RESUMEN
The 16p11.2 and 22q11.2 copy number variants (CNVs) are associated with neurobehavioral traits including autism spectrum disorder (ASD), schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, obesity, and intellectual disability. Identifying specific genes contributing to each disorder and dissecting the architecture of CNV-trait association has been difficult, inspiring hypotheses of more complex models, such as multiple genes acting together. Using multi-tissue data from the GTEx consortium, we generated pairwise expression imputation models for CNV genes and then applied these elastic net models to GWAS for: ASD, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, BMI (obesity), and IQ (intellectual disability). We compared the variance in these five traits explained by gene pairs with the variance explained by single genes and by traditional interaction models. We also modeled polygene region-wide effects using summed predicted expression ranks across many genes to create a regionwide score. We found that in all CNV-trait pairs except for bipolar disorder at 22q11.2, pairwise effects explain more variance than single genes. Pairwise model superiority was specific to the CNV region for all 16p11.2 traits and ASD at 22q11.2. We identified novel individual genes over-represented in top pairs that did not show single-gene signal. We also found that BMI and IQ have significant regionwide association with both CNV regions. Overall, we observe that genetic architecture differs by trait and region, but 9/10 CNV-trait combinations demonstrate evidence for multigene contribution, and for most of these, the importance of combinatorial models appears unique to CNV regions. Our results suggest that mechanistic insights for CNV pathology may require combinational models.
Asunto(s)
Cromosomas Humanos Par 16 , Cromosomas Humanos Par 22 , Humanos , Variaciones en el Número de Copia de ADN , Conducta , Enfermedades del Sistema Nervioso/genéticaRESUMEN
Phenotypic differences across sexes are pervasive, but the genetic architecture of sex differences within and across phenotypes is mostly unknown. In this study, we aimed to improve detection power for sex-differentially contributing SNPs previously demonstrated to be enriched in disease association, and we investigate their functions in health, pathophysiology, and genetic function. We leveraged GIANT and UK Biobank summary statistics and defined a set of 2,320 independent SNPs having sexually dimorphic effects within and across biometric traits (MAF > 0.001, P < 5x10-8). Biometric trait sex-heterogeneous SNPs (sex-het SNPs) showed enrichment in association signals for 20 out of 33 diseases/traits at 5% alpha compared to sex-homogeneous matched SNPs (empP < 0.001), and were significantly overrepresented in muscle, skeletal and stem cell development processes, and in calcium channel and microtubule complexes (FDR < 0.05, empP < 0.05). Interestingly, we found that sex-het SNPs significantly map to predicted expression quantitative trait loci (Pr-eQTLs) across brain and other tissues, methylation quantitative trait loci (meQTLs) during development, and transcription start sites, compared to sex-homogeneous SNPs. Finally, we verified that the sex-het disease/trait enrichment was not explained by Pr-eQTL enrichment alone, as sex-het Pr-eQTLs were more enriched than matched sex-homogeneous Pr-eQTLs. We conclude that genetic polymorphisms with sexually dimorphic effects on biometric traits not only contribute to fundamental embryogenic processes, but later in life play an outsized role in disease risk. These sex-het SNPs disproportionately influence gene expression and have a greater influence on disorders of body and brain than other expression-regulatory variation. Together, our data emphasize the genetic underpinnings of sexual dimorphism and its role in human health.
Asunto(s)
Estudio de Asociación del Genoma Completo , Polimorfismo de Nucleótido Simple , Animales , Femenino , Expresión Génica , Masculino , Fenotipo , Polimorfismo de Nucleótido Simple/genética , Sitios de Carácter Cuantitativo/genéticaRESUMEN
Ring chromosomes are structural aberrations commonly associated with birth defects, mental disabilities and growth retardation. Rings form after fusion of the long and short arms of a chromosome, and are sometimes associated with large terminal deletions. Owing to the severity of these large aberrations that can affect multiple contiguous genes, no possible therapeutic strategies for ring chromosome disorders have been proposed. During cell division, ring chromosomes can exhibit unstable behaviour leading to continuous production of aneuploid progeny with low viability and high cellular death rate. The overall consequences of this chromosomal instability have been largely unexplored in experimental model systems. Here we generated human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) from patient fibroblasts containing ring chromosomes with large deletions and found that reprogrammed cells lost the abnormal chromosome and duplicated the wild-type homologue through the compensatory uniparental disomy (UPD) mechanism. The karyotypically normal iPSCs with isodisomy for the corrected chromosome outgrew co-existing aneuploid populations, enabling rapid and efficient isolation of patient-derived iPSCs devoid of the original chromosomal aberration. Our results suggest a fundamentally different function for cellular reprogramming as a means of 'chromosome therapy' to reverse combined loss-of-function across many genes in cells with large-scale aberrations involving ring structures. In addition, our work provides an experimentally tractable human cellular system for studying mechanisms of chromosomal number control, which is of critical relevance to human development and disease.
Asunto(s)
Células Madre Pluripotentes Inducidas/citología , Células Madre Pluripotentes Inducidas/metabolismo , Cromosomas en Anillo , Aneuploidia , Animales , Reprogramación Celular/genética , Inestabilidad Cromosómica/genética , Deleción Cromosómica , Trastornos de los Cromosomas/genética , Trastornos de los Cromosomas/patología , Cromosomas Humanos Par 13/genética , Cromosomas Humanos Par 17/genética , Células Clonales/citología , Células Clonales/metabolismo , Fibroblastos/citología , Fibroblastos/metabolismo , Humanos , Cariotipo , Cariotipificación , Masculino , Ratones , Modelos Genéticos , Disomía Uniparental/genéticaRESUMEN
Although gene-gene interaction, or epistasis, plays a large role in complex traits in model organisms, genome-wide by genome-wide searches for two-way interaction have limited power in human studies. We thus used knowledge of a biological pathway in order to identify a contribution of epistasis to autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) in humans, a reverse-pathway genetic approach. Based on previous observation of increased ASD symptoms in Mendelian disorders of the Ras/MAPK pathway (RASopathies), we showed that common SNPs in RASopathy genes show enrichment for association signal in GWAS (P = 0.02). We then screened genome-wide for interactors with RASopathy gene SNPs and showed strong enrichment in ASD-affected individuals (P < 2.2 x 10-16), with a number of pairwise interactions meeting genome-wide criteria for significance. Finally, we utilized quantitative measures of ASD symptoms in RASopathy-affected individuals to perform modifier mapping via GWAS. One top region overlapped between these independent approaches, and we showed dysregulation of a gene in this region, GPR141, in a RASopathy neural cell line. We thus used orthogonal approaches to provide strong evidence for a contribution of epistasis to ASDs, confirm a role for the Ras/MAPK pathway in idiopathic ASDs, and to identify a convergent candidate gene that may interact with the Ras/MAPK pathway.
Asunto(s)
Trastorno del Espectro Autista/genética , Epistasis Genética , Sistema de Señalización de MAP Quinasas/genética , Proteínas ras/genética , Línea Celular , Femenino , Genes Modificadores , Estudio de Asociación del Genoma Completo , Humanos , Masculino , Células-Madre Neurales/metabolismo , Polimorfismo de Nucleótido Simple , Receptores Acoplados a Proteínas G/genética , Receptores Acoplados a Proteínas G/metabolismoRESUMEN
[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1006425.].
RESUMEN
Sexual dimorphism in common disease is pervasive, including a dramatic male preponderance in autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). Potential genetic explanations include a liability threshold model requiring increased polymorphism risk in females, sex-limited X-chromosome contribution, gene-environment interaction driven by differences in hormonal milieu, risk influenced by genes sex-differentially expressed in early brain development, or contribution from general mechanisms of sexual dimorphism shared with secondary sex characteristics. Utilizing a large single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) dataset, we identify distinct sex-specific genome-wide significant loci. We investigate genetic hypotheses and find no evidence for increased genetic risk load in females, but evidence for sex heterogeneity on the X chromosome, and contribution of sex-heterogeneous SNPs for anthropometric traits to ASD risk. Thus, our results support pleiotropy between secondary sex characteristic determination and ASDs, providing a biological basis for sex differences in ASDs and implicating non brain-limited mechanisms.
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Trastorno del Espectro Autista/genética , Trastornos Generalizados del Desarrollo Infantil/genética , Cromosomas Humanos X/genética , Trastorno del Espectro Autista/patología , Encéfalo/crecimiento & desarrollo , Encéfalo/patología , Trastornos Generalizados del Desarrollo Infantil/patología , Femenino , Interacción Gen-Ambiente , Predisposición Genética a la Enfermedad , Estudio de Asociación del Genoma Completo , Genotipo , Humanos , Masculino , Polimorfismo de Nucleótido Simple/genética , Caracteres SexualesRESUMEN
Personality is a complex, yet partially heritable, trait. Although some Mendelian diseases like Williams-Beuren syndrome are associated with a particular personality profile, studies have failed to assign the personality features to a single gene or pathway. As a family of monogenic disorders caused by mutations in the Ras/MAPK pathway known to influence social behavior, RASopathies are likely to provide insight into the genetic basis of personality. Eighty subjects diagnosed with cardiofaciocutaneous syndrome, Costello syndrome, neurofibromatosis type 1, and Noonan syndrome were assessed using a parent-report BFQ-C (Big Five Questionnaire for Children) evaluating agreeableness, extraversion, conscientiousness, intellect/openness, and neuroticism, along with 55 unaffected sibling controls. A short questionnaire was added to assess sense of humor. RASopathy subjects and sibling controls were compared for individual components of personality, multidimensional personality profiles, and individual questions using Student tests, analysis of variance, and principal component analysis. RASopathy subjects were given lower scores on average compared to sibling controls in agreeableness, extraversion, conscientiousness, openness, and sense of humor, and similar scores in neuroticism. When comparing the multidimensional personality profile between groups, RASopathies showed a distinct profile from unaffected siblings, but no difference in this global profile was found within RASopathies, revealing a common profile for the Ras/MAPK-related disorders. In addition, several syndrome-specific strengths or weaknesses were observed in individual domains. We describe for the first time an association between a single pathway and a specific personality profile, providing a better understanding of the genetics underlying personality, and new tools for tailoring educational and behavioral approaches for individuals with RASopathies.
Asunto(s)
Trastornos de la Personalidad/fisiopatología , Personalidad/fisiología , Proteínas ras/fisiología , Adolescente , Adulto , Niño , Preescolar , Síndrome de Costello/genética , Síndrome de Costello/fisiopatología , Displasia Ectodérmica/fisiopatología , Facies , Insuficiencia de Crecimiento/fisiopatología , Familia , Femenino , Cardiopatías Congénitas/fisiopatología , Humanos , Sistema de Señalización de MAP Quinasas/fisiología , Masculino , Mutación , Neurofibromatosis 1/fisiopatología , Síndrome de Noonan/fisiopatología , Hermanos , Proteínas ras/genéticaRESUMEN
Increasing evidence implicates abnormal Ras signaling as a major contributor in neurodevelopmental disorders, yet how such signaling causes cortical pathogenesis is unknown. We examined the consequences of aberrant Ras signaling in the developing mouse brain and uncovered several critical phenotypes, including increased production of cortical neurons and morphological deficits. To determine whether these phenotypes are recapitulated in humans, we generated induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cell lines from patients with Costello syndrome (CS), a developmental disorder caused by abnormal Ras signaling and characterized by neurodevelopmental abnormalities, such as cognitive impairment and autism. Directed differentiation toward a neuroectodermal fate revealed an extended progenitor phase and subsequent increased production of cortical neurons. Morphological analysis of mature neurons revealed significantly altered neurite length and soma size in CS patients. This study demonstrates the synergy between mouse and human models and validates the use of iPS cells as a platform to study the underlying cellular pathologies resulting from signaling deficits. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT: Increasing evidence implicates Ras signaling dysfunction as a major contributor in psychiatric and neurodevelopmental disorders, such as cognitive impairment and autism, but the underlying cortical cellular pathogenesis remains unclear. This study is the first to reveal human neuronal pathogenesis resulting from abnormal Ras signaling and provides insights into how these phenotypic abnormalities likely contribute to neurodevelopmental disorders. We also demonstrate the synergy between mouse and human models, thereby validating the use of iPS cells as a platform to study underlying cellular pathologies resulting from signaling deficits. Recapitulating human cellular pathologies in vitro facilitates the future high throughput screening of potential therapeutic agents that may reverse phenotypic and behavioral deficits.
