A non-coding RNA risk pathway in schizophrenia in which miR-137 induces the lncRNA GOMAFU through a pathological transcription network
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ABSTRACT:
ORGANISM(S): Homo sapiens
PROVIDER: GSE283922 | GEO | 2025/12/04
REPOSITORIES: GEO
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Project description:Increasing evidence suggests important roles of long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) in normal neuron development and neuropsychiatric disorders that disturb early neurodevelopmental processes. One such lncRNA is GOMAFU, which displays aberrant expression in schizophrenia postmortem brains and is known to regulate SCZ-associated splice variants in developing human neurons. However, molecular mechanisms that control expression and biological function of GOMAFU in human neuron development remain elusive. Here we report the identification of a novel miRNA-lncRNA pathway in which miR-137, a well-recognized risk factor for SCZ and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) that play key roles in promoting neuronal differentiation, enhances GOMAFU expression in human neurons through targeting transcription factors that suppress GOMAFU. In addition, loss of GOMAFU in cortical neurons derived from human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) by CRISPR-cas9 mediated gene editing significantly reduces dendritic growth during early-stage differentiation. Moreover, GOMAFU deficiency elicited a broad influence on molecular pathways commonly affected in SCZ and ASD postmortem brains, including aberrantly increased expression of numerous genes known to govern neuroimmune responses. Our studies demonstrated essential roles of the lncRNA GOMAFU in human neuron development and connected GOMAFU malfunction with pathological molecular networks in neuropsychiatric disorders.
2023-10-03 | GSE182370 | GEO
Project description:Recent genetic evidence has revealed microRNA-137 (miR-137) as a risk gene in schizophrenia and autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and the following cellular studies have demonstrated the importance of miR-137 in regulating neurogenesis. We have generated miR-137 knockout mice which display behaviors that resemble some symptoms of these two diseases. To investigate the underlying molecular mechanism, we performed comprehensive analyses of the entire RNA and protein molecules of the miR-137 mouse brains. The dataset uploaded here is the raw data of the mass spectrometry-based whole proteome analysis of the six miR-137 mouse brains: wild-type, heterozygous (miR-137+/–) and homozygous (miR-137–/–) from two different litters. The tandem mass tag (TMT) methodology was employed in this proteomics analysis for the quantitation. The sample channels are: 128C (miR-137+/+, litter 1), 129N (miR-137+/–, litter 1), 129C (miR-137–/–, litter 1), 130N (miR-137+/+, litter 2), 130C (miR-137+/–, litter 2), and 131N (miR-137–/–, litter 2).
2018-10-17 | PXD003874 | Pride
Project description:The development of neural circuits in the human cortex is considerably prolonged in comparison to non-human primates, a trait which contributes to the remarkable cognitive capacity of modern humans. In contrast to protein-coding genes, non-coding genes underwent a dramatic expansion during evolution, suggesting their involvement in human-specific aspects of brain development. Here, using a glial free human-induced pluripotent stem-cell derived neuron model (“igNeurons”), we show widespread expression and dynamic regulation of various non-coding RNA classes, including microRNAs, during human excitatory synapse development. The expression of a human-specific microRNA, miR-1229-3p, strongly correlates with the neuromorphological trajectory of igNeurons. miR-1229-3p inhibition promotes the formation of excitatory synaptic co-clusters at early stages but reduces dendritic arborization in more mature neurons, consistent with accelerated neuronal maturation. Morphological alterations are accompanied by enhanced calcium spike activity and excitatory synaptic transmission. Mechanistically, miR-1229-3p controls mitochondrial homeostasis by directly targeting important regulators of mitochondrial autophagy and fission, such as Pink1. Stimulation of mitochondrial metabolism rescues the enhanced calcium spike activity in miR-1229-3p depleted neurons, demonstrating a causal involvement of mitochondrial homeostasis. Thus, our findings reveal an important function of human-specific miR-1229-3p in developmental timing of human synaptogenesis and generally implicate non-coding RNAs in the control of human connectivity and cognition.
2025-11-03 | PXD045809 | Pride
Project description:Genome-wide association studies indicate allele variants in MIR137, the host gene of microRNA-137 (miR137), confer an increased risk of schizophrenia (SCZ). Expression of miR137 and its targets, many of which regulate synaptic functioning, are also associated with an increased risk of SCZ. As a result, miR137 represents an attractive target aimed at correcting the molecular basis for synaptic dysfunction in individuals with high genetic risk for SCZ. Advancements in nanotechnology utilize lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) to transport and deliver therapeutic RNA. However, there remains a gap in using LNPs to regulate gene and protein expression in the brain. To study the delivery of nucleic acids by LNPs to the brain, we found that LNPs released miR137 cargo and inhibited synaptic target transcripts in neuronal cultures. Biodistribution of LNPs loaded with firefly luciferase mRNA remained localized to the mouse prefrontal cortex (PFC) injection site without circulating to off-target organs. LNPs encapsulating Cre mRNA preferentially co-expressed in neuronal over microglial or astrocytic cells. Using quantitative proteomics, we found miR137 modulated glutamatergic synaptic protein networks that are commonly dysregulated in SCZ. These studies support engineering the next generation of brain-specific LNPs to deliver personalized RNA therapeutics and improve symptoms of central nervous system disorders.
2023-09-05 | PXD041648 | Pride
Project description:Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified many risk genes for neuropsychiatric disorders (NPD) such as schizophrenia (SCZ). However, functional interpretation of these GWAS findings remains challenging; a major hurdle is that polygenic risk may manifest its effect conditionally upon neural activation, i.e., context-dependent. Human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC)-derived neurons are a tractable cellular model for ascertaining context-dependent polygenic effects, e.g., neural activation that may mimic the physiological effects of environmental stimuli. Here, we modelled neural activation by depolarisation using high potassium chloride (KCl) in co-cultured excitatory/inhibitory neurons of 100 hiPSC lines (28 from SCZ donors), followed by assaying single-cell multiomes (scRNA/ATAC-seq) of over 700,000 nuclei from neurons at 0 hr (unstimulated), 1 hr (early response), and 6 hr (later response) of high KCI exposure. We linked genes with open chromatin peaks for each main neural subtype (GABAergic inhibitory, NEFM+ or NEFM-excitatory neurons) and confirmed a significant correlation between peak accessibility and target gene expression. Compared to static genes/peaks, dynamic ones, specifically those activity-upregulated, were more enriched for NPD GWAS risk, with the most robust enrichment for SCZ. Based on the dynamic gene expression pattern across the three time points, we found NPD risk genes tend to be continuously upregulated (i.e., with up-up dynamics). We further analysed context-specific SCZ-associated differentially expressed genes (DEGs) using MAST for single neurons of 28 SCZ cases and 72 controls. We found that 3-5%, 4-6%, and 15-23% of genes were SCZ-associated DEGs in NEFM+ excitatory, NEFM- excitatory, and GABAergic neurons, respectively, most of which were cell activity-specific. Notably, we found that SCZ-associated DEGs in high-activity neurons were more enriched for synapse-related GO terms and NPD risk genes. Interestingly, upstream regulatory sequences of the stimulation-specific SCZ-associated DEGs were enriched for binding sites of TCF4, which is a strong GWAS risk gene and was considered the master regulator of other SCZ-related genes. Moreover, the upregulated genes in SCZ cases in the stimulated (only at 6hr) NEFM+ excitatory neurons showed strong enrichment for GO terms related to cholesterol synthesis. Single-neuron DEG analysis for 28 SCZ cases and 28 matched controls gave similar results. Our study suggests that many NPD genes may only elicit disease-relevant effects upon neuronal activation, providing novel insights into how polygenic risk factors interact with environmental stimuli for NPD.
2025-02-18 | GSE289522 | GEO
Project description:Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified many risk genes for neuropsychiatric disorders (NPD) such as schizophrenia (SCZ). However, functional interpretation of these GWAS findings remains challenging; a major hurdle is that polygenic risk may manifest its effect conditionally upon neural activation, i.e., context-dependent. Human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC)-derived neurons are a tractable cellular model for ascertaining context-dependent polygenic effects, e.g., neural activation that may mimic the physiological effects of environmental stimuli. Here, we modelled neural activation by depolarisation using high potassium chloride (KCl) in co-cultured excitatory/inhibitory neurons of 100 hiPSC lines (28 from SCZ donors), followed by assaying single-cell multiomes (scRNA/ATAC-seq) of over 700,000 nuclei from neurons at 0 hr (unstimulated), 1 hr (early response), and 6 hr (later response) of high KCI exposure. We linked genes with open chromatin peaks for each main neural subtype (GABAergic inhibitory, NEFM+ or NEFM-excitatory neurons) and confirmed a significant correlation between peak accessibility and target gene expression. Compared to static genes/peaks, dynamic ones, specifically those activity-upregulated, were more enriched for NPD GWAS risk, with the most robust enrichment for SCZ. Based on the dynamic gene expression pattern across the three time points, we found NPD risk genes tend to be continuously upregulated (i.e., with up-up dynamics). We further analysed context-specific SCZ-associated differentially expressed genes (DEGs) using MAST for single neurons of 28 SCZ cases and 72 controls. We found that 3-5%, 4-6%, and 15-23% of genes were SCZ-associated DEGs in NEFM+ excitatory, NEFM- excitatory, and GABAergic neurons, respectively, most of which were cell activity-specific. Notably, we found that SCZ-associated DEGs in high-activity neurons were more enriched for synapse-related GO terms and NPD risk genes. Interestingly, upstream regulatory sequences of the stimulation-specific SCZ-associated DEGs were enriched for binding sites of TCF4, which is a strong GWAS risk gene and was considered the master regulator of other SCZ-related genes. Moreover, the upregulated genes in SCZ cases in the stimulated (only at 6hr) NEFM+ excitatory neurons showed strong enrichment for GO terms related to cholesterol synthesis. Single-neuron DEG analysis for 28 SCZ cases and 28 matched controls gave similar results. Our study suggests that many NPD genes may only elicit disease-relevant effects upon neuronal activation, providing novel insights into how polygenic risk factors interact with environmental stimuli for NPD.
