Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Dianna M. Milewicz
- Department of Internal Medicine, McGovern Medical School, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Sanjay Shete
- The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Jennifer E. Posey
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
- McNair Medical Institute, The Robert and Janice McNair Foundation, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Neil A. Hanchard
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
- Childhood Complex Disease Genomics Section, National Human Genome Research Institute, NIH, Bethesda, USA
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6
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Mao D, Liu C, Wang L, Ai-Ouran R, Deisseroth C, Pasupuleti S, Kim SY, Li L, Rosenfeld JA, Meng L, Burrage LC, Wangler MF, Yamamoto S, Santana M, Perez V, Shukla P, Eng CM, Lee B, Yuan B, Xia F, Bellen HJ, Liu P, Liu Z. AI-MARRVEL - A Knowledge-Driven AI System for Diagnosing Mendelian Disorders. NEJM AI 2024; 1:10.1056/aioa2300009. [PMID: 38962029 PMCID: PMC11221788 DOI: 10.1056/aioa2300009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/05/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Diagnosing genetic disorders requires extensive manual curation and interpretation of candidate variants, a labor-intensive task even for trained geneticists. Although artificial intelligence (AI) shows promise in aiding these diagnoses, existing AI tools have only achieved moderate success for primary diagnosis. METHODS AI-MARRVEL (AIM) uses a random-forest machine-learning classifier trained on over 3.5 million variants from thousands of diagnosed cases. AIM additionally incorporates expert-engineered features into training to recapitulate the intricate decision-making processes in molecular diagnosis. The online version of AIM is available at https://ai.marrvel.org. To evaluate AIM, we benchmarked it with diagnosed patients from three independent cohorts. RESULTS AIM improved the rate of accurate genetic diagnosis, doubling the number of solved cases as compared with benchmarked methods, across three distinct real-world cohorts. To better identify diagnosable cases from the unsolved pools accumulated over time, we designed a confidence metric on which AIM achieved a precision rate of 98% and identified 57% of diagnosable cases out of a collection of 871 cases. Furthermore, AIM's performance improved after being fine-tuned for targeted settings including recessive disorders and trio analysis. Finally, AIM demonstrated potential for novel disease gene discovery by correctly predicting two newly reported disease genes from the Undiagnosed Diseases Network. CONCLUSIONS AIM achieved superior accuracy compared with existing methods for genetic diagnosis. We anticipate that this tool may aid in primary diagnosis, reanalysis of unsolved cases, and the discovery of novel disease genes. (Funded by the NIH Common Fund and others.).
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Affiliation(s)
- Dongxue Mao
- Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children's Hospital, Houston
| | - Chaozhong Liu
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children's Hospital, Houston
- Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Program in Quantitative and Computational Biosciences, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston
| | - Linhua Wang
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children's Hospital, Houston
- Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Program in Quantitative and Computational Biosciences, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston
| | - Rami Ai-Ouran
- Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children's Hospital, Houston
- Department of Data Science and AI, Al Hussein Technical University, Amman, Jordan
| | - Cole Deisseroth
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children's Hospital, Houston
| | - Sasidhar Pasupuleti
- Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children's Hospital, Houston
| | - Seon Young Kim
- Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children's Hospital, Houston
| | - Lucian Li
- Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children's Hospital, Houston
| | - Jill A Rosenfeld
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston
| | - Linyan Meng
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston
- Baylor Genetics, Houston7
| | - Lindsay C Burrage
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston
| | - Michael F Wangler
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children's Hospital, Houston
| | - Shinya Yamamoto
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children's Hospital, Houston
| | | | | | | | - Christine M Eng
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston
- Baylor Genetics, Houston7
| | - Brendan Lee
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston
| | - Bo Yuan
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston
- Human Genome Sequencing Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston
| | - Fan Xia
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston
- Baylor Genetics, Houston7
| | - Hugo J Bellen
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children's Hospital, Houston
- Department of Neuroscience, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston
| | - Pengfei Liu
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston
- Baylor Genetics, Houston7
| | - Zhandong Liu
- Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children's Hospital, Houston
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7
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Liao JZ, Chung HL, Shih C, Wong KKL, Dutta D, Nil Z, Burns CG, Kanca O, Park YJ, Zuo Z, Marcogliese PC, Sew K, Bellen HJ, Verheyen EM. Cdk8/CDK19 promotes mitochondrial fission through Drp1 phosphorylation and can phenotypically suppress pink1 deficiency in Drosophila. Nat Commun 2024; 15:3326. [PMID: 38637532 PMCID: PMC11026413 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-47623-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/04/2022] [Accepted: 04/08/2024] [Indexed: 04/20/2024] Open
Abstract
Cdk8 in Drosophila is the orthologue of vertebrate CDK8 and CDK19. These proteins have been shown to modulate transcriptional control by RNA polymerase II. We found that neuronal loss of Cdk8 severely reduces fly lifespan and causes bang sensitivity. Remarkably, these defects can be rescued by expression of human CDK19, found in the cytoplasm of neurons, suggesting a non-nuclear function of CDK19/Cdk8. Here we show that Cdk8 plays a critical role in the cytoplasm, with its loss causing elongated mitochondria in both muscles and neurons. We find that endogenous GFP-tagged Cdk8 can be found in both the cytoplasm and nucleus. We show that Cdk8 promotes the phosphorylation of Drp1 at S616, a protein required for mitochondrial fission. Interestingly, Pink1, a mitochondrial kinase implicated in Parkinson's disease, also phosphorylates Drp1 at the same residue. Indeed, overexpression of Cdk8 significantly suppresses the phenotypes observed in flies with low levels of Pink1, including elevated levels of ROS, mitochondrial dysmorphology, and behavioral defects. In summary, we propose that Pink1 and Cdk8 perform similar functions to promote Drp1-mediated fission.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jenny Zhe Liao
- Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, V5A1S6, BC, Canada
- Center for Cell Biology, Development and Disease, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, V5A1S6, BC, Canada
| | - Hyung-Lok Chung
- Department of Neurology, Houston Methodist Research Institute, Houston, TX, USA
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Institute, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
| | - Claire Shih
- Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, V5A1S6, BC, Canada
- Center for Cell Biology, Development and Disease, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, V5A1S6, BC, Canada
| | - Kenneth Kin Lam Wong
- Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, V5A1S6, BC, Canada
- Department of Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
| | - Debdeep Dutta
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Institute, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
| | - Zelha Nil
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Institute, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
| | - Catherine Grace Burns
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Institute, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
| | - Oguz Kanca
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Institute, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
| | - Ye-Jin Park
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Institute, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
| | - Zhongyuan Zuo
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Institute, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
| | - Paul C Marcogliese
- Department of Biochemistry and Medical Genetics, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, R3E0J9, MB, Canada
- Children's Hospital Research Institute of Manitoba, Winnipeg, R3E3P4, MB, Canada
| | - Katherine Sew
- Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, V5A1S6, BC, Canada
- Center for Cell Biology, Development and Disease, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, V5A1S6, BC, Canada
| | - Hugo J Bellen
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Institute, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030, USA.
- Department of Neuroscience, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030, USA.
| | - Esther M Verheyen
- Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, V5A1S6, BC, Canada.
- Center for Cell Biology, Development and Disease, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, V5A1S6, BC, Canada.
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8
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Brinzer RA, Winter AD, Page AP. The relationship between intraflagellar transport and upstream protein trafficking pathways and macrocyclic lactone resistance in Caenorhabditis elegans. G3 (BETHESDA, MD.) 2024; 14:jkae009. [PMID: 38227795 PMCID: PMC10917524 DOI: 10.1093/g3journal/jkae009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/23/2023] [Revised: 01/08/2024] [Accepted: 01/08/2024] [Indexed: 01/18/2024]
Abstract
Parasitic nematodes are globally important and place a heavy disease burden on infected humans, crops, and livestock, while commonly administered anthelmintics used for treatment are being rendered ineffective by increasing levels of resistance. It has recently been shown in the model nematode Caenorhabditis elegans that the sensory cilia of the amphid neurons play an important role in resistance toward macrocyclic lactones such as ivermectin (an avermectin) and moxidectin (a milbemycin) either through reduced uptake or intertissue signaling pathways. This study interrogated the extent to which ciliary defects relate to macrocyclic lactone resistance and dye-filling defects using a combination of forward genetics and targeted resistance screening approaches and confirmed the importance of intraflagellar transport in this process. This approach also identified the protein trafficking pathways used by the downstream effectors and the components of the ciliary basal body that are required for effector entry into these nonmotile structures. In total, 24 novel C. elegans anthelmintic survival-associated genes were identified in this study. When combined with previously known resistance genes, there are now 46 resistance-associated genes that are directly involved in amphid, cilia, and intraflagellar transport function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robert A Brinzer
- School of Biodiversity, One Health and Veterinary Medicine, University of Glasgow, Scotland G61 1QH, UK
| | - Alan D Winter
- School of Biodiversity, One Health and Veterinary Medicine, University of Glasgow, Scotland G61 1QH, UK
| | - Antony P Page
- School of Biodiversity, One Health and Veterinary Medicine, University of Glasgow, Scotland G61 1QH, UK
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9
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Kaizuka T, Hirouchi T, Saneyoshi T, Shirafuji T, Collins MO, Grant SGN, Hayashi Y, Takumi T. FAM81A is a postsynaptic protein that regulates the condensation of postsynaptic proteins via liquid-liquid phase separation. PLoS Biol 2024; 22:e3002006. [PMID: 38452102 PMCID: PMC10919877 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3002006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2023] [Accepted: 01/17/2024] [Indexed: 03/09/2024] Open
Abstract
Proteome analyses of the postsynaptic density (PSD), a proteinaceous specialization beneath the postsynaptic membrane of excitatory synapses, have identified several thousands of proteins. While proteins with predictable functions have been well studied, functionally uncharacterized proteins are mostly overlooked. In this study, we conducted a comprehensive meta-analysis of 35 PSD proteome datasets, encompassing a total of 5,869 proteins. Employing a ranking methodology, we identified 97 proteins that remain inadequately characterized. From this selection, we focused our detailed analysis on the highest-ranked protein, FAM81A. FAM81A interacts with PSD proteins, including PSD-95, SynGAP, and NMDA receptors, and promotes liquid-liquid phase separation of those proteins in cultured cells or in vitro. Down-regulation of FAM81A in cultured neurons causes a decrease in the size of PSD-95 puncta and the frequency of neuronal firing. Our findings suggest that FAM81A plays a crucial role in facilitating the interaction and assembly of proteins within the PSD, and its presence is important for maintaining normal synaptic function. Additionally, our methodology underscores the necessity for further characterization of numerous synaptic proteins that still lack comprehensive understanding.
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Affiliation(s)
- Takeshi Kaizuka
- RIKEN Brain Science Institute, Wako, Saitama, Japan
- Department of Physiology and Cell Biology, Kobe University School of Medicine, Kobe, Chuo, Kobe, Japan
- Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences, Chancellor’s Building, Edinburgh BioQuarter, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
| | - Taisei Hirouchi
- Department of Pharmacology, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Takeo Saneyoshi
- Department of Pharmacology, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Toshihiko Shirafuji
- Department of Physiology and Cell Biology, Kobe University School of Medicine, Kobe, Chuo, Kobe, Japan
| | - Mark O. Collins
- School of Biosciences, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, United Kingdom
- biOMICS Facility, Mass Spectrometry Centre, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, United Kingdom
| | - Seth G. N. Grant
- Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences, Chancellor’s Building, Edinburgh BioQuarter, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
- Simons Initiative for the Developing Brain (SIDB), Centre for Discovery Brain Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
| | - Yasunori Hayashi
- Department of Pharmacology, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Toru Takumi
- RIKEN Brain Science Institute, Wako, Saitama, Japan
- Department of Physiology and Cell Biology, Kobe University School of Medicine, Kobe, Chuo, Kobe, Japan
- RIKEN Center for Biosystems Dynamics Research, Chuo, Kobe, Japan
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10
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Dutta D, Kanca O, Shridharan RV, Marcogliese PC, Steger B, Morimoto M, Frost FG, Macnamara E, Wangler MF, Yamamoto S, Jenny A, Adams D, Malicdan MC, Bellen HJ. Loss of the endoplasmic reticulum protein Tmem208 affects cell polarity, development, and viability. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2024; 121:e2322582121. [PMID: 38381787 PMCID: PMC10907268 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2322582121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/29/2023] [Accepted: 01/26/2024] [Indexed: 02/23/2024] Open
Abstract
Nascent proteins destined for the cell membrane and the secretory pathway are targeted to the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) either posttranslationally or cotranslationally. The signal-independent pathway, containing the protein TMEM208, is one of three pathways that facilitates the translocation of nascent proteins into the ER. The in vivo function of this protein is ill characterized in multicellular organisms. Here, we generated a CRISPR-induced null allele of the fruit fly ortholog CG8320/Tmem208 by replacing the gene with the Kozak-GAL4 sequence. We show that Tmem208 is broadly expressed in flies and that its loss causes lethality, although a few short-lived flies eclose. These animals exhibit wing and eye developmental defects consistent with impaired cell polarity and display mild ER stress. Tmem208 physically interacts with Frizzled (Fz), a planar cell polarity (PCP) receptor, and is required to maintain proper levels of Fz. Moreover, we identified a child with compound heterozygous variants in TMEM208 who presents with developmental delay, skeletal abnormalities, multiple hair whorls, cardiac, and neurological issues, symptoms that are associated with PCP defects in mice and humans. Additionally, fibroblasts of the proband display mild ER stress. Expression of the reference human TMEM208 in flies fully rescues the loss of Tmem208, and the two proband-specific variants fail to rescue, suggesting that they are loss-of-function alleles. In summary, our study uncovers a role of TMEM208 in development, shedding light on its significance in ER homeostasis and cell polarity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Debdeep Dutta
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX77030
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, TX77030
| | - Oguz Kanca
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX77030
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, TX77030
| | - Rishi V. Shridharan
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX77030
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, TX77030
| | - Paul C. Marcogliese
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX77030
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, TX77030
| | - Benjamin Steger
- NIH Undiagnosed Diseases Program, National Human Genome Research Institute, NIH, Bethesda, MD20892
| | - Marie Morimoto
- NIH Undiagnosed Diseases Program, National Human Genome Research Institute, NIH, Bethesda, MD20892
| | - F. Graeme Frost
- NIH Undiagnosed Diseases Program, National Human Genome Research Institute, NIH, Bethesda, MD20892
| | - Ellen Macnamara
- NIH Undiagnosed Diseases Program, National Human Genome Research Institute, NIH, Bethesda, MD20892
| | | | - Michael F. Wangler
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX77030
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, TX77030
| | - Shinya Yamamoto
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX77030
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, TX77030
| | - Andreas Jenny
- Department of Developmental and Molecular Biology, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, New York, NY10461
- Department of Genetics, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, New York, NY10461
| | - David Adams
- NIH Undiagnosed Diseases Program, National Human Genome Research Institute, NIH, Bethesda, MD20892
| | - May C. Malicdan
- NIH Undiagnosed Diseases Program, National Human Genome Research Institute, NIH, Bethesda, MD20892
| | - Hugo J. Bellen
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX77030
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, TX77030
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11
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Ma M, Zheng Y, Lu S, Pan X, Worley KC, Burrage LC, Blieden LS, Allworth A, Chen WL, Merla G, Mandriani B, Rosenfeld JA, Li-Kroeger D, Dutta D, Yamamoto S, Wangler MF, Glass IA, Strohbehn S, Blue E, Prontera P, Lalani SR, Bellen HJ. De novo variants in PLCG1 are associated with hearing impairment, ocular pathology, and cardiac defects. MEDRXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR HEALTH SCIENCES 2024:2024.01.08.23300523. [PMID: 38260438 PMCID: PMC10802640 DOI: 10.1101/2024.01.08.23300523] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/24/2024]
Abstract
Phospholipase C isozymes (PLCs) hydrolyze phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate into inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate and diacylglycerol, important signaling molecules involved in many cellular processes. PLCG1 encodes the PLCγ1 isozyme that is broadly expressed. Hyperactive somatic mutations of PLCG1 are observed in multiple cancers, but only one germline variant has been reported. Here we describe three unrelated individuals with de novo heterozygous missense variants in PLCG1 (p.Asp1019Gly, p.His380Arg, and p.Asp1165Gly) who exhibit variable phenotypes including hearing loss, ocular pathology and cardiac septal defects. To model these variants in vivo, we generated the analogous variants in the Drosophila ortholog, small wing (sl). We created a null allele slT2A and assessed the expression pattern. sl is broadly expressed, including in wing discs, eye discs, and a subset of neurons and glia. Loss of sl causes wing size reductions, ectopic wing veins and supernumerary photoreceptors. We document that mutant flies exhibit a reduced lifespan and age-dependent locomotor defects. Expressing wild-type sl in slT2A mutant rescues the loss-of-function phenotypes whereas expressing the variants causes lethality. Ubiquitous overexpression of the variants also reduces viability, suggesting that the variants are toxic. Ectopic expression of an established hyperactive PLCG1 variant (p.Asp1165His) in the wing pouch causes severe wing phenotypes, resembling those observed with overexpression of the p.Asp1019Gly or p.Asp1165Gly variants, further arguing that these two are gain-of-function variants. However, the wing phenotypes associated with p.His380Arg overexpression are mild. Our data suggest that the PLCG1 de novo heterozygous missense variants are pathogenic and contribute to the features observed in the probands.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mengqi Ma
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Yiming Zheng
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Current affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Cellular Stress Biology, School of Life Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Life Sciences, Xiamen University, Xiamen 361102, China
| | - Shenzhao Lu
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Xueyang Pan
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Kim C. Worley
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Lindsay C. Burrage
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Lauren S. Blieden
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Aimee Allworth
- Division of Medical Genetics, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - Wei-Liang Chen
- Division of Medical Genetics, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
- Current affiliation: Children’s National Medical Center and George Washington University, Washington DC 20010, USA
| | - Giuseppe Merla
- Laboratory of Regulatory & Functional Genomics, Fondazione IRCCS Casa Sollievo della Sofferenza, San Giovanni Rotondo, Foggia 71013, Italy
- Department of Molecular Medicine & Medical Biotechnology, University of Naples Federico II, Naples 80131, Italy
| | - Barbara Mandriani
- Department of Interdisciplinary Medicine, University of Bari “Aldo Moro”, Bari 70121, Italy
| | - Jill A. Rosenfeld
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - David Li-Kroeger
- Department of Neurology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Debdeep Dutta
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Shinya Yamamoto
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Michael F. Wangler
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | | | - Ian A. Glass
- Division of Medical Genetics, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
- Division of Genetic Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
- Brotman Baty Institute, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - Sam Strohbehn
- Division of Medical Genetics, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - Elizabeth Blue
- Division of Medical Genetics, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
- Brotman Baty Institute, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
- Institute for Public Health Genetics, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - Paolo Prontera
- Medical Genetics Unit, Hospital of Perugia, Perugia 06129, Italy
| | - Seema R. Lalani
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Hugo J. Bellen
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
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12
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Yamamoto S, Kanca O, Wangler MF, Bellen HJ. Integrating non-mammalian model organisms in the diagnosis of rare genetic diseases in humans. Nat Rev Genet 2024; 25:46-60. [PMID: 37491400 DOI: 10.1038/s41576-023-00633-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 06/26/2023] [Indexed: 07/27/2023]
Abstract
Next-generation sequencing technology has rapidly accelerated the discovery of genetic variants of interest in individuals with rare diseases. However, showing that these variants are causative of the disease in question is complex and may require functional studies. Use of non-mammalian model organisms - mainly fruitflies (Drosophila melanogaster), nematode worms (Caenorhabditis elegans) and zebrafish (Danio rerio) - enables the rapid and cost-effective assessment of the effects of gene variants, which can then be validated in mammalian model organisms such as mice and in human cells. By probing mechanisms of gene action and identifying interacting genes and proteins in vivo, recent studies in these non-mammalian model organisms have facilitated the diagnosis of numerous genetic diseases and have enabled the screening and identification of therapeutic options for patients. Studies in non-mammalian model organisms have also shown that the biological processes underlying rare diseases can provide insight into more common mechanisms of disease and the biological functions of genes. Here, we discuss the opportunities afforded by non-mammalian model organisms, focusing on flies, worms and fish, and provide examples of their use in the diagnosis of rare genetic diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shinya Yamamoto
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX, USA
- Department of Neuroscience, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Oguz Kanca
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Michael F Wangler
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA.
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX, USA.
| | - Hugo J Bellen
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA.
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX, USA.
- Department of Neuroscience, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA.
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13
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Cevik S, Zhao P, Zorluer A, Pir MS, Bian W, Kaplan OI. Matching variants for functional characterization of genetic variants. G3 (BETHESDA, MD.) 2023; 13:jkad227. [PMID: 37933433 PMCID: PMC10700107 DOI: 10.1093/g3journal/jkad227] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2023] [Accepted: 09/06/2023] [Indexed: 11/08/2023]
Abstract
Rapid and low-cost sequencing, as well as computer analysis, have facilitated the diagnosis of many genetic diseases, resulting in a substantial rise in the number of disease-associated genes. However, genetic diagnosis of many disorders remains problematic due to the lack of interpretation for many genetic variants, especially missenses, the infeasibility of high-throughput experiments on mammals, and the shortcomings of computational prediction technologies. Additionally, the available mutant databases are not well-utilized. Toward this end, we used Caenorhabditis elegans mutant resources to delineate the functions of eight missense variants (V444I, V517D, E610K, L732F, E817K, H873P, R1105K, and G1205E) and two stop codons (W937stop and Q1434stop), including several matching variants (MatchVar) with human in ciliopathy associated IFT-140 (also called CHE-11)//IFT140 (intraflagellar transport protein 140). Moreover, MatchVars carrying C. elegans mutants, including IFT-140(G680S) and IFT-140(P702A) for the human (G704S) (dbSNP: rs150745099) and P726A (dbSNP: rs1057518064 and a conflicting variation) were created using CRISPR/Cas9. IFT140 is a key component of IFT complex A (IFT-A), which is involved in the retrograde transport of IFT along cilia and the entrance of G protein-coupled receptors into cilia. Functional analysis of all 10 variants revealed that P702A and W937stop, but not others phenocopied the ciliary phenotypes (short cilia, IFT accumulations, mislocalization of membrane proteins, and cilia entry of nonciliary proteins) of the IFT-140 null mutant, indicating that both P702A and W937stop are phenotypic in C. elegans. Our functional data offered experimental support for interpreting human variants, by using ready-to-use mutants carrying MatchVars and generating MatchVars with CRISPR/Cas9.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sebiha Cevik
- Rare Disease Laboratory, School of Life and Natural Sciences, Abdullah Gul University, Kayseri 38080, Turkey
| | - Pei Zhao
- School of Applied Science and Engineering, Fuzhou Institute of Technology, Fuzhou 350014, China
- SunyBiotech Co., Ltd., Fuzhou 35000, China
| | - Atiyye Zorluer
- Rare Disease Laboratory, School of Life and Natural Sciences, Abdullah Gul University, Kayseri 38080, Turkey
| | - Mustafa S Pir
- Rare Disease Laboratory, School of Life and Natural Sciences, Abdullah Gul University, Kayseri 38080, Turkey
| | | | - Oktay I Kaplan
- Rare Disease Laboratory, School of Life and Natural Sciences, Abdullah Gul University, Kayseri 38080, Turkey
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14
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Mohr SE, Kim AR, Hu Y, Perrimon N. Finding information about uncharacterized Drosophila melanogaster genes. Genetics 2023; 225:iyad187. [PMID: 37933691 PMCID: PMC10697813 DOI: 10.1093/genetics/iyad187] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2023] [Accepted: 10/02/2023] [Indexed: 11/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Genes that have been identified in the genome but remain uncharacterized with regards to function offer an opportunity to uncover novel biological information. Novelty is exciting but can also be a barrier. If nothing is known, how does one start planning and executing experiments? Here, we provide a recommended information-mining workflow and a corresponding guide to accessing information about uncharacterized Drosophila melanogaster genes, such as those assigned only a systematic coding gene identifier. The available information can provide insights into where and when the gene is expressed, what the function of the gene might be, whether there are similar genes in other species, whether there are known relationships to other genes, and whether any other features have already been determined. In addition, available information about relevant reagents can inspire and facilitate experimental studies. Altogether, mining available information can help prioritize genes for further study, as well as provide starting points for experimental assays and other analyses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephanie E Mohr
- Department of Genetics, Blavatnik Institute, Harvard Medical School, 77 Avenue Louis Pasteur, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Ah-Ram Kim
- Department of Genetics, Blavatnik Institute, Harvard Medical School, 77 Avenue Louis Pasteur, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Yanhui Hu
- Department of Genetics, Blavatnik Institute, Harvard Medical School, 77 Avenue Louis Pasteur, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Norbert Perrimon
- Department of Genetics, Blavatnik Institute, Harvard Medical School, 77 Avenue Louis Pasteur, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Boston, MA 02115, USA
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15
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Bosch JA, Keith N, Escobedo F, Fisher WW, LaGraff JT, Rabasco J, Wan KH, Weiszmann R, Hu Y, Kondo S, Brown JB, Perrimon N, Celniker SE. Molecular and functional characterization of the Drosophila melanogaster conserved smORFome. Cell Rep 2023; 42:113311. [PMID: 37889754 PMCID: PMC10843857 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2023.113311] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/02/2022] [Revised: 08/24/2023] [Accepted: 10/04/2023] [Indexed: 10/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Short polypeptides encoded by small open reading frames (smORFs) are ubiquitously found in eukaryotic genomes and are important regulators of physiology, development, and mitochondrial processes. Here, we focus on a subset of 298 smORFs that are evolutionarily conserved between Drosophila melanogaster and humans. Many of these smORFs are conserved broadly in the bilaterian lineage, and ∼182 are conserved in plants. We observe remarkably heterogeneous spatial and temporal expression patterns of smORF transcripts-indicating wide-spread tissue-specific and stage-specific mitochondrial architectures. In addition, an analysis of annotated functional domains reveals a predicted enrichment of smORF polypeptides localizing to mitochondria. We conduct an embryonic ribosome profiling experiment and find support for translation of 137 of these smORFs during embryogenesis. We further embark on functional characterization using CRISPR knockout/activation, RNAi knockdown, and cDNA overexpression, revealing diverse phenotypes. This study underscores the importance of identifying smORF function in disease and phenotypic diversity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Justin A Bosch
- Department of Genetics, Blavatnik Institute, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Nathan Keith
- Division of Biological Systems and Engineering, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; Division of Environmental Genomics and Systems Biology, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Felipe Escobedo
- Department of Genetics, Blavatnik Institute, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - William W Fisher
- Division of Biological Systems and Engineering, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - James Thai LaGraff
- Department of Genetics, Blavatnik Institute, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Jorden Rabasco
- Department of Genetics, Blavatnik Institute, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Kenneth H Wan
- Division of Biological Systems and Engineering, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Richard Weiszmann
- Division of Biological Systems and Engineering, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Yanhui Hu
- Department of Genetics, Blavatnik Institute, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Shu Kondo
- Laboratory of Invertebrate Genetics, National Institute of Genetics, Mishima, Shizuoka 411-8540, Japan
| | - James B Brown
- Division of Biological Systems and Engineering, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; Division of Environmental Genomics and Systems Biology, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA.
| | - Norbert Perrimon
- Department of Genetics, Blavatnik Institute, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA; Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
| | - Susan E Celniker
- Division of Biological Systems and Engineering, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA.
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16
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Nil Z, Deshwar AR, Huang Y, Barish S, Zhang X, Choufani S, Le Quesne Stabej P, Hayes I, Yap P, Haldeman-Englert C, Wilson C, Prescott T, Tveten K, Vøllo A, Haynes D, Wheeler PG, Zon J, Cytrynbaum C, Jobling R, Blyth M, Banka S, Afenjar A, Mignot C, Robin-Renaldo F, Keren B, Kanca O, Mao X, Wegner DJ, Sisco K, Shinawi M, Wangler MF, Weksberg R, Yamamoto S, Costain G, Bellen HJ. Rare de novo gain-of-function missense variants in DOT1L are associated with developmental delay and congenital anomalies. Am J Hum Genet 2023; 110:1919-1937. [PMID: 37827158 PMCID: PMC10645550 DOI: 10.1016/j.ajhg.2023.09.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2023] [Revised: 09/18/2023] [Accepted: 09/18/2023] [Indexed: 10/14/2023] Open
Abstract
Misregulation of histone lysine methylation is associated with several human cancers and with human developmental disorders. DOT1L is an evolutionarily conserved gene encoding a lysine methyltransferase (KMT) that methylates histone 3 lysine-79 (H3K79) and was not previously associated with a Mendelian disease in OMIM. We have identified nine unrelated individuals with seven different de novo heterozygous missense variants in DOT1L through the Undiagnosed Disease Network (UDN), the SickKids Complex Care genomics project, and GeneMatcher. All probands had some degree of global developmental delay/intellectual disability, and most had one or more major congenital anomalies. To assess the pathogenicity of the DOT1L variants, functional studies were performed in Drosophila and human cells. The fruit fly DOT1L ortholog, grappa, is expressed in most cells including neurons in the central nervous system. The identified DOT1L variants behave as gain-of-function alleles in flies and lead to increased H3K79 methylation levels in flies and human cells. Our results show that human DOT1L and fly grappa are required for proper development and that de novo heterozygous variants in DOT1L are associated with a Mendelian disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zelha Nil
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Ashish R Deshwar
- Division of Clinical and Metabolic Genetics, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada; Program in Genetics and Genome Biology, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Yan Huang
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Scott Barish
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Xi Zhang
- Department of Neurology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha 410008, China; National Health Commission Key Laboratory for Birth Defect Research and Prevention, Hunan Provincial Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital, Changsha 410005, China
| | - Sanaa Choufani
- Program in Genetics and Genome Biology, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Polona Le Quesne Stabej
- Department of Molecular Medicine and Pathology, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, the University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Ian Hayes
- Genetic Health Service New Zealand- Northern Hub, Auckland District Health Board, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Patrick Yap
- Genetic Health Service New Zealand- Northern Hub, Auckland District Health Board, Auckland, New Zealand
| | | | - Carolyn Wilson
- Mission Fullerton Genetics Center, Asheville, NC 28803, USA
| | - Trine Prescott
- Department of Medical Genetics, Telemark Hospital Trust, 3710 Skien, Norway
| | - Kristian Tveten
- Department of Medical Genetics, Telemark Hospital Trust, 3710 Skien, Norway
| | - Arve Vøllo
- Department of Pediatrics, Hospital of Østfold, 1714 Grålum, Norway
| | - Devon Haynes
- Division of Genetics, Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children - Orlando Health, Orlando, FL, USA; Clinical Genetics Service, Guy's Hospital, Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Trust, London, England, UK
| | - Patricia G Wheeler
- Division of Genetics, Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children - Orlando Health, Orlando, FL, USA
| | - Jessica Zon
- Division of Clinical and Metabolic Genetics, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Cheryl Cytrynbaum
- Division of Clinical and Metabolic Genetics, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada; Program in Genetics and Genome Biology, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Rebekah Jobling
- Division of Clinical and Metabolic Genetics, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Moira Blyth
- North of Scotland Regional Genetics Service, Clinical Genetics Centre, Ashgrove House, Foresterhill, Aberdeen, UK
| | - Siddharth Banka
- Division of Evolution, Infection and Genomics, School of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, University of Manchester, M13 9WL Manchester, UK; Manchester Centre for Genomic Medicine, St Mary's Hospital, Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, Health Innovation Manchester, M13 9WL Manchester, UK
| | - Alexandra Afenjar
- Service de génétique, CRMR des malformations et maladies congénitales du cervelet et CRMR déficience intellectuelle, hôpital Trousseau, AP-HP, Paris, France
| | - Cyril Mignot
- Sorbonne Université, Département de Génétique, Groupe Hospitalier Pitié-Salpêtrière and Hôpital Trousseau, Paris, France; Centre de Référence Déficiences Intellectuelles de Causes Rares, Paris, France
| | | | - Boris Keren
- AP-HP, Hôpital de la Pitié-Salpêtrière, Département de Génétique, 75013 Paris, France
| | - Oguz Kanca
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Xiao Mao
- National Health Commission Key Laboratory for Birth Defect Research and Prevention, Hunan Provincial Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital, Changsha 410005, China; Clinical Research Center for Placental Medicine in Hunan Province, Hunan Provincial Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital, Changsha 410005, China
| | - Daniel J Wegner
- Department of Pediatrics, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
| | - Kathleen Sisco
- Department of Pediatrics, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
| | - Marwan Shinawi
- Department of Pediatrics, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
| | - Michael F Wangler
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Rosanna Weksberg
- Division of Clinical and Metabolic Genetics, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada; Department of Neurology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha 410008, China; Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Shinya Yamamoto
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Department of Neuroscience, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Gregory Costain
- Division of Clinical and Metabolic Genetics, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada; Program in Genetics and Genome Biology, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada; Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
| | - Hugo J Bellen
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Department of Neuroscience, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
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17
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Dutta D, Kanca O, Byeon SK, Marcogliese PC, Zuo Z, Shridharan RV, Park JH, Lin G, Ge M, Heimer G, Kohler JN, Wheeler MT, Kaipparettu BA, Pandey A, Bellen HJ. A defect in mitochondrial fatty acid synthesis impairs iron metabolism and causes elevated ceramide levels. Nat Metab 2023; 5:1595-1614. [PMID: 37653044 PMCID: PMC11151872 DOI: 10.1038/s42255-023-00873-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2022] [Accepted: 07/21/2023] [Indexed: 09/02/2023]
Abstract
In most eukaryotic cells, fatty acid synthesis (FAS) occurs in the cytoplasm and in mitochondria. However, the relative contribution of mitochondrial FAS (mtFAS) to the cellular lipidome is not well defined. Here we show that loss of function of Drosophila mitochondrial enoyl coenzyme A reductase (Mecr), which is the enzyme required for the last step of mtFAS, causes lethality, while neuronal loss of Mecr leads to progressive neurodegeneration. We observe a defect in Fe-S cluster biogenesis and increased iron levels in flies lacking mecr, leading to elevated ceramide levels. Reducing the levels of either iron or ceramide suppresses the neurodegenerative phenotypes, indicating an interplay between ceramide and iron metabolism. Mutations in human MECR cause pediatric-onset neurodegeneration, and we show that human-derived fibroblasts display similar elevated ceramide levels and impaired iron homeostasis. In summary, this study identifies a role of mecr/MECR in ceramide and iron metabolism, providing a mechanistic link between mtFAS and neurodegeneration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Debdeep Dutta
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Oguz Kanca
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Seul Kee Byeon
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA
| | - Paul C Marcogliese
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX, USA
- Department of Biochemistry & Medical Genetics, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
| | - Zhongyuan Zuo
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Rishi V Shridharan
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Jun Hyoung Park
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Guang Lin
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Ming Ge
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Gali Heimer
- Pediatric Neurology Unit, Edmond and Lily Safra Children's Hospital, Sheba Medical Center, Ramat Gan, Israel
- The Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Jennefer N Kohler
- Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Matthew T Wheeler
- Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Benny A Kaipparettu
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Akhilesh Pandey
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA
- Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, India
| | - Hugo J Bellen
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA.
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX, USA.
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18
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Jangam SV, Briere LC, Jay KL, Andrews JC, Walker MA, Rodan LH, High FA, Yamamoto S, Sweetser DA, Wangler MF. A de novo missense variant in EZH1 associated with developmental delay exhibits functional deficits in Drosophila melanogaster. Genetics 2023; 224:iyad110. [PMID: 37314226 PMCID: PMC10411565 DOI: 10.1093/genetics/iyad110] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2023] [Revised: 01/13/2023] [Accepted: 05/31/2023] [Indexed: 06/15/2023] Open
Abstract
EZH1, a polycomb repressive complex-2 component, is involved in a myriad of cellular processes. EZH1 represses transcription of downstream target genes through histone 3 lysine27 (H3K27) trimethylation (H3K27me3). Genetic variants in histone modifiers have been associated with developmental disorders, while EZH1 has not yet been linked to any human disease. However, the paralog EZH2 is associated with Weaver syndrome. Here we report a previously undiagnosed individual with a novel neurodevelopmental phenotype identified to have a de novo missense variant in EZH1 through exome sequencing. The individual presented in infancy with neurodevelopmental delay and hypotonia and was later noted to have proximal muscle weakness. The variant, p.A678G, is in the SET domain, known for its methyltransferase activity, and an analogous somatic or germline mutation in EZH2 has been reported in patients with B-cell lymphoma or Weaver syndrome, respectively. Human EZH1/2 are homologous to fly Enhancer of zeste (E(z)), an essential gene in Drosophila, and the affected residue (p.A678 in humans, p.A691 in flies) is conserved. To further study this variant, we obtained null alleles and generated transgenic flies expressing wildtype [E(z)WT] and the variant [E(z)A691G]. When expressed ubiquitously the variant rescues null-lethality similar to the wildtype. Overexpression of E(z)WT induces homeotic patterning defects but notably the E(z)A691G variant leads to dramatically stronger morphological phenotypes. We also note a dramatic loss of H3K27me2 and a corresponding increase in H3K27me3 in flies expressing E(z)A691G, suggesting this acts as a gain-of-function allele. In conclusion, here we present a novel EZH1 de novo variant associated with a neurodevelopmental disorder. Furthermore, we found that this variant has a functional impact in Drosophila.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sharayu V Jangam
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Lauren C Briere
- Center for Genomic Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA
| | - Kristy L Jay
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Jonathan C Andrews
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Melissa A Walker
- Department of Neurology, Division of Neurogenetics, Child Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA
| | - Lance H Rodan
- Department of Neurology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Frances A High
- Division of Medical Genetics and Metabolism, Massachusetts General Hospital for Children, Boston, MA 02114, USA
| | | | - Shinya Yamamoto
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Department of Neuroscience, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - David A Sweetser
- Center for Genomic Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA
- Division of Medical Genetics and Metabolism, Massachusetts General Hospital for Children, Boston, MA 02114, USA
| | - Michael F Wangler
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
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19
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Thaweesapphithak S, Theerapanon T, Rattanapornsompong K, Intarak N, Kanpittaya P, Trachoo V, Porntaveetus T, Shotelersuk V. Functional consequences of C-terminal mutations in RUNX2. Sci Rep 2023; 13:12202. [PMID: 37500953 PMCID: PMC10374887 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-39293-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2023] [Accepted: 07/22/2023] [Indexed: 07/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Cleidocranial dysplasia (CCD) is a genetic disorder caused by mutations in the RUNX2 gene, affecting bone and teeth development. Previous studies focused on mutations in the RUNX2 RHD domain, with limited investigation of mutations in the C-terminal domain. This study aimed to investigate the functional consequences of C-terminal mutations in RUNX2. Eight mutations were analyzed, and their effects on transactivation activity, protein expression, subcellular localization, and osteogenic potential were studied. Truncating mutations in the PST region and a missense mutation in the NMTS region resulted in increased transactivation activity, while missense mutations in the PST showed activity comparable to the control. Truncating mutations produced truncated proteins, while missense mutations produced normal-sized proteins. Mutant proteins were mislocalized, with six mutant proteins detected in both the nucleus and cytoplasm. CCD patient bone cells exhibited mislocalization of RUNX2, similar to the generated mutant. Mislocalization of RUNX2 and reduced expression of downstream genes were observed in MSCs from a CCD patient with the p.Ser247Valfs*3 mutation, leading to compromised osteogenic potential. This study provides insight into the functional consequences of C-terminal mutations in RUNX2, including reduced expression, mislocalization, and aberrant transactivation of downstream genes, contributing to the compromised osteogenic potential observed in CCD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sermporn Thaweesapphithak
- Center of Excellence in Genomics and Precision Dentistry, Department of Physiology, Faculty of Dentistry, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, 10330, Thailand
- Graduate Program in Oral Biology, Faculty of Dentistry, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand
| | - Thanakorn Theerapanon
- Center of Excellence in Genomics and Precision Dentistry, Department of Physiology, Faculty of Dentistry, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, 10330, Thailand
| | - Khanti Rattanapornsompong
- Center of Excellence in Genomics and Precision Dentistry, Department of Physiology, Faculty of Dentistry, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, 10330, Thailand
| | - Narin Intarak
- Center of Excellence in Genomics and Precision Dentistry, Department of Physiology, Faculty of Dentistry, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, 10330, Thailand
| | - Pimsiri Kanpittaya
- Department of Orthodontics, Faculty of Dentistry, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand
| | - Vorapat Trachoo
- Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Faculty of Dentistry, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand
| | - Thantrira Porntaveetus
- Center of Excellence in Genomics and Precision Dentistry, Department of Physiology, Faculty of Dentistry, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, 10330, Thailand.
- Graduate Program in Geriatric and Special Patients Care, Faculty of Dentistry, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand.
| | - Vorasuk Shotelersuk
- Center of Excellence for Medical Genomics, Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand
- Excellence Center for Genomics and Precision Medicine, King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital, the Thai Red Cross Society, Bangkok, Thailand
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20
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Hu Y, Comjean A, Attrill H, Antonazzo G, Thurmond J, Chen W, Li F, Chao T, Mohr SE, Brown NH, Perrimon N. PANGEA: a new gene set enrichment tool for Drosophila and common research organisms. Nucleic Acids Res 2023; 51:W419-W426. [PMID: 37125646 PMCID: PMC10320058 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkad331] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2023] [Revised: 03/28/2023] [Accepted: 04/29/2023] [Indexed: 05/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) plays an important role in large-scale data analysis, helping scientists discover the underlying biological patterns over-represented in a gene list resulting from, for example, an 'omics' study. Gene Ontology (GO) annotation is the most frequently used classification mechanism for gene set definition. Here we present a new GSEA tool, PANGEA (PAthway, Network and Gene-set Enrichment Analysis; https://www.flyrnai.org/tools/pangea/), developed to allow a more flexible and configurable approach to data analysis using a variety of classification sets. PANGEA allows GO analysis to be performed on different sets of GO annotations, for example excluding high-throughput studies. Beyond GO, gene sets for pathway annotation and protein complex data from various resources as well as expression and disease annotation from the Alliance of Genome Resources (Alliance). In addition, visualizations of results are enhanced by providing an option to view network of gene set to gene relationships. The tool also allows comparison of multiple input gene lists and accompanying visualisation tools for quick and easy comparison. This new tool will facilitate GSEA for Drosophila and other major model organisms based on high-quality annotated information available for these species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yanhui Hu
- Department of Genetics, Blavatnik Institute, Harvard Medical School, Harvard University, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Drosophila RNAi Screening Center, Harvard Medical School, 77 Avenue Louis Pasteur, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Aram Comjean
- Department of Genetics, Blavatnik Institute, Harvard Medical School, Harvard University, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Drosophila RNAi Screening Center, Harvard Medical School, 77 Avenue Louis Pasteur, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Helen Attrill
- Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3DY, UK
| | - Giulia Antonazzo
- Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3DY, UK
| | - Jim Thurmond
- Department of Biology, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN 47405, USA
| | - Weihang Chen
- Department of Genetics, Blavatnik Institute, Harvard Medical School, Harvard University, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Drosophila RNAi Screening Center, Harvard Medical School, 77 Avenue Louis Pasteur, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Fangge Li
- Drosophila RNAi Screening Center, Harvard Medical School, 77 Avenue Louis Pasteur, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Tiffany Chao
- Drosophila RNAi Screening Center, Harvard Medical School, 77 Avenue Louis Pasteur, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Stephanie E Mohr
- Department of Genetics, Blavatnik Institute, Harvard Medical School, Harvard University, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Drosophila RNAi Screening Center, Harvard Medical School, 77 Avenue Louis Pasteur, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Nicholas H Brown
- Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3DY, UK
| | - Norbert Perrimon
- Department of Genetics, Blavatnik Institute, Harvard Medical School, Harvard University, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Drosophila RNAi Screening Center, Harvard Medical School, 77 Avenue Louis Pasteur, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Boston, MA 02138, USA
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21
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Chen P, Huang R, Hazbun TR. Unlocking the Mysteries of Alpha-N-Terminal Methylation and its Diverse Regulatory Functions. J Biol Chem 2023:104843. [PMID: 37209820 PMCID: PMC10293735 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2023.104843] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/17/2022] [Revised: 05/11/2023] [Accepted: 05/12/2023] [Indexed: 05/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Protein post-translation modifications (PTMs) are a critical regulatory mechanism of protein function. Protein α-N-terminal (Nα) methylation is a conserved PTM across prokaryotes and eukaryotes. Studies of the Nα methyltransferases responsible for Να methylation and their substrate proteins have shown that the PTM involves diverse biological processes, including protein synthesis and degradation, cell division, DNA damage response, and transcription regulation. This review provides an overview of the progress toward the regulatory function of Να methyltransferases and their substrate landscape. More than 200 proteins in humans and 45 in yeast are potential substrates for protein Nα methylation based on the canonical recognition motif, XP[KR]. Based on recent evidence for a less stringent motif requirement, the number of substrates might be increased, but further validation is needed to solidify this concept. A comparison of the motif in substrate orthologs in selected eukaryotic species indicates intriguing gain and loss of the motif across the evolutionary landscape. We discuss the state of knowledge in the field that has provided insights into the regulation of protein Να methyltransferases and their role in cellular physiology and disease. We also outline the current research tools that are key to understanding Να methylation. Finally, challenges are identified and discussed that would aid in unlocking a system-level view of the roles of Να methylation in diverse cellular pathways.
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Affiliation(s)
- Panyue Chen
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana 47907, United States
| | - Rong Huang
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana 47907, United States; Purdue University Center for Cancer Research, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana 47907, United States
| | - Tony R Hazbun
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana 47907, United States; Purdue University Center for Cancer Research, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana 47907, United States.
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22
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Tepe B, Macke EL, Niceta M, Weisz Hubshman M, Kanca O, Schultz-Rogers L, Zarate YA, Schaefer GB, Granadillo De Luque JL, Wegner DJ, Cogne B, Gilbert-Dussardier B, Le Guillou X, Wagner EJ, Pais LS, Neil JE, Mochida GH, Walsh CA, Magal N, Drasinover V, Shohat M, Schwab T, Schmitz C, Clark K, Fine A, Lanpher B, Gavrilova R, Blanc P, Burglen L, Afenjar A, Steel D, Kurian MA, Prabhakar P, Gößwein S, Di Donato N, Bertini ES, Wangler MF, Yamamoto S, Tartaglia M, Klee EW, Bellen HJ. Bi-allelic variants in INTS11 are associated with a complex neurological disorder. Am J Hum Genet 2023; 110:774-789. [PMID: 37054711 PMCID: PMC10183469 DOI: 10.1016/j.ajhg.2023.03.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2023] [Accepted: 03/18/2023] [Indexed: 04/15/2023] Open
Abstract
The Integrator complex is a multi-subunit protein complex that regulates the processing of nascent RNAs transcribed by RNA polymerase II (RNAPII), including small nuclear RNAs, enhancer RNAs, telomeric RNAs, viral RNAs, and protein-coding mRNAs. Integrator subunit 11 (INTS11) is the catalytic subunit that cleaves nascent RNAs, but, to date, mutations in this subunit have not been linked to human disease. Here, we describe 15 individuals from 10 unrelated families with bi-allelic variants in INTS11 who present with global developmental and language delay, intellectual disability, impaired motor development, and brain atrophy. Consistent with human observations, we find that the fly ortholog of INTS11, dIntS11, is essential and expressed in the central nervous systems in a subset of neurons and most glia in larval and adult stages. Using Drosophila as a model, we investigated the effect of seven variants. We found that two (p.Arg17Leu and p.His414Tyr) fail to rescue the lethality of null mutants, indicating that they are strong loss-of-function variants. Furthermore, we found that five variants (p.Gly55Ser, p.Leu138Phe, p.Lys396Glu, p.Val517Met, and p.Ile553Glu) rescue lethality but cause a shortened lifespan and bang sensitivity and affect locomotor activity, indicating that they are partial loss-of-function variants. Altogether, our results provide compelling evidence that integrity of the Integrator RNA endonuclease is critical for brain development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Burak Tepe
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Erica L Macke
- Center for Individualized Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | - Marcello Niceta
- Molecular Genetics and Functional Genomics, Ospedale Pediatrico Bambino Gesù, IRCCS, Rome, Italy
| | - Monika Weisz Hubshman
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Oguz Kanca
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | | | - Yuri A Zarate
- Division of Genetics and Metabolism, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY, USA
| | - G Bradley Schaefer
- Section of Genetics and Metabolism, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, USA
| | - Jorge Luis Granadillo De Luque
- Division of Genetics and Genomic Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Daniel J Wegner
- Edward Mallinckrodt Department of Pediatrics, Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine and St. Louis Children's Hospital, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Benjamin Cogne
- Laboratory of Molecular Genetics, CHU de Nantes, Nantes, France
| | | | | | - Eric J Wagner
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Center for RNA Biology, University of Rochester School of Medicine, Rochester, NY 14642, USA
| | - Lynn S Pais
- Division of Genetics and Genomics, and Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Boston Children's Hospital, and Departments of Pediatrics and Neurology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; Program in Medical and Population Genetics, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Jennifer E Neil
- Division of Genetics and Genomics, and Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Boston Children's Hospital, and Departments of Pediatrics and Neurology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Ganeshwaran H Mochida
- Division of Genetics and Genomics, and Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Boston Children's Hospital, and Departments of Pediatrics and Neurology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Christopher A Walsh
- Division of Genetics and Genomics, and Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Boston Children's Hospital, and Departments of Pediatrics and Neurology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Nurit Magal
- The Raphael Recanati Genetic Institute, Rabin Medical Center, Petach Tikva, Israel
| | - Valerie Drasinover
- The Raphael Recanati Genetic Institute, Rabin Medical Center, Petach Tikva, Israel
| | - Mordechai Shohat
- Cancer Research Center, Chaim Sheba Medical Center, Ramat Gan, Israel; Medical Genetics Institute of Maccabi HMO, Rechovot, Israel
| | - Tanya Schwab
- Center for Individualized Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | - Chris Schmitz
- Center for Individualized Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | - Karl Clark
- Center for Individualized Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | - Anthony Fine
- Department of Neurology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | - Brendan Lanpher
- Department of Clinical Genomics, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | - Ralitza Gavrilova
- Department of Clinical Genomics, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | - Pierre Blanc
- APHP, Département de génétique, Sorbonne Université, GRC n°19, ConCer-LD, Centre de Référence déficiences intellectuelles de causes rares, Hôpital Armand Trousseau, 75012 Paris, France
| | - Lydie Burglen
- APHP, Département de génétique, Sorbonne Université, GRC n°19, ConCer-LD, Centre de Référence déficiences intellectuelles de causes rares, Hôpital Armand Trousseau, 75012 Paris, France
| | - Alexandra Afenjar
- APHP. SU, Centre de Référence Malformations et maladies congénitales du cervelet, département de génétique et embryologie médicale, Hôpital Trousseau, 75012 Paris, France
| | - Dora Steel
- Developmental Neurosciences, Zayed Centre for Research into Rare Disease in Children, UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, London, UK; Department of Neurology, Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children, London, UK
| | - Manju A Kurian
- Developmental Neurosciences, Zayed Centre for Research into Rare Disease in Children, UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, London, UK; Department of Neurology, Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children, London, UK
| | - Prab Prabhakar
- Department of Neurology, Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children, London, UK
| | - Sophie Gößwein
- Institute for Clinical Genetics, University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus at the Technische Universität Dresden, Fetscherstrasse 74, 01307 Dresden, Germany
| | - Nataliya Di Donato
- Institute for Clinical Genetics, University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus at the Technische Universität Dresden, Fetscherstrasse 74, 01307 Dresden, Germany
| | - Enrico S Bertini
- Unit of Neuromuscular and Neurodegenerative Disorders, Ospedale Pediatrico Bambino Gesù, IRCCS, Rome, Italy
| | - Michael F Wangler
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Shinya Yamamoto
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Department of Neuroscience, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Marco Tartaglia
- Molecular Genetics and Functional Genomics, Ospedale Pediatrico Bambino Gesù, IRCCS, Rome, Italy
| | - Eric W Klee
- Center for Individualized Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA; Department of Clinical Genomics, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | - Hugo J Bellen
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Department of Neuroscience, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
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23
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Chung HL, Ye Q, Park YJ, Zuo Z, Mok JW, Kanca O, Tattikota SG, Lu S, Perrimon N, Lee HK, Bellen HJ. Very-long-chain fatty acids induce glial-derived sphingosine-1-phosphate synthesis, secretion, and neuroinflammation. Cell Metab 2023; 35:855-874.e5. [PMID: 37084732 PMCID: PMC10160010 DOI: 10.1016/j.cmet.2023.03.022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2022] [Revised: 01/10/2023] [Accepted: 03/29/2023] [Indexed: 04/23/2023]
Abstract
VLCFAs (very-long-chain fatty acids) are the most abundant fatty acids in myelin. Hence, during demyelination or aging, glia are exposed to higher levels of VLCFA than normal. We report that glia convert these VLCFA into sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P) via a glial-specific S1P pathway. Excess S1P causes neuroinflammation, NF-κB activation, and macrophage infiltration into the CNS. Suppressing the function of S1P in fly glia or neurons, or administration of Fingolimod, an S1P receptor antagonist, strongly attenuates the phenotypes caused by excess VLCFAs. In contrast, elevating the VLCFA levels in glia and immune cells exacerbates these phenotypes. Elevated VLCFA and S1P are also toxic in vertebrates based on a mouse model of multiple sclerosis (MS), experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). Indeed, reducing VLCFA with bezafibrate ameliorates the phenotypes. Moreover, simultaneous use of bezafibrate and fingolimod synergizes to improve EAE, suggesting that lowering VLCFA and S1P is a treatment avenue for MS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hyung-Lok Chung
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
| | - Qi Ye
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Department of Pediatrics, Section of Neurology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Ye-Jin Park
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Zhongyuan Zuo
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Jung-Wan Mok
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Oguz Kanca
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | | | - Shenzhao Lu
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Nobert Perrimon
- Department of Genetics, Blavatnik Institute, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Hyun Kyoung Lee
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Department of Pediatrics, Section of Neurology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
| | - Hugo J Bellen
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
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24
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Kocere A, Lalonde RL, Mosimann C, Burger A. Lateral thinking in syndromic congenital cardiovascular disease. Dis Model Mech 2023; 16:dmm049735. [PMID: 37125615 PMCID: PMC10184679 DOI: 10.1242/dmm.049735] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Syndromic birth defects are rare diseases that can present with seemingly pleiotropic comorbidities. Prime examples are rare congenital heart and cardiovascular anomalies that can be accompanied by forelimb defects, kidney disorders and more. Whether such multi-organ defects share a developmental link remains a key question with relevance to the diagnosis, therapeutic intervention and long-term care of affected patients. The heart, endothelial and blood lineages develop together from the lateral plate mesoderm (LPM), which also harbors the progenitor cells for limb connective tissue, kidneys, mesothelia and smooth muscle. This developmental plasticity of the LPM, which founds on multi-lineage progenitor cells and shared transcription factor expression across different descendant lineages, has the potential to explain the seemingly disparate syndromic defects in rare congenital diseases. Combining patient genome-sequencing data with model organism studies has already provided a wealth of insights into complex LPM-associated birth defects, such as heart-hand syndromes. Here, we summarize developmental and known disease-causing mechanisms in early LPM patterning, address how defects in these processes drive multi-organ comorbidities, and outline how several cardiovascular and hematopoietic birth defects with complex comorbidities may be LPM-associated diseases. We also discuss strategies to integrate patient sequencing, data-aggregating resources and model organism studies to mechanistically decode congenital defects, including potentially LPM-associated orphan diseases. Eventually, linking complex congenital phenotypes to a common LPM origin provides a framework to discover developmental mechanisms and to anticipate comorbidities in congenital diseases affecting the cardiovascular system and beyond.
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Affiliation(s)
- Agnese Kocere
- University of Colorado School of Medicine, Anschutz Medical Campus, Department of Pediatrics, Section of Developmental Biology, Aurora, CO 80045, USA
- Department of Molecular Life Science, University of Zurich, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Robert L. Lalonde
- University of Colorado School of Medicine, Anschutz Medical Campus, Department of Pediatrics, Section of Developmental Biology, Aurora, CO 80045, USA
| | - Christian Mosimann
- University of Colorado School of Medicine, Anschutz Medical Campus, Department of Pediatrics, Section of Developmental Biology, Aurora, CO 80045, USA
| | - Alexa Burger
- University of Colorado School of Medicine, Anschutz Medical Campus, Department of Pediatrics, Section of Developmental Biology, Aurora, CO 80045, USA
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25
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Hu Y, Comjean A, Attrill H, Antonazzo G, Thurmond J, Li F, Chao T, Mohr SE, Brown NH, Perrimon N. PANGEA: A New Gene Set Enrichment Tool for Drosophila and Common Research Organisms. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.02.20.529262. [PMID: 36865134 PMCID: PMC9980003 DOI: 10.1101/2023.02.20.529262] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/24/2023]
Abstract
Gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) plays an important role in large-scale data analysis, helping scientists discover the underlying biological patterns over-represented in a gene list resulting from, for example, an 'omics' study. Gene Ontology (GO) annotation is the most frequently used classification mechanism for gene set definition. Here we present a new GSEA tool, PANGEA (PAthway, Network and Gene-set Enrichment Analysis; https://www.flyrnai.org/tools/pangea/ ), developed to allow a more flexible and configurable approach to data analysis using a variety of classification sets. PANGEA allows GO analysis to be performed on different sets of GO annotations, for example excluding high-throughput studies. Beyond GO, gene sets for pathway annotation and protein complex data from various resources as well as expression and disease annotation from the Alliance of Genome Resources (Alliance). In addition, visualisations of results are enhanced by providing an option to view network of gene set to gene relationships. The tool also allows comparison of multiple input gene lists and accompanying visualisation tools for quick and easy comparison. This new tool will facilitate GSEA for Drosophila and other major model organisms based on high-quality annotated information available for these species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yanhui Hu
- Department of Genetics, Blavatnik Institute, Harvard Medical School, Harvard University, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Drosophila RNAi Screening Center, Harvard Medical School, 77 Avenue Louis Pasteur, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Aram Comjean
- Department of Genetics, Blavatnik Institute, Harvard Medical School, Harvard University, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Drosophila RNAi Screening Center, Harvard Medical School, 77 Avenue Louis Pasteur, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Helen Attrill
- Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3DY, UK
| | - Giulia Antonazzo
- Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3DY, UK
| | - Jim Thurmond
- Department of Biology, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN 47405, USA
| | - Fangge Li
- Drosophila RNAi Screening Center, Harvard Medical School, 77 Avenue Louis Pasteur, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Tiffany Chao
- Drosophila RNAi Screening Center, Harvard Medical School, 77 Avenue Louis Pasteur, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Stephanie E. Mohr
- Department of Genetics, Blavatnik Institute, Harvard Medical School, Harvard University, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Drosophila RNAi Screening Center, Harvard Medical School, 77 Avenue Louis Pasteur, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Nicholas H. Brown
- Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3DY, UK
| | - Norbert Perrimon
- Department of Genetics, Blavatnik Institute, Harvard Medical School, Harvard University, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Drosophila RNAi Screening Center, Harvard Medical School, 77 Avenue Louis Pasteur, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Boston, MA 02138, USA
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26
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Lyulcheva-Bennett E, Genomics England Research Consortium, Bennett D. A retrospective analysis of phosphatase catalytic subunit gene variants in patients with rare disorders identifies novel candidate neurodevelopmental disease genes. Front Cell Dev Biol 2023; 11:1107930. [PMID: 37056996 PMCID: PMC10086149 DOI: 10.3389/fcell.2023.1107930] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/25/2022] [Accepted: 03/03/2023] [Indexed: 03/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Rare genetic disorders represent some of the most severe and life-limiting conditions that constitute a considerable burden on global healthcare systems and societies. Most individuals affected by rare disorders remain undiagnosed, highlighting the unmet need for improved disease gene discovery and novel variant interpretation. Aberrant (de) phosphorylation can have profound pathological consequences underpinning many disease processes. Numerous phosphatases and associated proteins have been identified as disease genes, with many more likely to have gone undiscovered thus far. To begin to address these issues, we have performed a systematic survey of de novo variants amongst 189 genes encoding phosphatase catalytic subunits found in rare disease patients recruited to the 100,000 Genomes Project (100 kGP), the largest national sequencing project of its kind in the United Kingdom. We found that 49% of phosphatases were found to carry de novo mutation(s) in this cohort. Only 25% of these phosphatases have been previously linked to genetic disorders. A gene-to-patient approach matching variants to phenotypic data identified 9 novel candidate rare-disease genes: PTPRD, PTPRG, PTPRT, PTPRU, PTPRZ1, MTMR3, GAK, TPTE2, PTPN18. As the number of patients undergoing whole genome sequencing increases and information sharing improves, we anticipate that reiterative analysis of genomic and phenotypic data will continue to identify candidate phosphatase disease genes for functional validation. This is the first step towards delineating the aetiology of rare genetic disorders associated with altered phosphatase function, leading to new biological insights and improved clinical outcomes for the affected individuals and their families.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Daimark Bennett
- Division of Developmental Biology and Medicine, School of Medical Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom
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27
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Ma M, Zhang X, Zheng Y, Lu S, Pan X, Mao X, Pan H, Chung HL, Wang H, Guo H, Bellen HJ. The fly homolog of SUPT16H, a gene associated with neurodevelopmental disorders, is required in a cell-autonomous fashion for cell survival. Hum Mol Genet 2023; 32:984-997. [PMID: 36255738 PMCID: PMC9991001 DOI: 10.1093/hmg/ddac259] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2022] [Revised: 09/22/2022] [Accepted: 10/14/2022] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
