A missense mutation in Katnal1 underlies behavioural, neurological and ciliary anomalies.

Microtubule severing enzymes implement a diverse range of tissue-specific molecular functions throughout development and into adulthood. Although microtubule severing is fundamental to many dynamic neural processes, little is known regarding the role of the family member Katanin p60 subunit A-like 1, KATNAL1, in central nervous system (CNS) function. Recent studies reporting that microdeletions incorporating the KATNAL1 locus in humans result in intellectual disability and microcephaly suggest that KATNAL1 may play a prominent role in the CNS; however, such associations lack the functional data required to highlight potential mechanisms which link the gene to disease symptoms. Here we identify and characterise a mouse line carrying a loss of function allele in Katnal1. We show that mutants express behavioural deficits including in circadian rhythms, sleep, anxiety and learning/memory. Furthermore, in the brains of Katnal1 mutant mice we reveal numerous morphological abnormalities and defects in neuronal migration and morphology. Furthermore we demonstrate defects in the motile cilia of the ventricular ependymal cells of mutants, suggesting a role for Katnal1 in the development of ciliary function. We believe the data we present here are the first to associate KATNAL1 with such phenotypes, demonstrating that the protein plays keys roles in a number of processes integral to the development of neuronal function and behaviour.

The Tau mutation of casein kinase 1ε sets the period of the mammalian pacemaker via regulation of Period1 or Period2 clock proteins.

The suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) of the hypothalamus is the principal circadian pacemaker in mammals, coordinating daily metabolic and physiological rhythms with the cycle of sleep and wakefulness. SCN neurons define circadian time via an auto-regulatory feedback loop in which the activation of Period (Per) and Cryptochrome genes is periodically suppressed by their own protein products. Casein kinase 1 (CK1) enzymes have a critical role in circadian pacemaking because they phosphorylate PER proteins and thereby direct their proteasomal degradation. In human pedigrees, individual mutations in either hCK1 or hPER2 lead to advanced sleep phase disorders, whereas in rodents, the Tau mutation of CK1 epsilon (CK1ε (Tau)) accelerates rest-activity cycles and shortens the period of the SCN molecular pacemaker. Biochemical analyses of recombinant PER proteins in cultured cells and endogenous proteins in peripheral tissues have identified PER1 and PER2, but not PER3, as direct substrates of CK1ε. The purpose of this study, therefore, was to determine the relative contributions of endogenous PER proteins to the period-accelerating effects of CK1ε (Tau), both in vivo and in vitro. CK1ε (Tau) mice were mated onto Per1-, Per2-, and Per1-Per2 (Per1/2) double-null backgrounds, in all cases carrying the Per1-luciferase bioluminescent circadian reporter gene. Mice lacking both PER1 and PER2 were behaviorally arrhythmic, confirming the inadequacy of PER3 as a circadian factor. Individual loss of either PER1 or PER2 had no significant effect on the circadian period or quality of wheel-running behavior, and CK1ε (Tau) accelerated behavioral rhythms in both Per1- and Per2-null mice. CK1ε (Tau) also accelerated in vitro molecular pacemaking in SCN lacking either PER1 or PER2, with a greater effect in PER2-dependent (i.e., Per1-null) SCN than in PER1-dependent slices. In double-null slices, some SCN were arrhythmic, whereas others exhibited transient rhythms, which trended nonsignificantly toward a shorter period. Both short-period and long-period rhythms could be identified in individual SCN neurons imaged by charge-coupled device camera. CK1ε (Tau) had no effect, however, on SCN-level or individual neuronal rhythms in the absence of PER1 and PER2. Thus, the CK1ε (Tau) allele has divergent actions, acting via both endogenous PER1 and PER2, but not PER3 protein, to mediate its circadian actions in vivo. Moreover, PER-independent cellular oscillations may contribute to pacemaking, but they are unstable and imprecise, and are not affected by the Tau mutation.

Genetic and molecular analysis of the central and peripheral circadian clockwork of mice.

A hierarchy of interacting, tissue-based clocks controls circadian physiology and behavior in mammals. Preeminent are the suprachiasmatic nuclei (SCN): central hypothalamic pacemakers synchronized to solar time via retinal afferents and in turn responsible for internal synchronization of other clocks present in major organ systems. The SCN and peripheral clocks share essentially the same cellular timing mechanism. This consists of autoregulatory transcriptional/posttranslational feedback loops in which the Period (Per) and Cryptochrome (Cry) "clock" genes are negatively regulated by their protein products. Here, we review recent studies directed at understanding the molecular and cellular bases to the mammalian clock. At the cellular level, we demonstrate the role of F-box protein Fbxl3 (characterized by the afterhours mutation) in directing the proteasomal degradation of Cry and thereby controlling negative feedback and circadian period of the molecular loops. Within SCN neural circuitry, we describe how neuropeptidergic signaling by VIP synchronizes and sustains the cellular clocks. At the hypothalamic level, signaling via a different SCN neuropeptide, prokineticin, is not required for pacemaking but is necessary for control of circadian behavior. Finally, we consider how metabolic pathways are coordinated in time, focusing on liver function and the role of glucocorticoid signals in driving the circadian transcriptome and proteome.