RESUMO
Little is known about the critical metabolic changes that neural cells have to undergo during development and how temporary shifts in this program can influence brain circuitries and behavior. Inspired by the discovery that mutations in SLC7A5, a transporter of metabolically essential large neutral amino acids (LNAAs), lead to autism, we employed metabolomic profiling to study the metabolic states of the cerebral cortex across different developmental stages. We found that the forebrain undergoes significant metabolic remodeling throughout development, with certain groups of metabolites showing stage-specific changes, but what are the consequences of perturbing this metabolic program? By manipulating Slc7a5 expression in neural cells, we found that the metabolism of LNAAs and lipids are interconnected in the cortex. Deletion of Slc7a5 in neurons affects the postnatal metabolic state, leading to a shift in lipid metabolism. Additionally, it causes stage- and cell-type-specific alterations in neuronal activity patterns, resulting in a long-term circuit dysfunction.
Assuntos
Aminoácidos Neutros , Transportador 1 de Aminoácidos Neutros Grandes , Feminino , Humanos , Gravidez , Aminoácidos Neutros/genética , Aminoácidos Neutros/metabolismo , Encéfalo/metabolismo , Transportador 1 de Aminoácidos Neutros Grandes/genética , Transportador 1 de Aminoácidos Neutros Grandes/metabolismo , Mutação , Neurônios/metabolismo , Animais , CamundongosRESUMO
Cerebral cortex size differs dramatically between reptiles, birds, and mammals, owing to developmental differences in neuron production. In mammals, signaling pathways regulating neurogenesis have been identified, but genetic differences behind their evolution across amniotes remain unknown. We show that direct neurogenesis from radial glia cells, with limited neuron production, dominates the avian, reptilian, and mammalian paleocortex, whereas in the evolutionarily recent mammalian neocortex, most neurogenesis is indirect via basal progenitors. Gain- and loss-of-function experiments in mouse, chick, and snake embryos and in human cerebral organoids demonstrate that high Slit/Robo and low Dll1 signaling, via Jag1 and Jag2, are necessary and sufficient to drive direct neurogenesis. Attenuating Robo signaling and enhancing Dll1 in snakes and birds recapitulates the formation of basal progenitors and promotes indirect neurogenesis. Our study identifies modulation in activity levels of conserved signaling pathways as a primary mechanism driving the expansion and increased complexity of the mammalian neocortex during amniote evolution.
Assuntos
Peptídeos e Proteínas de Sinalização Intercelular/metabolismo , Proteínas do Tecido Nervoso/genética , Proteínas do Tecido Nervoso/metabolismo , Neurogênese/genética , Receptores Imunológicos/genética , Receptores Imunológicos/metabolismo , Animais , Proteínas de Ligação ao Cálcio , Córtex Cerebral/metabolismo , Embrião de Galinha , Regulação da Expressão Gênica no Desenvolvimento/genética , Proteínas de Homeodomínio , Humanos , Peptídeos e Proteínas de Sinalização Intercelular/genética , Proteína Jagged-1 , Proteína Jagged-2 , Mamíferos/embriologia , Camundongos , Camundongos Endogâmicos C57BL , Neocórtex/fisiologia , Células-Tronco Neurais , Neurogênese/fisiologia , Neuroglia/fisiologia , Neurônios , Fator de Transcrição PAX6/metabolismo , Proteínas Repressoras , Transdução de Sinais , Serpentes/embriologia , Proteínas RoundaboutRESUMO
Mosquito-borne flaviviruses, including dengue virus (DENV) and Zika virus (ZIKV), are a growing public health concern. Systems-level analysis of how flaviviruses hijack cellular processes through virus-host protein-protein interactions (PPIs) provides information about their replication and pathogenic mechanisms. We used affinity purification-mass spectrometry (AP-MS) to compare flavivirus-host interactions for two viruses (DENV and ZIKV) in two hosts (human and mosquito). Conserved virus-host PPIs revealed that the flavivirus NS5 protein suppresses interferon stimulated genes by inhibiting recruitment of the transcription complex PAF1C and that chemical modulation of SEC61 inhibits DENV and ZIKV replication in human and mosquito cells. Finally, we identified a ZIKV-specific interaction between NS4A and ANKLE2, a gene linked to hereditary microcephaly, and showed that ZIKV NS4A causes microcephaly in Drosophila in an ANKLE2-dependent manner. Thus, comparative flavivirus-host PPI mapping provides biological insights and, when coupled with in vivo models, can be used to unravel pathogenic mechanisms.
Assuntos
Vírus da Dengue , Dengue , Proteínas de Membrana , Proteínas Nucleares , Proteínas não Estruturais Virais , Infecção por Zika virus , Zika virus , Animais , Linhagem Celular Tumoral , Culicidae , Dengue/genética , Dengue/metabolismo , Dengue/patologia , Vírus da Dengue/genética , Vírus da Dengue/metabolismo , Vírus da Dengue/patogenicidade , Células HEK293 , Humanos , Proteínas de Membrana/genética , Proteínas de Membrana/metabolismo , Proteínas Nucleares/genética , Proteínas Nucleares/metabolismo , Mapeamento de Interação de Proteínas , Proteínas não Estruturais Virais/genética , Proteínas não Estruturais Virais/metabolismo , Zika virus/genética , Zika virus/metabolismo , Zika virus/patogenicidade , Infecção por Zika virus/genética , Infecção por Zika virus/metabolismo , Infecção por Zika virus/patologiaRESUMO
The emergence of Zika virus (ZIKV) and its association with congenital malformations has prompted the rapid development of vaccines. Although efficacy with multiple viral vaccine platforms has been established in animals, no study has addressed protection during pregnancy. We tested in mice two vaccine platforms, a lipid nanoparticle-encapsulated modified mRNA vaccine encoding ZIKV prM and E genes and a live-attenuated ZIKV strain encoding an NS1 protein without glycosylation, for their ability to protect against transmission to the fetus. Vaccinated dams challenged with a heterologous ZIKV strain at embryo day 6 (E6) and evaluated at E13 showed markedly diminished levels of viral RNA in maternal, placental, and fetal tissues, which resulted in protection against placental damage and fetal demise. As modified mRNA and live-attenuated vaccine platforms can restrict in utero transmission of ZIKV in mice, their further development in humans to prevent congenital ZIKV syndrome is warranted.
Assuntos
Vacinas Virais/administração & dosagem , Infecção por Zika virus/imunologia , Infecção por Zika virus/prevenção & controle , Zika virus/fisiologia , Aedes/virologia , Animais , Anticorpos Neutralizantes/sangue , Anticorpos Antivirais/sangue , Células Sanguíneas/virologia , Embrião de Mamíferos/virologia , Feminino , Feto/virologia , Humanos , Lipídeos/administração & dosagem , Masculino , Camundongos , Camundongos Endogâmicos C57BL , Mutação , RNA Mensageiro/genética , RNA Mensageiro/imunologia , Organismos Livres de Patógenos Específicos , Vacinas de Subunidades Antigênicas/administração & dosagem , Vacinas de Subunidades Antigênicas/imunologia , Proteínas não Estruturais Virais/genética , Proteínas não Estruturais Virais/imunologia , Vacinas Virais/imunologia , Infecção por Zika virus/virologiaRESUMO
Alternative splicing is prevalent in the mammalian brain. To interrogate the functional role of alternative splicing in neural development, we analyzed purified neural progenitor cells (NPCs) and neurons from developing cerebral cortices, revealing hundreds of differentially spliced exons that preferentially alter key protein domains-especially in cytoskeletal proteins-and can harbor disease-causing mutations. We show that Ptbp1 and Rbfox proteins antagonistically govern the NPC-to-neuron transition by regulating neuron-specific exons. Whereas Ptbp1 maintains apical progenitors partly through suppressing a poison exon of Flna in NPCs, Rbfox proteins promote neuronal differentiation by switching Ninein from a centrosomal splice form in NPCs to a non-centrosomal isoform in neurons. We further uncover an intronic human mutation within a PTBP1-binding site that disrupts normal skipping of the FLNA poison exon in NPCs and causes a brain-specific malformation. Our study indicates that dynamic control of alternative splicing governs cell fate in cerebral cortical development.