SUPT16H encodes the large subunit of the FAcilitate Chromatin Transcription (FACT) complex, which functions as a nucleosome organizer during transcription. We identified two individuals from unrelated families carrying de novo missense variants in SUPT16H. The probands exhibit global developmental delay, intellectual disability, epilepsy, facial dysmorphism and brain structural abnormalities. We used Drosophila to characterize two variants: p.T171I and p.G808R. Loss of the fly ortholog, dre4, causes lethality at an early developmental stage. RNAi-mediated knockdown of dre4 in either glia or neurons causes severely reduced eclosion and longevity. Tissue-specific knockdown of dre4 in the eye or wing leads to the loss of these tissues, whereas overexpression of SUPT16H has no dominant effect. Moreover, expression of the reference SUPT16H significantly rescues the loss-of-function phenotypes in the nervous system as well as wing and eye. In contrast, expression of SUPT16H p.T171I or p.G808R rescues the phenotypes poorly, indicating that the variants are partial loss-of-function alleles. While previous studies argued that the developmental arrest caused by loss of dre4 is due to impaired ecdysone production in the prothoracic gland, our data show that dre4 is required for proper cell growth and survival in multiple tissues in a cell-autonomous manner. Altogether, our data indicate that the de novo loss-of-function variants in SUPT16H are indeed associated with developmental and neurological defects observed in the probands.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mengqi Ma
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Xi Zhang
- National Health Commission Key Laboratory of Birth Defects Research, Prevention and Treatment, Hunan Provincial Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital, Changsha, Hunan 410008, China
- Department of Neurology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan 410008, China
| | - Yiming Zheng
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Shenzhao Lu
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Xueyang Pan
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Xiao Mao
- National Health Commission Key Laboratory of Birth Defects Research, Prevention and Treatment, Hunan Provincial Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital, Changsha, Hunan 410008, China
- Department of Medical Genetics, Maternal and Child Health Hospital of Hunan Province, Changsha, Hunan 410008, China
| | - Hongling Pan
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Hyung-lok Chung
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Hua Wang
- National Health Commission Key Laboratory of Birth Defects Research, Prevention and Treatment, Hunan Provincial Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital, Changsha, Hunan 410008, China
- Department of Medical Genetics, Hunan Children’s Hospital, Changsha, Hunan 410007, China
| | - Hong Guo
- Department of Medical Genetics, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
| | - Hugo J Bellen
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
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28
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Morimoto M, Bhambhani V, Gazzaz N, Davids M, Sathiyaseelan P, Macnamara EF, Lange J, Lehman A, Zerfas PM, Murphy JL, Acosta MT, Wang C, Alderman E, Reichert S, Thurm A, Adams DR, Introne WJ, Gorski SM, Boerkoel CF, Gahl WA, Tifft CJ, Malicdan MCV, Baldridge D, Bale J, Bamshad M, Barbouth D, Bayrak-Toydemir P, Beck A, Beggs AH, Behrens E, Bejerano G, Bellen HJ, Bennett J, Berg-Rood B, Bernstein JA, Berry GT, Bican A, Bivona S, Blue E, Bohnsack J, Bonner D, Botto L, Boyd B, Briere LC, Brokamp E, Brown G, Burke EA, Burrage LC, Butte MJ, Byers P, Byrd WE, Carey J, Carrasquillo O, Cassini T, Chang TCP, Chanprasert S, Chao HT, Clark GD, Coakley TR, Cobban LA, Cogan JD, Coggins M, Cole FS, Colley HA, Cooper CM, Cope H, Craigen WJ, Crouse AB, Cunningham M, D’Souza P, Dai H, Dasari S, Davis J, Dayal JG, Dell’Angelica EC, Dipple K, Doherty D, Dorrani N, Doss AL, Douine ED, Duncan L, Earl D, Eckstein DJ, Emrick LT, Eng CM, Esteves C, Falk M, Fieg EL, Fisher PG, Fogel BL, Forghani I, Glass I, Gochuico B, Goddard PC, Godfrey RA, Golden-Grant K, Grajewski A, Gutierrez I, Hadley D, Hahn S, Halley MC, Hamid R, Hassey K, Hayes N, High F, Hing A, Hisama FM, Holm IA, Hom J, Horike-Pyne M, Huang A, Hutchison S, Introne WJ, Isasi R, Izumi K, Jamal F, Jarvik GP, Jarvik J, Jayadev S, Jean-Marie O, Jobanputra V, Karaviti L, Kennedy J, Ketkar S, Kiley D, Kilich G, Kobren SN, Kohane IS, Kohler JN, Korrick S, Kozuira M, Krakow D, Krasnewich DM, Kravets E, Lalani SR, Lam B, Lam C, Lanpher BC, Lanza IR, LeBlanc K, Lee BH, Levitt R, Lewis RA, Liu P, Liu XZ, Longo N, Loo SK, Loscalzo J, Maas RL, MacRae CA, Maduro VV, Mahoney R, Mak BC, Mamounas LA, Manolio TA, Mao R, Maravilla K, Marom R, Marth G, Martin BA, Martin MG, Martínez-Agosto JA, Marwaha S, McCauley J, McConkie-Rosell A, McCray AT, McGee E, Mefford H, Merritt JL, Might M, Mirzaa G, Morava E, Moretti P, Nakano-Okuno M, Nelson SF, Newman JH, Nicholas SK, Nickerson D, Nieves-Rodriguez S, Novacic D, Oglesbee D, Orengo JP, Pace L, Pak S, Pallais JC, Palmer CGS, Papp JC, Parker NH, Phillips JA, Posey JE, Potocki L, Pusey Swerdzewski BN, Quinlan A, Rao DA, Raper A, Raskind W, Renteria G, Reuter CM, Rives L, Robertson AK, Rodan LH, Rosenfeld JA, Rosenwasser N, Rossignol F, Ruzhnikov M, Sacco R, Sampson JB, Saporta M, Schaechter J, Schedl T, Schoch K, Scott DA, Scott CR, Shashi V, Shin J, Silverman EK, Sinsheimer JS, Sisco K, Smith EC, Smith KS, Solem E, Solnica-Krezel L, Solomon B, Spillmann RC, Stoler JM, Sullivan K, Sullivan JA, Sun A, Sutton S, Sweetser DA, Sybert V, Tabor HK, Tan QKG, Tan ALM, Tekin M, Telischi F, Thorson W, Toro C, Tran AA, Ungar RA, Urv TK, Vanderver A, Velinder M, Viskochil D, Vogel TP, Wahl CE, Walker M, Wallace S, Walley NM, Wambach J, Wan J, Wang LK, Wangler MF, Ward PA, Wegner D, Weisz Hubshman M, Wener M, Wenger T, Wesseling Perry K, Westerfield M, Wheeler MT, Whitlock J, Wolfe LA, Worley K, Xiao C, Yamamoto S, Yang J, Zhang Z, Zuchner S, Reichert S, Thurm A, Adams DR, Introne WJ, Gorski SM, Boerkoel CF, Gahl WA, Tifft CJ, Malicdan MCV. Bi-allelic ATG4D variants are associated with a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by speech and motor impairment. NPJ Genom Med 2023; 8:4. [PMID: 36765070 PMCID: PMC9918471 DOI: 10.1038/s41525-022-00343-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/11/2022] [Accepted: 12/06/2022] [Indexed: 02/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Autophagy regulates the degradation of damaged organelles and protein aggregates, and is critical for neuronal development, homeostasis, and maintenance, yet few neurodevelopmental disorders have been associated with pathogenic variants in genes encoding autophagy-related proteins. We report three individuals from two unrelated families with a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by speech and motor impairment, and similar facial characteristics. Rare, conserved, bi-allelic variants were identified in ATG4D, encoding one of four ATG4 cysteine proteases important for autophagosome biogenesis, a hallmark of autophagy. Autophagosome biogenesis and induction of autophagy were intact in cells from affected individuals. However, studies evaluating the predominant substrate of ATG4D, GABARAPL1, demonstrated that three of the four ATG4D patient variants functionally impair ATG4D activity. GABARAPL1 is cleaved or "primed" by ATG4D and an in vitro GABARAPL1 priming assay revealed decreased priming activity for three of the four ATG4D variants. Furthermore, a rescue experiment performed in an ATG4 tetra knockout cell line, in which all four ATG4 isoforms were knocked out by gene editing, showed decreased GABARAPL1 priming activity for the two ATG4D missense variants located in the cysteine protease domain required for priming, suggesting that these variants impair the function of ATG4D. The clinical, bioinformatic, and functional data suggest that bi-allelic loss-of-function variants in ATG4D contribute to the pathogenesis of this syndromic neurodevelopmental disorder.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marie Morimoto
- grid.94365.3d0000 0001 2297 5165National Institutes of Health Undiagnosed Diseases Program, Common Fund, Office of the Director, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892 USA
| | - Vikas Bhambhani
- grid.418506.e0000 0004 0629 5022Department of Medical Genetics, Children’s Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55404 USA
| | - Nour Gazzaz
- grid.17091.3e0000 0001 2288 9830Department of Medical Genetics, Faculty of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6H 3N1 Canada ,grid.414137.40000 0001 0684 7788Provincial Medical Genetics Program, British Columbia Women’s and Children’s Hospital, Vancouver, BC V6H 3N1 Canada ,grid.412125.10000 0001 0619 1117Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
| | - Mariska Davids
- grid.94365.3d0000 0001 2297 5165National Institutes of Health Undiagnosed Diseases Program, Common Fund, Office of the Director, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892 USA
| | - Paalini Sathiyaseelan
- grid.434706.20000 0004 0410 5424Canada’s Michael Smith Genome Sciences Centre, BC Cancer, Vancouver, BC V5Z 1L3 Canada ,grid.61971.380000 0004 1936 7494Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC V5A 1S6 Canada
| | - Ellen F. Macnamara
- grid.94365.3d0000 0001 2297 5165National Institutes of Health Undiagnosed Diseases Program, Common Fund, Office of the Director, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892 USA
| | | | - Anna Lehman
- grid.17091.3e0000 0001 2288 9830Department of Medical Genetics, Faculty of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6H 3N1 Canada
| | - Patricia M. Zerfas
- grid.94365.3d0000 0001 2297 5165Diagnostic and Research Services Branch, Office of Research Services, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892 USA
| | - Jennifer L. Murphy
- grid.94365.3d0000 0001 2297 5165National Institutes of Health Undiagnosed Diseases Program, Common Fund, Office of the Director, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892 USA
| | - Maria T. Acosta
- grid.94365.3d0000 0001 2297 5165National Institutes of Health Undiagnosed Diseases Program, Common Fund, Office of the Director, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892 USA
| | - Camille Wang
- grid.94365.3d0000 0001 2297 5165National Institutes of Health Undiagnosed Diseases Program, Common Fund, Office of the Director, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892 USA
| | - Emily Alderman
- grid.17091.3e0000 0001 2288 9830Department of Medical Genetics, Faculty of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6H 3N1 Canada ,grid.414137.40000 0001 0684 7788Provincial Medical Genetics Program, British Columbia Women’s and Children’s Hospital, Vancouver, BC V6H 3N1 Canada
| | | | - Sara Reichert
- grid.418506.e0000 0004 0629 5022Department of Medical Genetics, Children’s Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55404 USA
| | - Audrey Thurm
- grid.94365.3d0000 0001 2297 5165Neurodevelopmental and Behavioral Phenotyping Service, Office of the Clinical Director, National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892 USA
| | - David R. Adams
- grid.94365.3d0000 0001 2297 5165National Institutes of Health Undiagnosed Diseases Program, Common Fund, Office of the Director, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892 USA ,grid.94365.3d0000 0001 2297 5165Office of the Clinical Director, National Human Genome Research Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892 USA
| | - Wendy J. Introne
- grid.94365.3d0000 0001 2297 5165National Institutes of Health Undiagnosed Diseases Program, Common Fund, Office of the Director, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892 USA ,grid.94365.3d0000 0001 2297 5165Office of the Clinical Director, National Human Genome Research Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892 USA ,grid.94365.3d0000 0001 2297 5165Human Biochemical Genetics Section, Medical Genetics Branch, National Human Genome Research Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892 USA
| | - Sharon M. Gorski
- grid.17091.3e0000 0001 2288 9830Department of Medical Genetics, Faculty of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6H 3N1 Canada ,grid.434706.20000 0004 0410 5424Canada’s Michael Smith Genome Sciences Centre, BC Cancer, Vancouver, BC V5Z 1L3 Canada ,grid.61971.380000 0004 1936 7494Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC V5A 1S6 Canada
| | - Cornelius F. Boerkoel
- grid.17091.3e0000 0001 2288 9830Department of Medical Genetics, Faculty of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6H 3N1 Canada ,grid.414137.40000 0001 0684 7788Provincial Medical Genetics Program, British Columbia Women’s and Children’s Hospital, Vancouver, BC V6H 3N1 Canada
| | - William A. Gahl
- grid.94365.3d0000 0001 2297 5165National Institutes of Health Undiagnosed Diseases Program, Common Fund, Office of the Director, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892 USA ,grid.94365.3d0000 0001 2297 5165Human Biochemical Genetics Section, Medical Genetics Branch, National Human Genome Research Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892 USA
| | - Cynthia J. Tifft
- grid.94365.3d0000 0001 2297 5165National Institutes of Health Undiagnosed Diseases Program, Common Fund, Office of the Director, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892 USA ,grid.94365.3d0000 0001 2297 5165Office of the Clinical Director, National Human Genome Research Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892 USA
| | - May Christine V. Malicdan
- grid.94365.3d0000 0001 2297 5165National Institutes of Health Undiagnosed Diseases Program, Common Fund, Office of the Director, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892 USA ,grid.94365.3d0000 0001 2297 5165Human Biochemical Genetics Section, Medical Genetics Branch, National Human Genome Research Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892 USA
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Jangam S, Briere LC, Jay K, Andrews JC, Walker MA, Rodan LH, High FA, Yamamoto S, Sweetser DA, Wangler M. A de novo missense variant in EZH1 associated with developmental delay exhibits functional deficits in Drosophila melanogaster. MEDRXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR HEALTH SCIENCES 2023:2023.01.31.23285113. [PMID: 36778246 PMCID: PMC9915809 DOI: 10.1101/2023.01.31.23285113] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
EZH1 ( Enhancer of Zeste, homolog 1) , a Polycomb Repressive Complex-2 (PRC2) component, is involved in a myriad of cellular processes through modifying histone 3 lysine27 (H3K27) residues. EZH1 represses transcription of downstream target genes through H3K27 trimethylation (H3K27me3). Genetic mutations in histone modifiers have been associated with developmental disorders, while EZH1 has not yet been linked to any human disease. However, the paralog EZH2 is associated with Weaver syndrome. Here we report a previously undiagnosed individual with a novel neurodevelopmental phenotype identified to have a de novo variant in EZH1 , p.Ala678Gly, through exome sequencing. The individual presented in infancy with neurodevelopmental delay and hypotonia and was later noted to have proximal muscle weakness. The variant, p.A678G, is in the SET domain, known for its methyltransferase activity, and was the best candidate variant found in the exome. Human EZH1 / 2 are homologous to fly Enhancer of zeste E(z) , an essential gene in flies, and the residue (A678 in humans, A691 in Drosophila ) is conserved. To further study this variant, we obtained Drosophila null alleles and generated transgenic flies expressing wild-type (E(z) WT ) and the variant (E(z) A691G ) . The E(z) A691G variant led to hyper H3K27me3 while the E(z) WT did not, suggesting this is as a gain-of-function allele. When expressed under the tubulin promotor in vivo the variant rescued null-lethality similar to wild-type but the E(z) A691G flies exhibit bang sensitivity and shortened lifespan. In conclusion, here we present a novel EZH1 de novo variant associated with a neurodevelopmental disorder. Furthermore, we found that this variant has a functional impact in Drosophila . Biochemically this allele leads to increased H3K27me3 suggesting gain-of-function, but when expressed in adult flies the E(z) A691G has some characteristics of partial loss-of-function which may suggest it is a more complex allele in vivo .
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Affiliation(s)
- Sharayu Jangam
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, 77030 USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, Texas, 77030 USA
| | - Lauren C Briere
- Center for Genomic Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA
| | - Kristy Jay
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, 77030 USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, Texas, 77030 USA
- Genetics and Genomics program, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, 77030 USA
| | - Jonathan C Andrews
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, 77030 USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, Texas, 77030 USA
| | - Melissa A Walker
- Department of Neurology, Division of Neurogenetics, Child Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA
| | - Lance H Rodan
- Department of Neurology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Frances A High
- Division of Medical Genetics & Metabolism, Massachusetts General Hospital for Children, Boston, MA 02114, USA
| | - Shinya Yamamoto
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, 77030 USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, Texas, 77030 USA
- Genetics and Genomics program, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, 77030 USA
| | - David A Sweetser
- Center for Genomic Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA
- Division of Medical Genetics & Metabolism, Massachusetts General Hospital for Children, Boston, MA 02114, USA
| | - Michael Wangler
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, 77030 USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, Texas, 77030 USA
- Genetics and Genomics program, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, 77030 USA
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30
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Gonzalez B, Tare A, Ryu S, Johnson SC, Atzmon G, Barzilai N, Kaeberlein M, Suh Y. High-throughput sequencing analysis of nuclear-encoded mitochondrial genes reveals a genetic signature of human longevity. GeroScience 2023; 45:311-330. [PMID: 35948858 PMCID: PMC9886794 DOI: 10.1007/s11357-022-00634-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/19/2022] [Accepted: 07/28/2022] [Indexed: 02/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Mitochondrial dysfunction is a well-known contributor to aging and age-related diseases. The precise mechanisms through which mitochondria impact human lifespan, however, remain unclear. We hypothesize that humans with exceptional longevity harbor rare variants in nuclear-encoded mitochondrial genes (mitonuclear genes) that confer resistance against age-related mitochondrial dysfunction. Here we report an integrated functional genomics study to identify rare functional variants in ~ 660 mitonuclear candidate genes discovered by target capture sequencing analysis of 496 centenarians and 572 controls of Ashkenazi Jewish descent. We identify and prioritize longevity-associated variants, genes, and mitochondrial pathways that are enriched with rare variants. We provide functional gene variants such as those in MTOR (Y2396Lfs*29), CPS1 (T1406N), and MFN2 (G548*) as well as LRPPRC (S1378G) that is predicted to affect mitochondrial translation. Taken together, our results suggest a functional role for specific mitonuclear genes and pathways in human longevity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brenda Gonzalez
- Department of Genetics, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, 10461, USA
| | - Archana Tare
- Department of Genetics, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, 10461, USA
| | - Seungjin Ryu
- Department of Genetics, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, 10461, USA
- Department of Pharmacology, College of Medicine, Hallym University, Chuncheon, Gangwon, 24252, Republic of Korea
| | - Simon C Johnson
- Department of Genetics, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, 10461, USA
| | - Gil Atzmon
- Department of Genetics, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, 10461, USA
- Department of Medicine, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, 10461, USA
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel
| | - Nir Barzilai
- Department of Genetics, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, 10461, USA
- Department of Medicine, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, 10461, USA
| | - Matt Kaeberlein
- Department of Pathology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, 98195, USA
| | - Yousin Suh
- Department of Genetics, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, 10461, USA.
- Department of Medicine, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, 10461, USA.
- Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, 10461, USA.
- Departments of Obstetrics and Gynecology, and Genetics and Development, Columbia University, 630 West 168th Street, New York, NY, 10032, USA.
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31
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Underwood A, Rasicci DT, Hinds D, Mitchell JT, Zieba JK, Mills J, Arnold NE, Cook TW, Moustaqil M, Gambin Y, Sierecki E, Fontaine F, Vanderweele S, Das AS, Cvammen W, Sirpilla O, Soehnlen X, Bricker K, Alokaili M, Green M, Heeringa S, Wilstermann AM, Freeland TM, Qutob D, Milsted A, Jauch R, Triche TJ, Krawczyk CM, Bupp CP, Rajasekaran S, Francois M, Prokop JW. Evolutionary Landscape of SOX Genes to Inform Genotype-to-Phenotype Relationships. Genes (Basel) 2023; 14:222. [PMID: 36672963 PMCID: PMC9859272 DOI: 10.3390/genes14010222] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2022] [Revised: 01/06/2023] [Accepted: 01/11/2023] [Indexed: 01/19/2023] Open
Abstract
The SOX transcription factor family is pivotal in controlling aspects of development. To identify genotype-phenotype relationships of SOX proteins, we performed a non-biased study of SOX using 1890 open-reading frame and 6667 amino acid sequences in combination with structural dynamics to interpret 3999 gnomAD, 485 ClinVar, 1174 Geno2MP, and 4313 COSMIC human variants. We identified, within the HMG (High Mobility Group)- box, twenty-seven amino acids with changes in multiple SOX proteins annotated to clinical pathologies. These sites were screened through Geno2MP medical phenotypes, revealing novel SOX15 R104G associated with musculature abnormality and SOX8 R159G with intellectual disability. Within gnomAD, SOX18 E137K (rs201931544), found within the HMG box of ~0.8% of Latinx individuals, is associated with seizures and neurological complications, potentially through blood-brain barrier alterations. A total of 56 highly conserved variants were found at sites outside the HMG-box, including several within the SOX2 HMG-box-flanking region with neurological associations, several in the SOX9 dimerization region associated with Campomelic Dysplasia, SOX14 K88R (rs199932938) flanking the HMG box associated with cardiovascular complications within European populations, and SOX7 A379V (rs143587868) within an SOXF conserved far C-terminal domain heterozygous in 0.716% of African individuals with associated eye phenotypes. This SOX data compilation builds a robust genotype-to-phenotype association for a gene family through more robust ortholog data integration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adam Underwood
- Division of Mathematics and Science, Walsh University, North Canton, OH 44720, USA
| | - Daniel T Rasicci
- Division of Mathematics and Science, Walsh University, North Canton, OH 44720, USA
| | - David Hinds
- HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology, Huntsville, AL 35806, USA
- Department of Pediatrics and Human Development, College of Human Medicine, Michigan State University, Grand Rapids, MI 49503, USA
| | - Jackson T Mitchell
- Department of Pediatrics and Human Development, College of Human Medicine, Michigan State University, Grand Rapids, MI 49503, USA
| | - Jacob K Zieba
- Department of Pediatrics and Human Development, College of Human Medicine, Michigan State University, Grand Rapids, MI 49503, USA
| | - Joshua Mills
- Department of Pediatrics and Human Development, College of Human Medicine, Michigan State University, Grand Rapids, MI 49503, USA
| | - Nicholas E Arnold
- Department of Pediatrics and Human Development, College of Human Medicine, Michigan State University, Grand Rapids, MI 49503, USA
| | - Taylor W Cook
- Department of Pediatrics and Human Development, College of Human Medicine, Michigan State University, Grand Rapids, MI 49503, USA
| | - Mehdi Moustaqil
- Single Molecule Science, Lowy Cancer Research Centre, The University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2031, Australia
| | - Yann Gambin
- Single Molecule Science, Lowy Cancer Research Centre, The University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2031, Australia
| | - Emma Sierecki
- Single Molecule Science, Lowy Cancer Research Centre, The University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2031, Australia
| | - Frank Fontaine
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD 4072, Australia
| | - Sophie Vanderweele
- Department of Pediatrics and Human Development, College of Human Medicine, Michigan State University, Grand Rapids, MI 49503, USA
| | - Akansha S Das
- Department of Pediatrics and Human Development, College of Human Medicine, Michigan State University, Grand Rapids, MI 49503, USA
| | - William Cvammen
- Division of Mathematics and Science, Walsh University, North Canton, OH 44720, USA
- Department of Pediatrics and Human Development, College of Human Medicine, Michigan State University, Grand Rapids, MI 49503, USA
| | - Olivia Sirpilla
- Division of Mathematics and Science, Walsh University, North Canton, OH 44720, USA
- Department of Pediatrics and Human Development, College of Human Medicine, Michigan State University, Grand Rapids, MI 49503, USA
| | - Xavier Soehnlen
- Division of Mathematics and Science, Walsh University, North Canton, OH 44720, USA
- Department of Pediatrics and Human Development, College of Human Medicine, Michigan State University, Grand Rapids, MI 49503, USA
| | - Kristen Bricker
- Division of Mathematics and Science, Walsh University, North Canton, OH 44720, USA
| | - Maram Alokaili
- Division of Mathematics and Science, Walsh University, North Canton, OH 44720, USA
| | - Morgan Green
- Department of Chemistry, Grand Valley State University, Allendale, MI 49401, USA
| | - Sadie Heeringa
- Department of Biology, Calvin University, Grand Rapids, MI 49546, USA
| | - Amy M Wilstermann
- Department of Biology, Calvin University, Grand Rapids, MI 49546, USA
| | - Thomas M. Freeland
- Division of Mathematics and Science, Walsh University, North Canton, OH 44720, USA
| | - Dinah Qutob
- Division of Mathematics and Science, Walsh University, North Canton, OH 44720, USA
| | - Amy Milsted
- Division of Mathematics and Science, Walsh University, North Canton, OH 44720, USA
| | - Ralf Jauch
- School of Biomedical Sciences, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR 518057, China
| | - Timothy J Triche
- Center for Epigenetics, Van Andel Research Institute, Grand Rapids, MI 49503, USA
| | - Connie M Krawczyk
- Department of Metabolism and Nutritional Programming, Van Andel Institute, Grand Rapids, MI 49503, USA
| | - Caleb P Bupp
- Department of Pediatrics and Human Development, College of Human Medicine, Michigan State University, Grand Rapids, MI 49503, USA
- Division of Medical Genetics, Spectrum Health, Grand Rapids, MI 49503, USA
| | - Surender Rajasekaran
- Department of Pediatrics and Human Development, College of Human Medicine, Michigan State University, Grand Rapids, MI 49503, USA
- Office of Research, Spectrum Health, Grand Rapids, MI 49503, USA
| | - Mathias Francois
- The Centenary Institute, The University of Sydney, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia
| | - Jeremy W. Prokop
- Department of Pediatrics and Human Development, College of Human Medicine, Michigan State University, Grand Rapids, MI 49503, USA
- Office of Research, Spectrum Health, Grand Rapids, MI 49503, USA
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA
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32
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Palermo J, Chesi A, Zimmerman A, Sonti S, Pahl MC, Lasconi C, Brown EB, Pippin JA, Wells AD, Doldur-Balli F, Mazzotti DR, Pack AI, Gehrman PR, Grant SF, Keene AC. Variant-to-gene mapping followed by cross-species genetic screening identifies GPI-anchor biosynthesis as a regulator of sleep. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2023; 9:eabq0844. [PMID: 36608130 PMCID: PMC9821868 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abq0844] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2022] [Accepted: 12/05/2022] [Indexed: 05/13/2023]
Abstract
Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) in humans have identified loci robustly associated with several heritable diseases or traits, yet little is known about the functional roles of the underlying causal variants in regulating sleep duration or quality. We applied an ATAC-seq/promoter focused Capture C strategy in human iPSC-derived neural progenitors to carry out a "variant-to-gene" mapping campaign that identified 88 candidate sleep effector genes connected to relevant GWAS signals. To functionally validate the role of the implicated effector genes in sleep regulation, we performed a neuron-specific RNA interference screen in the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster, followed by validation in zebrafish. This approach identified a number of genes that regulate sleep including a critical role for glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI)-anchor biosynthesis. These results provide the first physical variant-to-gene mapping of human sleep genes followed by a model organism-based prioritization, revealing a conserved role for GPI-anchor biosynthesis in sleep regulation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Justin Palermo
- Department of Biology, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA
| | - Alessandra Chesi
- Center for Spatial and Functional Genomics, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Amber Zimmerman
- Center for Spatial and Functional Genomics, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Division of Sleep Medicine, Department of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania, PA 19104, USA
| | - Shilpa Sonti
- Center for Spatial and Functional Genomics, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Matthew C. Pahl
- Center for Spatial and Functional Genomics, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Chiara Lasconi
- Center for Spatial and Functional Genomics, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Elizabeth B. Brown
- Department of Biology, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA
| | - James A. Pippin
- Center for Spatial and Functional Genomics, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Andrew D. Wells
- Center for Spatial and Functional Genomics, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Division of Sleep Medicine, Department of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania, PA 19104, USA
| | - Fusun Doldur-Balli
- Division of Sleep Medicine, Department of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania, PA 19104, USA
| | - Diego R. Mazzotti
- Division of Medical Informatics, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, KS 66103, USA
- Division of Pulmonary Critical Care and Sleep Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, KS 66103, USA
| | - Allan I. Pack
- Division of Sleep Medicine, Department of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania, PA 19104, USA
| | - Phillip R. Gehrman
- Division of Sleep Medicine, Department of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania, PA 19104, USA
| | - Struan F.A. Grant
- Center for Spatial and Functional Genomics, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Divisions of Human Genetics and Endocrinology and Diabetes, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Department of Genetics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Alex C. Keene
- Department of Biology, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA
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33
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Fischer FP, Karge RA, Weber YG, Koch H, Wolking S, Voigt A. Drosophila melanogaster as a versatile model organism to study genetic epilepsies: An overview. Front Mol Neurosci 2023; 16:1116000. [PMID: 36873106 PMCID: PMC9978166 DOI: 10.3389/fnmol.2023.1116000] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/04/2022] [Accepted: 01/23/2023] [Indexed: 02/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Epilepsy is one of the most prevalent neurological disorders, affecting more than 45 million people worldwide. Recent advances in genetic techniques, such as next-generation sequencing, have driven genetic discovery and increased our understanding of the molecular and cellular mechanisms behind many epilepsy syndromes. These insights prompt the development of personalized therapies tailored to the genetic characteristics of an individual patient. However, the surging number of novel genetic variants renders the interpretation of pathogenetic consequences and of potential therapeutic implications ever more challenging. Model organisms can help explore these aspects in vivo. In the last decades, rodent models have significantly contributed to our understanding of genetic epilepsies but their establishment is laborious, expensive, and time-consuming. Additional model organisms to investigate disease variants on a large scale would be desirable. The fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster has been used as a model organism in epilepsy research since the discovery of "bang-sensitive" mutants more than half a century ago. These flies respond to mechanical stimulation, such as a brief vortex, with stereotypic seizures and paralysis. Furthermore, the identification of seizure-suppressor mutations allows to pinpoint novel therapeutic targets. Gene editing techniques, such as CRISPR/Cas9, are a convenient way to generate flies carrying disease-associated variants. These flies can be screened for phenotypic and behavioral abnormalities, shifting of seizure thresholds, and response to anti-seizure medications and other substances. Moreover, modification of neuronal activity and seizure induction can be achieved using optogenetic tools. In combination with calcium and fluorescent imaging, functional alterations caused by mutations in epilepsy genes can be traced. Here, we review Drosophila as a versatile model organism to study genetic epilepsies, especially as 81% of human epilepsy genes have an orthologous gene in Drosophila. Furthermore, we discuss newly established analysis techniques that might be used to further unravel the pathophysiological aspects of genetic epilepsies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Florian P Fischer
- Department of Epileptology and Neurology, RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany
| | - Robin A Karge
- Department of Epileptology and Neurology, RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany
| | - Yvonne G Weber
- Department of Epileptology and Neurology, RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany.,Department of Neurology and Epileptology, Hertie Institute for Clinical Brain Research, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Henner Koch
- Department of Epileptology and Neurology, RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany
| | - Stefan Wolking
- Department of Epileptology and Neurology, RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany
| | - Aaron Voigt
- Department of Neurology, RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany.,JARA-BRAIN Institute Molecular Neuroscience and Neuroimaging, Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH and RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany
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34
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Liu R, Ospanova S, Perry RJ. The impact of variance in carnitine palmitoyltransferase-1 expression on breast cancer prognosis is stratified by clinical and anthropometric factors. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0281252. [PMID: 36735704 PMCID: PMC9897541 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0281252] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2022] [Accepted: 01/18/2023] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
CPT1A is a rate-limiting enzyme in fatty acid oxidation and is upregulated in high-risk breast cancer. Obesity and menopausal status' relationship with breast cancer prognosis is well established, but its connection with fatty acid metabolism is not. We utilized RNA sequencing data in the Xena Functional Genomics Explorer, to explore CPT1A's effect on breast cancer patients' survival probability. Using [18F]-fluorothymidine positron emission tomography-computed tomography images from The Cancer Imaging Archive, we segmented these analyses by obesity and menopausal status. In 1214 patients, higher CPT1A expression is associated with lower breast cancer survivability. We confirmed a previously observed protective relationship between obesity and breast cancer in pre-menopausal patients and supported this data using two-sided Pearson correlations. Taken together, these analyses using open-access databases bolster the potential role of CPT1A-dependent fatty acid metabolism as a pathogenic factor in breast cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryan Liu
- Department of Internal Medicine and Cellular & Molecular Physiology, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut, United States of America
- Cedar Park High School, Cedar Park, Texas, United States of America
| | - Shyryn Ospanova
- University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States of America
| | - Rachel J. Perry
- Department of Internal Medicine and Cellular & Molecular Physiology, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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35
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Srinivasan S, Maurya MR, Ramachandran S, Fahy E, Subramaniam S. MetGENE: gene-centric metabolomics information retrieval tool. Gigascience 2022; 12:giad089. [PMID: 37983749 PMCID: PMC10659118 DOI: 10.1093/gigascience/giad089] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2023] [Revised: 06/14/2023] [Accepted: 10/01/2023] [Indexed: 11/22/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Biomedical research often involves contextual integration of multimodal and multiomic data in search of mechanisms for improved diagnosis, treatment, and monitoring. Researchers need to access information from diverse sources, comprising data in various and sometimes incongruent formats. The downstream processing of the data to decipher mechanisms by reconstructing networks and developing quantitative models warrants considerable effort. RESULTS MetGENE is a knowledge-based, gene-centric data aggregator that hierarchically retrieves information about the gene(s), their related pathway(s), reaction(s), metabolite(s), and metabolomic studies from standard data repositories under one dashboard to enable ease of access through centralization of relevant information. We note that MetGENE focuses only on those genes that encode for proteins directly associated with metabolites. All other gene-metabolite associations are beyond the current scope of MetGENE. Further, the information can be contextualized by filtering by species, anatomy (tissue), and condition (disease or phenotype). CONCLUSIONS MetGENE is an open-source tool that aggregates metabolite information for a given gene(s) and presents them in different computable formats (e.g., JSON) for further integration with other omics studies. MetGENE is available at https://bdcw.org/MetGENE/index.php.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sumana Srinivasan
- University of California San Diego, Department of Bioengineering, 9500 Gilman Dr, La Jolla, CA 92093, United States
| | - Mano R Maurya
- University of California San Diego, Department of Bioengineering, 9500 Gilman Dr, La Jolla, CA 92093, United States
| | - Srinivasan Ramachandran
- University of California San Diego, Department of Bioengineering, 9500 Gilman Dr, La Jolla, CA 92093, United States
| | - Eoin Fahy
- University of California San Diego, Department of Bioengineering, 9500 Gilman Dr, La Jolla, CA 92093, United States
| | - Shankar Subramaniam
- University of California San Diego, Department of Bioengineering, 9500 Gilman Dr, La Jolla, CA 92093, United States
- University of California San Diego, San Diego Supercomputer Center, Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093, United States
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Kelleher KJ, Sheils TK, Mathias SL, Yang JJ, Metzger V, Siramshetty V, Nguyen DT, Jensen LJ, Vidović D, Schürer S, Holmes J, Sharma K, Pillai A, Bologa C, Edwards J, Mathé E, Oprea T. Pharos 2023: an integrated resource for the understudied human proteome. Nucleic Acids Res 2022; 51:D1405-D1416. [PMID: 36624666 PMCID: PMC9825581 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkac1033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2022] [Revised: 10/12/2022] [Accepted: 11/28/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
The Illuminating the Druggable Genome (IDG) project aims to improve our understanding of understudied proteins and our ability to study them in the context of disease biology by perturbing them with small molecules, biologics, or other therapeutic modalities. Two main products from the IDG effort are the Target Central Resource Database (TCRD) (http://juniper.health.unm.edu/tcrd/), which curates and aggregates information, and Pharos (https://pharos.nih.gov/), a web interface for fusers to extract and visualize data from TCRD. Since the 2021 release, TCRD/Pharos has focused on developing visualization and analysis tools that help reveal higher-level patterns in the underlying data. The current iterations of TCRD and Pharos enable users to perform enrichment calculations based on subsets of targets, diseases, or ligands and to create interactive heat maps and UpSet charts of many types of annotations. Using several examples, we show how to address disease biology and drug discovery questions through enrichment calculations and UpSet charts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Keith J Kelleher
- National Center for Advancing Translational Science, 9800 Medical Center Drive, Rockville, MD 20850, USA
| | - Timothy K Sheils
- National Center for Advancing Translational Science, 9800 Medical Center Drive, Rockville, MD 20850, USA
| | - Stephen L Mathias
- Translational Informatics Division, Department of Internal Medicine, University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA
| | - Jeremy J Yang
- Translational Informatics Division, Department of Internal Medicine, University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA
| | - Vincent T Metzger
- Translational Informatics Division, Department of Internal Medicine, University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA
| | - Vishal B Siramshetty
- National Center for Advancing Translational Science, 9800 Medical Center Drive, Rockville, MD 20850, USA
| | - Dac-Trung Nguyen
- National Center for Advancing Translational Science, 9800 Medical Center Drive, Rockville, MD 20850, USA
| | - Lars Juhl Jensen
- Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Protein Research, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen 2200, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Dušica Vidović
- Institute for Data Science and Computing, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL 33146, USA,Department of Molecular and Cellular Pharmacology, Miller School of Medicine, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33136, USA
| | - Stephan C Schürer
- Institute for Data Science and Computing, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL 33146, USA,Department of Molecular and Cellular Pharmacology, Miller School of Medicine, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33136, USA,Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, Miller School of Medicine, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33136, USA
| | - Jayme Holmes
- Translational Informatics Division, Department of Internal Medicine, University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA
| | - Karlie R Sharma
- National Center for Advancing Translational Science, 9800 Medical Center Drive, Rockville, MD 20850, USA
| | - Ajay Pillai
- National Center for Advancing Translational Science, 9800 Medical Center Drive, Rockville, MD 20850, USA
| | - Cristian G Bologa
- Translational Informatics Division, Department of Internal Medicine, University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA
| | - Jeremy S Edwards
- Correspondence may also be addressed to Jeremy Edwards. Tel: +1 505 277 6655;
| | - Ewy A Mathé
- To whom correspondence should be addressed. Tel: +1 301 402 8953;
| | - Tudor I Oprea
- Translational Informatics Division, Department of Internal Medicine, University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA
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RG/RGG repeats in the C. elegans homologs of Nucleolin and GAR1 contribute to sub-nucleolar phase separation. Nat Commun 2022; 13:6585. [PMID: 36329008 PMCID: PMC9633708 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-34225-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2022] [Accepted: 10/13/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
The intrinsically disordered RG/RGG repeat domain is found in several nucleolar and P-granule proteins, but how it influences their phase separation into biomolecular condensates is unclear. We survey all RG/RGG repeats in C. elegans and uncover nucleolar and P-granule-specific RG/RGG motifs. An uncharacterized protein, K07H8.10, contains the longest nucleolar-like RG/RGG domain in C. elegans. Domain and sequence similarity, as well as nucleolar localization, reveals K07H8.10 (NUCL-1) to be the homolog of Nucleolin, a protein conserved across animals, plants, and fungi, but previously thought to be absent in nematodes. Deleting the RG/RGG repeats within endogenous NUCL-1 and a second nucleolar protein, GARR-1 (GAR1), demonstrates these domains are dispensable for nucleolar accumulation. Instead, their RG/RGG repeats contribute to the phase separation of proteins into nucleolar sub-compartments. Despite this common RG/RGG repeat function, only removal of the GARR-1 RG/RGG domain affects worm fertility and development, decoupling precise sub-nucleolar structure from nucleolar function.
