@article{RiveroAlhamaRibaKuetal.2021, author = {Rivero, Olga and Alhama-Riba, Judit and Ku, Hsing-Ping and Fischer, Matthias and Ortega, Gabriela and {\´A}lmos, P{\´e}ter and Diouf, David and van den Hove, Daniel and Lesch, Klaus-Peter}, title = {Haploinsufficiency of the Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Risk Gene St3gal3 in Mice Causes Alterations in Cognition and Expression of Genes Involved in Myelination and Sialylation}, series = {Frontiers in Genetics}, volume = {12}, journal = {Frontiers in Genetics}, issn = {1664-8021}, doi = {10.3389/fgene.2021.688488}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-246855}, year = {2021}, abstract = {Genome wide association meta-analysis identified ST3GAL3, a gene encoding the beta-galactosidase-alpha-2,3-sialyltransferase-III, as a risk gene for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Although loss-of-function mutations in ST3GAL3 are implicated in non-syndromic autosomal recessive intellectual disability (NSARID) and West syndrome, the impact of ST3GAL3 haploinsufficiency on brain function and the pathophysiology of neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs), such as ADHD, is unknown. Since St3gal3 null mutant mice display severe developmental delay and neurological deficits, we investigated the effects of partial inactivation of St3gal3 in heterozygous (HET) knockout (St3gal3±) mice on behavior as well as expression of markers linked to myelination processes and sialylation pathways. Our results reveal that male St3gal3 HET mice display cognitive deficits, while female HET animals show increased activity, as well as increased cognitive control, compared to their wildtype littermates. In addition, we observed subtle alterations in the expression of several markers implicated in oligodendrogenesis, myelin formation, and protein sialylation as well as cell adhesion/synaptic target glycoproteins of ST3GAL3 in a brain region- and/or sex-specific manner. Taken together, our findings indicate that haploinsufficiency of ST3GAL3 results in a sex-dependent alteration of cognition, behavior and markers of brain plasticity.}, language = {en} } @article{FischerRaabe2018, author = {Fischer, Matthias and Raabe, Thomas}, title = {Animal models for Coffin-Lowry syndrome: RSK2 and nervous system dysfunction}, series = {Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience}, volume = {12}, journal = {Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience}, number = {106}, doi = {10.3389/fnbeh.2018.00106}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-176799}, year = {2018}, abstract = {Loss of function mutations in the rsk2 gene cause Coffin-Lowry syndrome (CLS), which is associated with multiple symptoms including severe mental disabilities. Despite the characterization of ribosomal S6 kinase 2 (RSK2) as a protein kinase acting as a downstream effector of the well characterized ERK MAP-kinase signaling pathway, it turns out to be a challenging task to link RSK2 to specific neuronal processes dysregulated in case of mutation. Animal models such as mouse and Drosophila combine advanced genetic manipulation tools with in vivo imaging techniques, high-resolution connectome analysis and a variety of behavioral assays, thereby allowing for an in-depth analysis for gene functions in the nervous system. Although modeling mental disability in animal systems has limitations because of the complexity of phenotypes, the influence of genetic variation and species-specific characteristics at the neural circuit and behavioral level, some common aspects of RSK2 function in the nervous system have emerged, which will be presented. Only with this knowledge our understanding of the pathophysiology of CLS can be improved, which might open the door for development of potential intervention strategies.}, language = {en} }