Linking spatial gene expression patterns to sex-specific brain structural changes on a mouse model of 16p11.2 hemideletion.

ABSTRACT: Neurodevelopmental disorders, such as ASD and ADHD, affect males about three to four times more often than females. 16p11.2 hemideletion is a copy number variation that is highly associated with neurodevelopmental disorders. Previous work from our lab has shown that a mouse model of 16p11.2 hemideletion (del/+) exhibits male-specific behavioral phenotypes. We, therefore, aimed to investigate with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), whether del/+ animals also exhibited a sex-specific neuroanatomical endophenotype. Using the Allen Mouse Brain Atlas, we analyzed the expression patterns of the 27 genes within the 16p11.2 region to identify which gene expression patterns spatially overlapped with brain structural changes. MRI was performed ex vivo and the resulting images were analyzed using Voxe

SUBMITTER: Kumar VJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5974415 | biostudies-literature | 2018 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature