Comparative Gene Expression Analysis of Two Mouse Models of Autism: Transcriptome Profiling of the BTBR and En2 (-/-) Hippocampus.

ABSTRACT: Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are characterized by a high degree of genetic heterogeneity. Genomic studies identified common pathological processes underlying the heterogeneous clinical manifestations of ASD, and transcriptome analyses revealed that gene networks involved in synapse development, neuronal activity, and immune function are deregulated in ASD. Mouse models provide unique tools to investigate the neurobiological basis of ASD; however, a comprehensive approach to identify transcriptional abnormalities in different ASD models has never been performed. Here we used two well-recognized ASD mouse models, BTBR T(+) Itpr3 (tf) /J (BTBR) and Engrailed-2 knockout (En2 (-/-)), to identify conserved ASD-related molecular signatures. En2 (-/-) mice bear a mutation within the EN2 transcr

SUBMITTER: Provenzano G 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4996997 | biostudies-literature | 2016

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature