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Dean B, Hopper S, Scarr E. Changes in levels of the zinc transporter SLC39A12 in Brodmann's area 44: Effects of sex, suicide, CNS pH and schizophrenia. J Psychiatr Res 2024; 177:177-184. [PMID: 39024742 DOI: 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2024.07.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2024] [Revised: 07/04/2024] [Accepted: 07/11/2024] [Indexed: 07/20/2024]
Abstract
Disturbed CNS zinc homeostasis is suggested as part of the pathophysiology of schizophrenia. Our data, from multiple studies, suggests levels of cortical RNA for the solute carrier family 39 member 12 (SLC39A12), a putative zinc transporter, is higher in people with schizophrenia and is more perturbed in a sub-group of people with the disorder that can be separated because they have very low levels of muscarinic M1 receptors (MRDS). In this study qPCR was used to measure levels of two RNA splice variants of SLC39A12 (a and b) in Brodmann's area (BA) 44 from new cohorts of controls and people with schizophrenia. For the first time, in our study cohort as a whole, we report levels of both splice variants of SLC39A12 are lower in females compared to males and there are correlations between levels of SLC39A12 a and b and CNS pH. Levels of both splice variants were also lower in people with schizophrenia who were suicide completers compared to those who were not. Accounting for these factors, we showed levels of SLC39A12 a and b were higher in BA 44 in schizophrenia compared to controls. In further analyses, with and without our previous data on SLC39A12 a and b, we confirmed changes in levels of SLC39A12 RNAs were more profound in MRDS. In conclusion, our study argues there are higher levels of SLC39A12 a and b in BA 44 in schizophrenia which could be contributing to the breakdown in CNS zinc homeostasis suggested as part of the pathophysiology of schizophrenia, particularly in those with MRDS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brian Dean
- The Molecular Psychiatry Laboratory, The Florey, Parkville, Victoria, Australia; Florey Department of Neuroscience and Mental Health, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia.
| | - Shaun Hopper
- The Molecular Psychiatry Laboratory, The Florey, Parkville, Victoria, Australia; Florey Department of Neuroscience and Mental Health, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
| | - Elizabeth Scarr
- The Department of Psychiatry, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
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2
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Casey C, Fullard JF, Sleator RD. Unravelling the genetic basis of Schizophrenia. Gene 2024; 902:148198. [PMID: 38266791 DOI: 10.1016/j.gene.2024.148198] [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] [Received: 09/01/2023] [Revised: 12/07/2023] [Accepted: 01/19/2024] [Indexed: 01/26/2024]
Abstract
Neuronal development is a highly regulated mechanism that is central to organismal function in animals. In humans, disruptions to this process can lead to a range of neurodevelopmental phenotypes, including Schizophrenia (SCZ). SCZ has a significant genetic component, whereby an individual with an SCZ affected family member is eight times more likely to develop the disease than someone with no family history of SCZ. By examining a combination of genomic, transcriptomic and epigenomic datasets, large-scale 'omics' studies aim to delineate the relationship between genetic variation and abnormal cellular activity in the SCZ brain. Herein, we provide a brief overview of some of the key omics methods currently being used in SCZ research, including RNA-seq, the assay for transposase-accessible chromatin with high-throughput sequencing (ATAC-seq) and high-throughput chromosome conformation capture (3C) approaches (e.g., Hi-C), as well as single-cell/nuclei iterations of these methods. We also discuss how these techniques are being employed to further our understanding of the genetic basis of SCZ, and to identify associated molecular pathways, biomarkers, and candidate drug targets.
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Affiliation(s)
- Clara Casey
- Department of Biological Sciences, Munster Technological University, Bishopstown, Cork, Ireland; Center for Disease Neurogenomics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, United States; Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, United States; Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, United States
| | - John F Fullard
- Center for Disease Neurogenomics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, United States; Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, United States; Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, United States
| | - Roy D Sleator
- Department of Biological Sciences, Munster Technological University, Bishopstown, Cork, Ireland.
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Mosquera FEC, Guevara-Montoya MC, Serna-Ramirez V, Liscano Y. Neuroinflammation and Schizophrenia: New Therapeutic Strategies through Psychobiotics, Nanotechnology, and Artificial Intelligence (AI). J Pers Med 2024; 14:391. [PMID: 38673018 PMCID: PMC11051547 DOI: 10.3390/jpm14040391] [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: 03/13/2024] [Revised: 03/29/2024] [Accepted: 04/03/2024] [Indexed: 04/28/2024] Open
Abstract
The prevalence of schizophrenia, affecting approximately 1% of the global population, underscores the urgency for innovative therapeutic strategies. Recent insights into the role of neuroinflammation, the gut-brain axis, and the microbiota in schizophrenia pathogenesis have paved the way for the exploration of psychobiotics as a novel treatment avenue. These interventions, targeting the gut microbiome, offer a promising approach to ameliorating psychiatric symptoms. Furthermore, advancements in artificial intelligence and nanotechnology are set to revolutionize psychobiotic development and application, promising to enhance their production, precision, and effectiveness. This interdisciplinary approach heralds a new era in schizophrenia management, potentially transforming patient outcomes and offering a beacon of hope for those afflicted by this complex disorder.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Yamil Liscano
- Grupo de Investigación en Salud Integral (GISI), Departamento Facultad de Salud, Universidad Santiago de Cali, Cali 760035, Colombia; (F.E.C.M.); (M.C.G.-M.); (V.S.-R.)
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4
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R R, Devtalla H, Rana K, Panda SP, Agrawal A, Kadyan S, Jindal D, Pancham P, Yadav D, Jha NK, Jha SK, Gupta V, Singh M. A comprehensive update on genetic inheritance, epigenetic factors, associated pathology, and recent therapeutic intervention by gene therapy in schizophrenia. Chem Biol Drug Des 2024; 103:e14374. [PMID: 37994213 DOI: 10.1111/cbdd.14374] [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] [Received: 04/04/2023] [Revised: 09/15/2023] [Accepted: 09/29/2023] [Indexed: 11/24/2023]
Abstract
Schizophrenia is a severe psychological disorder in which reality is interpreted abnormally by the patient. The symptoms of the disease include delusions and hallucinations, associated with extremely disordered behavior and thinking, which may affect the daily lives of the patients. Advancements in technology have led to understanding the dynamics of the disease and the identification of the underlying causes. Multiple investigations prove that it is regulated genetically, and epigenetically, and is affected by environmental factors. The molecular and neural pathways linked to the regulation of schizophrenia have been extensively studied. Over 180 Schizophrenic risk loci have now been recognized due to several genome-wide association studies (GWAS). It has been observed that multiple transcription factors (TF) binding-disrupting single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) have been related to gene expression responsible for the disease in cerebral complexes. Copy number variation, SNP defects, and epigenetic changes in chromosomes may cause overexpression or underexpression of certain genes responsible for the disease. Nowadays, gene therapy is being implemented for its treatment as several of these genetic defects have been identified. Scientists are trying to use viral vectors, miRNA, siRNA, and CRISPR technology. In addition, nanotechnology is also being applied to target such genes. The primary aim of such targeting was to either delete or silence such hyperactive genes or induce certain genes that inhibit the expression of these genes. There are challenges in delivering the gene/DNA to the site of action in the brain, and scientists are working to resolve the same. The present article describes the basics regarding the disease, its causes and factors responsible, and the gene therapy solutions available to treat this disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rachana R
- Department of Biotechnology, Jaypee Institute of Information Technology, Noida, India
| | - Harshit Devtalla
- Department of Biotechnology, Jaypee Institute of Information Technology, Noida, India
| | - Karishma Rana
- Department of Biotechnology, Jaypee Institute of Information Technology, Noida, India
| | - Siva Prasad Panda
- Institute of Pharmaceutical Research, GLA University, Mathura, India
| | - Arushi Agrawal
- Department of Biotechnology, Jaypee Institute of Information Technology, Noida, India
| | - Shreya Kadyan
- Department of Biotechnology, Jaypee Institute of Information Technology, Noida, India
| | - Divya Jindal
- Department of Biotechnology, Jaypee Institute of Information Technology, Noida, India
- IIT Bombay Monash Research Academy, IIT - Bombay, Bombay, India
| | - Pranav Pancham
- Department of Biotechnology, Jaypee Institute of Information Technology, Noida, India
| | - Deepshikha Yadav
- Bhartiya Nirdeshak Dravya Division, CSIR-National Physical Laboratory, New Delhi, India
- Physico-Mechanical Metrology Division, CSIR-National Physical Laboratory, New Delhi, India
- Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR), Ghaziabad, India
| | - Niraj Kumar Jha
- Department of Biotechnology, Sharda School of Engineering and Technology (SSET), Sharda University, Greater Noida, India
- Department of Biotechnology Engineering and Food Technology, Chandigarh University, Mohali, India
- Department of Biotechnology, School of Applied and Life Sciences (SALS), Uttaranchal University, Dehradun, India
- School of Bioengineering & Biosciences, Lovely Professional University, Phagwara, India
| | - Saurabh Kumar Jha
- Department of Biotechnology, Sharda School of Engineering and Technology (SSET), Sharda University, Greater Noida, India
- Department of Biotechnology Engineering and Food Technology, Chandigarh University, Mohali, India
- Department of Biotechnology, School of Applied and Life Sciences (SALS), Uttaranchal University, Dehradun, India
- Center for Global Health Research, Saveetha Medical College and Hospitals, Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences, Saveetha University, Chennai, India
| | - Vivek Gupta
- Macquarie Medical School, Macquarie University (MQU), Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Manisha Singh
- Department of Biotechnology, Jaypee Institute of Information Technology, Noida, India
- Faculty of Health, Graduate School of Public Health, University of Technology Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- Australian Research Consortium in Complementary and Integrative Medicine (ARCCIM), University of Technology Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
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Woods R, Lorusso J, Fletcher J, ElTaher H, McEwan F, Harris I, Kowash H, D'Souza SW, Harte M, Hager R, Glazier JD. Maternal immune activation and role of placenta in the prenatal programming of neurodevelopmental disorders. Neuronal Signal 2023; 7:NS20220064. [PMID: 37332846 PMCID: PMC10273029 DOI: 10.1042/ns20220064] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2023] [Revised: 05/16/2023] [Accepted: 05/17/2023] [Indexed: 06/20/2023] Open
Abstract
Maternal infection during pregnancy, leading to maternal immune activation (mIA) and cytokine release, increases the offspring risk of developing a variety of neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs), including schizophrenia. Animal models have provided evidence to support these mechanistic links, with placental inflammatory responses and dysregulation of placental function implicated. This leads to changes in fetal brain cytokine balance and altered epigenetic regulation of key neurodevelopmental pathways. The prenatal timing of such mIA-evoked changes, and the accompanying fetal developmental responses to an altered in utero environment, will determine the scope of the impacts on neurodevelopmental processes. Such dysregulation can impart enduring neuropathological changes, which manifest subsequently in the postnatal period as altered neurodevelopmental behaviours in the offspring. Hence, elucidation of the functional changes that occur at the molecular level in the placenta is vital in improving our understanding of the mechanisms that underlie the pathogenesis of NDDs. This has notable relevance to the recent COVID-19 pandemic, where inflammatory responses in the placenta to SARS-CoV-2 infection during pregnancy and NDDs in early childhood have been reported. This review presents an integrated overview of these collective topics and describes the possible contribution of prenatal programming through placental effects as an underlying mechanism that links to NDD risk, underpinned by altered epigenetic regulation of neurodevelopmental pathways.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rebecca M. Woods
- Division of Evolution, Infection and Genomics, School of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PT, U.K
| | - Jarred M. Lorusso
- Division of Evolution, Infection and Genomics, School of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PT, U.K
| | - Jennifer Fletcher
- Division of Pharmacy and Optometry, School of Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Biology and Health, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PT, U.K
| | - Heidi ElTaher
- Division of Pharmacy and Optometry, School of Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Biology and Health, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PT, U.K
- Department of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, Alexandria University, Egypt
| | - Francesca McEwan
- Division of Evolution, Infection and Genomics, School of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PT, U.K
| | - Isabella Harris
- Division of Evolution, Infection and Genomics, School of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PT, U.K
| | - Hager M. Kowash
- Division of Developmental Biology and Medicine, School of Medical Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9WL, U.K
| | - Stephen W. D'Souza
- Division of Developmental Biology and Medicine, School of Medical Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9WL, U.K
| | - Michael Harte
- Division of Pharmacy and Optometry, School of Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Biology and Health, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PT, U.K
| | - Reinmar Hager
- Division of Evolution, Infection and Genomics, School of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PT, U.K
| | - Jocelyn D. Glazier
- Division of Evolution, Infection and Genomics, School of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PT, U.K
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Matrisciano F. Epigenetic regulation of metabotropic glutamate 2/3 receptors: Potential role for ultra-resistant schizophrenia? Pharmacol Biochem Behav 2023:173589. [PMID: 37348609 DOI: 10.1016/j.pbb.2023.173589] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2023] [Revised: 06/05/2023] [Accepted: 06/15/2023] [Indexed: 06/24/2023]
Abstract
Schizophrenia is a severe and debilitating psychiatric disorder characterized by early cognitive deficits, emotional and behavioral abnormalities resulted by a dysfunctional gene x environment interaction. Genetic and epigenetic abnormalities in cortical parvalbumin-positive GABAergic interneurons lead to alterations in glutamate-mediated excitatory neurotransmission, synaptic plasticity, and neuronal development. Epigenetic alterations during pregnancy or early phases of postnatal life are associated with schizophrenia vulnerability as well as inflammatory processes which are at the basis of brain pathology. An epigenetic animal model of schizophrenia showed specific changes in promoter DNA methylation activity of genes related to schizophrenia such as reelin, BDNF and GAD67, and altered expression and function of mGlu2/3 receptors in the frontal cortex. Although antipsychotic medications represent the main treatment for schizophrenia and generally show an optimal efficacy profile for positive symptoms and relatively poor efficacy for negative or cognitive symptoms, a considerable percentage of individuals show poor response, do not achieve a complete remission, and approximately 30 % of patients show treatment-resistance. Here, we explore the potential role of epigenetic abnormalities linked to metabotropic glutamate 2/3 receptors changes in expression and function as key molecular factors underlying the difference in response to antipsychotics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Francesco Matrisciano
- The Psychiatric Institute, Department of Psychiatry, College of Medicine, University of Illinois Chicago (UIC), Chicago, IL, USA.
