Project description:Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) is generally a late onset neurodegenerative disease. Mutations in the Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1) gene accounts for approximately 20% of familial ALS and 2% of all ALS cases. Although a number of hypothesis have been proposed to explain mutant SOD1 toxicity, the molecular mechanisms of the disease remain unclear. SOD1 linked ALS is thought to function in a non-cell autonomous manner such that the motoneurons are critical for the onset and glia contribute to the progress of the disease. To dissect the roles of motoneurons and glia, we used the Gal4-UAS system to determine gene expression changes following the expression of mutant human SOD1 (G85R) selectively in either motoneurons or glia, and concurrently in motoneurons and glia of flies. We conducted a microarray on young (5 days old) and old (45 days old) flies expressing G85R in these cell types and identified a number of genes involved in a variety of processes. The candidate genes identified by this screen may help elucidate the individual and combined contributions of motoneurons and glial cells in ALS. We used microarrays to evaluate the transcriptional profile of 5 day old and 45 day old flies expressing mutant human SOD1 (G85R) in a tissue specific manner in motoneurons, glia, and together in motoneurons and glia and compared the expression to flies expressing wild-type drosophila SOD1 controls. The Gal4-UAS system was used to drive tissue expression of either mutant human SOD1 (G85R) or wild-type drosophila SOD1 (dSOD1) in flies. Flies containing either the motoneuronal driver, D42-Gal4, the glial driver, M1B-Gal4, or the combined motoneuronal and glial drivers, D42+M1B-Gal4 were crossed to flies containing either mutant human SOD1, UAS-G85R, or wild-type drosophila SOD1, UAS-dSOD1, as a control. Adult male progeny were collected within 24 hours after eclosion and aged to 5 (5d) and 45 (45d) days old. Groups of 10 flies were maintained in vials of cornmeal agar food and transferred to fresh food every 5-7 days. For each Gal4-UAS line and each age, 3 biological replicates consisting of 40 whole flies were flash frozen in liquid nitrogen and used to isolate total RNA, for a total of 36 samples.
Project description:Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) is generally a late onset neurodegenerative disease. Mutations in the Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1) gene accounts for approximately 20% of familial ALS and 2% of all ALS cases. Although a number of hypothesis have been proposed to explain mutant SOD1 toxicity, the molecular mechanisms of the disease remain unclear. SOD1 linked ALS is thought to function in a non-cell autonomous manner such that the motoneurons are critical for the onset and glia contribute to the progress of the disease. To dissect the roles of motoneurons and glia, we used the Gal4-UAS system to determine gene expression changes following the expression of mutant human SOD1 (G85R) selectively in either motoneurons or glia, and concurrently in motoneurons and glia of flies. We conducted a microarray on young (5 days old) and old (45 days old) flies expressing G85R in these cell types and identified a number of genes involved in a variety of processes. The candidate genes identified by this screen may help elucidate the individual and combined contributions of motoneurons and glial cells in ALS. We used microarrays to evaluate the transcriptional profile of 5 day old and 45 day old flies expressing mutant human SOD1 (G85R) in a tissue specific manner in motoneurons, glia, and together in motoneurons and glia and compared the expression to flies expressing wild-type drosophila SOD1 controls.
Project description:ChIP-seq study analysing adult Drosophila melanogaster head, glial, neuronal and fat body, as well as embryonic RNA pol II and H2A.v binding by employing the GAL4-UAS system to generate GFP-fusion proteins and ChIP-seq
Project description:Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a lethal motor neuron disease that progressively debilitates neuronal cells that control voluntary muscle activity. In a mouse model of ALS that expresses mutated human superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1-G93A) skeletal muscle is one of the tissues affected early by mutant SOD1 toxicity. Fast-twitch and slow-twitch muscles are differentially affected in ALS patients and in the SOD1-G93A model, fast-twitch muscles being more vulnerable. We used miRNA microarrays to investigate miRNA alterations in fast-twitch (EDL) and slow-twitch (soleus) skeletal muscles of symptomatic SOD1-G93A animals and their age-matched wild type littermates. At age of 90 days RNA was extracted from extensor digitorum longus (EDL) and soleus (SOL) muscles of male SOD1-G93A animals and their age-matched wild type male littermates. RNA was hybridized on Affymetrix Multispecies miRNA-2_0 Array.
Project description:Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a lethal motor neuron disease that progressively debilitates neuronal cells that control voluntary muscle activity. In a mouse model of ALS that expresses mutated human superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1-G93A) skeletal muscle is one of the tissues affected early by mutant SOD1 toxicity. Fast-twitch and slow-twitch muscles are differentially affected in ALS patients and in the SOD1-G93A model, fast-twitch muscles being more vulnerable. We used miRNA microarrays to investigate miRNA alterations in fast-twitch (EDL) and slow-twitch (soleus) skeletal muscles of symptomatic SOD1-G93A animals and their age-matched wild type littermates.
Project description:In this study we investigated the role of SRSF1 in mitigating locomotor defect in C9ORF72-ALS/FTD Drosophila lines. We analysed the transcriptomes of Drosophila heads from the same lines: (i) control flies expressing 3 G4C2 repeats and a luciferase-RNAi control (G4C2x3 + C-RNAi); (ii) C9ORF72-ALS/FTD model expressing 36 G4C2 repeats and the RNAi control (G4C2x36 + C-RNAi); (iii) C9ORF72-ALS/FTD-neuroprotected flies expressing 36 G4C2 repeats and the disrupted SRSF1 allele (G4C2x36 + ΔSRSF1). RNA samples were profiled using Drosophila 3' IVT gene expression Affymetrix microarrays prior to qRT-PCR validation of the SRSF1 depletion in neuroprotected flies. This study is part of a larger study that investigates the mitigating role of SRSF1 at whole-genome level to detect transcriptomal alterations and neuronal hyperexcitability in C9ORF72-linked amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
Project description:Microarray analysis has been applied to the study of ALS in order to investigate gene expression in whole spinal cord homogenates of SOD1 G93A mice and human ALS cases, although the massive presence of glial cells and inflammatory factors has made it difficult to define which gene expression changes were motor neuron specific. Recently, laser capture microdissection (LCM), combined with microarray analysis, has allowed the identification of motor neuron specific changes in gene expression in human ALS cases. The aim of the present study is to combine LCM and microarray analysis to study how motor neurons in the spinal cord of transgenic SOD1 G93A mice and transgenic SOD1 WT respond to stimuli determined by the presence of the human mutant protein throughout the evolution of the stages in motor neuron injury Experiment Overall Design: Motor neurons have been isolated from the spinal cord of G93A mice and non transgenic littermates at different time points and the transcription expression profile of the isolated motor neurons has been analysed