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Pir MS, Cevik S, Kaplan OI. ConVarT: Search Engine for Missense Variants Between Humans and Other Organisms. Curr Protoc 2022; 2:e619. [PMID: 36413109 DOI: 10.1002/cpz1.619] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
ConVarT (https://convart.org/) is a search engine for searching for conjugate variants between humans and other species. The search engine is based on matching conjugate variants called MatchVars between species. Matching equivalent variants requires correct alignment of orthologous proteins with the use of multiple sequence alignments (MSA). Indeed, the ConVarT pipeline has performed over a million MSAs and integrated variants and variant-specific annotations (pathogenicity, phenotypic variants; etc.) into the corresponding positions on MSAs. When a clinically relevant variant is discovered whose functional relevance is unknown, ConVarT offers clinician scientists the possibility to search for a MatchVar in other species and to look for functional data on that variant. Fortunately, ConVarT enables users to paste a protein sequence in FASTA format to search for human orthologous proteins. A pairwise sequence alignment (PSA) is then performed between the provided protein sequence and the human orthologous protein, allowing users to visualize human variants on the PSA. Here, we describe the step-by-step usage of ConVarT. © 2022 Wiley Periodicals LLC. Basic Protocol 1: Searching matching variants (MatchVar) with gene/protein identifiers. Basic Protocol 2: Searching with a FASTA sequence. Alternate Protocol: Search with gene name in multiple species. Basic Protocol 3: Search genes associated with a disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mustafa S Pir
- Rare Disease Laboratory, School of Life and Natural Sciences, Abdullah Gul University, Kayseri, Turkey
| | - Sebiha Cevik
- Rare Disease Laboratory, School of Life and Natural Sciences, Abdullah Gul University, Kayseri, Turkey
| | - Oktay I Kaplan
- Rare Disease Laboratory, School of Life and Natural Sciences, Abdullah Gul University, Kayseri, Turkey
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39
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Lu S, Ma M, Mao X, Bacino CA, Jankovic J, Sutton VR, Bartley JA, Wang X, Rosenfeld JA, Beleza-Meireles A, Chauhan J, Pan X, Li M, Liu P, Prescott K, Amin S, Davies G, Wangler MF, Dai Y, Bellen HJ. De novo variants in FRMD5 are associated with developmental delay, intellectual disability, ataxia, and abnormalities of eye movement. Am J Hum Genet 2022; 109:1932-1943. [PMID: 36206744 PMCID: PMC9606480 DOI: 10.1016/j.ajhg.2022.09.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2022] [Accepted: 09/09/2022] [Indexed: 01/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Proteins containing the FERM (four-point-one, ezrin, radixin, and moesin) domain link the plasma membrane with cytoskeletal structures at specific cellular locations and have been implicated in the localization of cell-membrane-associated proteins and/or phosphoinositides. FERM domain-containing protein 5 (FRMD5) localizes at cell adherens junctions and stabilizes cell-cell contacts. To date, variants in FRMD5 have not been associated with a Mendelian disease in OMIM. Here, we describe eight probands with rare heterozygous missense variants in FRMD5 who present with developmental delay, intellectual disability, ataxia, seizures, and abnormalities of eye movement. The variants are de novo in all for whom parental testing was available (six out of eight probands), and human genetic datasets suggest that FRMD5 is intolerant to loss of function (LoF). We found that the fly ortholog of FRMD5, CG5022 (dFrmd), is expressed in the larval and adult central nervous systems where it is present in neurons but not in glia. dFrmd LoF mutant flies are viable but are extremely sensitive to heat shock, which induces severe seizures. The mutants also exhibit defective responses to light. The human FRMD5 reference (Ref) cDNA rescues the fly dFrmd LoF phenotypes. In contrast, all the FRMD5 variants tested in this study (c.340T>C, c.1051A>G, c.1053C>G, c.1054T>C, c.1045A>C, and c.1637A>G) behave as partial LoF variants. In addition, our results indicate that two variants that were tested have dominant-negative effects. In summary, the evidence supports that the observed variants in FRMD5 cause neurological symptoms in humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shenzhao Lu
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Mengqi Ma
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Xiao Mao
- National Health Commission Key Laboratory for Birth Defect Research and Prevention, Hunan Provincial Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital, Changsha, Hunan 410008, China; Department of Medical Genetics, Maternal and Child Health Hospital of Hunan Province, Changsha, Hunan 410008, China
| | - Carlos A Bacino
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Joseph Jankovic
- Parkinson's Disease Center and Movement Disorders Clinic, Department of Neurology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - V Reid Sutton
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - James A Bartley
- Loma Linda University Children's Hospital, Loma Linda, CA 92354, USA
| | - Xueying Wang
- Department of Pediatrics, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710004, China
| | - Jill A Rosenfeld
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Baylor Genetics Laboratories, Houston, TX 77021, USA
| | - Ana Beleza-Meireles
- Clinical Genetics Department, St Michael's Hospital, University Hospitals Bristol and Weston, Bristol BS1 3NU, UK
| | - Jaynee Chauhan
- Yorkshire Regional Genetics Service, Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, Chapel Allerton Hospital, Leeds LS7 4SA, UK
| | - Xueyang Pan
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Megan Li
- Invitae, San Francisco, CA 94103, USA
| | - Pengfei Liu
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Baylor Genetics Laboratories, Houston, TX 77021, USA
| | - Katrina Prescott
- Yorkshire Regional Genetics Service, Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, Chapel Allerton Hospital, Leeds LS7 4SA, UK
| | - Sam Amin
- Paediatric Neurology Department, Bristol Royal Pediatric Hospital, University Hospitals Bristol and Weston, Bristol BS1 3NU, UK
| | | | - Michael F Wangler
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Yuwei Dai
- National Health Commission Key Laboratory for Birth Defect Research and Prevention, Hunan Provincial Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital, Changsha, Hunan 410008, China; Department of Neurology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan 410008, China.
| | - Hugo J Bellen
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Department of Neuroscience, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
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40
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Huang Y, Lemire G, Briere LC, Liu F, Wessels MW, Wang X, Osmond M, Kanca O, Lu S, High FA, Walker MA, Rodan LH, Kernohan KD, Sweetser DA, Boycott KM, Bellen HJ. The recurrent de novo c.2011C>T missense variant in MTSS2 causes syndromic intellectual disability. Am J Hum Genet 2022; 109:1923-1931. [PMID: 36067766 PMCID: PMC9606386 DOI: 10.1016/j.ajhg.2022.08.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2022] [Accepted: 08/12/2022] [Indexed: 01/25/2023] Open
Abstract
MTSS2, also known as MTSS1L, binds to plasma membranes and modulates their bending. MTSS2 is highly expressed in the central nervous system (CNS) and appears to be involved in activity-dependent synaptic plasticity. Variants in MTSS2 have not yet been associated with a human phenotype in OMIM. Here we report five individuals with the same heterozygous de novo variant in MTSS2 (GenBank: NM_138383.2: c.2011C>T [p.Arg671Trp]) identified by exome sequencing. The individuals present with global developmental delay, mild intellectual disability, ophthalmological anomalies, microcephaly or relative microcephaly, and shared mild facial dysmorphisms. Immunoblots of fibroblasts from two affected individuals revealed that the variant does not significantly alter MTSS2 levels. We modeled the variant in Drosophila and showed that the fly ortholog missing-in-metastasis (mim) was widely expressed in most neurons and a subset of glia of the CNS. Loss of mim led to a reduction in lifespan, impaired locomotor behavior, and reduced synaptic transmission in adult flies. Expression of the human MTSS2 reference cDNA rescued the mim loss-of-function (LoF) phenotypes, whereas the c.2011C>T variant had decreased rescue ability compared to the reference, suggesting it is a partial LoF allele. However, elevated expression of the variant, but not the reference MTSS2 cDNA, led to similar defects as observed by mim LoF, suggesting that the variant is toxic and may act as a dominant-negative allele when expressed in flies. In summary, our findings support that mim is important for appropriate neural function, and that the MTSS2 c.2011C>T variant causes a syndromic form of intellectual disability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yan Huang
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine (BCM), Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Gabrielle Lemire
- Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario Research Institute, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1H 8L1, Canada; Broad Center for Mendelian Genomics, Program in Medical and Population Genetics, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA
| | - Lauren C Briere
- Division of Medical Genetics & Metabolism, Massachusetts General Hospital for Children, Boston, MA 02114, USA; Center for Genomic Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA
| | - Fang Liu
- Department of Pediatrics, Bethune International Peace Hospital, Shijiazhuang 050082, Hebei, China
| | - Marja W Wessels
- Department of Clinical Genetics, Erasmus Medical Center, University Medical Center Rotterdam, Rotterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Xueqi Wang
- Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario Research Institute, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1H 8L1, Canada
| | - Matthew Osmond
- Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario Research Institute, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1H 8L1, Canada
| | - Oguz Kanca
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine (BCM), Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Shenzhao Lu
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine (BCM), Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Frances A High
- Division of Medical Genetics & Metabolism, Massachusetts General Hospital for Children, Boston, MA 02114, USA
| | - Melissa A Walker
- Department of Neurology, Division of Neurogenetics, Child Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA
| | - Lance H Rodan
- Department of Neurology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Kristin D Kernohan
- Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario Research Institute, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1H 8L1, Canada; Newborn Screening Ontario, Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario, Ottawa, ON K1H 8L1, Canada
| | - David A Sweetser
- Division of Medical Genetics & Metabolism, Massachusetts General Hospital for Children, Boston, MA 02114, USA; Center for Genomic Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA
| | - Kym M Boycott
- Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario Research Institute, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1H 8L1, Canada
| | - Hugo J Bellen
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine (BCM), Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
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41
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Maurer MH, Kohler A, Hudemann M, Jüngling J, Biskup S, Menzel M. Case Report of a Juvenile Patient with Autism Spectrum Disorder with a Novel Combination of Copy Number Variants in ADGRL3 (LPHN3) and Two Pseudogenes. Appl Clin Genet 2022; 15:125-131. [PMID: 36082049 PMCID: PMC9447451 DOI: 10.2147/tacg.s361239] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/05/2022] [Accepted: 08/25/2022] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
We report the finding of two copy number variants (CNVs) in a 12-year-old boy presenting both with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Clinical features included aggressive behavior, mood instability, suicidal statements, repetitive and restrictive behavior, sensitivity to noise, learning problems and dyslexia, though no intellectual disability was present. Using array-based comparative genomic hybridization (array-CGH), we identified two CNVs, both triplex duplications of 324 kb on 3p26.3, and 284 kb on 4q13.1, respectively. One of the CNVs is located on chromosome 4q13.1 in the region of the gene encoding for adhesion G protein-coupled receptor L3 (ADGRL3, former name: latrophilin-3, LPHN3), the other on chromosome 3p26.3 in the region of the two pseudogenes AC090043.1 and RPL23AP39. The patient described in the present study showed increased symptoms under methylphenidate treatment but responded positively to 3 mg per day of the atypical neuroleptic drug aripiprazole. To our knowledge, this is the first report of a CNV in the ADGRL3 gene and its first association with ASD in humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martin H Maurer
- Mariaberg Hospital for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Gammertingen, Germany
- Correspondence: Martin H Maurer, Mariaberg Hospital for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Burghaldenstraße 12, Gammertingen, 72501, Germany, Tel +49 7124 9237200, Fax +49 7124 923555, Email
| | - Anja Kohler
- Mariaberg Hospital for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Gammertingen, Germany
| | - Melanie Hudemann
- Mariaberg Hospital for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Gammertingen, Germany
| | | | - Saskia Biskup
- Zentrum für Humangenetik, Tübingen, Germany
- Center for Genomics and Transcriptomics, CeGaT GmbH, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Martin Menzel
- Mariaberg Hospital for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Gammertingen, Germany
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42
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Cheng KC, Burdine RD, Dickinson ME, Ekker SC, Lin AY, Lloyd KCK, Lutz CM, MacRae CA, Morrison JH, O'Connor DH, Postlethwait JH, Rogers CD, Sanchez S, Simpson JH, Talbot WS, Wallace DC, Weimer JM, Bellen HJ. Promoting validation and cross-phylogenetic integration in model organism research. Dis Model Mech 2022; 15:276675. [PMID: 36125045 PMCID: PMC9531892 DOI: 10.1242/dmm.049600] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Model organism (MO) research provides a basic understanding of biology and disease due to the evolutionary conservation of the molecular and cellular language of life. MOs have been used to identify and understand the function of orthologous genes, proteins, cells and tissues involved in biological processes, to develop and evaluate techniques and methods, and to perform whole-organism-based chemical screens to test drug efficacy and toxicity. However, a growing richness of datasets and the rising power of computation raise an important question: How do we maximize the value of MOs? In-depth discussions in over 50 virtual presentations organized by the National Institutes of Health across more than 10 weeks yielded important suggestions for improving the rigor, validation, reproducibility and translatability of MO research. The effort clarified challenges and opportunities for developing and integrating tools and resources. Maintenance of critical existing infrastructure and the implementation of suggested improvements will play important roles in maintaining productivity and facilitating the validation of animal models of human biology and disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Keith C Cheng
- Department of Pathology, Penn State College of Medicine, Hershey, PA 17033, USA.,Institute for Computational and Data Sciences, Pennsylvania State University, Park, PA 16802, USA
| | - Rebecca D Burdine
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08540, USA
| | - Mary E Dickinson
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77007, USA.,Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77007, USA
| | - Stephen C Ekker
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55906, USA
| | - Alex Y Lin
- Department of Pathology, Penn State College of Medicine, Hershey, PA 17033, USA
| | - K C Kent Lloyd
- Mouse Biology Program, School of Medicinel, University of California Davis, Davis, CA 95618, USA.,Department of Surgery, School of Medicine, University of California Davis, Davis, CA 95618, USA
| | - Cathleen M Lutz
- The Jackson Laboratory, Genetic Resource Science, Bar Harbor, ME 04609, USA
| | - Calum A MacRae
- Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, 360 Longwood Avenue, Boston, MA 02215, USA
| | - John H Morrison
- California National Primate Research Center, University of California Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA.,Department of Neurology, University of California Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA
| | - David H O'Connor
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University ofWisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53711, USA
| | | | - Crystal D Rogers
- School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA
| | - Susan Sanchez
- Department of Infectious Diseases, College of Veterinary Medicine, The University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA
| | - Julie H Simpson
- Department of Molecular, Cell and Developmental Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA 93117, USA
| | - William S Talbot
- Department of Developmental Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Douglas C Wallace
- Department of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Jill M Weimer
- Pediatrics and Rare Diseases Group, Sanford Research, Sioux Falls, SD 57104, USA
| | - Hugo J Bellen
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Neurological Research Institute (TCH), Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77007, USA
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Ma M, Moulton MJ, Lu S, Bellen HJ. 'Fly-ing' from rare to common neurodegenerative disease mechanisms. Trends Genet 2022; 38:972-984. [PMID: 35484057 PMCID: PMC9378361 DOI: 10.1016/j.tig.2022.03.018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2022] [Revised: 03/29/2022] [Accepted: 03/31/2022] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Advances in genome sequencing have enabled researchers and clinicians to probe vast numbers of human variants to distinguish pathogenic from benign variants. Model organisms have been crucial in variant assessment and in delineating the molecular mechanisms of some of the diseases caused by these variants. The fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster, has played a valuable role in this endeavor, taking advantage of its genetic technologies and established biological knowledge. We highlight the utility of the fly in studying the function of genes associated with rare neurological diseases that have led to a better understanding of common disease mechanisms. We emphasize that shared themes emerge among disease mechanisms, including the importance of lipids, in two prominent neurodegenerative diseases: Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Parkinson's disease (PD).