2025-02-18 | GSE289518 | GEO
Project description:Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified many risk genes for neuropsychiatric disorders (NPD) such as schizophrenia (SCZ). However, functional interpretation of these GWAS findings remains challenging; a major hurdle is that polygenic risk may manifest its effect conditionally upon neural activation, i.e., context-dependent. Human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC)-derived neurons are a tractable cellular model for ascertaining context-dependent polygenic effects, e.g., neural activation that may mimic the physiological effects of environmental stimuli. Here, we modelled neural activation by depolarisation using high potassium chloride (KCl) in co-cultured excitatory/inhibitory neurons of 100 hiPSC lines (28 from SCZ donors), followed by assaying single-cell multiomes (scRNA/ATAC-seq) of over 700,000 nuclei from neurons at 0 hr (unstimulated), 1 hr (early response), and 6 hr (later response) of high KCI exposure. We linked genes with open chromatin peaks for each main neural subtype (GABAergic inhibitory, NEFM+ or NEFM-excitatory neurons) and confirmed a significant correlation between peak accessibility and target gene expression. Compared to static genes/peaks, dynamic ones, specifically those activity-upregulated, were more enriched for NPD GWAS risk, with the most robust enrichment for SCZ. Based on the dynamic gene expression pattern across the three time points, we found NPD risk genes tend to be continuously upregulated (i.e., with up-up dynamics). We further analysed context-specific SCZ-associated differentially expressed genes (DEGs) using MAST for single neurons of 28 SCZ cases and 72 controls. We found that 3-5%, 4-6%, and 15-23% of genes were SCZ-associated DEGs in NEFM+ excitatory, NEFM- excitatory, and GABAergic neurons, respectively, most of which were cell activity-specific. Notably, we found that SCZ-associated DEGs in high-activity neurons were more enriched for synapse-related GO terms and NPD risk genes. Interestingly, upstream regulatory sequences of the stimulation-specific SCZ-associated DEGs were enriched for binding sites of TCF4, which is a strong GWAS risk gene and was considered the master regulator of other SCZ-related genes. Moreover, the upregulated genes in SCZ cases in the stimulated (only at 6hr) NEFM+ excitatory neurons showed strong enrichment for GO terms related to cholesterol synthesis. Single-neuron DEG analysis for 28 SCZ cases and 28 matched controls gave similar results. Our study suggests that many NPD genes may only elicit disease-relevant effects upon neuronal activation, providing novel insights into how polygenic risk factors interact with environmental stimuli for NPD.
2025-02-18 | GSE289515 | GEO
Project description:Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified many risk genes for neuropsychiatric disorders (NPD) such as schizophrenia (SCZ). However, functional interpretation of these GWAS findings remains challenging; a major hurdle is that polygenic risk may manifest its effect conditionally upon neural activation, i.e., context-dependent. Human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC)-derived neurons are a tractable cellular model for ascertaining context-dependent polygenic effects, e.g., neural activation that may mimic the physiological effects of environmental stimuli. Here, we modelled neural activation by depolarisation using high potassium chloride (KCl) in co-cultured excitatory/inhibitory neurons of 100 hiPSC lines (28 from SCZ donors), followed by assaying single-cell multiomes (scRNA/ATAC-seq) of over 700,000 nuclei from neurons at 0 hr (unstimulated), 1 hr (early response), and 6 hr (later response) of high KCI exposure. We linked genes with open chromatin peaks for each main neural subtype (GABAergic inhibitory, NEFM+ or NEFM-excitatory neurons) and confirmed a significant correlation between peak accessibility and target gene expression. Compared to static genes/peaks, dynamic ones, specifically those activity-upregulated, were more enriched for NPD GWAS risk, with the most robust enrichment for SCZ. Based on the dynamic gene expression pattern across the three time points, we found NPD risk genes tend to be continuously upregulated (i.e., with up-up dynamics). We further analysed context-specific SCZ-associated differentially expressed genes (DEGs) using MAST for single neurons of 28 SCZ cases and 72 controls. We found that 3-5%, 4-6%, and 15-23% of genes were SCZ-associated DEGs in NEFM+ excitatory, NEFM- excitatory, and GABAergic neurons, respectively, most of which were cell activity-specific. Notably, we found that SCZ-associated DEGs in high-activity neurons were more enriched for synapse-related GO terms and NPD risk genes. Interestingly, upstream regulatory sequences of the stimulation-specific SCZ-associated DEGs were enriched for binding sites of TCF4, which is a strong GWAS risk gene and was considered the master regulator of other SCZ-related genes. Moreover, the upregulated genes in SCZ cases in the stimulated (only at 6hr) NEFM+ excitatory neurons showed strong enrichment for GO terms related to cholesterol synthesis. Single-neuron DEG analysis for 28 SCZ cases and 28 matched controls gave similar results. Our study suggests that many NPD genes may only elicit disease-relevant effects upon neuronal activation, providing novel insights into how polygenic risk factors interact with environmental stimuli for NPD.