Assuntos
Processamento Alternativo , Córtex Cerebral/embriologia , Células-Tronco Neurais/citologia , Neurogênese/genética , Neurônios/citologia , Animais , Centrossomo/metabolismo , Córtex Cerebral/anormalidades , Córtex Cerebral/citologia , Proteínas do Citoesqueleto/genética , Proteínas do Citoesqueleto/metabolismo , Éxons , Ribonucleoproteínas Nucleares Heterogêneas/genética , Ribonucleoproteínas Nucleares Heterogêneas/metabolismo , Humanos , Camundongos , Células-Tronco Neurais/metabolismo , Neurônios/metabolismo , Proteínas Nucleares/genética , Proteínas Nucleares/metabolismo , Proteína de Ligação a Regiões Ricas em Polipirimidinas/genética , Proteína de Ligação a Regiões Ricas em Polipirimidinas/metabolismo , Domínios Proteicos , Isoformas de Proteínas/genética , Isoformas de Proteínas/metabolismo , Fatores de Processamento de RNARESUMO
Primary microcephaly is a brain growth disorder characterized by a severe reduction of brain size and thinning of the cerebral cortex. Many primary microcephaly mutations occur in genes that encode centrosome proteins, highlighting an important role for centrosomes in cortical development. Centrosomes are microtubule organizing centers that participate in several processes, including controlling polarity, catalyzing spindle assembly in mitosis, and building primary cilia. Understanding which of these processes are altered and how these disruptions contribute to microcephaly pathogenesis is a central unresolved question. In this review, we revisit the different models that have been proposed to explain how centrosome dysfunction impairs cortical development. We review the evidence supporting a unified model in which centrosome defects reduce cell proliferation in the developing cortex by prolonging mitosis and activating a mitotic surveillance pathway. Finally, we also extend our discussion to centrosome-independent microcephaly mutations, such as those involved in DNA replication and repair.
Assuntos
Microcefalia , Ciclo Celular , Centrossomo/metabolismo , Humanos , Microcefalia/genética , Mitose/genética , Neurogênese , Fuso Acromático/genéticaRESUMO
Zinc and RING finger 3 (ZNRF3) is a negative-feedback regulator of Wnt/ß-catenin signaling, which plays an important role in human brain development. Although somatically frequently mutated in cancer, germline variants in ZNRF3 have not been established as causative for neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs). We identified 12 individuals with ZNRF3 variants and various phenotypes via GeneMatcher/Decipher and evaluated genotype-phenotype correlation. We performed structural modeling and representative deleterious and control variants were assessed using in vitro transcriptional reporter assays with and without Wnt-ligand Wnt3a and/or Wnt-potentiator R-spondin (RSPO). Eight individuals harbored de novo missense variants and presented with NDD. We found missense variants associated with macrocephalic NDD to cluster in the RING ligase domain. Structural modeling predicted disruption of the ubiquitin ligase function likely compromising Wnt receptor turnover. Accordingly, the functional assays showed enhanced Wnt/ß-catenin signaling for these variants in a dominant negative manner. Contrarily, an individual with microcephalic NDD harbored a missense variant in the RSPO-binding domain predicted to disrupt binding affinity to RSPO and showed attenuated Wnt/ß-catenin signaling in the same assays. Additionally, four individuals harbored de novo truncating or de novo or inherited large in-frame deletion variants with non-NDD phenotypes, including heart, adrenal, or nephrotic problems. In contrast to NDD-associated missense variants, the effects on Wnt/ß-catenin signaling were comparable between the truncating variant and the empty vector and between benign variants and the wild type. In summary, we provide evidence for mirror brain size phenotypes caused by distinct pathomechanisms in Wnt/ß-catenin signaling through protein domain-specific deleterious ZNRF3 germline missense variants.
RESUMO
In 2015, public awareness of Zika virus (ZIKV) rose in response to alarming statistics of infants with microcephaly being born to women who were infected with the virus during pregnancy, triggering global concern over these potentially devastating consequences. Although we have discovered a great deal about the genome and pathogenesis of this reemergent flavivirus since this recent outbreak, we still have much more to learn, including the nature of the virus-host interactions and mechanisms that determine its tropism and pathogenicity in the nervous system, which are in turn shaped by the continual evolution of the virus. Inevitably, we will find out more about the potential long-term effects of ZIKV exposure on the nervous system from ongoing longitudinal studies. Integrating clinical and epidemiological data with a wider range of animal and human cell culture models will be critical to understanding the pathogenetic mechanisms and developing more specific antiviral compounds and vaccines.
Assuntos
Doenças do Sistema Nervoso/virologia , Infecção por Zika virus/fisiopatologia , Adulto , Animais , Encéfalo/embriologia , Encéfalo/patologia , Encéfalo/virologia , Células Cultivadas , Doenças Transmissíveis Emergentes , Surtos de Doenças , Feminino , Regulação da Expressão Gênica no Desenvolvimento , Regulação Viral da Expressão Gênica , Vetores Genéticos/genética , Interações entre Hospedeiro e Microrganismos , Humanos , Recém-Nascido , Macaca mulatta , Camundongos , Microbiota , Microcefalia/embriologia , Microcefalia/etiologia , Microcefalia/virologia , Microglia/fisiologia , Modelos Animais , Doenças do Sistema Nervoso/fisiopatologia , Neurogênese , Gravidez , Complicações Infecciosas na Gravidez/fisiopatologia , Receptores Virais/fisiologia , Estudos em Gêmeos como Assunto , Vacinas Virais , Zika virus/imunologia , Zika virus/isolamento & purificação , Zika virus/patogenicidade , Zika virus/fisiologia , Infecção por Zika virus/diagnóstico , Infecção por Zika virus/veterináriaRESUMO
Telomere maintenance 2 (TELO2), Tel2 interacting protein 2 (TTI2), and Tel2 interacting protein 1 (TTI1) are the three components of the conserved Triple T (TTT) complex that modulates activity of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase-related protein kinases (PIKKs), including mTOR, ATM, and ATR, by regulating the assembly of mTOR complex 1 (mTORC1). The TTT complex is essential for the expression, maturation, and stability of ATM and ATR in response to DNA damage. TELO2- and TTI2-related bi-allelic autosomal-recessive (AR) encephalopathies have been described in individuals with moderate to severe intellectual disability (ID), short stature, postnatal microcephaly, and a movement disorder (in the case of variants within TELO2). We present clinical, genomic, and functional data from 11 individuals in 9 unrelated families with bi-allelic variants in TTI1. All present with ID, and most with microcephaly, short stature, and a movement disorder. Functional studies performed in HEK293T cell lines and fibroblasts and lymphoblastoid cells derived from 4 unrelated individuals showed impairment of the TTT complex and of mTOR pathway activity which is improved by treatment with Rapamycin. Our data delineate a TTI1-related neurodevelopmental disorder and expand the group of disorders related to the TTT complex.
Assuntos
Microcefalia , Transtornos dos Movimentos , Transtornos do Neurodesenvolvimento , Humanos , Peptídeos e Proteínas de Sinalização Intracelular , Células HEK293 , Serina-Treonina Quinases TORRESUMO
Zika virus (ZIKV) has become a public health threat due to its global transmission and link to severe congenital disorders. The host immune responses to ZIKV infection have not been fully elucidated, and effective therapeutics are not currently available. Herein, we demonstrated that cholesterol-25-hydroxylase (CH25H) was induced in response to ZIKV infection and that its enzymatic product, 25-hydroxycholesterol (25HC), was a critical mediator of host protection against ZIKV. Synthetic 25HC addition inhibited ZIKV infection in vitro by blocking viral entry, and treatment with 25HC reduced viremia and conferred protection against ZIKV in mice and rhesus macaques. 25HC suppressed ZIKV infection and reduced tissue damage in human cortical organoids and the embryonic brain of the ZIKV-induced mouse microcephaly model. Our findings highlight the protective role of CH25H during ZIKV infection and the potential use of 25HC as a natural antiviral agent to combat ZIKV infection and prevent ZIKV-associated outcomes, such as microcephaly.
