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Massively parallel functional dissection of schizophrenia associated non-coding genetic variants

ABSTRACT: Schizophrenia (SCZ) is a severe mental disorder affecting 1% of the world population. SCZ is characterized by an underlying genetic architecture that is highly polygenic. Genome wide association studies have identified thousands of genetic variants that are statistically linked to the disease. However, the translation of these associations into insights on the pathomechanisms has been challenging because the causal genetic variants, their molecular function, and their target genes remain largely unknown. To address these questions, we combined induced pluripotent stem cell technology with a massively parallel variant annotation pipeline (MVAP) to functionally characterize 35,000 SCZ associated non-coding genetic variants. This approach identified a set of 620 (1.7%) single nucleotide polymorphisms as functional on the molecular level in a highly cell type and condition specific fashion. Subsequent multi-modal integration of epigenomic data combined with CRISPR screening in human neurons enabled us to systematically translate SCZ variant associations into target genes, biological processes, and ultimately alterations of neuronal physiology. These results provide a new high-resolution map of functional variant-gene combinations and offer comprehensive biological insights into the developmental context and stimulus dependent molecular processes modulated by SCZ genetic variation beyond statistical association.

PROVIDER: EGAS00001007542 | EGA |

REPOSITORIES: EGA

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Project description:Induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) technology presents a unique opportunity to model schizophrenia (SCZ) and other neuropsychiatric disorders in vitro by providing investigators with the means to grow patient-specific neurons. Three approaches are possible regarding disease modeling for a genetically heterogenous disorder, like SCZ. One is the draw subjects from the general patient population who have suspected but undefined disease-causing genetic variants. Another is to focus on a common phenotype, such as clinical presentation, response to medications or age of onset. The third is to use patients who have on a common genetic etiology. We have chosen the latter approach and are developing a library of iPSCs from patients with SCZ who harbor chromosome 22q11.2 microdeletions. In this preliminary study involving 4 patients and 4 controls, gene expression profiling was carried out on early differentiating neurons using RNA-seq. Several important observations were made. First, despite the dramatic molecular changes that occur during the reprogramming of a somatic cell into an iPSC, and its subsequent differentiation into neurons, processes that require months of cultivation with multiple changes in growth medium and treatment with a variety of growth factors, we show that 22q11.2 haploinsufficiency at the DNA level is recapitulated in vitro by substantial decreases in the expression of nearly every gene in the deleted region. Overall, transcriptome profiling revealed significant changes in the expression of 604 genes (423 increased in the SCZ samples, 181 decreased; >1.5-fold change, uncorrected p<0.05). Among the differentially expressed genes were a number of SCZ candidates and genes involved in retinoic acid (RA) signaling. In addition, there was some overlap with the differentially expressed genes found in another study using SCZ patients who do not have 22q11.2 del, one of which was CYP26A1, which codes for one of the major enzymes involved in RA metabolism. Although the sample size in this preliminary study is small, the findings support the idea that dysregulated RA-signaling could be a potential target for therapeutic intervention in SZ associated with 22q11.2 del, and perhaps other subgroups of patients. 4 controls and 4 patients

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Massively parallel functional dissection of schizophrenia associated non-coding genetic variants

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