2025-01-17 | GSE286488 | GEO
Project description:Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified many risk genes for neuropsychiatric disorders (NPD) such as schizophrenia (SCZ). However, functional interpretation of these GWAS findings remains challenging; a major hurdle is that polygenic risk may manifest its effect conditionally upon neural activation, i.e., context-dependent. Human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC)-derived neurons are a tractable cellular model for ascertaining context-dependent polygenic effects, e.g., neural activation that may mimic the physiological effects of environmental stimuli. Here, we modelled neural activation by depolarisation using high potassium chloride (KCl) in co-cultured excitatory/inhibitory neurons of 100 hiPSC lines (28 from SCZ donors), followed by assaying single-cell multiomes (scRNA/ATAC-seq) of over 700,000 nuclei from neurons at 0 hr (unstimulated), 1 hr (early response), and 6 hr (later response) of high KCI exposure. We linked genes with open chromatin peaks for each main neural subtype (GABAergic inhibitory, NEFM+ or NEFM-excitatory neurons) and confirmed a significant correlation between peak accessibility and target gene expression. Compared to static genes/peaks, dynamic ones, specifically those activity-upregulated, were more enriched for NPD GWAS risk, with the most robust enrichment for SCZ. Based on the dynamic gene expression pattern across the three time points, we found NPD risk genes tend to be continuously upregulated (i.e., with up-up dynamics). We further analysed context-specific SCZ-associated differentially expressed genes (DEGs) using MAST for single neurons of 28 SCZ cases and 72 controls. We found that 3-5%, 4-6%, and 15-23% of genes were SCZ-associated DEGs in NEFM+ excitatory, NEFM- excitatory, and GABAergic neurons, respectively, most of which were cell activity-specific. Notably, we found that SCZ-associated DEGs in high-activity neurons were more enriched for synapse-related GO terms and NPD risk genes. Interestingly, upstream regulatory sequences of the stimulation-specific SCZ-associated DEGs were enriched for binding sites of TCF4, which is a strong GWAS risk gene and was considered the master regulator of other SCZ-related genes. Moreover, the upregulated genes in SCZ cases in the stimulated (only at 6hr) NEFM+ excitatory neurons showed strong enrichment for GO terms related to cholesterol synthesis. Single-neuron DEG analysis for 28 SCZ cases and 28 matched controls gave similar results. Our study suggests that many NPD genes may only elicit disease-relevant effects upon neuronal activation, providing novel insights into how polygenic risk factors interact with environmental stimuli for NPD.
2025-02-20 | GSE289956 | GEO
Project description:A hallmark of cortical evolution is the high dynamic subventricular zone (SVZ) expansion, where basal progenitors (BPs) amplify and neuronal transcriptional programs unfold. How non-coding molecular factors such as microRNAs influence these developmental trajectories and regulate the acquisition of cortical type identities is largely unknown. Here we demonstrate that miR-137 and miR-122 regulate the positioning and identity features of superficial layer cortical neurons by acting at distinct steps of their developmental trajectories. MiR-137 sustains basal progenitor amplification by reverting their neurogenic commitment and inducing high proliferative state upregulating Cd63 and inhibiting Myt1l. Cd63 is an extra-cellular matrix (ECM) receptor which interacts with b3- and 1-integrin pathways to promote proliferation, while Myt1l is a transcription factor that promotes and sustains neuronal fate. The BPs amplification by miR-137 is converted in the promotion of intracortical projecting neuron (ICPN) identity and L2/3 expansion. As opposed to miR-137, miR-122 acts postmitotically, affecting the bioelectrical properties, the calcium and cytoskeleton dynamics of newborn neurons as well as their transcriptional program, leading to a persistent molecular immaturity across time. Overall, these findings reveal that miR-137 and miR-122 are key regulators of the developmental trajectory of cortical neurons across evolution.
2022-03-09 | GSE159596 | GEO