Multi-modal transcriptomic analysis reveals conserved and divergent molecular mechanisms underlying behaviors in mouse models of schizophrenia
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ABSTRACT: Schizophrenia (SCZ) is a severe mental disorder with complex behavioral pathology and complex genetic risk. Here, we performed an integrated transcriptomic analysis of the prefrontal cortex in two distinct male C57BL/6 mouse models of schizophrenia, the neurodevelopmental methylazoxymethanol acetate (MAM) model and the acute non-competitive N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) antagonist MK-801 model, compared to that of human patients. Transcriptome in the MK-801 model displayed a modest correlation with that of schizophrenia patients, higher than the MAM model, underscoring NMDAR antagonism's relevance to the core pathology of the disorder. Using weighted gene co-expression network analysis, we identified fifteen co-expression modules across the mouse models, with eight modules significantly associated with schizophrenia-like behavioral endophenotypes. Notably, modules darkturquoise (linked to hyperlocomotion) and royalblue (associated with social withdrawal) were enriched in Wnt and PI3K/Akt signaling pathways, respectively. Pharmacological inhibition of these two pathways specifically rectified corresponding behavioral anomalies in the MK-801 model, highlighting the critical role of altered Wnt and PI3K/Akt signaling in these behavioral domains of schizophrenia-related behaviors and proposing new avenues for therapeutic intervention.
ORGANISM(S): Mus musculus
PROVIDER: GSE307928 | GEO | 2026/09/11
REPOSITORIES: GEO
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