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7
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Academic performance in adolescent offspring of mothers with prenatal and perinatal psychiatric hospitalizations: A register-based, data linkage, cohort study. Psychiatry Res 2023; 319:114946. [PMID: 36463723 DOI: 10.1016/j.psychres.2022.114946] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2022] [Revised: 10/12/2022] [Accepted: 11/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND This is the first study to investigate the longitudinal association between prenatal and perinatal psychiatric hospitalizations and academic achievements in adolescent offspring. METHODS We conducted an administrative health data-based cohort study of 168, 528 mother-offspring pairs using linked data obtained from health and educational registries in New South Wales, Australia. Prenatal and perinatal maternal psychiatric diagnosis was measured by using ICD-10. The National Assessment Program for Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) was used to assess the educational performance of the offspring. Logistic regression model was used to explore the association. Multivariate models were adjusted for maternal sociodemographic characteristics such as age at birth, marital status, educational status, and occupational status, maternal diabetes and chronic hypertension, maternal smoking during pregnancy, birth weight, and language spoken at home. RESULTS The findings show that after adjusting for important covariates adolescent offspring of mothers with prenatal and perinatal psychiatric hospitalizations were more likely to perform below the national minimum standard in all domains of academic performance at age 14 years, when compared with the offspring of mothers without such hospitalizations, with the highest odds for numeracy (OR = 2.88; 95% CI: 2.50-3.31) followed by reading (OR = 2.08; 95% CI: 1.81-2.38), spelling (OR = 1.74; 95% CI: 1.51-2.01), and writing (OR = 1.56; 95% CI: 1.34-1.80). There was significant gender interaction such that males were more likely to experience lower rates of academic performance than females in all academic domains. Lower academic achievements were observed among offspring of mothers with all major groupings of psychiatric disorders, with a higher risk for severe psychiatric disorders followed by mental disorders due to substance use or medical conditions. CONCLUSION In sum, maternal prenatal and perinatal psychiatric hospitalizations are associated with lower academic achievements in adolescent offspring, with a stronger effect on the academic performance of male offspring. Early intervention strategies that aim to enhance educational performance in the exposed offspring are needed.
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Bonefas KM, Iwase S. Soma-to-germline transformation in chromatin-linked neurodevelopmental disorders? FEBS J 2022; 289:2301-2317. [PMID: 34514717 PMCID: PMC8918023 DOI: 10.1111/febs.16196] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2021] [Revised: 08/16/2021] [Accepted: 09/10/2021] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
Mutations in numerous chromatin regulators cause neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs) with unknown mechanisms. Understandably, most research has focused on how chromatin regulators control gene expression that is directly relevant to brain development and function, such as synaptic genes. However, some NDD models surprisingly show ectopic expression of germline genes in the brain. These germline genes are usually expressed only in the primordial germ cells, testis, and ovaries for germ cell development and sexual reproduction. Such ectopic germline gene expression has been reported in several NDDs, including immunodeficiency, centromeric instability, facial anomalies syndrome 1; Kleefstra syndrome 1; MeCP2 duplication syndrome; and mental retardation, X-linked syndromic, Claes-Jensen type. The responsible genes, DNMT3B, G9A/GLP, MECP2, and KDM5C, all encode chromatin regulators for gene silencing. These mutations may therefore lead to germline gene derepression and, in turn, a severe identity crisis of brain cells-potentially interfering with normal brain development. Thus, the ectopic expression of germline genes is a unique hallmark defining this NDD subset and further implicates the importance of germline gene silencing during brain development. The functional impact of germline gene expression on brain development, however, remains undetermined. This perspective article explores how this apparent soma-to-germline transformation arises and how it may interfere with neurodevelopment through genomic instability and impaired sensory cilium formation. Furthermore, we also discuss how to test these hypotheses experimentally to ultimately determine the contribution of ectopic germline transcripts to chromatin-linked NDDs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katherine M. Bonefas
- Department of Human Genetics, Michigan Medicine, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109,The University of Michigan Neuroscience Graduate Program,Corresponding authors: Please address correspondence to: , and
| | - Shigeki Iwase
- Department of Human Genetics, Michigan Medicine, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109,The University of Michigan Neuroscience Graduate Program,Corresponding authors: Please address correspondence to: , and
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Chen R, Liu Y, Djekidel MN, Chen W, Bhattacherjee A, Chen Z, Scolnick E, Zhang Y. Cell type-specific mechanism of Setd1a heterozygosity in schizophrenia pathogenesis. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2022; 8:eabm1077. [PMID: 35245111 PMCID: PMC8896793 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abm1077] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/26/2021] [Accepted: 01/13/2022] [Indexed: 05/30/2023]
Abstract
Schizophrenia (SCZ) is a chronic, serious mental disorder. Although more than 200 SCZ-associated genes have been identified, the underlying molecular and cellular mechanisms remain largely unknown. Here, we generated a Setd1a (SET domain containing 1A) haploinsufficiency mouse model to understand how this SCZ-associated epigenetic factor affects gene expression in brain regions highly relevant to SCZ. Single-cell RNA sequencing revealed that Setd1a heterozygosity causes highly variable transcriptional adaptations across different cell types in prefrontal cortex (PFC) and striatum. The Foxp2+ neurons exhibit the most prominent gene expression changes among the different neuron subtypes in PFC, which correlate with changes in histone H3 lysine 4 trimethylation. Many of the genes dysregulated in Setd1a+/- mice are involved in neuron morphogenesis and synaptic function. Consistently, Setd1a+/- mice exhibit certain behavioral features of patients with SCZ. Collectively, our study establishes Setd1a+/- mice as a model for understanding SCZ and uncovers a complex brain region- and cell type-specific dysregulation that potentially underlies SCZ pathogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Renchao Chen
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Program in Cellular and Molecular Medicine, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Department of Pediatrics, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Yiqiong Liu
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Program in Cellular and Molecular Medicine, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Department of Pediatrics, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Mohamed N. Djekidel
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Program in Cellular and Molecular Medicine, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Department of Pediatrics, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Wenqiang Chen
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Program in Cellular and Molecular Medicine, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Department of Pediatrics, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Aritra Bhattacherjee
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Program in Cellular and Molecular Medicine, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Department of Pediatrics, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Zhiyuan Chen
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Program in Cellular and Molecular Medicine, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Department of Pediatrics, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Ed Scolnick
- The Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research at Broad Institute, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA
| | - Yi Zhang
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Program in Cellular and Molecular Medicine, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Department of Pediatrics, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Harvard Stem Cell Institute, WAB-149G, 200 Longwood Avenue, Boston, MA 02115, USA
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Li XL, Yu Y, Hu Y, Wu HT, Li XS, Chen GY, Cheng Y. Fibroblast Growth Factor 9 as a Potential Biomarker for Schizophrenia. Front Psychiatry 2022; 13:788677. [PMID: 35546939 PMCID: PMC9082542 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2022.788677] [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] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2021] [Accepted: 03/14/2022] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Preclinical and clinical studies have suggested that fibroblast growth factor (FGF) system contributed to the onset and development of schizophrenia (SCZ). However, there was no strong clinical evidence to link an individual FGF with SCZ. In this study, we aim to measure blood FGF9 levels in the patients with SCZ with and/or without medication, and test whether FGF9 has a potential to be a biomarker for SCZ. We recruited 130 patients with SCZ and 111 healthy individuals, and the ELISA and qRT-PCR assays were used to measure serum FGF9 levels in the participants. ELISA assay demonstrated that serum FGF9 protein levels were dramatically reduced in first-episode, drug-free patients, but not in chronically medicated patients when compared to healthy control subjects. Further analysis showed that treatment of the first-episode, drug-free SCZ patients with antipsychotics for 8 weeks significantly increased the serum FGF9 levels. In addition, we found that blood FGF9 mRNA levels were significantly lower in first-onset SCZ patients than controls. Under the receiver operating characteristic curve, the optimal cutoff values for FGF9 protein level as an indicator for diagnosis of drug-free SCZ patients was projected to be 166.4 pg/ml, which yielded a sensitivity of 0.955 and specificity of 0.86, and the area under the curve was 0.973 (95% CI, 0.954-0.993). Furthermore, FGF9 had good performance to discriminate between drug-free SCZ patients and chronically medicated patients, the optimal cutoff value for FGF9 concentration was projected to be 165.035 pg/ml with a sensitivity of 0.86 and specificity of 0.919, and the AUC was 0.968 (95% CI, 0.944, 0.991). Taken together, our results for the first time demonstrated the dysregulation of FGF9 in SCZ, and FGF9 has the potential to be served as a biomarker for SCZ.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiao-Ling Li
- The Third People's Hospital of Foshan, Foshan, China.,Center on Translational Neuroscience, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, Minzu University of China, Beijing, China
| | - Yun Yu
- Center on Translational Neuroscience, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, Minzu University of China, Beijing, China
| | - Yang Hu
- Center on Translational Neuroscience, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, Minzu University of China, Beijing, China
| | - Huan-Tong Wu
- Center on Translational Neuroscience, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, Minzu University of China, Beijing, China
| | - Xue-Song Li
- The Third People's Hospital of Foshan, Foshan, China
| | - Guang-Yang Chen
- Center on Translational Neuroscience, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, Minzu University of China, Beijing, China
| | - Yong Cheng
- Center on Translational Neuroscience, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, Minzu University of China, Beijing, China
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11
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Histone Modifications in Neurological Disorders. ADVANCES IN EXPERIMENTAL MEDICINE AND BIOLOGY 2022; 1382:95-107. [DOI: 10.1007/978-3-031-05460-0_7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
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12
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Tramacere A, Iriki A. A novel mind-set in primate experimentation: Implications for primate welfare. Animal Model Exp Med 2021; 4:343-350. [PMID: 34977485 PMCID: PMC8690985 DOI: 10.1002/ame2.12190] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/26/2020] [Revised: 08/30/2021] [Accepted: 11/02/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
We emphasize the importance of studying the primate brain in cognitive neuroscience and suggest a new mind-set in primate experimentation within the boundaries of animal welfare regulations. Specifically, we list the advantages of investigating both genes and neural mechanisms and processes in the emergence of behavioral and cognitive functions, and propose the establishment of an open field of primate research. The latter may be conducted by implementing and harmonizing experimental practices with ethical guidelines that regulate (1) management of natural parks with free-moving populations of target nonhuman primates, (2) establishment of indoor-outdoor labs for both system genetics and neuroscience investigations, and (3) hotel space and technologies which remotely collect and dislocate information regarding primates geographically located elsewhere.
