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Tello JA, Jiang L, Zohar Y, Restifo LL. Drosophila CASK regulates brain size and neuronal morphogenesis, providing a genetic model of postnatal microcephaly suitable for drug discovery. Neural Dev 2023; 18:6. [PMID: 37805506 PMCID: PMC10559581 DOI: 10.1186/s13064-023-00174-y] [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: 08/20/2023] [Accepted: 09/08/2023] [Indexed: 10/09/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND CASK-related neurodevelopmental disorders are untreatable. Affected children show variable severity, with microcephaly, intellectual disability (ID), and short stature as common features. X-linked human CASK shows dosage sensitivity with haploinsufficiency in females. CASK protein has multiple domains, binding partners, and proposed functions at synapses and in the nucleus. Human and Drosophila CASK show high amino-acid-sequence similarity in all functional domains. Flies homozygous for a hypomorphic CASK mutation (∆18) have motor and cognitive deficits. A Drosophila genetic model of CASK-related disorders could have great scientific and translational value. METHODS We assessed the effects of CASK loss of function on morphological phenotypes in Drosophila using established genetic, histological, and primary neuronal culture approaches. NeuronMetrics software was used to quantify neurite-arbor morphology. Standard nonparametric statistics methods were supplemented by linear mixed effects modeling in some cases. Microfluidic devices of varied dimensions were fabricated and numerous fluid-flow parameters were used to induce oscillatory stress fields on CNS tissue. Dissociation into viable neurons and neurite outgrowth in vitro were assessed. RESULTS We demonstrated that ∆18 homozygous flies have small brains, small heads, and short bodies. When neurons from developing CASK-mutant CNS were cultured in vitro, they grew small neurite arbors with a distinctive, quantifiable "bushy" morphology that was significantly rescued by transgenic CASK+. As in humans, the bushy phenotype showed dosage-sensitive severity. To overcome the limitations of manual tissue trituration for neuronal culture, we optimized the design and operation of a microfluidic system for standardized, automated dissociation of CNS tissue into individual viable neurons. Neurons from CASK-mutant CNS dissociated in the microfluidic system recapitulate the bushy morphology. Moreover, for any given genotype, device-dissociated neurons grew larger arbors than did manually dissociated neurons. This automated dissociation method is also effective for rodent CNS. CONCLUSIONS These biological and engineering advances set the stage for drug discovery using the Drosophila model of CASK-related disorders. The bushy phenotype provides a cell-based assay for compound screening. Nearly a dozen genes encoding CASK-binding proteins or transcriptional targets also have brain-development mutant phenotypes, including ID. Hence, drugs that improve CASK phenotypes might also benefit children with disorders due to mutant CASK partners.
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Affiliation(s)
- Judith A Tello
- Graduate Interdisciplinary Program in Neuroscience, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, 85721, USA
- Department of Neurology, University of Arizona Health Sciences, 1501 N. Campbell Ave, Tucson, AZ, 85724-5023, USA
- Present address: Department of Molecular Pathobiology, College of Dentistry, New York University, New York, NY, 10010, USA
| | - Linan Jiang
- Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, 85721, USA
| | - Yitshak Zohar
- Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, 85721, USA
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, 85721, USA
- BIO5 Interdisciplinary Research Institute, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, 85721, USA
| | - Linda L Restifo
- Graduate Interdisciplinary Program in Neuroscience, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, 85721, USA.
- Department of Neurology, University of Arizona Health Sciences, 1501 N. Campbell Ave, Tucson, AZ, 85724-5023, USA.
- BIO5 Interdisciplinary Research Institute, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, 85721, USA.
- Department of Cellular & Molecular Medicine, University of Arizona Health Sciences, Tucson, AZ, 85724, USA.