Assuntos
Antivirais/farmacologia , Hidroxicolesteróis/farmacologia , Microcefalia/virologia , Infecção por Zika virus/complicações , Animais , Encéfalo/efeitos dos fármacos , Modelos Animais de Doenças , Imunofluorescência , Humanos , Macaca mulatta , Camundongos , Microscopia Confocal , Internalização do Vírus/efeitos dos fármacos , Zika virus/efeitos dos fármacos , Zika virus/fisiologiaRESUMO
Recursive splicing (RS) starts by defining an "RS-exon," which is then spliced to the preceding exon, thus creating a recursive 5' splice site (RS-5ss). Previous studies focused on cryptic RS-exons, and now we find that the exon junction complex (EJC) represses RS of hundreds of annotated, mainly constitutive RS-exons. The core EJC factors, and the peripheral factors PNN and RNPS1, maintain RS-exon inclusion by repressing spliceosomal assembly on RS-5ss. The EJC also blocks 5ss located near exon-exon junctions, thus repressing inclusion of cryptic microexons. The prevalence of annotated RS-exons is high in deuterostomes, while the cryptic RS-exons are more prevalent in Drosophila, where EJC appears less capable of repressing RS. Notably, incomplete repression of RS also contributes to physiological alternative splicing of several human RS-exons. Finally, haploinsufficiency of the EJC factor Magoh in mice is associated with skipping of RS-exons in the brain, with relevance to the microcephaly phenotype and human diseases.
Assuntos
Processamento Alternativo/fisiologia , Éxons/fisiologia , Sítios de Splice de RNA/fisiologia , Animais , Linhagem Celular , Núcleo Celular , Drosophila , Células HEK293 , Células HeLa , Humanos , Íntrons , Células K562 , Camundongos , Proteínas Nucleares , Precursores de RNA/fisiologia , Splicing de RNA/fisiologia , RNA Mensageiro/genética , Proteínas de Ligação a RNA , Ribonucleoproteínas/fisiologia , Transcriptoma/genéticaRESUMO
Entosis, a form of cell cannibalism, is a newly discovered pathogenic mechanism leading to the development of small brains, termed microcephaly, in which P53 activation was found to play a major role. Microcephaly with entosis, found in Pals1 mutant mice, displays P53 activation that promotes entosis and apoptotic cell death. This previously unappreciated pathogenic mechanism represents a novel cellular dynamic in dividing cortical progenitors which is responsible for cell loss. To date, various recent models of microcephaly have bolstered the importance of P53 activation in cell death leading to microcephaly. P53 activation caused by mitotic delay or DNA damage manifests apoptotic cell death which can be suppressed by P53 removal in these animal models. Such genetic studies attest P53 activation as quality control meant to eliminate genomically unfit cells with minimal involvement in the actual function of microcephaly associated genes. In this review, we summarize the known role of P53 activation in a variety of microcephaly models and introduce a novel mechanism wherein entotic cell cannibalism in neural progenitors is triggered by P53 activation.