Asunto(s)
Síndrome de Costello/metabolismo , Síndrome de Costello/patología , Células Madre Pluripotentes Inducidas/metabolismo , Células-Madre Neurales/metabolismo , Células-Madre Neurales/patología , Proteínas ras/metabolismo , Adolescente , Adulto , Diferenciación Celular , Células Cultivadas , Niño , Preescolar , Femenino , Humanos , Células Madre Pluripotentes Inducidas/patología , Lactante , Masculino , Persona de Mediana Edad , Regulación hacia ArribaRESUMEN
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) has been long known to have substantial genetic etiology. Much research has attempted to identify specific genes contributing to ASD risk with the goal of tying gene function to a molecular pathological explanation for ASD. A unifying molecular pathology would potentially increase understanding of what is going wrong during development, and could lead to diagnostic biomarkers or targeted preventative or therapeutic directions. We review past and current genetic mapping approaches and discuss major results, leading to the hypothesis that global dysregulation of gene or protein expression may be implicated in ASD rather than disturbance of brain-specific functions. If substantiated, this hypothesis might indicate the need for novel experimental and analytical approaches in order to understand this neurodevelopmental disorder, develop biomarkers, or consider treatment approaches.
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Trastorno Autístico/genética , Regulación de la Expresión Génica , Variación Genética , Genómica , Encéfalo/metabolismo , Encéfalo/patología , Encéfalo/fisiopatología , Aberraciones Cromosómicas , Variaciones en el Número de Copia de ADN , Predisposición Genética a la Enfermedad , Estudio de Asociación del Genoma Completo , HumanosRESUMEN
Although autism is a highly heritable neurodevelopmental disorder, attempts to identify specific susceptibility genes have thus far met with limited success. Genome-wide association studies using half a million or more markers, particularly those with very large sample sizes achieved through meta-analysis, have shown great success in mapping genes for other complex genetic traits. Consequently, we initiated a linkage and association mapping study using half a million genome-wide single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in a common set of 1,031 multiplex autism families (1,553 affected offspring). We identified regions of suggestive and significant linkage on chromosomes 6q27 and 20p13, respectively. Initial analysis did not yield genome-wide significant associations; however, genotyping of top hits in additional families revealed an SNP on chromosome 5p15 (between SEMA5A and TAS2R1) that was significantly associated with autism (P = 2 x 10(-7)). We also demonstrated that expression of SEMA5A is reduced in brains from autistic patients, further implicating SEMA5A as an autism susceptibility gene. The linkage regions reported here provide targets for rare variation screening whereas the discovery of a single novel association demonstrates the action of common variants.
Asunto(s)
Trastorno Autístico/genética , Predisposición Genética a la Enfermedad/genética , Estudio de Asociación del Genoma Completo , Proteínas de la Membrana/genética , Proteínas del Tejido Nervioso/genética , Trastorno Autístico/metabolismo , Encéfalo/metabolismo , Mapeo Cromosómico , Cromosomas Humanos Par 5/genética , Ligamiento Genético/genética , Humanos , Internacionalidad , Proteínas de la Membrana/metabolismo , Proteínas del Tejido Nervioso/metabolismo , Polimorfismo de Nucleótido Simple/genética , Tamaño de la Muestra , SemaforinasRESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Mutations in Ras/mitogen-activated protein kinase (Ras/MAPK) pathway genes lead to a class of disorders known as RASopathies, including neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1), Noonan syndrome (NS), Costello syndrome (CS), and cardio-facio-cutaneous syndrome (CFC). Previous work has suggested potential genetic and phenotypic overlap between dysregulation of Ras/MAPK signalling and autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Although the literature offers conflicting evidence for association of NF1 and autism, there has been no systematic evaluation of autism traits in the RASopathies as a class to support a role for germline Ras/MAPK activation in ASDs. METHODS: We examined the association of autism traits with NF1, NS, CS and CFC, comparing affected probands with unaffected sibling controls and subjects with idiopathic ASDs using the qualitative Social Communication Questionnaire (SCQ) and the quantitative Social Responsiveness Scale (SRS). RESULTS: Each of the four major RASopathies showed evidence for increased qualitative and quantitative autism traits compared with sibling controls. Further, each RASopathy exhibited a distinct distribution of quantitative social impairment. Levels of social responsiveness show some evidence of correlation between sibling pairs, and autism-like impairment showed a male bias similar to idiopathic ASDs. CONCLUSIONS: Higher prevalence and severity of autism traits in RASopathies compared to unaffected siblings suggests that dysregulation of Ras/MAPK signalling during development may be implicated in ASD risk. Evidence for sex bias and potential sibling correlation suggests that autism traits in the RASopathies share characteristics with autism traits in the general population and clinical ASD population and can shed light on idiopathic ASDs.