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Affiliation(s)
- Antonella Tramacere
- Department of Linguistic and Cultural EvolutionMax Planck Institute for the Science of Human HistoryJenaGermany
- Department of Philosophy and Communication StudiesUniversity of BolognaBolognaItaly
| | - Atsushi Iriki
- Laboratory of Symbolic Cognitive DevelopmentRiken Brain Science InstituteTokyoJapan
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13
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Bani-Fatemi A, Raymond R, Adanty C, Dai N, Gerretsen P, Graff A, Nobrega JN, De Luca V. Global DNA methylation in suicidal ideation and suicide attempt in schizophrenia. Psychiatr Genet 2021; 31:65-71. [PMID: 33399315 DOI: 10.1097/ypg.0000000000000273] [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] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Suicidal behavior is influenced by many risk factors such as childhood trauma, stressful life events, genetic factors, and severe mental illnesses. Suicidal ideation is present in 50% of schizophrenia patients and is associated with an elevated risk of suicide attempt. Studies have shown that epigenetic mechanisms are associated with suicidal behavior in schizophrenia. Although several studies have suggested the importance of epigenetic factors in suicidal ideation and behavior, no studies have investigated global methylation in association with these two phenotypes. This study investigated global methylation level/change in association with current and emergent suicidal ideation and also with suicide attempt. Forty-seven schizophrenia patients were assessed for the association between global methylation and suicide attempt, and a subsample of these patients (n = 27) was assessed for current suicidal ideation. Afterwards, we performed a longitudinal analysis in which global methylation changes during a 3-month follow-up were compared between patients with and without emergent suicidal ideation. This methylation analysis did not find evidence for a significant association between global methylation and suicidal ideation or suicide attempt. To date, there are no robust biomarkers predicting suicidal ideation or behavior in psychotic patients. This study is the first to investigate global methylation in predicting suicidal ideation and behavior. Although we did not find evidence for an association between global methylation and these phenotypes, our findings may offer novel insights into the molecular mechanisms linked to suicide. Future investigation may measure global methylation in association with suicidal ideation or behavior in larger samples.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ali Bani-Fatemi
- Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
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14
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Functional Analysis of DNMT1 SNPs ( rs2228611 and rs2114724) Associated with Schizophrenia. Genet Res (Camb) 2021; 2021:6698979. [PMID: 33854407 PMCID: PMC8032507 DOI: 10.1155/2021/6698979] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/25/2020] [Revised: 02/10/2021] [Accepted: 03/17/2021] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
A recent study showed the association of minor alleles of rs2228611 (T allele) and rs2114724 (T allele) of DNMT1 with schizophrenia (SZ) and suggested their effects on splicing of the transcripts. We performed a replication study using 310 controls and 304 SZ patients and confirmed the association of the homozygous minor allele genotypes with SZ (P = 0.04 for rs2114724 and P = 0.007 for rs2228611). This significant association persisted after Bonferroni correction when the previously published data of 301 controls and 325 patients were also considered (P ≤ 0.0002). In addition, we found that the proportion of male patients with homozygous minor alleles at rs2114724 was significantly higher than that of females (P = 0.002). When haplotype analysis of both loci was performed, we observed a significant association of T/T–T/T and T/T–C/T (P = 0.04) haplotypes with SZ. To gain insights into the functional effects of the two SNPs on the levels of DNMT1 transcripts, quantitative real-time PCR experiments were performed using peripheral blood monocytes from 10 individuals each with T/T–T/T (homozygous minor allele), C/T–C/T (heterozygous), and C/C–C/C (homozygous major allele) haplotypes. Independently, the levels of DNMT1 protein were also compared in three individuals each by immunofluorescence. These results suggest that neither DNMT1 transcript nor the protein levels were significantly different in the peripheral blood monocytes among the individuals studied for the three groups. Taken together, our results confirm that the two minor alleles in homozygosity are associated with SZ but with no discernible effects on transcript or protein levels of DNMT1 in the peripheral blood monocytes of the small number of samples tested.
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15
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Western Pacific ALS-PDC: Evidence implicating cycad genotoxins. J Neurol Sci 2020; 419:117185. [PMID: 33190068 DOI: 10.1016/j.jns.2020.117185] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/19/2020] [Revised: 09/20/2020] [Accepted: 09/29/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and Parkinsonism-Dementia Complex (ALS-PDC) is a disappearing neurodegenerative disorder of apparent environmental origin formerly hyperendemic among Chamorros of Guam-USA, Japanese residents of the Kii Peninsula, Honshu Island, Japan and Auyu-Jakai linguistic groups of Papua-Indonesia on the island of New Guinea. The most plausible etiology is exposure to genotoxins in seed of neurotoxic cycad plants formerly used for food and/or medicine. Primary suspicion falls on methylazoxymethanol (MAM), the aglycone of cycasin and on the non-protein amino acid β-N-methylamino-L-alanine, both of which are metabolized to formaldehyde. Human and animal studies suggest: (a) exposures occurred early in life and sometimes during late fetal brain development, (b) clinical expression of neurodegenerative disease appeared years or decades later, and (c) pathological changes in various tissues indicate the disease was not confined to the CNS. Experimental evidence points to toxic molecular mechanisms involving DNA damage, epigenetic changes, transcriptional mutagenesis, neuronal cell-cycle reactivation and perturbation of the ubiquitin-proteasome system that led to polyproteinopathy and culminated in neuronal degeneration. Lessons learned from research on ALS-PDC include: (a) familial disease may reflect common toxic exposures across generations, (b) primary disease prevention follows cessation of exposure to culpable environmental triggers; and (c) disease latency provides a prolonged period during which to intervene therapeutically. Exposure to genotoxic chemicals ("slow toxins") in the early stages of life should be considered in the search for the etiology of ALS-PDC-related neurodegenerative disorders, including sporadic forms of ALS, progressive supranuclear palsy and Alzheimer's disease.
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16
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Cell-type-specific 3D epigenomes in the developing human cortex. Nature 2020; 587:644-649. [PMID: 33057195 PMCID: PMC7704572 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-020-2825-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 88] [Impact Index Per Article: 22.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2019] [Accepted: 07/23/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Lineage-specific epigenomic changes during human corticogenesis have remained elusive due to challenges with sample availability and tissue heterogeneity. For example, previous studies used single-cell RNA sequencing to identify at least nine major cell types and up to 26 distinct subtypes in the dorsal cortex alone1,2. Here, we characterize cell type-specific cis-regulatory chromatin interactions, open chromatin peaks, and transcriptomes for radial glia, intermediate progenitor cells, excitatory neurons, and interneurons isolated from mid-gestational human cortex samples. We show that chromatin interactions underlie multiple aspects of gene regulation, with transposable elements and disease-associated variants enriched at distal interacting regions in a cell type-specific manner. In addition, promoters with significantly increased levels of chromatin interactivity, termed super interactive promoters, are enriched for lineage-specific genes, suggesting that interactions at these loci contribute to the fine-tuning of transcription. Finally, we develop CRISPRview, a novel technique integrating immunostaining, CRISPRi, RNAscope, and image analysis for validating cell type-specific cis-regulatory elements in heterogeneous populations of primary cells. Our study presents the first cell type-specific characterization of 3D epigenomes in the developing human cortex, advancing our understanding of gene regulation and lineage specification during this critical developmental window.
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Esaki K, Balan S, Iwayama Y, Shimamoto-Mitsuyama C, Hirabayashi Y, Dean B, Yoshikawa T. Evidence for Altered Metabolism of Sphingosine-1-Phosphate in the Corpus Callosum of Patients with Schizophrenia. Schizophr Bull 2020; 46:1172-1181. [PMID: 32346731 PMCID: PMC7505171 DOI: 10.1093/schbul/sbaa052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
The disturbed integrity of myelin and white matter, along with dysregulation of the lipid metabolism, may be involved in schizophrenia pathophysiology. Considering the crucial role of sphingolipids in neurodevelopment, particularly in oligodendrocyte differentiation and myelination, we examined the role of sphingolipid dynamics in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia. We performed targeted mass spectrometry-based analysis of sphingolipids from the cortical area and corpus callosum of postmortem brain samples from patients with schizophrenia and controls. We observed lower sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P) levels, specifically in the corpus callosum of patients with schizophrenia, but not in major depressive disorder or bipolar disorder, when compared with the controls. Patient data and animal studies showed that antipsychotic intake did not contribute to the lowered S1P levels. We also found that lowered S1P levels in the corpus callosum of patients with schizophrenia may stem from the upregulation of genes for S1P-degrading enzymes; higher expression of genes for S1P receptors suggested a potential compensatory mechanism for the lowered S1P levels. A higher ratio of the sum of sphingosine and ceramide to S1P, which can induce apoptosis and cell-cycle arrest, was also observed in the samples of patients with schizophrenia than in controls. These results suggest that an altered S1P metabolism may underlie the deficits in oligodendrocyte differentiation and myelin formation, leading to the structural and molecular abnormalities of white matter reported in schizophrenia. Our findings may pave the way toward a novel therapeutic strategy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kayoko Esaki
- Laboratory for Molecular Psychiatry, RIKEN Center for Brain Science, Saitama, Japan
| | - Shabeesh Balan
- Laboratory for Molecular Psychiatry, RIKEN Center for Brain Science, Saitama, Japan
| | - Yoshimi Iwayama
- Laboratory for Molecular Psychiatry, RIKEN Center for Brain Science, Saitama, Japan
- Support Unit for Bio-Material Analysis, Research Division, RIKEN Center for Brain Science, Saitama, Japan
| | | | - Yoshio Hirabayashi
- Cellular Informatics Laboratory, RIKEN Cluster for Pioneering Research, Saitama, Japan
| | - Brian Dean
- The Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, Howard Florey Laboratories, The University of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
- The Centre for Mental Health, Swinburne University, Victoria, Australia
| | - Takeo Yoshikawa
- Laboratory for Molecular Psychiatry, RIKEN Center for Brain Science, Saitama, Japan
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18
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Rajarajan P, Akbarian S. Use of the epigenetic toolbox
to contextualize common variants associated with schizophrenia risk
. DIALOGUES IN CLINICAL NEUROSCIENCE 2020; 21:407-416. [PMID: 31949408 PMCID: PMC6952750 DOI: 10.31887/dcns.2019.21.4/sakbarian] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Schizophrenia is a debilitating psychiatric disorder with a complex genetic architecture and limited understanding of its neuropathology, reflected by the lack of diagnostic measures and effective pharmacological treatments. Geneticists have recently identified more than 145 risk loci comprising hundreds of common variants of small effect sizes, most of which lie in noncoding genomic regions. This review will discuss how the epigenetic toolbox can be applied to contextualize genetic findings in schizophrenia. Progress in next-generation sequencing, along with increasing methodological complexity, has led to the compilation of genome-wide maps of DNA methylation, histone modifications, RNA expression, and more. Integration of chromatin conformation datasets is one of the latest efforts in deciphering schizophrenia risk, allowing the identification of genes in contact with regulatory variants across 100s of kilobases. Large-scale multiomics studies will facilitate the prioritization of putative causal risk variants and gene networks that contribute to schizophrenia etiology, informing clinical diagnostics and treatment downstream.
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Affiliation(s)
- Prashanth Rajarajan
- Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences; Department of Psychiatry; Friedman Brain Institute; Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, US
| | - Schahram Akbarian
- Department of Psychiatry; Friedman Brain Institute; Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, US
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19
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Liu L, Wu J, Qing L, Li J, Yang H, Ji A, Yan M, Hu L, Nie S. DNA Methylation Analysis of the NR3C1 Gene in Patients with Schizophrenia. J Mol Neurosci 2020; 70:1177-1185. [DOI: 10.1007/s12031-020-01525-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2019] [Accepted: 02/28/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
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Bobkova NV, Poltavtseva RA, Leonov SV, Sukhikh GT. Neuroregeneration: Regulation in Neurodegenerative Diseases and Aging. BIOCHEMISTRY (MOSCOW) 2020; 85:S108-S130. [PMID: 32087056 DOI: 10.1134/s0006297920140060] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
It had been commonly believed for a long time, that once established, degeneration of the central nervous system (CNS) is irreparable, and that adult person merely cannot restore dead or injured neurons. The existence of stem cells (SCs) in the mature brain, an organ with minimal regenerative ability, had been ignored for many years. Currently accepted that specific structures of the adult brain contain neural SCs (NSCs) that can self-renew and generate terminally differentiated brain cells, including neurons and glia. However, their contribution to the regulation of brain activity and brain regeneration in natural aging and pathology is still a subject of ongoing studies. Since the 1970s, when Fuad Lechin suggested the existence of repair mechanisms in the brain, new exhilarating data from scientists around the world have expanded our knowledge on the mechanisms implicated in the generation of various cell phenotypes supporting the brain, regulation of brain activity by these newly generated cells, and participation of SCs in brain homeostasis and regeneration. The prospects of the SC research are truthfully infinite and hitherto challenging to forecast. Once researchers resolve the issues regarding SC expansion and maintenance, the implementation of the SC-based platform could help to treat tissues and organs impaired or damaged in many devastating human diseases. Over the past 10 years, the number of studies on SCs has increased exponentially, and we have already become witnesses of crucial discoveries in SC biology. Comprehension of the mechanisms of neurogenesis regulation is essential for the development of new therapeutic approaches for currently incurable neurodegenerative diseases and neuroblastomas. In this review, we present the latest achievements in this fast-moving field and discuss essential aspects of NSC biology, including SC regulation by hormones, neurotransmitters, and transcription factors, along with the achievements of genetic and chemical reprogramming for the safe use of SCs in vitro and in vivo.
