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Podleśny-Drabiniok A, Novikova G, Liu Y, Dunst J, Temizer R, Giannarelli C, Marro S, Kreslavsky T, Marcora E, Goate AM. BHLHE40/41 regulate microglia and peripheral macrophage responses associated with Alzheimer's disease and other disorders of lipid-rich tissues. Nat Commun 2024; 15:2058. [PMID: 38448474 PMCID: PMC10917780 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-46315-7] [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: 02/10/2023] [Accepted: 02/16/2024] [Indexed: 03/08/2024] Open
Abstract
Genetic and experimental evidence suggests that Alzheimer's disease (AD) risk alleles and genes may influence disease susceptibility by altering the transcriptional and cellular responses of macrophages, including microglia, to damage of lipid-rich tissues like the brain. Recently, sc/nRNA sequencing studies identified similar transcriptional activation states in subpopulations of macrophages in aging and degenerating brains and in other diseased lipid-rich tissues. We collectively refer to these subpopulations of microglia and peripheral macrophages as DLAMs. Using macrophage sc/nRNA-seq data from healthy and diseased human and mouse lipid-rich tissues, we reconstructed gene regulatory networks and identified 11 strong candidate transcriptional regulators of the DLAM response across species. Loss or reduction of two of these transcription factors, BHLHE40/41, in iPSC-derived microglia and human THP-1 macrophages as well as loss of Bhlhe40/41 in mouse microglia, resulted in increased expression of DLAM genes involved in cholesterol clearance and lysosomal processing, increased cholesterol efflux and storage, and increased lysosomal mass and degradative capacity. These findings provide targets for therapeutic modulation of macrophage/microglial function in AD and other disorders affecting lipid-rich tissues.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Podleśny-Drabiniok
- Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA
| | - Gloriia Novikova
- Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA
- OMNI Bioinformatics Department, Genentech, Inc., South San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Yiyuan Liu
- Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA
| | - Josefine Dunst
- Department of Medicine, Division of Immunology and Allergy, Karolinska Institutet, Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden
- Center for Molecular Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Rose Temizer
- Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA
| | - Chiara Giannarelli
- Department of Medicine, Division of Cardiology, NYU Cardiovascular Research Center, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
- Department of Pathology, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Samuele Marro
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA
- Black Family Stem Cell Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA
| | - Taras Kreslavsky
- Department of Medicine, Division of Immunology and Allergy, Karolinska Institutet, Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden
- Center for Molecular Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Edoardo Marcora
- Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA.
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA.
| | - Alison Mary Goate
- Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA.
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA.
- Black Family Stem Cell Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA.
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Zhang G, Lu J, Zheng J, Mei S, Li H, Zhang X, Ping A, Gao S, Fang Y, Yu J. Spi1 regulates the microglial/macrophage inflammatory response via the PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling pathway after intracerebral hemorrhage. Neural Regen Res 2024; 19:161-170. [PMID: 37488863 PMCID: PMC10479839 DOI: 10.4103/1673-5374.375343] [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: 12/27/2022] [Revised: 03/27/2023] [Accepted: 04/02/2023] [Indexed: 07/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Preclinical and clinical studies have shown that microglia and macrophages participate in a multiphasic brain damage repair process following intracerebral hemorrhage. The E26 transformation-specific sequence-related transcription factor Spi1 regulates microglial/macrophage commitment and maturation. However, the effect of Spi1 on intracerebral hemorrhage remains unclear. In this study, we found that Spi1 may regulate recovery from the neuroinflammation and neurofunctional damage caused by intracerebral hemorrhage by modulating the microglial/macrophage transcriptome. We showed that high Spi1 expression in microglia/macrophages after intracerebral hemorrhage is associated with the activation of many pathways that promote phagocytosis, glycolysis, and autophagy, as well as debris clearance and sustained remyelination. Notably, microglia with higher levels of Spi1 expression were characterized by activation of pathways associated with a variety of hemorrhage-related cellular processes, such as complement activation, angiogenesis, and coagulation. In conclusion, our results suggest that Spi1 plays a vital role in the microglial/macrophage inflammatory response following intracerebral hemorrhage. This new insight into the regulation of Spi1 and its target genes may advance our understanding of neuroinflammation in intracerebral hemorrhage and provide therapeutic targets for patients with intracerebral hemorrhage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guoqiang Zhang
- Department of Neurosurgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China
| | - Jianan Lu
- Department of Neurosurgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China
| | - Jingwei Zheng
- Department of Neurosurgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China
| | - Shuhao Mei
- Department of Neurosurgery, Huashan Hospital of Fudan University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Huaming Li
- Department of Neurosurgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China
| | - Xiaotao Zhang
- Department of Neurosurgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China
| | - An Ping
- Department of Neurosurgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China
| | - Shiqi Gao
- Department of Neurosurgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China
| | - Yuanjian Fang
- Department of Neurosurgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China
| | - Jun Yu
- Department of Neurosurgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China
- Clinical Research Center for Neurological Diseases of Zhejiang Province, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China
- Key Laboratory of Precise Treatment and Clinical Translational Research of Neurological Diseases, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China
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3
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Singh S, Joshi V, Upadhyay A. Amyloids and brain cancer: molecular linkages and crossovers. Biosci Rep 2023; 43:BSR20230489. [PMID: 37335084 PMCID: PMC10548166 DOI: 10.1042/bsr20230489] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/14/2023] [Revised: 05/31/2023] [Accepted: 06/13/2023] [Indexed: 06/21/2023] Open
Abstract
Amyloids are high-order proteinaceous formations deposited in both intra- and extracellular spaces. These aggregates have tendencies to deregulate cellular physiology in multiple ways; for example, altered metabolism, mitochondrial dysfunctions, immune modulation, etc. When amyloids are formed in brain tissues, the endpoint often is death of neurons. However, interesting but least understood is a close connection of amyloids with another set of conditions in which brain cells proliferate at an extraordinary rate and form tumor inside brain. Glioblastoma is one such condition. Increasing number of evidence indicate a possible link between amyloid formation and depositions in brain tumors. Several proteins associated with cell cycle regulation and apoptotic pathways themselves have shown to possess high tendencies to form amyloids. Tumor suppressor protein p53 is one prominent example that mutate, oligomerize and form amyloids leading to loss- or gain-of-functions and cause increased cell proliferation and malignancies. In this review article, we present available examples, genetic links and common pathways that indicate that possibly the two distantly placed pathways: amyloid formation and developing cancers in the brain have similarities and are mechanistically intertwined together.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shalini Singh
- Department of Bioscience and Bioengineering, Indian Institute of Technology Jodhpur, Jheepasani, Jodhpur, Rajasthan 342001, India
- Department of Neurology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL 60611, U.S.A
| | - Vibhuti Joshi
- Department of Bioscience and Bioengineering, Indian Institute of Technology Jodhpur, Jheepasani, Jodhpur, Rajasthan 342001, India
- Department of Biotechnology, School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Bennett University, Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh 201310, India
| | - Arun Upadhyay
- Department of Bioscience and Bioengineering, Indian Institute of Technology Jodhpur, Jheepasani, Jodhpur, Rajasthan 342001, India
- Department of Neurology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL 60611, U.S.A
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4
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Chatterjee S, Park BJ, Vanrobaeys Y, Heiney SA, Rhone AE, Nourski KV, Langmack L, Mukherjee U, Kovach CK, Kocsis Z, Kikuchi Y, Petkov CI, Hefti MM, Bahl E, Michaelson JJ, Kawasaki H, Oya H, Howard MA, Nickl-Jockschat T, Lin LC, Abel T. Activity-induced gene expression in the human brain. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.09.21.558812. [PMID: 37790527 PMCID: PMC10542502 DOI: 10.1101/2023.09.21.558812] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/05/2023]
Abstract
Activity-induced gene expression underlies synaptic plasticity and brain function. Here, using molecular sequencing techniques, we define activity-dependent transcriptomic and epigenomic changes at the tissue and single-cell level in the human brain following direct electrical stimulation of the anterior temporal lobe in patients undergoing neurosurgery. Genes related to transcriptional regulation and microglia-specific cytokine activity displayed the greatest induction pattern, revealing a precise molecular signature of neuronal activation in the human brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Snehajyoti Chatterjee
- Department of Neuroscience and Pharmacology, Iowa Neuroscience Institute Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
- Iowa Neuroscience Institute, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Brian J. Park
- Department of Neurosurgery, University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Yann Vanrobaeys
- Department of Neuroscience and Pharmacology, Iowa Neuroscience Institute Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Shane A. Heiney
- Department of Neuroscience and Pharmacology, Iowa Neuroscience Institute Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
- Iowa Neuroscience Institute, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
- Neural Circuits and Behavior Core, Iowa Neuroscience Institute Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Ariane E. Rhone
- Department of Neurosurgery, University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Kirill V. Nourski
- Department of Neurosurgery, University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Lucy Langmack
- Department of Neuroscience and Pharmacology, Iowa Neuroscience Institute Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
- Iowa Neuroscience Institute, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Utsav Mukherjee
- Department of Neuroscience and Pharmacology, Iowa Neuroscience Institute Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
- Iowa Neuroscience Institute, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Christopher K. Kovach
- Department of Neurosurgery, University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Zsuzsanna Kocsis
- Department of Neurosurgery, University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, Iowa City, IA, USA
- Biosciences Institute, Newcastle University Medical School, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK
| | - Yukiko Kikuchi
- Biosciences Institute, Newcastle University Medical School, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK
| | - Christopher I. Petkov
- Department of Neurosurgery, University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, Iowa City, IA, USA
- Biosciences Institute, Newcastle University Medical School, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK
| | - Marco M. Hefti
- Department of Pathology, University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Ethan Bahl
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Jacob J Michaelson
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Hiroto Kawasaki
- Department of Neurosurgery, University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Hiroyuki Oya
- Department of Neurosurgery, University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Matthew A. Howard
- Department of Neurosurgery, University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Thomas Nickl-Jockschat
- Department of Neuroscience and Pharmacology, Iowa Neuroscience Institute Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
- Iowa Neuroscience Institute, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Li-Chun Lin
- Department of Neuroscience and Pharmacology, Iowa Neuroscience Institute Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
- Iowa Neuroscience Institute, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
- Iowa NeuroBank Core, Iowa Neuroscience Institute Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Ted Abel
- Department of Neuroscience and Pharmacology, Iowa Neuroscience Institute Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
- Iowa Neuroscience Institute, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, Iowa City, IA, USA
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5
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Ocañas SR, Pham KD, Cox JEJ, Keck AW, Ko S, Ampadu FA, Porter HL, Ansere VA, Kulpa A, Kellogg CM, Machalinski AH, Thomas MA, Wright Z, Chucair-Elliott AJ, Freeman WM. Microglial senescence contributes to female-biased neuroinflammation in the aging mouse hippocampus: implications for Alzheimer's disease. J Neuroinflammation 2023; 20:188. [PMID: 37587511 PMCID: PMC10433617 DOI: 10.1186/s12974-023-02870-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2023] [Accepted: 08/03/2023] [Indexed: 08/18/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Microglia, the brain's principal immune cells, have been implicated in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease (AD), a condition shown to affect more females than males. Although sex differences in microglial function and transcriptomic programming have been described across development and in disease models of AD, no studies have comprehensively identified the sex divergences that emerge in the aging mouse hippocampus. Further, existing models of AD generally develop pathology (amyloid plaques and tau tangles) early in life and fail to recapitulate the aged brain environment associated with late-onset AD. Here, we examined and compared transcriptomic and translatomic sex effects in young and old murine hippocampal microglia. METHODS Hippocampal tissue from C57BL6/N and microglial NuTRAP mice of both sexes were collected at young (5-6 month-old [mo]) and old (22-25 mo) ages. Cell sorting and affinity purification techniques were used to isolate the microglial transcriptome and translatome for RNA-sequencing and differential expression analyses. Flow cytometry, qPCR, and imaging approaches were used to confirm the transcriptomic and translatomic findings. RESULTS There were marginal sex differences identified in the young hippocampal microglia, with most differentially expressed genes (DEGs) restricted to the sex chromosomes. Both sex chromosomally and autosomally encoded sex differences emerged with aging. These sex DEGs identified at old age were primarily female-biased and enriched in senescent and disease-associated microglial signatures. Normalized gene expression values can be accessed through a searchable web interface ( https://neuroepigenomics.omrf.org/ ). Pathway analyses identified upstream regulators induced to a greater extent in females than in males, including inflammatory mediators IFNG, TNF, and IL1B, as well as AD-risk genes TREM2 and APP. CONCLUSIONS These data suggest that female microglia adopt disease-associated and senescent phenotypes in the aging mouse hippocampus, even in the absence of disease pathology, to a greater extent than males. This sexually divergent microglial phenotype may explain the difference in susceptibility and disease progression in the case of AD pathology. Future studies will need to explore sex differences in microglial heterogeneity in response to AD pathology and determine how sex-specific regulators (i.e., sex chromosomal or hormonal) elicit these sex effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah R Ocañas
- Genes and Human Disease Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, 825 NE 13th Street, Oklahoma City, OK, 73104, USA
- Department of Physiology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK, USA
| | - Kevin D Pham
- Genes and Human Disease Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, 825 NE 13th Street, Oklahoma City, OK, 73104, USA
| | - Jillian E J Cox
- Genes and Human Disease Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, 825 NE 13th Street, Oklahoma City, OK, 73104, USA
- Graduate Program in Biomedical Sciences, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK, USA
| | - Alex W Keck
- Genes and Human Disease Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, 825 NE 13th Street, Oklahoma City, OK, 73104, USA
| | - Sunghwan Ko
- Genes and Human Disease Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, 825 NE 13th Street, Oklahoma City, OK, 73104, USA
- Graduate Program in Biomedical Sciences, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK, USA
| | - Felix A Ampadu
- Graduate Program in Biomedical Sciences, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK, USA
| | - Hunter L Porter
- Genes and Human Disease Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, 825 NE 13th Street, Oklahoma City, OK, 73104, USA
| | - Victor A Ansere
- Genes and Human Disease Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, 825 NE 13th Street, Oklahoma City, OK, 73104, USA
- Department of Physiology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK, USA
| | - Adam Kulpa
- Genes and Human Disease Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, 825 NE 13th Street, Oklahoma City, OK, 73104, USA
| | - Collyn M Kellogg
- Genes and Human Disease Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, 825 NE 13th Street, Oklahoma City, OK, 73104, USA
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK, USA
| | - Adeline H Machalinski
- Genes and Human Disease Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, 825 NE 13th Street, Oklahoma City, OK, 73104, USA
| | - Manu A Thomas
- Genes and Human Disease Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, 825 NE 13th Street, Oklahoma City, OK, 73104, USA
| | - Zsabre Wright
- Genes and Human Disease Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, 825 NE 13th Street, Oklahoma City, OK, 73104, USA
| | - Ana J Chucair-Elliott
- Genes and Human Disease Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, 825 NE 13th Street, Oklahoma City, OK, 73104, USA
| | - Willard M Freeman
- Genes and Human Disease Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, 825 NE 13th Street, Oklahoma City, OK, 73104, USA.
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK, USA.
- Oklahoma City Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Oklahoma City, OK, USA.
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6
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Ocañas SR, Pham KD, Cox JE, Keck AW, Ko S, Ampadu FA, Porter HL, Ansere VA, Kulpa A, Kellogg CM, Machalinski AH, Chucair-Elliott AJ, Freeman WM. Microglial senescence contributes to female-biased neuroinflammation in the aging mouse hippocampus: implications for Alzheimer's disease. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.03.07.531562. [PMID: 36945656 PMCID: PMC10028852 DOI: 10.1101/2023.03.07.531562] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/12/2023]
Abstract
Background Microglia, the brain's principal immune cells, have been implicated in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease (AD), a condition shown to affect more females than males. Although sex differences in microglial function and transcriptomic programming have been described across development and in disease models of AD, no studies have comprehensively identified the sex divergences that emerge in the aging mouse hippocampus. Further, existing models of AD generally develop pathology (amyloid plaques and tau tangles) early in life and fail to recapitulate the aged brain environment associated with late-onset AD. Here, we examined and compared transcriptomic and translatomic sex effects in young and old murine hippocampal microglia. Methods Hippocampal tissue from C57BL6/N and microglial NuTRAP mice of both sexes were collected at young (5-6 month-old [mo]) and old (22-25 mo) ages. Cell sorting and affinity purification techniques were used to isolate the microglial transcriptome and translatome for RNA-sequencing and differential expression analyses. Flow cytometry, qPCR, and imaging approaches were used to confirm the transcriptomic and translatomic findings. Results There were marginal sex differences identified in the young hippocampal microglia, with most differentially expressed genes (DEGs) restricted to the sex chromosomes. Both sex chromosomally-and autosomally-encoded sex differences emerged with aging. These sex DEGs identified at old age were primarily female-biased and enriched in senescent and disease-associated microglial signatures. Normalized gene expression values can be accessed through a searchable web interface ( https://neuroepigenomics.omrf.org/ ). Pathway analyses identified upstream regulators induced to a greater extent in females than in males, including inflammatory mediators IFNG, TNF, and IL1B, as well as AD-risk genes TREM2 and APP. Conclusions These data suggest that female microglia adopt disease-associated and senescent phenotypes in the aging mouse hippocampus, even in the absence of disease pathology, to a greater extent than males. This sexually divergent microglial phenotype may explain the difference in susceptibility and disease progression in the case of AD pathology. Future studies will need to explore sex differences in microglial heterogeneity in response to AD pathology and determine how sex-specific regulators (i.e., sex chromosomal or hormonal) elicit these sex effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah R. Ocañas
- Genes & Human Disease Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK USA
- Department of Physiology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK USA
| | - Kevin D. Pham
- Genes & Human Disease Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK USA
| | - Jillian E.J. Cox
- Genes & Human Disease Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK USA
- Graduate Program in Biomedical Sciences, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK
| | - Alex W. Keck
- Genes & Human Disease Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK USA
| | - Sunghwan Ko
- Genes & Human Disease Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK USA
- Graduate Program in Biomedical Sciences, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK
| | - Felix A. Ampadu
- Graduate Program in Biomedical Sciences, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK
| | - Hunter L. Porter
- Genes & Human Disease Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK USA
| | - Victor A. Ansere
- Genes & Human Disease Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK USA
- Department of Physiology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK USA
| | - Adam Kulpa
- Genes & Human Disease Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK USA
| | - Collyn M. Kellogg
- Genes & Human Disease Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK USA
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK USA
| | - Adeline H. Machalinski
- Genes & Human Disease Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK USA
| | - Ana J. Chucair-Elliott
- Genes & Human Disease Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK USA
| | - Willard M. Freeman
- Genes & Human Disease Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK USA
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK USA
- Oklahoma City Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Oklahoma City, OK USA
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7
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Luan W, Sun Z, Wu C, Tao M, Shen X. Neuroinflammation after ischemic stroke involves INPP5D expression mediated by the TMPO-AS1-PU.1 complex. Neurol Res 2023; 45:319-333. [PMID: 36417294 DOI: 10.1080/01616412.2022.2143615] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES This study aims to explore the role of lncRNA TMPO-AS1 in ischemic stroke and corresponding mechanism. METHODS Adult male C57BL/6 J mice were subjected to a middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) model of ischemic stroke, then TMPO-AS1 shRNA lentivirus were injected into ipsilateral striatum of mice. The neurological score and cerebral infarction volume were evaluatedHypoxia/glucose deprivation/reoxygenation (OGD/R)-induced BV2 cells were transfected with TMPO-AS1 shRNA (sh-TMPO-AS1) or together with pcDNA-INPP5D, as well as transfected with sh-PU.1 or together with pcDNA-INPP5D, then TMPO-AS1 level, the expression of PU.1 and INPP5D proteins, the secretion of inflammatory factors (TNF-α, IL-6 and IL-1β), the levels of iNOS, CD68,Arg1 and CD206 mRNA were detected. RIP and PNA-pull down assays were used to detect the binding of TMPO-AS1 and PU.1, luciferase reporter gene and chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) assays were used to detect the binding activity of PU.1 and INPP5D. RESULTS TMPO-AS1 level was increased in peripheral blood of ischemic stroke patients , brain tissues of MCAO/R model mice and OGD/R-induced BV2 cells. TMPO-AS1 interference inhibited the inflammation of OGD/R-induced BV2 cells. TMPO-AS1 also enhanced the nuclear accumulation of PU.1 by binding to the transcription factor PU.1, and promoted the transcriptional activation of INPP5D. The anti-inflammatory effects of TMPO-AS1 interference were reversed by INPP5D overexpression. In addition, TMPO-AS1 interference improved the infarct volume of MCAO mice, and improved sensorimotor and cognitive functions. CONCLUSION INPP5D underexpression mediated by TMPO-AS1-PU.1 complex alleviated neuroinflammation after ischemic stroke.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wenhui Luan
- Neurology Department EEG Room, Yantai Yuhuangding Hospital, Yantai 264000, China
| | - Zhongwen Sun
- Department of Neurology, Yantai Yuhuangding Hospital, Yantai 264000, China
| | - Chunmei Wu
- Neurology Department EEG Room, Yantai Yuhuangding Hospital, Yantai 264000, China
| | - Manli Tao
- Neurological Intensive Care Unit, Yantai Yuhuangding Hospital, Yantai 264000, China
| | - Xiaoqian Shen
- Department of Neurology Intensive Care Unit, Yantai Yuhuangding Hospital, Yantai 264000, China
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8
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Andrade-Guerrero J, Santiago-Balmaseda A, Jeronimo-Aguilar P, Vargas-Rodríguez I, Cadena-Suárez AR, Sánchez-Garibay C, Pozo-Molina G, Méndez-Catalá CF, Cardenas-Aguayo MDC, Diaz-Cintra S, Pacheco-Herrero M, Luna-Muñoz J, Soto-Rojas LO. Alzheimer's Disease: An Updated Overview of Its Genetics. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:ijms24043754. [PMID: 36835161 PMCID: PMC9966419 DOI: 10.3390/ijms24043754] [Citation(s) in RCA: 60] [Impact Index Per Article: 60.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/23/2022] [Revised: 01/31/2023] [Accepted: 02/06/2023] [Indexed: 02/16/2023] Open
Abstract
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common neurodegenerative disease in the world. It is classified as familial and sporadic. The dominant familial or autosomal presentation represents 1-5% of the total number of cases. It is categorized as early onset (EOAD; <65 years of age) and presents genetic mutations in presenilin 1 (PSEN1), presenilin 2 (PSEN2), or the Amyloid precursor protein (APP). Sporadic AD represents 95% of the cases and is categorized as late-onset (LOAD), occurring in patients older than 65 years of age. Several risk factors have been identified in sporadic AD; aging is the main one. Nonetheless, multiple genes have been associated with the different neuropathological events involved in LOAD, such as the pathological processing of Amyloid beta (Aβ) peptide and Tau protein, as well as synaptic and mitochondrial dysfunctions, neurovascular alterations, oxidative stress, and neuroinflammation, among others. Interestingly, using genome-wide association study (GWAS) technology, many polymorphisms associated with LOAD have been identified. This review aims to analyze the new genetic findings that are closely related to the pathophysiology of AD. Likewise, it analyzes the multiple mutations identified to date through GWAS that are associated with a high or low risk of developing this neurodegeneration. Understanding genetic variability will allow for the identification of early biomarkers and opportune therapeutic targets for AD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jesús Andrade-Guerrero
- Laboratorio de Patogénesis Molecular, Laboratorio 4, Edificio A4, Carrera Médico Cirujano, Facultad de Estudios Superiores Iztacala, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Tlalnepantla 54090, Edomex, Mexico
- Departamento de Neurobiología del Desarrollo y Neurofisiología, Instituto de Neurobiología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Juriquilla 76230, Querétaro, Mexico
| | - Alberto Santiago-Balmaseda
- Laboratorio de Patogénesis Molecular, Laboratorio 4, Edificio A4, Carrera Médico Cirujano, Facultad de Estudios Superiores Iztacala, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Tlalnepantla 54090, Edomex, Mexico
- Red MEDICI, Carrera Médico Cirujano, Facultad de Estudios Superiores Iztacala, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Tlalnepantla 54090, Edomex, Mexico
| | - Paola Jeronimo-Aguilar
- Laboratorio de Patogénesis Molecular, Laboratorio 4, Edificio A4, Carrera Médico Cirujano, Facultad de Estudios Superiores Iztacala, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Tlalnepantla 54090, Edomex, Mexico
- Red MEDICI, Carrera Médico Cirujano, Facultad de Estudios Superiores Iztacala, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Tlalnepantla 54090, Edomex, Mexico
- Sección de Estudios de Posgrado e Investigación, Escuela Superior de Medicina, Instituto Politécnico Nacional, Ciudad de México 11340, Mexico
| | - Isaac Vargas-Rodríguez
- Departamento de Neurobiología del Desarrollo y Neurofisiología, Instituto de Neurobiología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Juriquilla 76230, Querétaro, Mexico
| | - Ana Ruth Cadena-Suárez
- National Dementia BioBank, Ciencias Biológicas, Facultad de Estudios Superiores Cuautitlán, Universidad-Nacional Autónoma de México, Cuatitlan 53150, Edomex, Mexico
| | - Carlos Sánchez-Garibay
- Departamento de Neuropatología, Instituto Nacional de Neurología y Neurocirugía Manuel Velasco Suárez, Ciudad de México 14269, Mexico
| | - Glustein Pozo-Molina
- Laboratorio de Genética y Oncología Molecular, Laboratorio 5, Edificio A4, Carrera Médico Cirujano, Facultad de Estudios Superiores Iztacala, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Tlalnepantla 54090, Edomex, Mexico
| | - Claudia Fabiola Méndez-Catalá
- Laboratorio de Genética y Oncología Molecular, Laboratorio 5, Edificio A4, Carrera Médico Cirujano, Facultad de Estudios Superiores Iztacala, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Tlalnepantla 54090, Edomex, Mexico
- División de Investigación y Posgrado, Facultad de Estudios Superiores Iztacala, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Mexico, Tlalnepantla 54090, Edomex, Mexico
| | - Maria-del-Carmen Cardenas-Aguayo
- Laboratory of Cellular Reprogramming, Departamento de Fisiología, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Ciudad de México 04510, Mexico
| | - Sofía Diaz-Cintra
- Departamento de Neurobiología del Desarrollo y Neurofisiología, Instituto de Neurobiología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Juriquilla 76230, Querétaro, Mexico
| | - Mar Pacheco-Herrero
- Neuroscience Research Laboratory, Faculty of Health Sciences, Pontificia Universidad Católica Madre y Maestra, Santiago de los Caballeros 51000, Dominican Republic
| | - José Luna-Muñoz
- National Dementia BioBank, Ciencias Biológicas, Facultad de Estudios Superiores Cuautitlán, Universidad-Nacional Autónoma de México, Cuatitlan 53150, Edomex, Mexico
- National Brain Bank-UNPHU, Universidad Nacional Pedro Henríquez Ureña, Santo Domingo 1423, Dominican Republic
- Correspondence: (J.L.-M.); (L.O.S.-R.); Tel.: +52-55-45-23-41-20 (J.L.-M.); +52-55-39-37-94-30 (L.O.S.-R.)
| | - Luis O. Soto-Rojas
- Laboratorio de Patogénesis Molecular, Laboratorio 4, Edificio A4, Carrera Médico Cirujano, Facultad de Estudios Superiores Iztacala, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Tlalnepantla 54090, Edomex, Mexico
- Red MEDICI, Carrera Médico Cirujano, Facultad de Estudios Superiores Iztacala, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Tlalnepantla 54090, Edomex, Mexico
- Correspondence: (J.L.-M.); (L.O.S.-R.); Tel.: +52-55-45-23-41-20 (J.L.-M.); +52-55-39-37-94-30 (L.O.S.-R.)
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Podlesny-Drabiniok A, Novikova G, Liu Y, Dunst J, Temizer R, Giannarelli C, Marro S, Kreslavsky T, Marcora E, Goate AM. BHLHE40/41 regulate macrophage/microglia responses associated with Alzheimer's disease and other disorders of lipid-rich tissues. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.02.13.528372. [PMID: 36824752 PMCID: PMC9948946 DOI: 10.1101/2023.02.13.528372] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/16/2023]
Abstract
Background Genetic and experimental evidence strongly implicates myeloid cells in the etiology of AD and suggests that AD-associated alleles and genes may modulate disease risk by altering the transcriptional and cellular responses of macrophages (like microglia) to damage of lipid-rich tissues (like the brain). Specifically, recent single-cell/nucleus RNA sequencing (sc/nRNA-seq) studies identified a transcriptionally distinct state of subsets of macrophages in aging or degenerating brains (usually referred to as disease-associated microglia or DAM) and in other diseased lipid-rich tissues (e.g., obese adipose tissue, fatty liver, and atherosclerotic plaques). We collectively refer to these subpopulations as lipid-associated macrophages or LAMs. Importantly, this particular activation state is characterized by increased expression of genes involved in the phagocytic clearance of lipid-rich cellular debris (efferocytosis), including several AD risk genes. Methods We used sc/nRNA-seq data from human and mouse microglia from healthy and diseased brains and macrophages from other lipid-rich tissues to reconstruct gene regulatory networks and identify transcriptional regulators whose regulons are enriched for LAM response genes (LAM TFs) across species. We then used gene knock-down/knock-out strategies to validate some of these LAM TFs in human THP-1 macrophages and iPSC-derived microglia in vitro, as well as mouse microglia in vivo. Results We nominate 11 strong candidate LAM TFs shared across human and mouse networks (BHLHE41, HIF1A, ID2, JUNB, MAF, MAFB, MEF2A, MEF2C, NACA, POU2F2 and SPI1). We also demonstrate a strong enrichment of AD risk alleles in the cistrome of BHLHE41 (and its close homolog BHLHE40), thus implicating its regulon in the modulation of disease susceptibility. Loss or reduction of BHLHE40/41 expression in human THP-1 macrophages and iPSC-derived microglia, as well as loss of Bhlhe40/41 in mouse microglia led to increased expression of LAM response genes, specifically those involved in cholesterol clearance and lysosomal processing, with a concomitant increase in cholesterol efflux and storage, as well as lysosomal mass and degradative capacity. Conclusions Taken together, this study nominates transcriptional regulators of the LAM response, experimentally validates BHLHE40/41 in human and mouse macrophages/microglia, and provides novel targets for therapeutic modulation of macrophage/microglia function in AD and other disorders of lipid-rich tissues.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Podlesny-Drabiniok
- Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, New York, NY, USA; Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Gloriia Novikova
- Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, New York, NY, USA; Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- OMNI Bioinformatics Department and Neuroscience Department, Genentech, Inc., South San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Yiyuan Liu
- Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, New York, NY, USA; Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Josefine Dunst
- Department of Medicine, Division of Immunology and Allergy, Karolinska Institutet, Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden
- Center for Molecular Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Rose Temizer
- Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, New York, NY, USA; Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Chiara Giannarelli
- Department of Medicine (C.G.), Cardiology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine
- Department of Pathology (C.G.), Cardiology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine
| | - Samuele Marro
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
- Black Family Stem Cell Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Taras Kreslavsky
- Department of Medicine, Division of Immunology and Allergy, Karolinska Institutet, Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden
- Center for Molecular Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Edoardo Marcora
- Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, New York, NY, USA; Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Alison Mary Goate
- Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, New York, NY, USA; Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
- Black Family Stem Cell Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
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Kuang G, Salowe R, O’Brien J. Genetic Factors Implicated in the Investigation of Possible Connections between Alzheimer's Disease and Primary Open Angle Glaucoma. Genes (Basel) 2023; 14:338. [PMID: 36833265 PMCID: PMC9957421 DOI: 10.3390/genes14020338] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2022] [Revised: 01/19/2023] [Accepted: 01/26/2023] [Indexed: 01/31/2023] Open
Abstract
Both Alzheimer's disease (AD) and primary open angle glaucoma (POAG) are diseases of primary global neurodegeneration with complex pathophysiologies. Throughout the published literature, researchers have highlighted similarities associated with various aspects of both diseases. In light of the increasing number of findings reporting resemblance between the two neurodegenerative processes, scientists have grown interested in possible underlying connections between AD and POAG. In the search for explanations to fundamental mechanisms, a multitude of genes have been studied in each condition, with overlap in the genes of interest between AD and POAG. Greater understanding of genetic factors can drive the research process of identifying relationships and elucidating common pathways of disease. These connections can then be utilized to advance research as well as to generate new clinical applications. Notably, AD and glaucoma are currently diseases with irreversible consequences that often lack effective therapies. An established genetic connection between AD and POAG would serve as the basis for development of gene or pathway targeted strategies relevant to both diseases. Such a clinical application could be of immense benefit to researchers, clinicians, and patients alike. This paper aims to summarize the genetic associations between AD and POAG, describe common underlying mechanisms, discuss potential areas of application, and organize the findings in a review.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Joan O’Brien
- Scheie Eye Institute, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
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11
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Abstract
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a genetically complex and heterogeneous disorder with multifaceted neuropathological features, including β-amyloid plaques, neurofibrillary tangles, and neuroinflammation. Over the past decade, emerging evidence has implicated both beneficial and pathological roles for innate immune genes and immune cells, including peripheral immune cells such as T cells, which can infiltrate the brain and either ameliorate or exacerbate AD neuropathogenesis. These findings support a neuroimmune axis of AD, in which the interplay of adaptive and innate immune systems inside and outside the brain critically impacts the etiology and pathogenesis of AD. In this review, we discuss the complexities of AD neuropathology at the levels of genetics and cellular physiology, highlighting immune signaling pathways and genes associated with AD risk and interactions among both innate and adaptive immune cells in the AD brain. We emphasize the role of peripheral immune cells in AD and the mechanisms by which immune cells, such as T cells and monocytes, influence AD neuropathology, including microglial clearance of amyloid-β peptide, the key component of β-amyloid plaque cores, pro-inflammatory and cytotoxic activity of microglia, astrogliosis, and their interactions with the brain vasculature. Finally, we review the challenges and outlook for establishing immune-based therapies for treating and preventing AD.
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12
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Chen M, Jia S, Xue M, Huang H, Xu Z, Yang D, Zhu W, Song Q. Dual-Stream Subspace Clustering Network for revealing gene targets in Alzheimer's disease. Comput Biol Med 2022; 151:106305. [PMID: 36401971 DOI: 10.1016/j.compbiomed.2022.106305] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2022] [Revised: 11/02/2022] [Accepted: 11/06/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022]
Abstract
The rapid development of scRNA-seq technology in recent years has enabled us to capture high-throughput gene expression profiles at single-cell resolution, reveal the heterogeneity of complex cell populations, and greatly advance our understanding of the underlying mechanisms in human diseases. Traditional methods for gene co-expression clustering are limited to discovering effective gene groups in scRNA-seq data. In this paper, we propose a novel gene clustering method based on convolutional neural networks called Dual-Stream Subspace Clustering Network (DS-SCNet). DS-SCNet can accurately identify important gene clusters from large scales of single-cell RNA-seq data and provide useful information for downstream analysis. Based on the simulated datasets, DS-SCNet successfully clusters genes into different groups and outperforms mainstream gene clustering methods, such as DBSCAN and DESC, across different evaluation metrics. To explore the biological insights of our proposed method, we applied it to real scRNA-seq data of patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD). DS-SCNet analyzed the single-cell RNA-seq data with 10,850 genes, and accurately identified 8 optimal clusters from 6673 cells. Enrichment analysis of these gene clusters revealed functional signaling pathways including the ILS signaling, the Rho GTPase signaling, and hemostasis pathways. Further analysis of gene regulatory networks identified new hub genes such as ELF4 as important regulators of AD, which indicates that DS-SCNet contributes to the discovery and understanding of the pathogenesis in Alzheimer's disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Minghan Chen
- Department of Computer Science, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC, USA
| | - Shishen Jia
- School of Automation, Hangzhou Dianzi University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Mengfan Xue
- School of Automation, Hangzhou Dianzi University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China; Zhejiang Lab, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | | | - Ziang Xu
- Department of Computer Science, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC, USA
| | - Defu Yang
- Zhejiang Lab, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Wentao Zhu
- Zhejiang Lab, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.
| | - Qianqian Song
- Center for Cancer Genomics and Precision Oncology, Wake Forest Baptist Comprehensive Cancer Center, Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, Winston Salem, NC, USA; Department of Cancer Biology, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston Salem, NC, USA.