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Wahbeh MH, Peng X, Bacharaki S, Hatzimanolis A, Dimitrakopoulos S, Wohler E, Yang X, Yovo C, Maher BJ, Sobreira N, Stefanis NC, Avramopoulos D. A Missense Variant in CASKIN1's Proline-Rich Region Segregates with Psychosis in a Three-Generation Family. Genes (Basel) 2023; 14:177. [PMID: 36672919 PMCID: PMC9859343 DOI: 10.3390/genes14010177] [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: 12/09/2022] [Revised: 01/04/2023] [Accepted: 01/06/2023] [Indexed: 01/11/2023] Open
Abstract
The polygenic nature of schizophrenia (SCZ) implicates many variants in disease development. Rare variants of high penetrance have been shown to contribute to the disease prevalence. Whole-exome sequencing of a large three-generation family with SCZ and bipolar disorder identified a single segregating novel, rare, non-synonymous variant in the gene CASKIN1. The variant D1204N is absent from all databases, and CASKIN1 has a gnomAD missense score Z = 1.79 and pLI = 1, indicating its strong intolerance to variation. We find that introducing variants in the proline-rich region where the D1204N resides results in significant cellular changes in iPSC-derived neurons, consistent with CASKIN1’s known functions. We observe significant transcriptomic changes in 368 genes (padj < 0.05) involved in neuronal differentiation and nervous system development. We also observed nominally significant changes in the frequency of action potentials during differentiation, where the speed at which the edited and unedited cells reach the same level of activity differs. Our results suggest that CASKIN1 is an excellent gene candidate for psychosis development with high penetrance in this family.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marah H. Wahbeh
- McKusick-Nathans Department of Genetic Medicine, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
- Predoctoral Training Program in Human Genetics and Molecular Biology, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA
| | - Xi Peng
- McKusick-Nathans Department of Genetic Medicine, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - Sofia Bacharaki
- Department of Psychiatry, General Hospital of Syros, 84100 Cyclades, Greece
| | - Alexandros Hatzimanolis
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Eginition Hospital, 15772 Athens, Greece
| | - Stefanos Dimitrakopoulos
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Eginition Hospital, 15772 Athens, Greece
| | - Elizabeth Wohler
- McKusick-Nathans Department of Genetic Medicine, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - Xue Yang
- McKusick-Nathans Department of Genetic Medicine, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - Christian Yovo
- McKusick-Nathans Department of Genetic Medicine, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - Brady J. Maher
- Lieber Institute for Brain Development, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
- The Solomon H. Snyder Department of Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - Nara Sobreira
- McKusick-Nathans Department of Genetic Medicine, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - Nikos C. Stefanis
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Eginition Hospital, 15772 Athens, Greece
| | - Dimitrios Avramopoulos
- McKusick-Nathans Department of Genetic Medicine, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
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English J, McSweeney D, Ribbe F, Howell E, Pak C. Generation and Co-culture of Cortical Glutamatergic and GABAergic-Induced Neuronal Cells. Methods Mol Biol 2023; 2683:21-37. [PMID: 37300764 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-0716-3287-1_3] [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: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
The study of neurological disorders requires experimentation on human neurons throughout their development. Primary neurons can be difficult to obtain, and animal models may not fully recapitulate phenotypes observed in human neurons. Human neuronal culturing schemes which contain a balanced mixture of excitatory and inhibitory neurons that resemble physiological ratios seen in vivo will be useful to probe the neurological basis of excitation-inhibition (E-I) balance. Here, we describe a method for directly inducing a homogenous population of cortical excitatory neurons and cortical interneurons from human pluripotent stem cells, as well as the generation of mixed cultures using these induced neurons. The obtained cells display robust neuronal synchronous network activity as well as complex morphologies that are amenable to studies probing the molecular and cellular basis of disease mutations or other aspects of neuronal and synaptic development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jay English
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, USA
- Molecular and Cellular Biology Graduate Program, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, USA
| | - Danny McSweeney
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, USA
- Molecular and Cellular Biology Graduate Program, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, USA
| | - Fumiko Ribbe
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, USA
| | - Ethan Howell
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, USA
| | - ChangHui Pak
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, USA.
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McSweeney D, English J, Howell E, Ribbe F, Pak C. Measuring Neuronal Network Activity Using Human Induced Neuronal Cells. Methods Mol Biol 2023; 2683:235-245. [PMID: 37300780 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-0716-3287-1_19] [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: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Synchronous firing of neurons, often referred to as "network activity" or "network bursting," is an indication of a mature and synaptically connected network of neurons. We previously reported this phenomenon in 2D human neuronal in vitro models (McSweeney et al. iScience 25:105187, 2022). Using induced neurons (iNs) differentiated from human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) coupled with high-density microelectrodes arrays (HD-MEAs), we probed the underlying patterns of neuronal activity and found irregularities in network signaling across mutant states (McSweeney et al. iScience 25:105187, 2022). Here, we describe methods for plating cortical excitatory iNs differentiated from hPSCs on top of HD-MEAs and culturing iNs to maturity, examples of representative human wild-type Ngn2-iN data, and troubleshooting tips and tricks for the experimenter interested in integrating HD-MEAs into one's research approach.
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Affiliation(s)
- Danny McSweeney
- Graduate Program in Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, USA
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, USA
| | - Jay English
- Graduate Program in Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, USA
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, USA
| | - Ethan Howell
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, USA
| | - Fumiko Ribbe
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, USA
| | - ChangHui Pak
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, USA.
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