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Jaarsma D, Birkisdóttir MB, van Vossen R, Oomen DWGD, Akhiyat O, Vermeij WP, Koekkoek SKE, De Zeeuw CI, Bosman LWJ. Different Purkinje cell pathologies cause specific patterns of progressive gait ataxia in mice. Neurobiol Dis 2024; 192:106422. [PMID: 38286390 DOI: 10.1016/j.nbd.2024.106422] [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: 09/19/2023] [Revised: 01/24/2024] [Accepted: 01/24/2024] [Indexed: 01/31/2024] Open
Abstract
Gait ataxia is one of the most common and impactful consequences of cerebellar dysfunction. Purkinje cells, the sole output neurons of the cerebellar cortex, are often involved in the underlying pathology, but their specific functions during locomotor control in health and disease remain obfuscated. We aimed to describe the effect of gradual adult-onset Purkinje cell degeneration on gaiting patterns in mice, and to determine whether two different mechanisms that both lead to Purkinje cell degeneration cause different patterns in the development of gait ataxia. Using the ErasmusLadder together with a newly developed limb detection algorithm and machine learning-based classification, we subjected mice to a challenging locomotor task with detailed analysis of single limb parameters, intralimb coordination and whole-body movement. We tested two Purkinje cell-specific mouse models, one involving stochastic cell death due to impaired DNA repair mechanisms (Pcp2-Ercc1-/-), the other carrying the mutation that causes spinocerebellar ataxia type 1 (Pcp2-ATXN1[82Q]). Both mouse models showed progressive gaiting deficits, but the sequence with which gaiting parameters deteriorated was different between mouse lines. Our longitudinal approach revealed that gradual loss of Purkinje cell function can lead to a complex pattern of loss of function over time, and that this pattern depends on the specifics of the pathological mechanisms involved. We hypothesize that this variability will also be present in disease progression in patients, and that our findings will facilitate the study of therapeutic interventions in mice, as subtle changes in locomotor abilities can be quantified by our methods.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dick Jaarsma
- Department of Neuroscience, Erasmus MC, 3015 CA, Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
| | - Maria B Birkisdóttir
- Department of Neuroscience, Erasmus MC, 3015 CA, Rotterdam, the Netherlands; Princess Máxima Center for Pediatric Oncology, 3584 CS, Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Randy van Vossen
- Department of Neuroscience, Erasmus MC, 3015 CA, Rotterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Demi W G D Oomen
- Department of Neuroscience, Erasmus MC, 3015 CA, Rotterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Oussama Akhiyat
- Department of Neuroscience, Erasmus MC, 3015 CA, Rotterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Wilbert P Vermeij
- Princess Máxima Center for Pediatric Oncology, 3584 CS, Utrecht, the Netherlands; Oncode Institute, 3521 AL, Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | | | - Chris I De Zeeuw
- Department of Neuroscience, Erasmus MC, 3015 CA, Rotterdam, the Netherlands; Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, Royal Dutch Academy of Arts & Science, 1105 BA, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Laurens W J Bosman
- Department of Neuroscience, Erasmus MC, 3015 CA, Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
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van’t Sant LJ, Birkisdóttir MB, Ozinga RA, Gyenis Á, Hoeijmakers JH, Vermeij WP, Jaarsma D. Gene expression changes in cerebellum induced by dietary restriction. Front Mol Neurosci 2023; 16:1185665. [PMID: 37293544 PMCID: PMC10244750 DOI: 10.3389/fnmol.2023.1185665] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2023] [Accepted: 05/03/2023] [Indexed: 06/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Dietary restriction (DR) is a well-established universal anti-aging intervention, and is neuroprotective in multiple models of nervous system disease, including models with cerebellar pathology. The beneficial effects of DR are associated with a rearrangement of gene expression that modulate metabolic and cytoprotective pathways. However, the effect of DR on the cerebellar transcriptome remained to be fully defined. Results Here we analyzed the effect of a classical 30% DR protocol on the transcriptome of cerebellar cortex of young-adult male mice using RNAseq. We found that about 5% of expressed genes were differentially expressed in DR cerebellum, the far majority of whom showing subtle expression changes. A large proportion of down-regulated genes are implicated in signaling pathways, in particular pathways associated with neuronal signaling. DR up regulated pathways in large part were associated with cytoprotection and DNA repair. Analysis of the expression of cell-specific gene sets, indicated a strong enrichment of DR down genes in Purkinje cells, while genes specifically associated with granule cells did not show such a preferential down-regulation. Conclusion Our data show that DR may have a clear effect on the cerebellar transcriptome inducing a mild shift from physiology towards maintenance and repair, and having cell-type specific effects.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - María B. Birkisdóttir
- Department of Neuroscience, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, Netherlands
- Princess Máxima Center for Pediatric Oncology, Utrecht, Netherlands
- Oncode Institute, Utrecht, Netherlands
| | - Rutger A. Ozinga
- Princess Máxima Center for Pediatric Oncology, Utrecht, Netherlands
- Oncode Institute, Utrecht, Netherlands
| | - Ákos Gyenis
- Cologne Excellence Cluster for Cellular Stress Responses in Aging-Associated Diseases (CECAD), Faculty of Medicine, Institute for Genome Stability in Ageing and Disease, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany
| | - Jan H.J. Hoeijmakers
- Princess Máxima Center for Pediatric Oncology, Utrecht, Netherlands
- Oncode Institute, Utrecht, Netherlands
- Cologne Excellence Cluster for Cellular Stress Responses in Aging-Associated Diseases (CECAD), Faculty of Medicine, Institute for Genome Stability in Ageing and Disease, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany
- Department of Molecular Genetics, Erasmus MC Cancer Institute, Erasmus University Medical Center, Rotterdam, Netherlands
| | - Wilbert P. Vermeij
- Princess Máxima Center for Pediatric Oncology, Utrecht, Netherlands
- Oncode Institute, Utrecht, Netherlands
| | - Dick Jaarsma
- Department of Neuroscience, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, Netherlands
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