Assuntos
Apoptose , Entose , Microcefalia , Proteína Supressora de Tumor p53 , Microcefalia/genética , Microcefalia/metabolismo , Microcefalia/patologia , Proteína Supressora de Tumor p53/metabolismo , Proteína Supressora de Tumor p53/genética , Animais , Humanos , Camundongos , Modelos Animais de DoençasRESUMO
The role of WNT/ß-catenin signalling in mouse neocortex development remains ambiguous. Most studies demonstrate that WNT/ß-catenin regulates progenitor self-renewal but others suggest it can also promote differentiation. Here we explore the role of WNT/STOP signalling, which stabilizes proteins during G2/M by inhibiting glycogen synthase kinase (GSK3)-mediated protein degradation. We show that mice mutant for cyclin Y and cyclin Y-like 1 (Ccny/l1), key regulators of WNT/STOP signalling, display reduced neurogenesis in the developing neocortex. Specifically, basal progenitors, which exhibit delayed cell cycle progression, were drastically decreased. Ccny/l1-deficient apical progenitors show reduced asymmetric division due to an increase in apical-basal astral microtubules. We identify the neurogenic transcription factors Sox4 and Sox11 as direct GSK3 targets that are stabilized by WNT/STOP signalling in basal progenitors during mitosis and that promote neuron generation. Our work reveals that WNT/STOP signalling drives cortical neurogenesis and identifies mitosis as a critical phase for neural progenitor fate.
Assuntos
Mitose , Neocórtex/embriologia , Neocórtex/metabolismo , Neurogênese , Via de Sinalização Wnt , Sequência de Aminoácidos , Animais , Biomarcadores , Ciclo Celular , Diferenciação Celular/genética , Ciclinas/genética , Ciclinas/metabolismo , Embrião de Mamíferos , Imunofluorescência , Expressão Gênica , Quinase 3 da Glicogênio Sintase/metabolismo , Imuno-Histoquímica , Camundongos , Camundongos Knockout , Mitose/genética , Células-Tronco Neurais/citologia , Células-Tronco Neurais/metabolismo , Neurogênese/genética , Fosforilação , Fatores de Transcrição SOXC/genética , Fatores de Transcrição SOXC/metabolismoRESUMO
Mutations in centrosome genes deplete neural progenitor cells (NPCs) during brain development, causing microcephaly. While NPC attrition is linked to TP53-mediated cell death in several microcephaly models, how TP53 is activated remains unclear. In cultured cells, mitotic delays resulting from centrosome loss prevent the growth of unfit daughter cells by activating a pathway involving 53BP1, USP28, and TP53, termed the mitotic surveillance pathway. Whether this pathway is active in the developing brain is unknown. Here, we show that the depletion of centrosome proteins in NPCs prolongs mitosis and increases TP53-mediated apoptosis. Cell death after a delayed mitosis was rescued by inactivation of the mitotic surveillance pathway. Moreover, 53BP1 or USP28 deletion restored NPC proliferation and brain size without correcting the upstream centrosome defects or extended mitosis. By contrast, microcephaly caused by the loss of the non-centrosomal protein SMC5 is also TP53-dependent but is not rescued by loss of 53BP1 or USP28. Thus, we propose that mutations in centrosome genes cause microcephaly by delaying mitosis and pathologically activating the mitotic surveillance pathway in the developing brain.
Assuntos
Centrossomo/metabolismo , Microcefalia/genética , Microcefalia/metabolismo , Mitose/genética , Proteína Supressora de Tumor p53/genética , Proteína 1 de Ligação à Proteína Supressora de Tumor p53/genética , Ubiquitina Tiolesterase/genética , Animais , Apoptose/genética , Encéfalo/patologia , Morte Celular/genética , Proliferação de Células/genética , Células Cultivadas , Camundongos , Camundongos Knockout , Mutação/genética , Transdução de Sinais/genéticaRESUMO
Chromatin is essentially an array of nucleosomes, each of which consists of the DNA double-stranded fiber wrapped around a histone octamer. This organization supports cellular processes such as DNA replication, DNA transcription, and DNA repair in all eukaryotes. Human histone H4 is encoded by fourteen canonical histone H4 genes, all differing at the nucleotide level but encoding an invariant protein. Here, we present a cohort of 29 subjects with de novo missense variants in six H4 genes (H4C3, H4C4, H4C5, H4C6, H4C9, and H4C11) identified by whole-exome sequencing and matchmaking. All individuals present with neurodevelopmental features of intellectual disability and motor and/or gross developmental delay, while non-neurological features are more variable. Ten amino acids are affected, six recurrently, and are all located within the H4 core or C-terminal tail. These variants cluster to specific regions of the core H4 globular domain, where protein-protein interactions occur with either other histone subunits or histone chaperones. Functional consequences of the identified variants were evaluated in zebrafish embryos, which displayed abnormal general development, defective head organs, and reduced body axis length, providing compelling evidence for the causality of the reported disorder(s). While multiple developmental syndromes have been linked to chromatin-associated factors, missense-bearing histone variants (e.g., H3 oncohistones) are only recently emerging as a major cause of pathogenicity. Our findings establish a broader involvement of H4 variants in developmental syndromes.
