RESUMO
The offspring of older fathers have an increased risk of neurodevelopmental disorders, such as schizophrenia and autism. In light of the evidence implicating copy number variants (CNVs) with schizophrenia and autism, we used a mouse model to explore the hypothesis that the offspring of older males have an increased risk of de novo CNVs. C57BL/6J sires that were 3- and 12-16-months old were mated with 3-month-old dams to create control offspring and offspring of old sires, respectively. Applying genome-wide microarray screening technology, 7 distinct CNVs were identified in a set of 12 offspring and their parents. Competitive quantitative PCR confirmed these CNVs in the original set and also established their frequency in an independent set of 77 offspring and their parents. On the basis of the combined samples, six de novo CNVs were detected in the offspring of older sires, whereas none were detected in the control group. Two of the CNVs were associated with behavioral and/or neuroanatomical phenotypic features. One of the de novo CNVs involved Auts2 (autism susceptibility candidate 2), and other CNVs included genes linked to schizophrenia, autism and brain development. This is the first experimental demonstration that the offspring of older males have an increased risk of de novo CNVs. Our results support the hypothesis that the offspring of older fathers have an increased risk of neurodevelopmental disorders such as schizophrenia and autism by generation of de novo CNVs in the male germline.
Assuntos
Variações do Número de Cópias de DNA/genética , Variação Genética/genética , Idade Paterna , Animais , Transtorno Autístico/genética , Comportamento Animal/fisiologia , Modelos Animais de Doenças , Feminino , Masculino , Camundongos , Camundongos Endogâmicos C57BL , Análise de Sequência com Séries de Oligonucleotídeos , Reação em Cadeia da Polimerase em Tempo Real , Esquizofrenia/genéticaRESUMO
Drugs of abuse including nicotine and alcohol elicit their effect by stimulating the mesocorticolimbic dopaminergic system. There is a high incidence of nicotine dependence in alcoholics. To date only limited data is available on the molecular mechanism underlying the action of alcohol and nicotine in the human brain. This study utilized gene expression screening to identify genes sensitive to chronic alcohol abuse within the ventral tegmental area (VTA) of the human brain. Alcohol-responsive genes encoded proteins primarily involved in structural plasticity and neurotransmitter transport and release. In particular, genes involved with brain-derived neurotrophic factor signalling and glutamatergic transmission were found to be affected. The possibility that glutamate transport was a target of chronic alcohol and/or tobacco abuse was further investigated in an extended case set by measurement of mRNA and protein expression. Expression levels of vesicular glutamate transporters SLC17A6 and SLC17A7 were robustly induced by smoking, an effect that was reduced by alcohol co-exposure. Glutamatergic transmission is vital for the control of the VTA and may also be critical to the weighting of novelty and importance of a stimulus, an essential output of this brain region. We conclude that enduring plasticity within the VTA may be a major molecular mechanism for the maintenance of smoking addiction and that alcohol, nicotine and co-abuse have distinct impacts on glutamatergic transmission with important implications for the control of this core mesolimbic structure.
Assuntos
Alcoolismo/genética , Plasticidade Neuronal/genética , Fumar/genética , Transmissão Sináptica/genética , Área Tegmentar Ventral/fisiopatologia , Alcoolismo/complicações , Alcoolismo/fisiopatologia , Sequência de Bases , Western Blotting , Estudos de Casos e Controles , Sondas de DNA/genética , Etanol/toxicidade , Feminino , Perfilação da Expressão Gênica , Ácido Glutâmico/fisiologia , Humanos , Masculino , Nicotina/toxicidade , Análise de Sequência com Séries de Oligonucleotídeos , Reação em Cadeia da Polimerase , RNA Mensageiro/genética , RNA Mensageiro/metabolismo , Fumar/efeitos adversos , Fumar/fisiopatologia , Proteína Vesicular 1 de Transporte de Glutamato/genética , Proteína Vesicular 1 de Transporte de Glutamato/metabolismo , Proteína Vesicular 2 de Transporte de Glutamato/genética , Proteína Vesicular 2 de Transporte de Glutamato/metabolismoRESUMO
The mesocorticolimbic system is the reward centre of the brain and the major target for drugs of abuse including alcohol. Neuroadaptive changes in this region are thought to underlie the process of tolerance and dependence. Recently, several research groups have searched for alcohol-responsive genes using high-throughput microarrays and well-characterized human post-mortem material. Comparison of data from these studies of cortical regions highlights the differences in experimental approach and selection of cases. However, alcohol-responsive gene sets associated with transcription, oxidative stress and energy production were common to these studies. In marked contrast, alcohol-responsive genes in the nucleus accumbens and the ventral tegmental area are primarily associated with changes in neurotransmission and signal transduction. These data support the concept that, within cortical regions, changes in gene expression are associated with alcoholism-related pathology. In the dopaminergic tract of the mesocorticolimbic system, alcohol-responsive gene sets suggest long-term neuroplastic changes in synaptic transmission.