Asunto(s)
Trastorno Autístico/genética , Síndrome de Costello/genética , Displasia Ectodérmica/genética , Insuficiencia de Crecimiento/genética , Cardiopatías Congénitas/genética , Síndrome de Noonan/genética , Carácter Cuantitativo Heredable , Proteínas ras/genética , Adolescente , Adulto , Trastorno Autístico/diagnóstico , Niño , Síndrome de Costello/diagnóstico , Diagnóstico Diferencial , Displasia Ectodérmica/diagnóstico , Facies , Insuficiencia de Crecimiento/diagnóstico , Femenino , Cardiopatías Congénitas/diagnóstico , Humanos , Masculino , Persona de Mediana Edad , Proteínas Quinasas Activadas por Mitógenos/metabolismo , Mutación , Pruebas Neuropsicológicas , Síndrome de Noonan/diagnóstico , Evaluación del Resultado de la Atención al Paciente , Fenotipo , Prevalencia , Factores Sexuales , Hermanos , Transducción de Señal , Encuestas y Cuestionarios , Adulto Joven , Proteínas ras/metabolismoRESUMEN
Mapping genetically complex traits remains one of the greatest challenges in human genetics today. In particular, gene-environment and gene-gene interactions, genetic heterogeneity and incomplete penetrance make thorough genetic dissection of complex traits difficult, if not impossible. Sex could be considered an environmental factor that can modify both penetrance and expressivity of a wide variety of traits. Sex is easily determined and has measurable effects on recognizable morphology; neurobiological circuits; susceptibility to autoimmune disease, diabetes, asthma, cardiovascular and psychiatric disease; and quantitative traits like blood pressure, obesity and lipid levels, among others. In this study, we evaluated sex-specific heritability and genome-wide linkages for 17 quantitative traits in the Hutterites. The results of this study could have important implications for mapping complex trait genes.
Asunto(s)
Predisposición Genética a la Enfermedad/genética , Genética Médica , Carácter Cuantitativo Heredable , Caracteres Sexuales , Ligamiento Genético , Genoma Humano/genética , Humanos , Grupos de Población/genéticaRESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Sex differences in the brain may play an important role in sex-differential prevalence of neuropsychiatric conditions. METHODS: In order to understand the transcriptional basis of sex differences, we analyzed multiple, large-scale, human postmortem brain RNA-Seq datasets using both within-region and pan-regional frameworks. RESULTS: We find evidence of sex-biased transcription in many autosomal genes, some of which provide evidence for pathways and cell population differences between chromosomally male and female individuals. These analyses also highlight regional differences in the extent of sex-differential gene expression. We observe an increase in specific neuronal transcripts in male brains and an increase in immune and glial function-related transcripts in female brains. Integration with single-nucleus data suggests this corresponds to sex differences in cellular states rather than cell abundance. Integration with case-control gene expression studies suggests a female molecular predisposition towards Alzheimer's disease, a female-biased disease. Autism, a male-biased diagnosis, does not exhibit a male predisposition pattern in our analysis. CONCLUSION: Overall, these analyses highlight mechanisms by which sex differences may interact with sex-biased conditions in the brain. Furthermore, we provide region-specific analyses of sex differences in brain gene expression to enable additional studies at the interface of gene expression and diagnostic differences.
We sought to understand why females have higher rates of Alzheimer's disease, and males have higher rates of autism. One idea was that the female brain at baseline may be more similar to an Alzheimer's brain, so it is easier for them to shift into that state (likewise, males may be more similar to autism). To test this, we examined gene expression differences between brains of biological males and biological females. While all people have the same ~ 25,000 genes, each gene can be on or off ('expressed') to different extents. Overall, we found that there were differences in gene expression between males and females in all brain regions tested but more differences in some brain regions than others. By looking at the role of these genes we estimate that female immune system processes might be more active in the brain. We also found female brain gene expression looked slightly more like people with Alzheimer's compared to people without Alzheimer's, which may explain why females get Alzheimer's disease more easily. However, the male brain gene expression did not look more like autism, suggesting that the reason males have higher rates of autism is complex and needs further investigation.