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Biomarker Genes Discovery of Alzheimer’s Disease by Multi-Omics-Based Gene Regulatory Network Construction of Microglia. Brain Sci 2022; 12:brainsci12091196. [PMID: 36138932 PMCID: PMC9496783 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci12091196] [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: 07/16/2022] [Revised: 08/15/2022] [Accepted: 09/02/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Microglia, the major immune cells in the brain, mediate neuroinflammation, increased oxidative stress, and impaired neurotransmission in Alzheimer’s disease (AD), in which most AD risk genes are highly expressed. In microglia, due to the limitations of current single-omics data analysis, risk genes, the regulatory mechanisms, the mechanisms of action of immune responses and the exploration of drug targets for AD immunotherapy are still unclear. Therefore, we proposed a method to integrate multi-omics data based on the construction of gene regulatory networks (GRN), by combining weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) with single-cell regulatory network inference and clustering (SCENIC). This enables snRNA-seq data and bulkRNA-seq data to obtain data on the deeper intermolecular regulatory relationships, related genes, and the molecular mechanisms of immune-cell action. In our approach, not only were central transcription factors (TF) STAT3, CEBPB, SPI1, and regulatory mechanisms identified more accurately than with single-omics but also immunotherapy targeting central TFs to drugs was found to be significantly different between patients. Thus, in addition to providing new insights into the potential regulatory mechanisms and pathogenic genes of AD microglia, this approach can assist clinicians in making the most rational treatment plans for patients with different risks; it also has significant implications for identifying AD immunotherapy targets and targeting microglia-associated immune drugs.
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Gupta C, Xu J, Jin T, Khullar S, Liu X, Alatkar S, Cheng F, Wang D. Single-cell network biology characterizes cell type gene regulation for drug repurposing and phenotype prediction in Alzheimer's disease. PLoS Comput Biol 2022; 18:e1010287. [PMID: 35849618 PMCID: PMC9333448 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1010287] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2022] [Revised: 07/28/2022] [Accepted: 06/07/2022] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Dysregulation of gene expression in Alzheimer's disease (AD) remains elusive, especially at the cell type level. Gene regulatory network, a key molecular mechanism linking transcription factors (TFs) and regulatory elements to govern gene expression, can change across cell types in the human brain and thus serve as a model for studying gene dysregulation in AD. However, AD-induced regulatory changes across brain cell types remains uncharted. To address this, we integrated single-cell multi-omics datasets to predict the gene regulatory networks of four major cell types, excitatory and inhibitory neurons, microglia and oligodendrocytes, in control and AD brains. Importantly, we analyzed and compared the structural and topological features of networks across cell types and examined changes in AD. Our analysis shows that hub TFs are largely common across cell types and AD-related changes are relatively more prominent in some cell types (e.g., microglia). The regulatory logics of enriched network motifs (e.g., feed-forward loops) further uncover cell type-specific TF-TF cooperativities in gene regulation. The cell type networks are also highly modular and several network modules with cell-type-specific expression changes in AD pathology are enriched with AD-risk genes. The further disease-module-drug association analysis suggests cell-type candidate drugs and their potential target genes. Finally, our network-based machine learning analysis systematically prioritized cell type risk genes likely involved in AD. Our strategy is validated using an independent dataset which showed that top ranked genes can predict clinical phenotypes (e.g., cognitive impairment) of AD with reasonable accuracy. Overall, this single-cell network biology analysis provides a comprehensive map linking genes, regulatory networks, cell types and drug targets and reveals cell-type gene dysregulation in AD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chirag Gupta
- Waisman Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, United States of America
- Department of Biostatistics and Medical Informatics, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, United States of America
| | - Jielin Xu
- Genomic Medicine Institute, Lerner Research Institute, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, Ohio, United States of America
| | - Ting Jin
- Waisman Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, United States of America
- Department of Biostatistics and Medical Informatics, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, United States of America
| | - Saniya Khullar
- Waisman Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, United States of America
- Department of Biostatistics and Medical Informatics, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, United States of America
| | - Xiaoyu Liu
- Department of Statistics, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, United States of America
| | - Sayali Alatkar
- Waisman Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, United States of America
- Department of Computer Sciences, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, United States of America
| | - Feixiong Cheng
- Genomic Medicine Institute, Lerner Research Institute, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, Ohio, United States of America
- Department of Molecular Medicine, Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio, United States of America
- Case Comprehensive Cancer Center, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, Ohio, United States of America
| | - Daifeng Wang
- Waisman Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, United States of America
- Department of Biostatistics and Medical Informatics, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, United States of America
- Department of Computer Sciences, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, United States of America
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Gong Y, Srinivasan SS, Zhang R, Kessenbrock K, Zhang J. scEpiLock: A Weakly Supervised Learning Framework for cis-Regulatory Element Localization and Variant Impact Quantification for Single-Cell Epigenetic Data. Biomolecules 2022; 12:874. [PMID: 35883430 PMCID: PMC9312957 DOI: 10.3390/biom12070874] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/06/2022] [Revised: 06/16/2022] [Accepted: 06/16/2022] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Recent advances in single-cell transposase-accessible chromatin using a sequencing assay (scATAC-seq) allow cellular heterogeneity dissection and regulatory landscape reconstruction with an unprecedented resolution. However, compared to bulk-sequencing, its ultra-high missingness remarkably reduces usable reads in each cell type, resulting in broader, fuzzier peak boundary definitions and limiting our ability to pinpoint functional regions and interpret variant impacts precisely. We propose a weakly supervised learning method, scEpiLock, to directly identify core functional regions from coarse peak labels and quantify variant impacts in a cell-type-specific manner. First, scEpiLock uses a multi-label classifier to predict chromatin accessibility via a deep convolutional neural network. Then, its weakly supervised object detection module further refines the peak boundary definition using gradient-weighted class activation mapping (Grad-CAM). Finally, scEpiLock provides cell-type-specific variant impacts within a given peak region. We applied scEpiLock to various scATAC-seq datasets and found that it achieves an area under receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) of ~0.9 and an area under precision recall (AUPR) above 0.7. Besides, scEpiLock's object detection condenses coarse peaks to only ⅓ of their original size while still reporting higher conservation scores. In addition, we applied scEpiLock on brain scATAC-seq data and reported several genome-wide association studies (GWAS) variants disrupting regulatory elements around known risk genes for Alzheimer's disease, demonstrating its potential to provide cell-type-specific biological insights in disease studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yanwen Gong
- Center for Complex Biological Systems, University of California, Irvine, CA 92697, USA;
- Department of Biological Chemistry, School of Medicine, University of California, Irvine, CA 92697, USA
| | | | - Ruiyi Zhang
- Department of Computer Science, University of California, Irvine, CA 92697, USA; (S.S.S.); (R.Z.)
