Identification of <i>ARHGEF11</i> (PDZ-RhoGEF) as an in vivo regulator of synapses and cognition.

ABSTRACT: Given the influence of cognitive abilities on life outcomes, there is inherent value in identifying genes involved in controlling learning and memory. Further, cognitive dysfunction is a core feature of many neuropsychiatric disorders. Here, we use a combinatory in silico approach to identify human gene targets that will have an especially high likelihood of individually and directly impacting cognition. This broad and unbiased screen led to the specific identification of ARHGEF11, which encodes PDZ-RhoGEF. PDZ-RhoGEF is a largely RhoA-specific activator that is highly enriched in dendritic spines, and recent work identified hyperexpression of PDZ-RhoGEF in the prefrontal cortex of bipolar disorder subjects, a disease characterized by an early emergence and persistence of broad scop

SUBMITTER: Bjornson KJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11789018 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature