Department of Biology and Center for Behavioral Genomics, Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts 02454, and Janelia Farm Research Campus, Ashburn, Virginia 20147
Department of Biology and Center for Behavioral Genomics, Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts 02454, and.
J Neurosci. 2014 Sep 17;34(38):12877-83. doi: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.2674-14.2014.
Mutations in methyl-CpG-binding protein 2 (MeCP2) cause Rett syndrome and related autism spectrum disorders (Amir et al., 1999). MeCP2 is believed to be required for proper regulation of brain gene expression, but prior microarray studies in Mecp2 knock-out mice using brain tissue homogenates have revealed only subtle changes in gene expression (Tudor et al., 2002; Nuber et al., 2005; Jordan et al., 2007; Chahrour et al., 2008). Here, by profiling discrete subtypes of neurons we uncovered more dramatic effects of MeCP2 on gene expression, overcoming the "dilution problem" associated with assaying homogenates of complex tissues. The results reveal misregulation of genes involved in neuronal connectivity and communication. Importantly, genes upregulated following loss of MeCP2 are biased toward longer genes but this is not true for downregulated genes, suggesting MeCP2 may selectively repress long genes. Because genes involved in neuronal connectivity and communication, such as cell adhesion and cell-cell signaling genes, are enriched among longer genes, their misregulation following loss of MeCP2 suggests a possible etiology for altered circuit function in Rett syndrome.
甲基化 CpG 结合蛋白 2(MeCP2)突变导致雷特综合征和相关的自闭症谱系障碍(Amir 等人,1999 年)。人们认为 MeCP2 是大脑基因表达正常调节所必需的,但之前使用脑组织匀浆的 Mecp2 敲除小鼠的微阵列研究仅揭示了基因表达的细微变化(Tudor 等人,2002 年;Nuber 等人,2005 年;Jordan 等人,2007 年;Chahrour 等人,2008 年)。在这里,通过对离散的神经元亚型进行分析,我们发现 MeCP2 对基因表达的影响更为显著,克服了分析复杂组织匀浆时的“稀释问题”。结果显示,与神经元连接和通讯相关的基因表达失调。重要的是,MeCP2 缺失后上调的基因偏向于更长的基因,但下调的基因则不是,这表明 MeCP2 可能选择性地抑制长基因。由于神经元连接和通讯相关的基因,如细胞黏附基因和细胞-细胞信号转导基因,在长基因中富集,因此 MeCP2 缺失后它们的失调表明在 Rett 综合征中改变的电路功能可能有其病因。