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Affiliation(s)
- Mengqi Ma
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Matthew J Moulton
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Shenzhao Lu
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Hugo J Bellen
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Department of Neuroscience, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
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Barish S, Senturk M, Schoch K, Minogue AL, Lopergolo D, Fallerini C, Harland J, Seemann JH, Stong N, Kranz PG, Kansagra S, Mikati MA, Jasien J, El-Dairi M, Galluzzi P, Ariani F, Renieri A, Mari F, Wangler MF, Arur S, Jiang YH, Yamamoto S, Shashi V, Bellen HJ. The microRNA processor DROSHA is a candidate gene for a severe progressive neurological disorder. Hum Mol Genet 2022; 31:2934-2950. [PMID: 35405010 PMCID: PMC9433733 DOI: 10.1093/hmg/ddac085] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2021] [Revised: 03/14/2022] [Accepted: 04/05/2022] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
DROSHA encodes a ribonuclease that is a subunit of the Microprocessor complex and is involved in the first step of microRNA (miRNA) biogenesis. To date, DROSHA has not yet been associated with a Mendelian disease. Here, we describe two individuals with profound intellectual disability, epilepsy, white matter atrophy, microcephaly and dysmorphic features, who carry damaging de novo heterozygous variants in DROSHA. DROSHA is constrained for missense variants and moderately intolerant to loss-of-function (o/e = 0.24). The loss of the fruit fly ortholog drosha causes developmental arrest and death in third instar larvae, a severe reduction in brain size and loss of imaginal discs in the larva. Loss of drosha in eye clones causes small and rough eyes in adult flies. One of the identified DROSHA variants (p.Asp1219Gly) behaves as a strong loss-of-function allele in flies, while another variant (p.Arg1342Trp) is less damaging in our assays. In worms, a knock-in that mimics the p.Asp1219Gly variant at a worm equivalent residue causes loss of miRNA expression and heterochronicity, a phenotype characteristic of the loss of miRNA. Together, our data show that the DROSHA variants found in the individuals presented here are damaging based on functional studies in model organisms and likely underlie the severe phenotype involving the nervous system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Scott Barish
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Mumine Senturk
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, BCM, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Program in Developmental Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Kelly Schoch
- Division of Medical Genetics, Department of Pediatrics, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Amanda L Minogue
- Program in Developmental Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Department of Genetics, University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Diego Lopergolo
- Med Biotech Hub and Competence Center, Department of Medical Biotechnologies, University of Siena, Siena 53100, Italy
- Medical Genetics, University of Siena, Siena 53100, Italy
- Genetica Medica, Azienda Ospedaliera Universitaria Senese, Siena 53100, Italy
| | - Chiara Fallerini
- Med Biotech Hub and Competence Center, Department of Medical Biotechnologies, University of Siena, Siena 53100, Italy
- Medical Genetics, University of Siena, Siena 53100, Italy
| | - Jake Harland
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Jacob H Seemann
- Department of Genetics, University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Nicholas Stong
- Institute for Genomic Medicine, Columbia University, New York, NY 10032, USA
| | - Peter G Kranz
- Division of Neuroradiology, Department of Radiology, Duke Health, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Sujay Kansagra
- Division of Pediatric Neurology, Department of Pediatrics, Duke Health, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Mohamad A Mikati
- Division of Pediatric Neurology, Department of Pediatrics, Duke Health, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Joan Jasien
- Division of Pediatric Neurology, Department of Pediatrics, Duke Health, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Mays El-Dairi
- Department of Ophthalmology, Duke Health, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Paolo Galluzzi
- Department of Medical Genetics, NeuroImaging and NeuroInterventional Unit, Azienda Ospedaliera e Universitaria, Senese, Siena 53100, Italy
| | - Francesca Ariani
- Med Biotech Hub and Competence Center, Department of Medical Biotechnologies, University of Siena, Siena 53100, Italy
- Medical Genetics, University of Siena, Siena 53100, Italy
- Genetica Medica, Azienda Ospedaliera Universitaria Senese, Siena 53100, Italy
| | - Alessandra Renieri
- Med Biotech Hub and Competence Center, Department of Medical Biotechnologies, University of Siena, Siena 53100, Italy
- Medical Genetics, University of Siena, Siena 53100, Italy
- Genetica Medica, Azienda Ospedaliera Universitaria Senese, Siena 53100, Italy
| | - Francesca Mari
- Med Biotech Hub and Competence Center, Department of Medical Biotechnologies, University of Siena, Siena 53100, Italy
- Medical Genetics, University of Siena, Siena 53100, Italy
- Genetica Medica, Azienda Ospedaliera Universitaria Senese, Siena 53100, Italy
| | - Michael F Wangler
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Program in Developmental Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Swathi Arur
- Department of Genetics, University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Yong-Hui Jiang
- Division of Medical Genetics, Department of Pediatrics, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC 27710, USA
- Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Shinya Yamamoto
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Program in Developmental Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Department of Neuroscience, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Vandana Shashi
- Division of Medical Genetics, Department of Pediatrics, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Hugo J Bellen
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, BCM, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Program in Developmental Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Department of Neuroscience, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
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Huang Y, Ma M, Mao X, Pehlivan D, Kanca O, Un-Candan F, Shu L, Akay G, Mitani T, Lu S, Candan S, Wang H, Xiao B, Lupski JR, Bellen HJ. Novel dominant and recessive variants in human ROBO1 cause distinct neurodevelopmental defects through different mechanisms. Hum Mol Genet 2022; 31:2751-2765. [PMID: 35348658 PMCID: PMC9402236 DOI: 10.1093/hmg/ddac070] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2022] [Revised: 03/17/2022] [Accepted: 03/20/2022] [Indexed: 07/27/2023] Open
Abstract
The Roundabout (Robo) receptors, located on growth cones of neurons, induce axon repulsion in response to the extracellular ligand Slit. The Robo family of proteins controls midline crossing of commissural neurons during development in flies. Mono- and bi-allelic variants in human ROBO1 (HGNC: 10249) have been associated with incomplete penetrance and variable expressivity for a breath of phenotypes, including neurodevelopmental defects such as strabismus, pituitary defects, intellectual impairment, as well as defects in heart and kidney. Here, we report two novel ROBO1 variants associated with very distinct phenotypes. A homozygous missense p.S1522L variant in three affected siblings with nystagmus; and a monoallelic de novo p.D422G variant in a proband who presented with early-onset epileptic encephalopathy. We modeled these variants in Drosophila and first generated a null allele by inserting a CRIMIC T2A-GAL4 in an intron. Flies that lack robo1 exhibit reduced viability but have very severe midline crossing defects in the central nervous system. The fly wild-type cDNA driven by T2A-Gal4 partially rescues both defects. Overexpression of the human reference ROBO1 with T2A-GAL4 is toxic and reduces viability, whereas the recessive p.S1522L variant is less toxic, suggesting that it is a partial loss-of-function allele. In contrast, the dominant variant in fly robo1 (p.D413G) affects protein localization, impairs axonal guidance activity and induces mild phototransduction defects, suggesting that it is a neomorphic allele. In summary, our studies expand the phenotypic spectrum associated with ROBO1 variant alleles.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yan Huang
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children’s Hospital, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Mengqi Ma
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children’s Hospital, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Xiao Mao
- National Health Commission Key Laboratory for Birth Defect Research and Prevention, Hunan Provincial Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital, Changsha, Hunan 410008, China
- Department of Medical Genetics, Maternal and Child Health Hospital of Hunan Province, Changsha, Hunan 410008, China
| | - Davut Pehlivan
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Division of Neurology and Developmental Neuroscience, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Oguz Kanca
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children’s Hospital, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Feride Un-Candan
- Department of Neuroloy, Balikesir Ataturk Public Hospital, Balikesir 10100, Turkey
| | - Li Shu
- National Health Commission Key Laboratory for Birth Defect Research and Prevention, Hunan Provincial Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital, Changsha, Hunan 410008, China
- Department of Medical Genetics, Maternal and Child Health Hospital of Hunan Province, Changsha, Hunan 410008, China
| | - Gulsen Akay
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Tadahiro Mitani
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Shenzhao Lu
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children’s Hospital, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Sukru Candan
- Department of Medical Genetics, Balikesir Ataturk Public Hospital, Balikesir 10100, Turkey
| | - Hua Wang
- National Health Commission Key Laboratory for Birth Defect Research and Prevention, Hunan Provincial Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital, Changsha, Hunan 410008, China
- Department of Medical Genetics, Maternal and Child Health Hospital of Hunan Province, Changsha, Hunan 410008, China
| | - Bo Xiao
- Neurology Department, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan 410008, China
| | - James R Lupski
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Hugo J Bellen
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children’s Hospital, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
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FertilityOnline: A Straightforward Pipeline for Functional Gene Annotation and Disease Mutation Discovery. GENOMICS, PROTEOMICS & BIOINFORMATICS 2022; 20:455-465. [PMID: 34954426 PMCID: PMC9801063 DOI: 10.1016/j.gpb.2021.08.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/07/2019] [Revised: 06/02/2021] [Accepted: 09/27/2021] [Indexed: 01/26/2023]
Abstract
Exploring the genetic basis of human infertility is currently under intensive investigation. However, only a handful of genes have been validated in animal models as disease-causing genes in infertile men. Thus, to better understand the genetic basis of human spermatogenesis and bridge the knowledge gap between humans and other animal species, we construct the FertilityOnline, a database integrating the literature-curated functional genes during spermatogenesis into an existing spermatogenic database, SpermatogenesisOnline 1.0. Additional features, including the functional annotation and genetic variants of human genes, are also incorporated into FertilityOnline. By searching this database, users can browse the functional genes involved in spermatogenesis and instantly narrow down the number of candidates of genetic mutations underlying male infertility in a user-friendly web interface. Clinical application of this database was exampled by the identification of novel causative mutations in synaptonemal complex central element protein 1 (SYCE1) and stromal antigen 3 (STAG3) in azoospermic men. In conclusion, FertilityOnline is not only an integrated resource for spermatogenic genes but also a useful tool facilitating the exploration of the genetic basis of male infertility. FertilityOnline can be freely accessed at http://mcg.ustc.edu.cn/bsc/spermgenes2.0/index.html.
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47
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Latour YL, Sierra JC, Finley JL, Asim M, Barry DP, Allaman MM, Smith TM, McNamara KM, Luis PB, Schneider C, Jacobse J, Goettel JA, Calcutt MW, Rose KL, Schey KL, Milne GL, Delgado AG, Piazuelo MB, Paul BD, Snyder S, Gobert AP, Wilson KT. CTH exacerbates Helicobacter pylori immunopathogenesis by promoting macrophage metabolic remodeling and activation. JCI Insight 2022; 7:155338. [PMID: 35579952 DOI: 10.1172/jci.insight.155338] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2021] [Accepted: 05/10/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Macrophages play a crucial role in the inflammatory response to the human stomach pathogen Helicobacter pylori, which infects half of the world's population and causes gastric cancer. Recent studies have highlighted the importance of macrophage immunometabolism in their activation state and function. We have demonstrated that the cysteine-producing enzyme, cystathionine g-lyase (CTH), is upregulated in humans and mice with H. pylori infection. Here we show that induction of CTH in macrophages by H. pylori promotes persistent inflammation. Cth-/- mice have reduced macrophage and T-cell activation in H. pylori-infected tissues, an altered metabolome, and decreased enrichment of immune-associated gene networks, culminating in decreased H. pylori-induced-gastritis. CTH is downstream of the proposed anti-inflammatory molecule, S-adenosylmethionine (SAM). While Cth-/- mice exhibit gastric SAM accumulation, WT mice treated with SAM did not display protection against H. pylori-induced inflammation. Instead, we demonstrate that Cth-deficient macrophages exhibit alterations in the proteome, decreased NF-kB activation, diminished expression of macrophage activation markers, and impaired oxidative phosphorylation and glycolysis. Thus, through altering cellular respiration, CTH is a key enhancer of macrophage activation contributing to a pathogenic inflammatory response that is the universal precursor for the development of H. pylori-induced gastric disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yvonne L Latour
- Department of Pathology, Microbiology, and Immunology, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, United States of America
| | - Johanna C Sierra
- Department of Medicine, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, United States of America
| | - Jordan L Finley
- Department of Medicine, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, United States of America
| | - Mohammad Asim
- Department of Medicine, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, United States of America
| | - Daniel P Barry
- Department of Medicine, Vanderbilt Univeristy Medical Center, Nashville, United States of America
| | - Margaret M Allaman
- Department of Medicine, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, United States of America
| | - Thaddeus M Smith
- Department of Medicine, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, United States of America
| | - Kara M McNamara
- Program in Cancer Biology, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, United States of America
| | - Paula B Luis
- Department of Pharmacology, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, United States of America
| | - Claus Schneider
- Department of Pharmacology, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, United States of America
| | - Justin Jacobse
- Department of Pathology, Microbiology, and Immunology, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, United States of America
| | - Jeremy A Goettel
- Department of Medicine, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, United States of America
| | - M Wade Calcutt
- Department of Biochemistry, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, United States of America
| | - Kristie L Rose
- Department of Biochemistry, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, United States of America
| | - Kevin L Schey
- Department of Biochemistry, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, United States of America
| | - Ginger L Milne
- Division of Clinical Pharmacology, Department of Medicine, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, United States of America
| | - Alberto G Delgado
- Department of Medicine, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, United States of America
| | - M Blanca Piazuelo
- Department of Medicine, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, United States of America
| | - Bindu D Paul
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, United States of America
| | - Solomon Snyder
- The Solomon H. Snyder Department of Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, United States of America
| | - Alain P Gobert
- Department of Medicine, Vandebilt University Medical Center, Nashville, United States of America
| | - Keith T Wilson
- Department of Medicine, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, United States of America
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Comprehensive microRNA-seq transcriptomic profiling across 11 organs, 4 ages, and 2 sexes of Fischer 344 rats. Sci Data 2022; 9:201. [PMID: 35551205 PMCID: PMC9098487 DOI: 10.1038/s41597-022-01285-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/20/2021] [Accepted: 03/04/2022] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
Rat is one of the most widely-used models in chemical safety evaluation and biomedical research. However, the knowledge about its microRNA (miRNA) expression patterns across multiple organs and various developmental stages is still limited. Here, we constructed a comprehensive rat miRNA expression BodyMap using a diverse collection of 320 RNA samples from 11 organs of both sexes of juvenile, adolescent, adult and aged Fischer 344 rats with four biological replicates per group. Following the Illumina TruSeq Small RNA protocol, an average of 5.1 million 50 bp single-end reads was generated per sample, yielding a total of 1.6 billion reads. The quality of the resulting miRNA-seq data was deemed to be high from raw sequences, mapped sequences, and biological reproducibility. Importantly, aliquots of the same RNA samples have previously been used to construct the mRNA BodyMap. The currently presented miRNA-seq dataset along with the existing mRNA-seq dataset from the same RNA samples provides a unique resource for studying the expression characteristics of existing and novel miRNAs, and for integrative analysis of miRNA-mRNA interactions, thereby facilitating better utilization of rats for biomarker discovery.
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Lu S, Hernan R, Marcogliese PC, Huang Y, Gertler TS, Akcaboy M, Liu S, Chung HL, Pan X, Sun X, Oguz MM, Oztoprak U, de Baaij JH, Ivanisevic J, McGinnis E, Guillen Sacoto MJ, Chung WK, Bellen HJ. Loss-of-function variants in TIAM1 are associated with developmental delay, intellectual disability, and seizures. Am J Hum Genet 2022; 109:571-586. [PMID: 35240055 DOI: 10.1016/j.ajhg.2022.01.020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2021] [Accepted: 01/27/2022] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
TIAM Rac1-associated GEF 1 (TIAM1) regulates RAC1 signaling pathways that affect the control of neuronal morphogenesis and neurite outgrowth by modulating the actin cytoskeletal network. To date, TIAM1 has not been associated with a Mendelian disorder. Here, we describe five individuals with bi-allelic TIAM1 missense variants who have developmental delay, intellectual disability, speech delay, and seizures. Bioinformatic analyses demonstrate that these variants are rare and likely pathogenic. We found that the Drosophila ortholog of TIAM1, still life (sif), is expressed in larval and adult central nervous system (CNS) and is mainly expressed in a subset of neurons, but not in glia. Loss of sif reduces the survival rate, and the surviving adults exhibit climbing defects, are prone to severe seizures, and have a short lifespan. The TIAM1 reference (Ref) cDNA partially rescues the sif loss-of-function (LoF) phenotypes. We also assessed the function associated with three TIAM1 variants carried by two of the probands and compared them to the TIAM1 Ref cDNA function in vivo. TIAM1 p.Arg23Cys has reduced rescue ability when compared to TIAM1 Ref, suggesting that it is a partial LoF variant. In ectopic expression studies, both wild-type sif and TIAM1 Ref are toxic, whereas the three variants (p.Leu862Phe, p.Arg23Cys, and p.Gly328Val) show reduced toxicity, suggesting that they are partial LoF variants. In summary, we provide evidence that sif is important for appropriate neural function and that TIAM1 variants observed in the probands are disruptive, thus implicating loss of TIAM1 in neurological phenotypes in humans.
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50
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Disease Modeling of Rare Neurological Disorders in Zebrafish. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:ijms23073946. [PMID: 35409306 PMCID: PMC9000079 DOI: 10.3390/ijms23073946] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2022] [Revised: 03/31/2022] [Accepted: 03/31/2022] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Rare diseases are those which affect a small number of people compared to the general population. However, many patients with a rare disease remain undiagnosed, and a large majority of rare diseases still have no form of viable treatment. Approximately 40% of rare diseases include neurologic and neurodevelopmental disorders. In order to understand the characteristics of rare neurological disorders and identify causative genes, various model organisms have been utilized extensively. In this review, the characteristics of model organisms, such as roundworms, fruit flies, and zebrafish, are examined, with an emphasis on zebrafish disease modeling in rare neurological disorders.
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