Assuntos
Histonas , Peixe-Zebra , Animais , Cromatina , DNA , Histonas/metabolismo , Humanos , Síndrome , Peixe-Zebra/genética , Peixe-Zebra/metabolismoRESUMO
Deoxyhypusine hydroxylase (DOHH) is the enzyme catalyzing the second step in the post-translational synthesis of hypusine [Nε-(4-amino-2-hydroxybutyl)lysine] in the eukaryotic initiation factor 5A (eIF5A). Hypusine is formed exclusively in eIF5A by two sequential enzymatic steps catalyzed by deoxyhypusine synthase (DHPS) and deoxyhypusine hydroxylase (DOHH). Hypusinated eIF5A is essential for translation and cell proliferation in eukaryotes, and all three genes encoding eIF5A, DHPS, and DOHH are highly conserved throughout eukaryotes. Pathogenic variants affecting either DHPS or EIF5A have been previously associated with neurodevelopmental disorders. Using trio exome sequencing, we identified rare bi-allelic pathogenic missense and truncating DOHH variants segregating with disease in five affected individuals from four unrelated families. The DOHH variants are associated with a neurodevelopmental phenotype that is similar to phenotypes caused by DHPS or EIF5A variants and includes global developmental delay, intellectual disability, facial dysmorphism, and microcephaly. A two-dimensional gel analyses revealed the accumulation of deoxyhypusine-containing eIF5A [eIF5A(Dhp)] and a reduction in the hypusinated eIF5A in fibroblasts derived from affected individuals, providing biochemical evidence for deficiency of DOHH activity in cells carrying the bi-allelic DOHH variants. Our data suggest that rare bi-allelic variants in DOHH result in reduced enzyme activity, limit the hypusination of eIF5A, and thereby lead to a neurodevelopmental disorder.
Assuntos
Lisina , Oxigenases de Função Mista , Transtornos do Neurodesenvolvimento , Alelos , Expressão Gênica , Humanos , Lisina/análogos & derivados , Oxigenases de Função Mista/genética , Transtornos do Neurodesenvolvimento/genéticaRESUMO
Centrioles are microtubule-based cylindrical ultrastructures characterized by their definite size and robustness. The molecular capping protein, CPAP (also known as CENPJ) engages its N-terminal region with the centriole microtubules to regulate their length. Nevertheless, the conserved C-terminal glycine-rich G-box of CPAP, which interacts with the centriole inner cartwheel protein STIL, is frequently mutated in primary microcephaly (MCPH) patients. Here, we show that two different MCPH-associated variants, E1235V and D1196N in the CPAP G-box, affect distinct functions at centrioles. The E1235V mutation reduces CPAP centriole recruitment and causes overly long centrioles. The D1196N mutation increases centriole numbers without affecting centriole localization. Both mutations prevent binding to STIL, which controls centriole duplication. Our work highlights the involvement of an alternative CEP152-dependent route for CPAP centriole localization. Molecular dynamics simulations suggest that E1235V leads to an increase in G-box flexibility, which could have implications on its molecular interactions. Collectively, we demonstrate that a CPAP region outside the microtubule-interacting domains influences centriole number and length, which translates to spindle defects and reduced cell viability. Our work provides new insights into the molecular causes of primary microcephaly.
