Engrailed-2 and inflammation convergently and independently impinge on cerebellar Purkinje cell differentiation.

ABSTRACT: Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) have a complex pathogenesis thought to include both genetic and extrinsic factors. Among the latter, inflammation of the developing brain has recently gained growing attention. However, how genetic predisposition and inflammation might converge to precipitate autistic behavior remains elusive. Cerebellar structure and function are well known to be affected in autism. We therefore used cerebellar slice cultures to probe whether inflammatory stimulation and (over)expression of the autism susceptibility gene Engrailed-2 interact in shaping differentiation of Purkinje cells, key organizers of cerebellar histogenesis and function. We show that lipopolysaccharide treatment reduces Purkinje cell dendritogenesis and that this effect is enhanced by over-expression of

SUBMITTER: Bahaaeldin M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11603920 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature