ATRX is required for maintenance of the neuroprogenitor cell pool in the embryonic mouse brain.

Mutations in the alpha-thalassemia mental retardation X-linked (ATRX) gene cause a spectrum of abnormalities including intellectual disability, developmental delay, seizures, and microcephaly. The ATRX protein is highly enriched at heterochromatic repetitive sequences adjacent to the centromere, and ATRX depletion results in chromosome congression, segregation, and cohesion defects. Here, we show that Cre-mediated inactivation of Atrx in the embryonic mouse (Mus musculus) brain results in expansion of cerebral cortical layer VI, and a concurrent thinning of layers II-IV. We observed increased cell cycle exit during early-mid neurogenesis, and a depletion of apical progenitors by late neurogenesis in the Atrx-null neocortex, explaining the disproportionate layering. Premature differentiation was associated with an increased generation of outer radial glia (oRG) and TBR2-expressing basal progenitors, as well as increased generation of early-born post-mitotic projection neurons. Atrx deletion also reduced the fidelity of mitotic spindle orientation in apical progenitors, where mutant cells were often oriented at non-parallel angles of division relative to the ventricular surface. We conclude that ATRX is required for correct lamination of the mouse neocortex by regulating the timing of neuroprogenitor cell differentiation.

Mitotic chromosome condensation mediated by the retinoblastoma protein is tumor-suppressive.

Condensation and segregation of mitotic chromosomes is a critical process for cellular propagation, and, in mammals, mitotic errors can contribute to the pathogenesis of cancer. In this report, we demonstrate that the retinoblastoma protein (pRB), a well-known regulator of progression through the G1 phase of the cell cycle, plays a critical role in mitotic chromosome condensation that is independent of G1-to-S-phase regulation. Using gene targeted mutant mice, we studied this aspect of pRB function in isolation, and demonstrate that it is an essential part of pRB-mediated tumor suppression. Cancer-prone Trp53(-/-) mice succumb to more aggressive forms of cancer when pRB's ability to condense chromosomes is compromised. Furthermore, we demonstrate that defective mitotic chromosome structure caused by mutant pRB accelerates loss of heterozygosity, leading to earlier tumor formation in Trp53(+/-) mice. These data reveal a new mechanism of tumor suppression, facilitated by pRB, in which genome stability is maintained by proper condensation of mitotic chromosomes.

Loss of ATRX leads to chromosome cohesion and congression defects.

Alpha thalassemia/mental retardation X linked (ATRX) is a switch/sucrose nonfermenting-type ATPase localized at pericentromeric heterochromatin in mouse and human cells. Human ATRX mutations give rise to mental retardation syndromes characterized by developmental delay, facial dysmorphisms, cognitive deficits, and microcephaly and the loss of ATRX in the mouse brain leads to reduced cortical size. We find that ATRX is required for normal mitotic progression in human cultured cells and in neuroprogenitors. Using live cell imaging, we show that the transition from prometaphase to metaphase is prolonged in ATRX-depleted cells and is accompanied by defective sister chromatid cohesion and congression at the metaphase plate. We also demonstrate that loss of ATRX in the embryonic mouse brain induces mitotic defects in neuroprogenitors in vivo with evidence of abnormal chromosome congression and segregation. These findings reveal that ATRX contributes to chromosome dynamics during mitosis and provide a possible cellular explanation for reduced cortical size and abnormal brain development associated with ATRX deficiency.