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Affiliation(s)
- N V Bobkova
- Institute of Cell Biophysics, Russian Academy of Sciences, Pushchino, Moscow Region, 142290, Russia.
| | - R A Poltavtseva
- Institute of Cell Biophysics, Russian Academy of Sciences, Pushchino, Moscow Region, 142290, Russia. .,National Medical Research Center for Obstetrics, Gynecology and Perinatology named after Academician V. I. Kulakov, Ministry of Healthcare of Russian Federation, Moscow, 117997, Russia
| | - S V Leonov
- Institute of Cell Biophysics, Russian Academy of Sciences, Pushchino, Moscow Region, 142290, Russia. .,Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology (National Research University), The Phystech School of Biological and Medical Physics, Dolgoprudny, Moscow Region, 141700, Russia
| | - G T Sukhikh
- National Medical Research Center for Obstetrics, Gynecology and Perinatology named after Academician V. I. Kulakov, Ministry of Healthcare of Russian Federation, Moscow, 117997, Russia.
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21
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Snyder MA, Gao WJ. NMDA receptor hypofunction for schizophrenia revisited: Perspectives from epigenetic mechanisms. Schizophr Res 2020; 217:60-70. [PMID: 30979669 PMCID: PMC7258307 DOI: 10.1016/j.schres.2019.03.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2018] [Revised: 03/08/2019] [Accepted: 03/11/2019] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Schizophrenia (SZ) is a neurodevelopmental disorder with cognitive deficits manifesting during early stages of the disease. Evidence suggests that genetic factors in combination with environmental insults lead to complex changes to glutamatergic, GABAergic, and dopaminergic systems. In particular, the N-methyl-d-aspartate receptor (NMDAR), a major glutamate receptor subtype, is implicated in both the disease progression and symptoms of SZ. NMDARs are critical for synaptic plasticity and cortical maturation, as well as learning and memory processes. In fact, any deviation from normal NMDAR expression and function can have devastating consequences. Surprisingly, there is little evidence from human patients that direct mutations of NMDAR genes contribute to SZ. One intriguing hypothesis is that epigenetic changes, which could result from early insults, alter protein expression and contribute to the NMDAR hypofunction found in SZ. Epigenetics is referred to as modifications that alter gene transcription without changing the DNA sequence itself. In this review, we first discuss how epigenetic changes to NMDAR genes could contribute to NMDAR hypofunction. We then explore how NMDAR hypofunction may contribute to epigenetic changes in other proteins or genes that lead to synaptic dysfunction and symptoms in SZ. We argue that NMDAR hypofunction occurs in early stage of the disease, and it may consequentially initiate GABA and dopamine deficits. Therefore, targeting NMDAR dysfunction during the early stages would be a promising avenue for prevention and therapeutic intervention of cognitive and social deficits that remain untreatable. Finally, we discuss potential questions regarding the epigenetic of SZ and future directions for research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melissa A. Snyder
- Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, K1H 8M5,Correspondence: Wen-Jun Gao, M.D., Ph.D., Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy, Drexel University College of Medicine, 2900 Queen Lane, Philadelphia, PA 19129, Phone: (215) 991-8907, Fax: (215) 843-9802, ; Melissa A. Snyder, Ph.D.,
| | - Wen-Jun Gao
- Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy, Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19129, United States of America.
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22
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Influence of cognitive reserve in schizophrenia: A systematic review. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2020; 108:149-159. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2019.10.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2019] [Revised: 10/10/2019] [Accepted: 10/26/2019] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
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23
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Omics in schizophrenia: current progress and future directions of antipsychotic treatments. JOURNAL OF BIO-X RESEARCH 2019. [DOI: 10.1097/jbr.0000000000000049] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/05/2023] Open
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24
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Post-translational histone modifications and their interaction with sex influence normal brain development and elaboration of neuropsychiatric disorders. Biochim Biophys Acta Mol Basis Dis 2019; 1865:1968-1981. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bbadis.2018.10.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2018] [Revised: 10/05/2018] [Accepted: 10/08/2018] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
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25
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Császár N, Kapócs G, Bókkon I. A possible key role of vision in the development of schizophrenia. Rev Neurosci 2019; 30:359-379. [PMID: 30244235 DOI: 10.1515/revneuro-2018-0022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2018] [Accepted: 08/01/2018] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Based on a brief overview of the various aspects of schizophrenia reported by numerous studies, here we hypothesize that schizophrenia may originate (and in part be performed) from visual areas. In other words, it seems that a normal visual system or at least an evanescent visual perception may be an essential prerequisite for the development of schizophrenia as well as of various types of hallucinations. Our study focuses on auditory and visual hallucinations, as they are the most prominent features of schizophrenic hallucinations (and also the most studied types of hallucinations). Here, we evaluate the possible key role of the visual system in the development of schizophrenia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Noemi Császár
- Gaspar Karoly University Psychological Institute, H-1091 Budapest, Hungary.,Psychoszomatic Outpatient Department, H-1037 Budapest, Hungary
| | - Gabor Kapócs
- Buda Family Centred Mental Health Centre, Department of Psychiatry and Psychiatric Rehabilitation, St. John Hospital, Budapest, Hungary
| | - István Bókkon
- Psychoszomatic Outpatient Department, H-1037 Budapest, Hungary.,Vision Research Institute, Neuroscience and Consciousness Research Department, 25 Rita Street, Lowell, MA 01854, USA
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26
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Kouter K, Zupanc T, Videtič Paska A. Genome-wide DNA methylation in suicide victims revealing impact on gene expression. J Affect Disord 2019; 253:419-425. [PMID: 31103807 DOI: 10.1016/j.jad.2019.04.077] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2019] [Revised: 04/10/2019] [Accepted: 04/17/2019] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Suicidal behavior is a multifactorial, polygenic state that affects millions worldwide. It is a result of interplay between hereditary and environmental factors, tied together by epigenetics. Despite vast knowledge on suicidality complete mechanism and factors leading to suicide are unknown. However there is an indication between changes in DNA methylation patterns and suicidal behavior. METHODS To identify differential methylation we formed a homogenous group of male suicide victims who died by hanging and control group. Altogether our study included 18 subjects in which two brain regions, Brodmann area 9 (9 suicide victims and 9 controls)) and hippocampus (6 suicide victims and 6 controls) were investigated using next-generation sequencing (NGS). RESULTS Our results have shown several differences in methylation level between suicide victims and controls in both brain regions (>25% difference in methylation and q-value < 0.01), with gene ontology pointing towards cell structural integrity and nervous system regulation. Additional gene expression analysis identified changes in two genes, ZNF714 (p-value = 0.002) and NRIP3 (p-value = 0.046). LIMITATIONS Major limitation is small sample size. Our analysis was conducted on brain tissue including different cell types so the results are a representation of a methylation pattern for the whole brain tissue sample. CONCLUSIONS We performed a preliminary methylation study with single base pair resolution using NGS on one of the world populations with a very high suicide risk. Obtained results offer novel insights into altered methylation patterns in suicide victims, which could provide a starting point for further studies on clinical samples with highly expressed suicide risk.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katarina Kouter
- Institute of Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ljubljana, Vrazov trg 2, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Tomaž Zupanc
- Institute of Forensic Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ljubljana, Korytkova ulica 2, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Alja Videtič Paska
- Institute of Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ljubljana, Vrazov trg 2, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia.
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27
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Sullivan CR, Mielnik CA, O'Donovan SM, Funk AJ, Bentea E, DePasquale EA, Alganem K, Wen Z, Haroutunian V, Katsel P, Ramsey AJ, Meller J, McCullumsmith RE. Connectivity Analyses of Bioenergetic Changes in Schizophrenia: Identification of Novel Treatments. Mol Neurobiol 2019; 56:4492-4517. [PMID: 30338483 PMCID: PMC7584383 DOI: 10.1007/s12035-018-1390-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2018] [Accepted: 10/11/2018] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
We utilized a cell-level approach to examine glycolytic pathways in the DLPFC of subjects with schizophrenia (n = 16) and control (n = 16) and found decreased mRNA expression of glycolytic enzymes in pyramidal neurons, but not astrocytes. To replicate these novel bioenergetic findings, we probed independent datasets for bioenergetic targets and found similar abnormalities. Next, we used a novel strategy to build a schizophrenia bioenergetic profile by a tailored application of the Library of Integrated Network-Based Cellular Signatures data portal (iLINCS) and investigated connected cellular pathways, kinases, and transcription factors using Enrichr. Finally, with the goal of identifying drugs capable of "reversing" the bioenergetic schizophrenia signature, we performed a connectivity analysis with iLINCS and identified peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR) agonists as promising therapeutic targets. We administered a PPAR agonist to the GluN1 knockdown model of schizophrenia and found it improved long-term memory. Taken together, our findings suggest that tailored bioinformatics approaches, coupled with the LINCS library of transcriptional signatures of chemical and genetic perturbagens, may be employed to identify novel treatment strategies for schizophrenia and related diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Catharine A Mielnik
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, M5S 1A8, Canada
| | | | - Adam J Funk
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Toledo, Toledo, OH, USA
| | - Eduard Bentea
- Neurosciences TA Biology, UCB BioPharma SPRL, Braine-l'Alleud, Belgium
| | - Erica A DePasquale
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH, USA
| | - Khaled Alganem
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Toledo, Toledo, OH, USA
| | - Zhexing Wen
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Vahram Haroutunian
- Department of Psychiatry and Neuroscience, The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Bronx, NY, USA
| | - Pavel Katsel
- Department of Psychiatry and Neuroscience, The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Bronx, NY, USA
| | - Amy J Ramsey
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, M5S 1A8, Canada
- Department of Physiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, M5S 1A8, Canada
| | - Jarek Meller
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH, USA
- Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH, USA
- Department of Informatics, Nicolaus Copernicus University, Torun, Poland
- Department of Environmental Health, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH, USA
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28
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Zhuo C, Yao Y, Xu Y, Liu C, Chen M, Ji F, Li J, Tian H, Jiang D, Lin C, Chen C. Schizophrenia and gut-flora related epigenetic factors. Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry 2019; 90:49-54. [PMID: 30419320 DOI: 10.1016/j.pnpbp.2018.11.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2018] [Revised: 11/06/2018] [Accepted: 11/08/2018] [Indexed: 01/25/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Schizophrenia (SZ) is a complex psychiatric disorder and the exact mechanisms that underpin SZ remain poorly understood despite decades of research. Genetic, epigenetic, and environmental factors are all considered to play a role. The importance of gut flora and its influence on the central nervous system has been recognized in recent years. We hypothesize that gut flora may be a converging point where environmental factors interact with epigenetic factors and contribute to SZ pathogenesis. AIM To summarize the current understanding of genetic and epigenetic factors and the possible involvement of gut flora in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia. RESULTS We searched PubMed and Medline with a combination of the key words schizophrenia, microbiome, epigenetic factors to identify studies of genetic and epigenetic factors in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia. Numerous genes that encode key proteins in neuronal signaling pathways have been linked to SZ. Epigenetic modifications, particularly, methylation and acetylation profiles, have been found to differ in individuals that present with SZ from those that don't. Gut flora may affect epigenetic modifications by regulation of key metabolic pathway molecules, including methionine, florate, biotin, and metabolites that are acetyl group donors. Despite a lack of direct studies on the subject, it is possible that gut flora may influence genetic and epigenetic expression and thereby contribute to the pathogenesis of SZ. CONCLUSION Gut flora is sensitive to both internal and environmental stimuli and the synthesis of some key molecules that participate in the epigenetic modulation of gene expression. Therefore, it is possible that gut flora is a converging point where environmental factors interact with genetic and epigenetic factors in the pathogenesis of SZ.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chuanjun Zhuo
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychiatric-Genetics, Jining Medical University, Jining 272191, Shandong Province, China; Department of Psychiatric-Neuroimaging-Genetics Laboratory, Tianjin Mental Health Center, Department of Psychiatry, Tianjin Anding Hospital, Mental Health Teaching Hospital of Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin 300222, China; Department of Mental Health, Psychiatric-Genetics, Wenzhou Seventh People's Hospital, Wenzhou 325000, China.
| | - Yudong Yao
- SUNY Downstate Medical Center, Brooklyn, NY 11203, United States
| | - Yong Xu
- Department of Psychiatry, First Hospital/First Clinical Medical College of Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan 030001, Shanxi Province, China
| | - Chuanxin Liu
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychiatric-Genetics, Jining Medical University, Jining 272191, Shandong Province, China
| | - Min Chen
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychiatric-Genetics, Jining Medical University, Jining 272191, Shandong Province, China
| | - Feng Ji
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychiatric-Genetics, Jining Medical University, Jining 272191, Shandong Province, China
| | - Jie Li
- Department of Psychiatric-Neuroimaging-Genetics Laboratory, Tianjin Mental Health Center, Department of Psychiatry, Tianjin Anding Hospital, Mental Health Teaching Hospital of Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin 300222, China
| | - Hongjun Tian
- Department of Psychiatric-Neuroimaging-Genetics Laboratory, Tianjin Mental Health Center, Department of Psychiatry, Tianjin Anding Hospital, Mental Health Teaching Hospital of Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin 300222, China
| | - Deguo Jiang
- Department of Mental Health, Psychiatric-Genetics, Wenzhou Seventh People's Hospital, Wenzhou 325000, China
| | - Chongguang Lin
- Department of Mental Health, Psychiatric-Genetics, Wenzhou Seventh People's Hospital, Wenzhou 325000, China
| | - Ce Chen
- Department of Mental Health, Psychiatric-Genetics, Wenzhou Seventh People's Hospital, Wenzhou 325000, China.
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Abstract
This article reviews the most salient neurobiological information available about borderline personality disorder (BPD) and presents a theoretic model for what lies at the heart of BPD that is grounded in those findings. It reviews the heritability, genetics, and the biological models of BPD, including the neurobiology of affective instability, impaired interoception, oxytocin and opiate models of poor attachment or interpersonal dysfunction, and structural brain imaging over the course of development in BPD; and posits that the core characteristic of BPD may be an impairment in emotional interoception or alexithymia.
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Kasap M, Rajani V, Rajani J, Dwyer DS. Surprising conservation of schizophrenia risk genes in lower organisms reflects their essential function and the evolution of genetic liability. Schizophr Res 2018; 202:120-128. [PMID: 30017463 DOI: 10.1016/j.schres.2018.07.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/09/2018] [Revised: 07/02/2018] [Accepted: 07/04/2018] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Schizophrenia is a devastating psychiatric illness that affects approximately 1% of the population. Genetic variation in multiple genes causes elevated risk for the disorder, but the molecular basis is inadequately understood and it is not clear how risk genes have evolved and persisted in the genome. To address these issues, we have identified orthologs/homologs of 344 schizophrenia risk genes (from the Psychiatric Genomics Consortium dataset) in lower organisms, including C. elegans, Drosophila and zebrafish, along with phenotypes produced by genetic disruption in C. elegans. Schizophrenia risk genes were evolutionarily conserved at significantly higher rates in C. elegans (81%) and zebrafish (88%) than genes in general for these two species (40-70%). The risk-gene equivalents were highly (~3-fold) enriched for essential genes consistent with polygenic mutation threshold models, which propose that genetic susceptibility results from the inevitable expression of harmful combinations of risk variants in the population. Most notably, numerous examples of cross-species synteny revealed how blocks of risk genes geared toward a shared biological purpose coalesced into proximity during evolution. We obtained initial evidence that schizophrenia risk genes affected different stages of development, potentially allowing differential modulation by the environment. Taken together, studies of the conservation of schizophrenia risk genes in simple model organisms provided novel insights into the molecular basis for genetic susceptibility to a complex human psychiatric disorder.
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Affiliation(s)
- Merve Kasap
- Department of Pharmacology, Toxicology and Neuroscience, LSU Health Shreveport, USA
| | - Vivek Rajani
- Department of Psychiatry, LSU Health Shreveport, Shreveport, LA 71130, USA
| | - Jackie Rajani
- Department of Psychiatry, Rosalind Franklin University, Chicago, IL 60064, USA
| | - Donard S Dwyer
- Department of Pharmacology, Toxicology and Neuroscience, LSU Health Shreveport, USA; Department of Psychiatry, LSU Health Shreveport, Shreveport, LA 71130, USA.
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Rodrigues-Amorim D, Rivera-Baltanás T, Regueiro B, Spuch C, de Las Heras ME, Vázquez-Noguerol Méndez R, Nieto-Araujo M, Barreiro-Villar C, Olivares JM, Agís-Balboa RC. The role of the gut microbiota in schizophrenia: Current and future perspectives. World J Biol Psychiatry 2018; 19:571-585. [PMID: 29383983 DOI: 10.1080/15622975.2018.1433878] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Schizophrenia is a poorly understood chronic disease. Its pathophysiology is complex, dynamic, and linked to epigenetic mechanisms and microbiota involvement. Nowadays, correlating schizophrenia with the environment makes sense owing to its multidimensional implications: temporal and spatial variability. Microbiota involvement and epigenetic mechanisms are factors that are currently being considered to better understand another dimension of schizophrenia. METHODS This review summarises and discusses currently available information, focussing on the microbiota, epigenetic mechanisms, technological approaches aimed at performing exhaustive analyses of the microbiota, and psychotherapies, to establish future perspectives. RESULTS The connection between the microbiota, epigenetic mechanisms and technological developments allows for formulating new approaches objectively oriented towards the development of alternative psychotherapies that may help treat schizophrenia. CONCLUSIONS In this review, the gut microbiota and epigenetic mechanisms were considered as key regulators, revealing a potential new aetiology of schizophrenia. Likewise, continuous technological advances (e.g. culturomics), aimed at the microbiota-gut-brain axis generate new evidence on this concept.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniela Rodrigues-Amorim
- a Psychiatric Diseases Research Group , Galicia Sur Health Research Institute. Complexo Hospitalario Universitario de Vigo (CHUVI), SERGAS, CIBERSAM , Vigo , Spain
| | - Tania Rivera-Baltanás
- a Psychiatric Diseases Research Group , Galicia Sur Health Research Institute. Complexo Hospitalario Universitario de Vigo (CHUVI), SERGAS, CIBERSAM , Vigo , Spain
| | - Benito Regueiro
- b Microbiology and Parasitology Department (School of Medicine , Universidad de Santiago de Compostela). Complexo Hospitalario Universitario de Vigo (CHUVI), SERGAS , Vigo , Spain
| | - Carlos Spuch
- c Neurology Research Group , Galicia Sur Health Research Institute. Complexo Hospitalario Universitario de Vigo (CHUVI), SERGAS, CIBERSAM , Vigo , Spain
| | - María Elena de Las Heras
- a Psychiatric Diseases Research Group , Galicia Sur Health Research Institute. Complexo Hospitalario Universitario de Vigo (CHUVI), SERGAS, CIBERSAM , Vigo , Spain
| | - Raul Vázquez-Noguerol Méndez
- a Psychiatric Diseases Research Group , Galicia Sur Health Research Institute. Complexo Hospitalario Universitario de Vigo (CHUVI), SERGAS, CIBERSAM , Vigo , Spain
| | - Maria Nieto-Araujo
- a Psychiatric Diseases Research Group , Galicia Sur Health Research Institute. Complexo Hospitalario Universitario de Vigo (CHUVI), SERGAS, CIBERSAM , Vigo , Spain
| | - Carolina Barreiro-Villar
- a Psychiatric Diseases Research Group , Galicia Sur Health Research Institute. Complexo Hospitalario Universitario de Vigo (CHUVI), SERGAS, CIBERSAM , Vigo , Spain
| | - Jose Manuel Olivares
- a Psychiatric Diseases Research Group , Galicia Sur Health Research Institute. Complexo Hospitalario Universitario de Vigo (CHUVI), SERGAS, CIBERSAM , Vigo , Spain
| | - Roberto Carlos Agís-Balboa
- a Psychiatric Diseases Research Group , Galicia Sur Health Research Institute. Complexo Hospitalario Universitario de Vigo (CHUVI), SERGAS, CIBERSAM , Vigo , Spain
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Lee WH, Doucet GE, Leibu E, Frangou S. Resting-state network connectivity and metastability predict clinical symptoms in schizophrenia. Schizophr Res 2018; 201:208-216. [PMID: 29709491 PMCID: PMC6317903 DOI: 10.1016/j.schres.2018.04.029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2018] [Revised: 04/18/2018] [Accepted: 04/19/2018] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The functional architecture of resting-state networks (RSNs) is defined by their connectivity and metastability. Disrupted RSN connectivity has been amply demonstrated in schizophrenia while the role of metastability remains poorly defined. Here, we undertake a comprehensive characterisation of RSN organization in schizophrenia and test its contribution to the clinical profile of this disorder. METHODS We extracted RSNs representing the default mode (DMN), central executive (CEN), salience (SAL), language (LAN), sensorimotor (SMN), auditory (AN) and visual (VN) networks from resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging data obtained from patients with schizophrenia (n = 85) and healthy individuals (n = 48). For each network, we computed its functional cohesiveness and integration and used the Kuramoto order parameter to compute metastability. We used stepwise multiple regression analyses to test these RSN features as predictors of symptom severity in patients. RESULTS RSN features respectively explained 14%, 17%, 12% and 5% of the variance in positive, negative, anxious/depressive and agitation/disorganization symptoms. Lower functional integration between the DMN, CEN and SMN primarily contributed to positive symptoms. The functional properties of the SAL network were key predictors of all other symptom dimensions; specifically, lower cohesiveness of the SAL, lower integration of this network with the LAN and higher integration with the CEN respectively contributed to negative, anxious/depressive and disorganization symptoms. Increased SAL metastability was associated with negative symptoms. CONCLUSIONS These results confirm the primacy of the SAL network for schizophrenia and demonstrate that abnormalities in RSN connectivity and metastability are significant predictors of schizophrenia-related psychopathology.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Sophia Frangou
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA.
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Zebrafish models of epigenetic regulation of CNS functions. Brain Res Bull 2018; 142:344-351. [DOI: 10.1016/j.brainresbull.2018.08.022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/24/2018] [Revised: 08/22/2018] [Accepted: 08/30/2018] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
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Cariaga-Martinez A, Gutiérrez K, Alelú-Paz R. Rethinking schizophrenia through the lens of evolution: shedding light on the enigma. RESEARCH IDEAS AND OUTCOMES 2018. [DOI: 10.3897/rio.4.e28459] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Schizophrenia refers to a complex psychiatric illness characterized by the heterogenic presence of positive, negative and cognitive symptoms occurring in all human societies. The fact that the disorder lacks a unifying neuropathology, presents a decreased fecundity of the affected individuals and has a cross-culturally stable incidence rate, makes it necessary for an evolutionary explanation that fully accounts for the preservation of “schizophrenic genes” in the global human genepool, explaining the potential sex differences and the heterogeneous cognitive symptomatology of the disorder and is consistent with the neuropsychological, developmental and evolutionary findings regarding the human brain. Here we proposed a new evolutionary framework for schizophrenia that is consistent with findings presented in different dimensions, considering the disorder as a form of brain functioning that allows us to adapt to the environment and, ultimately, maintain the survival of the species. We focus on the epigenetic regulation of thalamic interneurons as a major player involved in the development of the clinical picture characteristic of schizophrenia.
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Punzi G, Bharadwaj R, Ursini G. Neuroepigenetics of Schizophrenia. PROGRESS IN MOLECULAR BIOLOGY AND TRANSLATIONAL SCIENCE 2018; 158:195-226. [PMID: 30072054 DOI: 10.1016/bs.pmbts.2018.04.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Schizophrenia is a complex disorder of the brain, where genetic variants explain only a portion of risk. Neuroepigenetic mechanisms may explain the remaining share of risk, as well as the transition from susceptibility to the actual disease. Here, we discuss the most recent findings in the field of brain epigenetics applied to the study of schizophrenia. Methylome studies have found several candidates exhibiting methylation modifications in association with the disorder, but genes affected do not always overlap. Notably, these studies converge in that genes within the schizophrenia risk loci or genes differentially methylated in patients affected with the disorder are dynamically regulated during early life. They also imply that schizophrenia-associated genetic variation may affect DNA methylation in fetal and adult brains. Histone modifications may help mediating the effect of genetic risk variants associated with schizophrenia, and regulating chromatin higher-order structure. The 3D-organization of chromatin in the brain creates physical interactions within chromosomes, so that schizophrenia-associated genetic variants can be linked with genes distant from their loci; this suggests that chromatin conformation matters in the mechanism of risk for the disorder. Non-coding RNAs provide a novel and complex mechanism of gene regulation potentially significant for schizophrenia, as proposed by research on specific microRNAs and long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs). Finally, a recent study in epitranscriptomics identifies RNA methylation as a further epigenetic mechanism active in human brain and specifically in a portion of the transcriptome associated with schizophrenia susceptibility. These findings indicate that, as expected from the complexity of the brain and its development, several epigenetic mechanisms may intervene in the etiopathogenesis of schizophrenia. An understanding of their roles calls for research approaches integrating the investigation of different epigenetic mechanisms and of environmental and genetic risk, in the context of development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giovanna Punzi
- Lieber Institute for Brain Development, Johns Hopkins Medical Campus, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Rahul Bharadwaj
- Lieber Institute for Brain Development, Johns Hopkins Medical Campus, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Gianluca Ursini
- Lieber Institute for Brain Development, Johns Hopkins Medical Campus, Baltimore, MD, United States; Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States.