Asunto(s)
Enfermedad de Alzheimer , Trastorno Autístico , Encéfalo , Caracteres Sexuales , Humanos , Enfermedad de Alzheimer/genética , Masculino , Femenino , Trastorno Autístico/genética , Encéfalo/metabolismo , Expresión GénicaRESUMEN
Importance: Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder more prevalent in males than in females. The cause of ASD is largely genetic, but the association of genetics with the skewed sex ratio is not yet understood. To our knowledge, no large population-based study has provided estimates of heritability by sex. Objective: To estimate the sex-specific heritability of ASD. Design, Setting, and Participants: This was a population-based, retrospective analysis using national health registers of nontwin siblings and cousins from Sweden born between January 1, 1985, and December 31, 1998, with follow-up to 19 years of age. Data analysis occurred from August 2022 to November 2023. Main Outcomes and Measures: Models were fitted to estimate the relative variance in risk for ASD occurrence owing to sex-specific additive genetics, shared environmental effects, and a common residual term. The residual term conceptually captured other factors that promote individual behavioral variation (eg, maternal effects, de novo variants, rare genetic variants not additively inherited, or gene-environment interactions). Estimates were adjusted for differences in prevalence due to birth year and maternal and paternal age by sex. Results: The sample included 1â¯047â¯649 individuals in 456â¯832 families (538â¯283 males [51.38%]; 509â¯366 females [48.62%]). Within the entire sample, 12â¯226 (1.17%) received a diagnosis of ASD, comprising 8128 (1.51%) males and 4098 (0.80%) females. ASD heritability was estimated at 87.0% (95% CI, 81.4%-92.6%) for males and 75.7% (95% CI, 68.4%-83.1%) for females with a difference in heritability estimated at 11.3% (95% CI, 1.0%-21.6%). There was no support for shared environmental contributions. Conclusions and Relevance: These findings suggest that the degree of phenotypic variation attributable to genetic differences (heritability) differs between males and females, indicating that some of the underlying causes of the condition may differ between the 2 sexes. The skewed sex ratio in ASD may be partly explained by differences in genetic variance between the sexes.
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Trastorno del Espectro Autista , Sistema de Registros , Humanos , Masculino , Femenino , Trastorno del Espectro Autista/genética , Trastorno del Espectro Autista/epidemiología , Suecia/epidemiología , Niño , Estudios Retrospectivos , Adolescente , Factores Sexuales , Adulto Joven , Adulto , Preescolar , Predisposición Genética a la Enfermedad/genética , PrevalenciaRESUMEN
Background: Maternal inflammation can result from immune dysregulation and metabolic perturbations during pregnancy. Whether conditions associated with inflammation during pregnancy increase the likelihood of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or other neurodevelopmental disorders (DDs) is not well understood. Methods: We conducted a case-control study among children born in California from 2011 to 2016 to investigate maternal immune-mediated and cardiometabolic conditions during pregnancy and risk of ASD (n = 311) and DDs (n = 1291) compared with children from the general population (n = 967). Data on maternal conditions and covariates were retrieved from electronic health records. Maternal genetic data were used to assess a causal relationship. Results: Using multivariable logistic regression, we found that mothers with asthma were more likely to deliver infants later diagnosed with ASD (odds ratio [OR] = 1.62, 95% CI: 1.15-2.29) or DDs (OR = 1.30, 95% CI: 1.02-1.64). Maternal obesity was also associated with child ASD (OR = 1.51, 95% CI: 1.07-2.13). Mothers with both asthma and extreme obesity had the greatest odds of delivering an infant later diagnosed with ASD (OR = 16.9, 95% CI: 5.13-55.71). These increased ASD odds were observed among female children only. Polygenic risk scores for obesity, asthma, and their combination showed no association with ASD risk. Mendelian randomization did not support a causal relationship between maternal conditions and ASD. Conclusions: Inflammatory conditions during pregnancy are associated with risk for neurodevelopmental disorders in children. These risks do not seem to be due to shared genetic risk; rather, inflammatory conditions may share nongenetic risk factors with neurodevelopmental disorders. Children whose mothers have both asthma and obesity during pregnancy may benefit from earlier screening and intervention.
RESUMEN
Gastroschisis is a congenital abdominal wall defect where there is herniation of abdominal organs. Optimal maternal nutritional intake, in particular, fatty acids, are vital for proper growth and development of the fetus. This pilot case-control study explored the association of several biomarkers of fatty acids and gastroschisis. Between 2008 and 2011, we recruited 13 pregnant women in mid-gestation who were referred to the UCSD Prenatal Center for evaluation of an abnormal maternal serum alpha-fetoprotein (MSAFP) test and subsequently identified as carrying a baby with gastroschisis. Nine controls were selected from a false positive MSAFP or from the UCSD prenatal clinic. At enrollment, maternal blood was drawn for analysis of fatty acids. Mann-Whitney-Wilcoxon tests were used to test for mean differences between erythrocyte fatty acid biomarkers and the fatty acid lipogenic (palmitic acid: linoleic acid) and desaturation (palmitoleic acid: palmitic acid) indices and gastroschisis. Mothers carrying a baby with gastroschisis and gastroschisis babies had consistently higher levels of palmitoleic acid (all P's < 0.05), gastroschisis mothers had lower levels of oleic acid during pregnancy and at delivery, and higher levels of DHA at delivery (all P's < 0.05). The lipogenic index was significantly lower at delivery for gastroschisis mothers (P < 0.05) and the desaturation index was consistently higher in gastroschisis mothers and babies (all P's < 0.01). These findings suggest that early maternal inflammation possibly resulting from an imbalance of fatty acids, leading to a vascular disruption, may be the underlying mechanism responsible for at least some cases of gastroschisis.
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Ácidos Grasos/sangre , Gastrosquisis/metabolismo , Gastrosquisis/patología , Metabolismo de los Lípidos , Adulto , Estudios de Casos y Controles , Femenino , Estudios de Seguimiento , Humanos , Recién Nacido , Masculino , Madres , Proyectos Piloto , Embarazo , Adulto Joven , alfa-Fetoproteínas/metabolismoRESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Approximately 50 to 70% of childbearing-aged women consume alcohol and up to 23% of pregnancies have some level of prenatal alcohol exposure. METHODS: Using data from the Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System from 2004 to 2008, 111,644 women who completed questions relating to periconceptional alcohol use and multivitamin supplement use were included in the study. This study explored associations between periconceptional alcohol use and multivitamin supplementation use. Weighted multivariable logistic regression was used to explore associations, adjusting for maternal education, maternal ethnicity, maternal age, household income, and parity. RESULTS: During the periconceptional period, a dose-dependent association was found where women who consumed alcohol (≤3 drinks/wk, odds ratio [OR] = 0.76; 4 to 6 drinks/wk, OR = 0.60; 7 to 13 drinks/wk, OR = 0.49; ≥14 drinks/wk, OR = 0.39) and binged on alcohol (1 time, OR = 0.76; 2 to 3 times, OR = 0.66; 4 to 5 times, OR = 0.56; ≥6 times, OR = 0.50) were significantly less likely to take a multivitamin supplement compared with those that did not consume alcohol. CONCLUSIONS: These findings emphasize the importance of periconceptional multivitamin supplement use, especially among alcohol-consuming women of childbearing age.
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Consumo de Bebidas Alcohólicas/epidemiología , Consumo de Bebidas Alcohólicas/tendencias , Suplementos Dietéticos , Vigilancia de la Población/métodos , Atención Prenatal/tendencias , Adolescente , Adulto , Femenino , Humanos , Embarazo , Atención Prenatal/métodos , Medición de Riesgo , Autoinforme , Encuestas y Cuestionarios , Adulto JovenRESUMEN
Sex differences in the brain may play an important role in sex-differential prevalence of neuropsychiatric conditions. In order to understand the transcriptional basis of sex differences, we analyzed multiple, large-scale, human postmortem brain RNA-seq datasets using both within-region and pan-regional frameworks. We find evidence of sex-biased transcription in many autosomal genes, some of which provide evidence for pathways and cell population differences between chromosomally male and female individuals. These analyses also highlight regional differences in the extent of sex-differential gene expression. We observe an increase in specific neuronal transcripts in male brains and an increase in immune and glial function-related transcripts in female brains. Integration with single-cell data suggests this corresponds to sex differences in cellular states rather than cell abundance. Integration with case-control gene expression studies suggests a female molecular predisposition towards Alzheimer's disease, a female-biased disease. Autism, a male-biased diagnosis, does not exhibit a male predisposition pattern in our analysis. Finally, we provide region specific analyses of sex differences in brain gene expression to enable additional studies at the interface of gene expression and diagnostic differences.