| | - Kai Kessenbrock
- Center for Complex Biological Systems, University of California, Irvine, CA 92697, USA;
- Department of Biological Chemistry, School of Medicine, University of California, Irvine, CA 92697, USA
| | - Jing Zhang
- Department of Computer Science, University of California, Irvine, CA 92697, USA; (S.S.S.); (R.Z.)
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Jones R, Hill M, Taylor P. Spi1 -14 Kb upstream regulatory element (URE) is not required for maintenance of PU.1 expression in macrophages. Wellcome Open Res 2022. [DOI: 10.12688/wellcomeopenres.17705.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Background: Previous work suggested an upstream regulatory element (URE) of Spi1 was required to maintain constant expression of the PU.1 transcription factor in bone marrow and foetal liver cells. PU.1, encoded by Spi1, is essential for development and maintenance of myeloid and B-lymphocyte populations in mice. Deletion of this (-14 Kb) URE potentially reduces expression of PU.1 and therefore provides a way to investigate its role in myeloid populations in development and disease. This study aimed to examine the impact of removal of the -14 Kb Spi1 URE in Cx3cr1+ cells on the myeloid lineage formation and maintenance. Methods: B6;129-Spi1tm1.2Dgt/J mice, whose -14 Kb Spi1 URE mice is flanked by LoxP sites (‘floxed’), were bred to a strain with constitutively active Cre expressed under the Cx3cr1 promoter (B6J.B6N(Cg)-Cx3cr1tm1.1(cre)Jung/J) to delete the Spi1 URE in myeloid cells. The floxed mice were also bred to mice with a tamoxifen-inducible Cre expressed under the Cx3cr1 promoter (B6.129P2(C)-Cx3cr1tm2.1(cre/ERT2)Jung/J) to be used as URE intact controls and to permit temporally-controlled deletion of the URE if required. PU.1 protein expression was measured in the peritoneal macrophages and microglia by flow cytometry. Additionally, a Cre-encoding lentiviral vector was used to assess the impact on PU.1 expression in bone-marrow derived macrophages from these mice in vitro. Results: Expression of the PU.1 transcription factor was not significantly altered in the peritoneal macrophages or microglia in mice lacking the -14 Kb Spi1 URE. Moreover, initial experiments utilising Cre encoding lentivirus did not reduce PU.1 protein in bone-marrow derived macrophages differentiated from the -14 Kb Spi1 URE floxed mice. Conclusions: These observations suggest that the -14 Kb URE does not play a major role in PU.1 protein expression in either mature peritoneal macrophages or microglia.
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Policarpo R, d’Ydewalle C. Missing lnc(RNAs) in Alzheimer's Disease? Genes (Basel) 2021; 13:39. [PMID: 35052379 PMCID: PMC8774680 DOI: 10.3390/genes13010039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2021] [Revised: 12/17/2021] [Accepted: 12/21/2021] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
With the ongoing demographic shift towards increasingly elderly populations, it is estimated that approximately 150 million people will live with Alzheimer's disease (AD) by 2050. By then, AD will be one of the most burdensome diseases of this and potentially next centuries. Although its exact etiology remains elusive, both environmental and genetic factors play crucial roles in the mechanisms underlying AD neuropathology. Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) identified genetic variants associated with AD susceptibility in more than 40 different genomic loci. Most of these disease-associated variants reside in non-coding regions of the genome. In recent years, it has become clear that functionally active transcripts arise from these non-coding loci. One type of non-coding transcript, referred to as long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs), gained significant attention due to their multiple roles in neurodevelopment, brain homeostasis, aging, and their dysregulation or dysfunction in neurological diseases including in AD. Here, we will summarize the current knowledge regarding genetic variations, expression profiles, as well as potential functions, diagnostic or therapeutic roles of lncRNAs in AD. We postulate that lncRNAs may represent the missing link in AD pathology and that unraveling their role may open avenues to better AD treatments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rafaela Policarpo
- VIB-KU Leuven Center for Brain & Disease Research, 3000 Leuven, Belgium;
- Laboratory for the Research of Neurodegenerative Diseases, Department of Neurosciences, Leuven Brain Institute (LBI), KU Leuven, 3000 Leuven, Belgium
- Neuroscience Discovery, Janssen Research & Development, Janssen Pharmaceutica N.V., 2340 Beerse, Belgium
| | - Constantin d’Ydewalle
- Neuroscience Discovery, Janssen Research & Development, Janssen Pharmaceutica N.V., 2340 Beerse, Belgium
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