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Li T, Lee M, Tsai F, Chen Y, Lin Y, Chen M. Proteomic study revealed antipsychotics-induced nuclear protein regulations in B35 cells are similar to the regulations in C6 cells and rat cortex. BMC Pharmacol Toxicol 2018. [PMID: 29514709 PMCID: PMC5842604 DOI: 10.1186/s40360-018-0199-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Based on accumulating evidence, the regulation of protein expression by antipsychotic drugs (APDs) might be closely related to the control of psychotic symptoms when these drugs are used to treat mental disorders. The low quantity of nuclear proteins in the cell hinders their detection because signal for rare proteins are masked in most proteomic detection systems. METHODS Nuclear proteins fractionated from APD-treated B35 cells were labeled with iTRAQ and detected by LC/MS/MS to investigate APD-induced alterations in nuclear protein expression. Western blot, immunofluorescent cell staining, and immunohistochemical staining were applied to validate the findings. RESULTS The expression of ADP/ATP translocase 2, heat shock cognate 71 kDa protein, histone H1.2, histone H3.3, histone H4, non-POU domain-containing octamer-binding protein, nucleolin, nucleophosmin, prelamin-A/C, plectin-1, vimentin, and 40S ribosomal protein S3a was regulated by APDs in B35 cells, according to our proteomic data. According to the results of the gene ontology analysis, all these proteins played important roles in biological processes or in molecular functions in cells. Western blot results showing APD-induced alterations in nuclear protein expression in B35 cells were consistent with the LC/MS/MS results. Heat shock cognate 71 kDa protein and vimentin expression in C6 cells were not affected by the three APDs. As shown in the immunofluorescent cell staining, all the three APDs altered protein expression to similar extents. We also examined whether the expression of these proteins was affected by APDs in the prefrontal cortex of rats administered sub-chronic and chronic APD treatments by western blotting and immunohistochemical staining. CONCLUSIONS The findings of the proteomic analysis of APD-treated B35 cells were recapitulated in the APD-treated rat cortex. The expression of some proteins was altered by APDs in rat prefrontal cortex in a time-dependent manner.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tinchou Li
- Division of Neurosurgery, Department of Surgery, Taipei Tzu Chi Hospital, Buddhist Tzu Chi Medical Foundation, New Taipei City, Taiwan, Republic of China.,Department of Surgery, School of Medicine, Tzu Chi University, Hualien City, Taiwan, Republic of China
| | - Mingcheng Lee
- Department of Research, Taipei Tzu Chi Hospital, Buddhist Tzu Chi Medical Foundation, New Taipei City, Taiwan, Republic of China
| | - Fuming Tsai
- Department of Research, Taipei Tzu Chi Hospital, Buddhist Tzu Chi Medical Foundation, New Taipei City, Taiwan, Republic of China.,Department of Microbiology, Soochow University, Shih Lin, Taipei City, Taiwan, Republic of China
| | - Yunhsiang Chen
- Department of Life Science, Fu Jen Catholic University, New Taipei City, Taiwan, Republic of China
| | - Yiyin Lin
- Department of Research, Taipei Tzu Chi Hospital, Buddhist Tzu Chi Medical Foundation, New Taipei City, Taiwan, Republic of China
| | - Maoliang Chen
- Department of Research, Taipei Tzu Chi Hospital, Buddhist Tzu Chi Medical Foundation, New Taipei City, Taiwan, Republic of China.
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Schizophrenia: A review of potential biomarkers. J Psychiatr Res 2017; 93:37-49. [PMID: 28578207 DOI: 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2017.05.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2017] [Revised: 05/10/2017] [Accepted: 05/22/2017] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Understanding the biological process and progression of schizophrenia is the first step to developing novel approaches and new interventions. Research on new biomarkers is extremely important when the goal is an early diagnosis (prediction) and precise theranostics. The objective of this review is to understand the research on biomarkers and their effects in schizophrenia to synthesize the role of these new advances. METHODS In this review, we search and review publications in databases in accordance with established limits and specific objectives. We look at particular endpoints such as the category of biomarkers, laboratory techniques and the results/conclusions of the selected publications. RESULTS The investigation of biomarkers and their potential as a predictor, diagnosis instrument and therapeutic orientation, requires an appropriate methodological strategy. In this review, we found different laboratory techniques to identify biomarkers and their function in schizophrenia. CONCLUSION The consolidation of this information will provide a large-scale application network of schizophrenia biomarkers.
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Giegling I, Hosak L, Mössner R, Serretti A, Bellivier F, Claes S, Collier DA, Corrales A, DeLisi LE, Gallo C, Gill M, Kennedy JL, Leboyer M, Maier W, Marquez M, Massat I, Mors O, Muglia P, Nöthen MM, Ospina-Duque J, Owen MJ, Propping P, Shi Y, St Clair D, Thibaut F, Cichon S, Mendlewicz J, O'Donovan MC, Rujescu D. Genetics of schizophrenia: A consensus paper of the WFSBP Task Force on Genetics. World J Biol Psychiatry 2017; 18:492-505. [PMID: 28112043 DOI: 10.1080/15622975.2016.1268715] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Schizophrenia is a severe psychiatric disease affecting about 1% of the general population. The relative contribution of genetic factors has been estimated to be up to 80%. The mode of inheritance is complex, non-Mendelian, and in most cases involving the combined action of large numbers of genes. METHODS This review summarises recent efforts to identify genetic variants associated with schizophrenia detected, e.g., through genome-wide association studies, studies on copy-number variants or next-generation sequencing. RESULTS A large, new body of evidence on genetics of schizophrenia has accumulated over recent years. Many new robustly associated genetic loci have been detected. Furthermore, there is consensus that at least a dozen microdeletions and microduplications contribute to the disease. Genetic overlap between schizophrenia, other psychiatric disorders, and neurodevelopmental syndromes raised new questions regarding the current classification of psychiatric and neurodevelopmental diseases. CONCLUSIONS Future studies will address especially the functional characterisation of genetic variants. This will hopefully open the doors to our understanding of the pathophysiology of schizophrenia and other related diseases. Complementary, integrated systems biology approaches to genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics and metabolomics may also play crucial roles in enabling a precision medicine approach to the treatment of individual patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ina Giegling
- a Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy, and Psychosomatics , Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg , Halle , Germany.,b Department of Psychiatry , Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich , Munich , Germany
| | - Ladislav Hosak
- c Department of Psychiatriy , Charles University, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital in Hradec Králové, Prague , Czech Republic
| | - Rainald Mössner
- d Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy , University of Tübingen , Tübingen , Germany
| | - Alessandro Serretti
- e Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences , University of Bologna , Bologna , Italy
| | - Frank Bellivier
- f Fondation Fondamental, Créteil, France AP-HP, GH Saint-Louis-Lariboisière-Fernand-Widal, Pôle Neurosciences , Paris , France.,g Equipe 1, Université Paris Diderot , Paris , France
| | - Stephan Claes
- h GRASP-Research Group, Department of Neuroscience , University of Leuven , Leuven , Belgium.,i Department of Neurosciences, University Psychiatric Center KU Leuven , Leuven , Belgium
| | - David A Collier
- j Social, Genetic and Developmental Psychiatry Centre , Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London , London , UK.,k Eli Lilly and Company Ltd, Erl Wood Manor , Surrey , UK
| | - Alejo Corrales
- l Argentinean Association of Biological Psychiatry , National University, UNT, Buenos Aires , Argentina
| | - Lynn E DeLisi
- m VA Boston Health Care System , Brockton , MA , USA.,n Department of Psychiatry , Harvard Medical School , Boston , MA , USA
| | - Carla Gallo
- o Departamento de Ciencias Celulares y Moleculares, Laboratorios de Investigación y Desarrollo, Facultad de Ciencias y Filosofía , Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia , Lima , Peru
| | - Michael Gill
- p Neuropsychiatric Genetics Research Group, Department of Psychiatry , Trinity College Dublin , Dublin , Ireland
| | - James L Kennedy
- q Neurogenetics Section, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health , Toronto , ON , Canada.,r Centre for Addiction and Mental Health , Campbell Family Mental Health Research Institute , Toronto , ON , Canada.,s Department of Psychiatry , University of Toronto , Toronto , ON , Canada.,t Collaborative Program in Neuroscience, Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto , Toronto , ON , Canada
| | - Marion Leboyer
- u Equipe Psychiatrie Translationnelle, Faculté de Médecine, Université Paris-Est Créteil, Inserm U955 , Créteil , France.,v DHU Pe-Psy, Pôle de Psychiatrie et d'Addictologie , AP-HP, Hôpitaux Universitaires Henri Mondor , Créteil , France.,w Pôle de Psychiatrie , Hôpital Albert Chenevier , Créteil , France.,x Fondation FondaMental , Créteil , France
| | - Wolfgang Maier
- y Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy , University of Bonn, Bonn , Germany
| | - Miguel Marquez
- z Asistencia, Docencia e Investigación en Neurociencia , Buenos Aires , Argentina
| | - Isabelle Massat
- aa UNI - ULB Neurosciences Institute, ULB , Bruxelles , Belgium.,ab National Fund of Scientific Research (FNRS) , Bruxelles , Belgium.,ac Laboratory of Experimental Neurology , ULB , Bruxelles , Belgium.,ad UR2NF - Neuropsychology and Functional Neuroimaging Research Unit, Centre de Recherche Cognition et Neurosciences , Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB) , Bruxelles , Belgium
| | - Ole Mors
- ae Psychosis Research Unit , Aarhus University Hospital , Risskov , Denmark.,af The Lundbeck Foundation Initiative for Integrative Psychiatric Research, iPSYCH, Aarhus , Denmark
| | | | - Markus M Nöthen
- ah Head, Institute of Human Genetics, University of Bonn , Bonn , Germany.,ai Department of Genomics , Life and Brain Center , Bonn , Germany
| | - Jorge Ospina-Duque
- aj Grupo de Investigación en Psiquiatría, Departamento de Psiquiatría, Facultad de Medicina , Universidad de Antioquia , Medellín , Colombia
| | - Michael J Owen
- ak MRC Centre for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics, Institute of Psychological Medicine and Clinical Neurosciences, School of Medicine , Cardiff University , Cardiff , UK.,al National Centre for Mental Health, Cardiff University , Cardiff , UK
| | | | - YongYong Shi
- an Bio-X Institutes, Key Laboratory for the Genetics of Developmental and Neuropsychiatric Disorders, Ministry of Education , Shanghai Jiao Tong University , Shanghai , China.,ao Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Metabloic Disease, The Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University , Qingdao , P.R. China.,ap Institute of Social Cognitive and Behavioral Sciences, Shanghai Jiao Tong University , Shanghai , P.R. China
| | - David St Clair
- aq Department of Psychiatry, University of Aberdeen, Institute of Medical Sciences , Aberdeen , UK
| | - Florence Thibaut
- ar INSERM U 894 Centre Psychiatry and Neurosciences , University Hospital Cochin (Site Tarnier), University Sorbonne Paris Cité (Faculty of Medicine Paris Descartes) , Paris , France
| | - Sven Cichon
- ah Head, Institute of Human Genetics, University of Bonn , Bonn , Germany.,ai Department of Genomics , Life and Brain Center , Bonn , Germany.,as Division of Medical Genetics, Department of Biomedicine , University of Basel , Basel , Switzerland.,at Genomic Imaging, Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine , Research Center Juelich , Juelich , Germany
| | - Julien Mendlewicz
- au Laboratoire de Psychologie Medicale, Centre Europe´en de Psychologie Medicale , Universite´ Libre de Bruxelles and Psy Pluriel , Brussels , Belgium
| | - Michael C O'Donovan
- ak MRC Centre for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics, Institute of Psychological Medicine and Clinical Neurosciences, School of Medicine , Cardiff University , Cardiff , UK.,al National Centre for Mental Health, Cardiff University , Cardiff , UK
| | - Dan Rujescu
- a Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy, and Psychosomatics , Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg , Halle , Germany.,b Department of Psychiatry , Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich , Munich , Germany
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Zhu X, Gomes FV, Grace AA. The methylazoxymethanol acetate rat model: molecular and epigenetic effect in the developing prefrontal cortex: An Editorial Highlight for 'Epigenetic mechanisms underlying NMDA receptor hypofunction in the prefrontal cortex of juvenile animals in the MAM model for schizophrenia' on page 320. J Neurochem 2017; 143:264-267. [PMID: 28872674 DOI: 10.1111/jnc.14133] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2017] [Accepted: 07/14/2017] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
This Editorial highlights an article by Gulchina and colleagues in the current issue of the Journal of Neurochemistry, in which the authors describe molecular and epigenetic changes in the developing prefrontal cortex of the rats exposed to methylazoxymethanol acetate (MAM). They found an NMDAR hypofunction present in the prefrontal cortex of juvenile MAM rats which was associated with abnormal epigenetic regulation of the Grin2b gene. These changes may be related to early cognitive impairments observed in MAM rats and schizophrenia patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiyu Zhu
- Departments of Neuroscience, Psychiatry and Psychology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Felipe V Gomes
- Departments of Neuroscience, Psychiatry and Psychology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Anthony A Grace
- Departments of Neuroscience, Psychiatry and Psychology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
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Gulchina Y, Xu SJ, Snyder MA, Elefant F, Gao WJ. Epigenetic mechanisms underlying NMDA receptor hypofunction in the prefrontal cortex of juvenile animals in the MAM model for schizophrenia. J Neurochem 2017. [PMID: 28628228 DOI: 10.1111/jnc.14101] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Schizophrenia (SCZ) is characterized not only by psychosis, but also by working memory and executive functioning deficiencies, processes that rely on the prefrontal cortex (PFC). Because these cognitive impairments emerge prior to psychosis onset, we investigated synaptic function during development in the neurodevelopmental methylazoxymethanol (MAM) model for SCZ. Specifically, we hypothesize that N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) hypofunction is attributable to reductions in the NR2B subunit through aberrant epigenetic regulation of gene expression, resulting in deficient synaptic physiology and PFC-dependent cognitive dysfunction, a hallmark of SCZ. Using western blot and whole-cell patch-clamp electrophysiology, we found that the levels of synaptic NR2B protein are significantly decreased in juvenile MAM animals, and the function of NMDARs is substantially compromised. Both NMDA-mEPSCs and synaptic NMDA-eEPSCs are significantly reduced in prelimbic PFC (plPFC). This protein loss during the juvenile period is correlated with an aberrant increase in enrichment of the epigenetic transcriptional repressor RE1-silencing transcription factor (REST) and the repressive histone marker H3K27me3 at the Grin2b promoter, as assayed by ChIP-quantitative polymerase chain reaction. Glutamate hypofunction has been a prominent hypothesis in the understanding of SCZ pathology; however, little attention has been given to the NMDAR system in the developing PFC in models for SCZ. Our work is the first to confirm that NMDAR hypofunction is a feature of early postnatal development, with epigenetic hyper-repression of the Grin2b promoter being a contributing factor. The selective loss of NR2B protein and subsequent synaptic dysfunction weakens plPFC function during development and may underlie early cognitive impairments in SCZ models and patients. Read the Editorial Highlight for this article on page 264.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yelena Gulchina
- Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy, Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Song-Jun Xu
- Department of Biology, Drexel University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Melissa A Snyder
- Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy, Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Felice Elefant
- Department of Biology, Drexel University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Wen-Jun Gao
- Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy, Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
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Tet1 in Nucleus Accumbens Opposes Depression- and Anxiety-Like Behaviors. Neuropsychopharmacology 2017; 42:1657-1669. [PMID: 28074830 PMCID: PMC5518912 DOI: 10.1038/npp.2017.6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/16/2016] [Revised: 01/03/2017] [Accepted: 01/05/2017] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
Depression is a leading cause of disease burden, yet current therapies fully treat <50% of affected individuals. Increasing evidence implicates epigenetic mechanisms in depression and antidepressant action. Here we examined a possible role for the DNA dioxygenase, ten-eleven translocation protein 1 (TET1), in depression-related behavioral abnormalities. We applied chronic social defeat stress, an ethologically validated mouse model of depression-like behaviors, and examined Tet1 expression changes in nucleus accumbens (NAc), a key brain reward region. We show decreased Tet1 expression in NAc in stress-susceptible mice only. Surprisingly, selective knockout of Tet1 in NAc neurons of adult mice produced antidepressant-like effects in several behavioral assays. To identify Tet1 targets that mediate these actions, we performed RNAseq on NAc after conditional deletion of Tet1 and found that immune-related genes are the most highly dysregulated. Moreover, many of these genes are also upregulated in the NAc of resilient mice after chronic social defeat stress. These findings reveal a novel role for TET1, an enzyme important for DNA hydroxymethylation, in the brain's reward circuitry in modulating stress responses in mice. We also identify a subset of genes that are regulated by TET1 in this circuitry. These findings provide new insight into the pathophysiology of depression, which can aid in future antidepressant drug discovery efforts.
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42
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Delgado-Morales R, Agís-Balboa RC, Esteller M, Berdasco M. Epigenetic mechanisms during ageing and neurogenesis as novel therapeutic avenues in human brain disorders. Clin Epigenetics 2017; 9:67. [PMID: 28670349 PMCID: PMC5493012 DOI: 10.1186/s13148-017-0365-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 80] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/26/2017] [Accepted: 06/11/2017] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Ageing is the main risk factor for human neurological disorders. Among the diverse molecular pathways that govern ageing, epigenetics can guide age-associated decline in part by regulating gene expression and also through the modulation of genomic instability and high-order chromatin architecture. Epigenetic mechanisms are involved in the regulation of neural differentiation as well as in functional processes related to memory consolidation, learning or cognition during healthy lifespan. On the other side of the coin, many neurodegenerative diseases are associated with epigenetic dysregulation. The reversible nature of epigenetic factors and, especially, their role as mediators between the genome and the environment make them exciting candidates as therapeutic targets. Rather than providing a broad description of the pathways epigenetically deregulated in human neurological disorders, in this review, we have focused on the potential use of epigenetic enzymes as druggable targets to ameliorate neural decline during normal ageing and especially in neurological disorders. We will firstly discuss recent progress that supports a key role of epigenetic regulation during healthy ageing with an emphasis on the role of epigenetic regulation in adult neurogenesis. Then, we will focus on epigenetic alterations associated with ageing-related human disorders of the central nervous system. We will discuss examples in the context of psychiatric disorders, including schizophrenia and posttraumatic stress disorders, and also dementia or Alzheimer's disease as the most frequent neurodegenerative disease. Finally, methodological limitations and future perspectives are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Raúl Delgado-Morales
- Cancer Epigenetics Group, Cancer Epigenetics and Biology Program (PEBC), Bellvitge Biomedical Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL), 3rd Floor, Hospital Duran i Reynals, Av. Gran Via 199-203, 08908L'Hospitalet, Barcelona, Catalonia Spain.,Department of Psychiatry and Neuropsychology, School for Mental Health and Neuroscience (MHeNs), Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands
| | - Roberto Carlos Agís-Balboa
- Psychiatric Diseases Research Group, Galicia Sur Health Research Institute, Complexo Hospitalario Universitario de Vigo (CHUVI), SERGAS, CIBERSAM, Vigo, Spain
| | - Manel Esteller
- Cancer Epigenetics Group, Cancer Epigenetics and Biology Program (PEBC), Bellvitge Biomedical Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL), 3rd Floor, Hospital Duran i Reynals, Av. Gran Via 199-203, 08908L'Hospitalet, Barcelona, Catalonia Spain.,Department of Physiological Sciences II, School of Medicine, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Institució Catalana de Recerca i Estudis Avançats (ICREA), Barcelona, Spain
| | - María Berdasco
- Cancer Epigenetics Group, Cancer Epigenetics and Biology Program (PEBC), Bellvitge Biomedical Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL), 3rd Floor, Hospital Duran i Reynals, Av. Gran Via 199-203, 08908L'Hospitalet, Barcelona, Catalonia Spain
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de Kluiver H, Buizer‐Voskamp JE, Dolan CV, Boomsma DI. Paternal age and psychiatric disorders: A review. Am J Med Genet B Neuropsychiatr Genet 2017; 174:202-213. [PMID: 27770494 PMCID: PMC5412832 DOI: 10.1002/ajmg.b.32508] [Citation(s) in RCA: 63] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/25/2016] [Accepted: 10/03/2016] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
We review the hypotheses concerning the association between the paternal age at childbearing and childhood psychiatric disorders (autism spectrum- and attention deficit/hyperactive disorder) and adult disorders (schizophrenia, bipolar-, obsessive-compulsive-, and major depressive disorder) based on epidemiological studies. Several hypotheses have been proposed to explain the paternal age effect. We discuss the four main-not mutually exclusive-hypotheses. These are the de novo mutation hypothesis, the hypothesis concerning epigenetic alterations, the selection into late fatherhood hypothesis, and the environmental resource hypothesis. Advanced paternal age in relation to autism spectrum disorders and schizophrenia provided the most robust epidemiological evidence for an association, with some studies reporting a monotonic risk increase over age, and others reporting a marked increase at a given age threshold. Although there is evidence for the de novo mutation hypothesis and the selection into late fatherhood hypothesis, the mechanism(s) underlying the association between advanced paternal age and psychiatric illness in offspring remains to be further clarified. © 2016 The Authors. American Journal of Medical Genetics Part B: Neuropsychiatric Genetics Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hilde de Kluiver
- Department of Biological PsychologyVrije Universiteit AmsterdamAmsterdamThe Netherlands
- EMGO+ Institute for Health and Care ResearchAmsterdamThe Netherlands
| | | | - Conor V. Dolan
- Department of Biological PsychologyVrije Universiteit AmsterdamAmsterdamThe Netherlands
- EMGO+ Institute for Health and Care ResearchAmsterdamThe Netherlands
| | - Dorret I. Boomsma
- Department of Biological PsychologyVrije Universiteit AmsterdamAmsterdamThe Netherlands
- EMGO+ Institute for Health and Care ResearchAmsterdamThe Netherlands
- Neuroscience Campus AmsterdamAmsterdamThe Netherlands
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Effect of Clozapine on DNA Methylation in Peripheral Leukocytes from Patients with Treatment-Resistant Schizophrenia. Int J Mol Sci 2017; 18:ijms18030632. [PMID: 28335437 PMCID: PMC5372645 DOI: 10.3390/ijms18030632] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/27/2017] [Revised: 03/10/2017] [Accepted: 03/10/2017] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Clozapine is an atypical antipsychotic, that is established as the treatment of choice for treatment-resistant schizophrenia (SCZ). To date, no study investigating comprehensive DNA methylation changes in SCZ patients treated with chronic clozapine has been reported. The purpose of the present study is to reveal the effects of clozapine on DNA methylation in treatment-resistant SCZ. We conducted a genome-wide DNA methylation profiling in peripheral leukocytes (485,764 CpG dinucleotides) from treatment-resistant SCZ patients treated with clozapine (n = 21) in a longitudinal study. Significant changes in DNA methylation were observed at 29,134 sites after one year of treatment with clozapine, and these genes were enriched for “cell substrate adhesion” and “cell matrix adhesion” gene ontology (GO) terms. Furthermore, DNA methylation changes in the CREBBP (CREB binding protein) gene were significantly correlated with the clinical improvements. Our findings provide insights into the action of clozapine in treatment-resistant SCZ.
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Histone Posttranslational Modifications in Schizophrenia. ADVANCES IN EXPERIMENTAL MEDICINE AND BIOLOGY 2017; 978:237-254. [PMID: 28523550 DOI: 10.1007/978-3-319-53889-1_13] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Schizophrenia is a complex neuropsychiatric disorder with high heritability; however, family and twin studies have indicated that environmental factors also play important roles in the etiology of disease. Environmental triggers exert their influence on behavior via epigenetic mechanisms. Epigenetic modifications, such as histone acetylation and methylation, as well as DNA methylation, can induce lasting changes in gene expression and have therefore been implicated in promoting the behavioral and neuronal behaviors that characterize this disorder. Importantly, because epigenetic processes are potentially reversible, they might serve as targets in the design of novel therapies in psychiatry. This chapter will review the current information regarding histone modifications in schizophrenia and the potential therapeutic relevance of such marks.
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Lee SA, Huang KC. Epigenetic profiling of human brain differential DNA methylation networks in schizophrenia. BMC Med Genomics 2016; 9:68. [PMID: 28117656 PMCID: PMC5260790 DOI: 10.1186/s12920-016-0229-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Epigenetics of schizophrenia provides important information on how the environmental factors affect the genetic architecture of the disease. DNA methylation plays a pivotal role in etiology for schizophrenia. Previous studies have focused mostly on the discovery of schizophrenia-associated SNPs or genetic variants. As postmortem brain samples became available, more and more recent studies surveyed transcriptomics of the diseases. In this study, we constructed protein-protein interaction (PPI) network using the disease associated SNP (or genetic variants), differentially expressed disease genes and differentially methylated disease genes (or promoters). By combining the different datasets and topological analyses of the PPI network, we established a more comprehensive understanding of the development and genetics of this devastating mental illness. Results We analyzed the previously published DNA methylation profiles of prefrontal cortex from 335 healthy controls and 191 schizophrenic patients. These datasets revealed 2014 CpGs identified as GWAS risk loci with the differential methylation profile in schizophrenia, and 1689 schizophrenic differential methylated genes (SDMGs) identified with predominant hypomethylation. These SDMGs, combined with the PPIs of these genes, were constructed into the schizophrenic differential methylation network (SDMN). On the SDMN, there are 10 hypermethylated SDMGs, including GNA13, CAPNS1, GABPB2, GIT2, LEFTY1, NDUFA10, MIOS, MPHOSPH6, PRDM14 and RFWD2. The hypermethylation to differential expression network (HyDEN) were constructed to determine how the hypermethylated promoters regulate gene expression. The enrichment analyses of biochemical pathways in HyDEN, including TNF alpha, PDGFR-beta signaling, TGF beta Receptor, VEGFR1 and VEGFR2 signaling, regulation of telomerase, hepatocyte growth factor receptor signaling, ErbB1 downstream signaling and mTOR signaling pathway, suggested that the malfunctioning of these pathways contribute to the symptoms of schizophrenia. Conclusions The epigenetic profiles of DNA differential methylation from schizophrenic brain samples were investigated to understand the regulatory roles of SDMGs. The SDMGs interplays with SCZCGs in a coordinated fashion in the disease mechanism of schizophrenia. The protein complexes and pathways involved in SDMN may be responsible for the etiology and potential treatment targets. The SDMG promoters are predominantly hypomethylated. Increasing methylation on these promoters is proposed as a novel therapeutic approach for schizophrenia. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12920-016-0229-y) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sheng-An Lee
- Department of Information Management, Kainan University, Taoyuan, Taiwan
| | - Kuo-Chuan Huang
- Department of Psychiatry, Beitou Branch, Tri-Service General Hospital, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan. .,Department of Nursing, Ching Kuo Institute of Management and Health, Keelung, Taiwan.
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47
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Wei Y, Pandian GN, Zou T, Taniguchi J, Sato S, Kashiwazaki G, Vaijayanthi T, Hidaka T, Bando T, Sugiyama H. A Multi-target Small Molecule for Targeted Transcriptional Activation of Therapeutically Significant Nervous System Genes. ChemistryOpen 2016; 5:517-521. [PMID: 28032018 PMCID: PMC5167308 DOI: 10.1002/open.201600125] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2016] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
An integrated multi‐target small molecule capable of altering dynamic epigenetic and transcription programs associated with the brain and nervous system has versatile applications in the regulation of therapeutic and cell‐fate genes. Recently, we have been constructing targeted epigenetic ON switches by integrating sequence‐specific DNA binding pyrrole‐imidazole polyamides with a potent histone deacetylase inhibitor SAHA. Here, we identified a DNA‐based epigenetic ON switch termed SAHA‐L as the first‐ever multi‐target small molecule capable of inducing transcription programs associated with the human neural system and brain synapses networks in BJ human foreskin fibroblasts and 201B7‐iPS cells. Ingenuity pathway analysis showed that SAHA‐L activates the signaling of synaptic receptors like glutamate and γ‐aminobutyric acid, which are key components of autism spectrum disorders. The long‐term incubation of SAHA‐L in 201B7‐iPS cells induced morphology changes and promoted a neural progenitor state. Our finding suggests that the tunable SAHA‐L could be advanced as a cell‐type‐independent multi‐target small molecule for therapeutic and/or cell‐fate gene modulation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yulei Wei
- Department of Chemistry Graduate School of Science Kyoto University Kitashirakawa-oiwakecho, Sakyo-ku Kyoto 606-8502 Japan
| | - Ganesh N Pandian
- Institute for Integrated Cell-Material Sciences (WPI-iCeMS) Kyoto University Yoshida-ushinomiyacho, Sakyo-ku Kyoto 606-8501 Japan
| | - Tingting Zou
- Department of Chemistry Graduate School of Science Kyoto University Kitashirakawa-oiwakecho, Sakyo-ku Kyoto 606-8502 Japan
| | - Junichi Taniguchi
- Department of Chemistry Graduate School of Science Kyoto University Kitashirakawa-oiwakecho, Sakyo-ku Kyoto 606-8502 Japan
| | - Shinsuke Sato
- Institute for Integrated Cell-Material Sciences (WPI-iCeMS) Kyoto University Yoshida-ushinomiyacho, Sakyo-ku Kyoto 606-8501 Japan
| | - Gengo Kashiwazaki
- Department of Chemistry Graduate School of Science Kyoto University Kitashirakawa-oiwakecho, Sakyo-ku Kyoto 606-8502 Japan
| | - Thangavel Vaijayanthi
- Department of Chemistry Graduate School of Science Kyoto University Kitashirakawa-oiwakecho, Sakyo-ku Kyoto 606-8502 Japan
| | - Takuya Hidaka
- Department of Chemistry Graduate School of Science Kyoto University Kitashirakawa-oiwakecho, Sakyo-ku Kyoto 606-8502 Japan
| | - Toshikazu Bando
- Department of Chemistry Graduate School of Science Kyoto University Kitashirakawa-oiwakecho, Sakyo-ku Kyoto 606-8502 Japan
| | - Hiroshi Sugiyama
- Department of Chemistry Graduate School of Science Kyoto University Kitashirakawa-oiwakecho, Sakyo-ku Kyoto606-8502 Japan; Institute for Integrated Cell-Material Sciences (WPI-iCeMS) Kyoto University Yoshida-ushinomiyacho, Sakyo-ku Kyoto 606-8501 Japan
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48
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Fullard JF, Halene TB, Giambartolomei C, Haroutunian V, Akbarian S, Roussos P. Understanding the genetic liability to schizophrenia through the neuroepigenome. Schizophr Res 2016; 177:115-124. [PMID: 26827128 PMCID: PMC4963306 DOI: 10.1016/j.schres.2016.01.039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/24/2015] [Revised: 01/14/2016] [Accepted: 01/18/2016] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
The Psychiatric Genomics Consortium-Schizophrenia Workgroup (PGC-SCZ) recently identified 108 loci associated with increased risk for schizophrenia (SCZ). The vast majority of these variants reside within non-coding sequences of the genome and are predicted to exert their effects by affecting the mechanism of action of cis regulatory elements (CREs), such as promoters and enhancers. Although a number of large-scale collaborative efforts (e.g. ENCODE) have achieved a comprehensive mapping of CREs in human cell lines or tissue homogenates, it is becoming increasingly evident that many risk-associated variants are enriched for expression Quantitative Trait Loci (eQTLs) and CREs in specific tissues or cells. As such, data derived from previous research endeavors may not capture fully cell-type and/or region specific changes associated with brain diseases. Coupling recent technological advances in genomics with cell-type specific methodologies, we are presented with an unprecedented opportunity to better understand the genetics of normal brain development and function and, in turn, the molecular basis of neuropsychiatric disorders. In this review, we will outline ongoing efforts towards this goal and will discuss approaches with the potential to shed light on the mechanism(s) of action of cell-type specific cis regulatory elements and their putative roles in disease, with particular emphasis on understanding the manner in which the epigenome and CREs influence the etiology of SCZ.
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Affiliation(s)
- John F. Fullard
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Tobias B. Halene
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA,Mental Illness Research, Education, and Clinical Center (VISN 3), James J. Peters VA Medical Center, Bronx, NY, USA
| | | | - Vahram Haroutunian
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA,Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA,Mental Illness Research, Education, and Clinical Center (VISN 3), James J. Peters VA Medical Center, Bronx, NY, USA
| | - Schahram Akbarian
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA,Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Panos Roussos
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA; Department of Genetics and Genomic Science and Institute for Multiscale Biology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA; Mental Illness Research, Education, and Clinical Center (VISN 3), James J. Peters VA Medical Center, Bronx, NY, USA.
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49
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Yao B, Christian KM, He C, Jin P, Ming GL, Song H. Epigenetic mechanisms in neurogenesis. Nat Rev Neurosci 2016; 17:537-49. [PMID: 27334043 DOI: 10.1038/nrn.2016.70] [Citation(s) in RCA: 260] [Impact Index Per Article: 32.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
In the embryonic and adult brain, neural stem cells proliferate and give rise to neurons and glia through highly regulated processes. Epigenetic mechanisms - including DNA and histone modifications, as well as regulation by non-coding RNAs - have pivotal roles in different stages of neurogenesis. Aberrant epigenetic regulation also contributes to the pathogenesis of various brain disorders. Here, we review recent advances in our understanding of epigenetic regulation in neurogenesis and its dysregulation in brain disorders, including discussion of newly identified DNA cytosine modifications. We also briefly cover the emerging field of epitranscriptomics, which involves modifications of mRNAs and long non-coding RNAs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bing Yao
- Department of Human Genetics, Emory University School of Medicine, 615 Michael Street, Atlanta, Georgia 30322, USA
| | - Kimberly M Christian
- Institute for Cell Engineering, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, 733 N. Broadway, Baltimore, Maryland 21205, USA.,Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, 733 N. Broadway, Baltimore, Maryland 21205, USA
| | - Chuan He
- Department of Chemistry, Institute for Biophysical Dynamics, The University of Chicago, 929 East 57th Street, Chicago, Illinois 60637, USA.,Howard Hughes Medical Institute, The University of Chicago, 929 East 57th Street, Chicago, Illinois 60637, USA
| | - Peng Jin
- Department of Human Genetics, Emory University School of Medicine, 615 Michael Street, Atlanta, Georgia 30322, USA
| | - Guo-Li Ming
- Institute for Cell Engineering, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, 733 N. Broadway, Baltimore, Maryland 21205, USA.,Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, 733 N. Broadway, Baltimore, Maryland 21205, USA.,The Solomon Snyder Department of Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, 733 N. Broadway, Baltimore, Maryland 21205, USA.,Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, 733 N. Broadway, Baltimore, Maryland 21205, USA
| | - Hongjun Song
- Institute for Cell Engineering, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, 733 N. Broadway, Baltimore, Maryland 21205, USA.,Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, 733 N. Broadway, Baltimore, Maryland 21205, USA.,The Solomon Snyder Department of Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, 733 N. Broadway, Baltimore, Maryland 21205, USA
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50
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Li F, Karlsson H. Expression and regulation of human endogenous retrovirus W elements. APMIS 2016; 124:52-66. [PMID: 26818262 DOI: 10.1111/apm.12478] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2015] [Accepted: 10/12/2015] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
Human endogenous retroviruses (HERV) comprise 8% of the human genome and can be classified into at least 31 families. A typical HERV provirus consists of internal gag, pol and env genes, flanked by two long terminal repeats (LTRs). No single provirus is capable of engendering infectious particles. HERV are by nature repetitive and have with few notable exceptions lost their protein-coding capacity. Therefore, HERV have consistently been excluded from array-based expression studies and hence little is known of their expression, regulation, and potential functional significance. An increasing number of studies have, however, observed expression of the W family of HERV in various human tissues and cells, predominantly in placenta. HERV-W LTRs act as promoters in directing transcription of HERV-W members, contribute to their tissue-specific and highly diversified expression pattern. Furthermore, leaky transcription originating from adjacent genes plays a role in the transcription initiation of HERV-W psudoelements. It has been reported that HERV-W elements, including ERVWE1 (the so far only known HERV-W locus harboring a gene (env) functionally adopted by the human host to critically participate in placenta biogenesis), can become transactivated in a range of human non-placental cell-lines during exogenous virus infections. Aberrant expression of HERV-W has been associated with human diseases, such as cancer, multiple sclerosis, and schizophrenia. Based on published reports, transcriptional activities of HERV-W appear to be influenced by several mechanisms; binding of transcription factors to LTR promoters and enhancers outside of LTRs, genetic variation and alteration in DNA methylation and histone modification. Emerging mechanistic studies support the notion that HERV-W represents a potential marker or mediator of environmental exposures (e.g., virus infection) in the development of chronic complex diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fang Li
- Department of Basic Medical Science, Changsha Medical University, Changsha, China.,Department of Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Håkan Karlsson
- Department of Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
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