Assuntos
Centríolos , Microcefalia , Humanos , Centríolos/metabolismo , Microcefalia/genética , Proteínas Associadas aos Microtúbulos/metabolismo , Ciclo Celular , Proteínas de Ciclo Celular/metabolismo , Mutação/genéticaRESUMO
Microcephaly is a failure to develop proper brain size and neuron number. Mutations in diverse genes are linked to microcephaly, including several with DNA damage repair (DDR) functions; however, it is not well understood how these DDR gene mutations limit brain size. One such gene is TRAIP, which has multiple functions in DDR. We characterized the Drosophila TRAIP homolog nopo, hereafter traip, and found that traip mutants (traip-) have a brain-specific defect in the mushroom body (MB). traip- MBs were smaller and contained fewer neurons, but no neurodegeneration, consistent with human primary microcephaly. Reduced neuron numbers in traip- were explained by premature loss of MB neuroblasts (MB-NBs), in part via caspase-dependent cell death. Many traip- MB-NBs had prominent chromosome bridges in anaphase, along with polyploidy, aneuploidy or micronuclei. Traip localization during mitosis is sufficient for MB development, suggesting that Traip can repair chromosome bridges during mitosis if necessary. Our results suggest that proper brain size is ensured by the recently described role for TRAIP in unloading stalled replication forks in mitosis, which suppresses DNA bridges and premature neural stem cell loss to promote proper neuron number.
Assuntos
Microcefalia , Corpos Pedunculados , Animais , Reparo do DNA , Drosophila , Microcefalia/genética , NeurogêneseRESUMO
Germline mutations of homologous-recombination (HR) genes are among the top contributors to medulloblastomas. A significant portion of human medulloblastomas exhibited genomic signatures of HR defects. We asked whether ablation of Brca2, Palb2, and their related Brca1 and Bccip genes, in the mouse brain can differentially initiate medulloblastomas. We established conditional knockout mouse models of these HR-genes, and a conditional knockdown of Bccip (shBccip-KD). Deletion of any of these genes led to microcephaly and neurological defects, with Brca1- and Bccip- producing the worst. Trp53 co-deletion significantly rescued the microcephaly with Brca1, Palb2, and Brca2 deficiency, but it exhibited limited impact on Bccip- mice. For the first time, inactivation of either Brca1 or Palb2 with Trp53 was found to induce medulloblastomas. Bccip/Trp53 deletions failed, despite that shBccip-CKD was highly penetrative, to induce medulloblastomas. The tumors displayed diverse immunohistochemical features and chromosome copy number variation. While there were widespread upregulations of cell proliferative pathways, most of the tumors expressed biomarkers of the Sonic Hedgehog subgroup. The MBs developed from Brca1-, Palb2-, and Brca2- mice were highly sensitive to a PARP inhibitor, but not the ones from shBccip-CKD mice. Our models recapitulate the spontaneous medulloblastoma development with high penetrance and narrow time-window, providing ideal platforms to test therapeutic agents with the ability to differentiate HR defective and proficient tumors.
RESUMO
Human brain organoids represent a remarkable platform for modeling neurological disorders and a promising brain repair approach. However, the effects of physical stimulation on their development and integration remain unclear. Here, we report that low-intensity ultrasound significantly increases neural progenitor cell proliferation and neuronal maturation in cortical organoids. Histological assays and single-cell gene expression analyses reveal that low-intensity ultrasound improves the neural development in cortical organoids. Following organoid grafts transplantation into the injured somatosensory cortices of adult mice, longitudinal electrophysiological recordings and histological assays reveal that ultrasound-treated organoid grafts undergo advanced maturation. They also exhibit enhanced pain-related gamma-band activity and more disseminated projections into the host brain than the untreated groups. Finally, low-intensity ultrasound ameliorates neuropathological deficits in a microcephaly brain organoid model. Hence, low-intensity ultrasound stimulation advances the development and integration of brain organoids, providing a strategy for treating neurodevelopmental disorders and repairing cortical damage.