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Matsumoto, N.

Publications and source records attributed to Matsumoto, N..

27 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Limb-clasping, cognitive deficit and increased vulnerability to kainic acid -induced seizures in neuronal GPI anchor deficiency mouse models

Post-translational modification of a protein with glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI) is a conserved mechanism exists in all eukaryotes. Thus far, more than 150 human GPI anchored proteins have been discovered and about 30 enzymes have been reported to be involved in the biosynthesis and maturation of mammalian GPI. Phosphatidylinositol glycan biosynthesis class A protein (PIGA) catalyzes the very first step of GPI anchor biosynthesis. Patients carrying a mutation of the PIGA gene usually suffer from intractable epilepsy and intellectual developmental disorder. We generated three mouse models with PIGA deficits specifically in telencephalon excitatory neurons (Ex-M-cko), inhibitory neurons (In-M-cko), or thalamic neurons (Th-H-cko), respectively. Both Ex-M-cko and In-M-cko mice showed impaired long-term fear memory and were more susceptible to kainic acid (KA)-induced seizures. In addition, In-M-cko demonstrated a severe limb-clasping phenotype. Hippocampal synapse changes were observed in Ex-M-cko mice. Our Piga conditional knockout mouse models provide powerful tools to understand the cell-type specific mechanisms underlying inherited GPI deficiency and to test different therapeutic modalities.

neuroscience↗

Intermitochondrial signaling regulates the uniform distribution of stationary mitochondria in axons

In the central nervous system, many neurons develop axonal arbors that are crucial for information processing. Previous studies have demonstrated that premature axons contain motile and stationary mitochondria, and their balance is important for axonal arborization. However, the mechanisms by which neurons determine the positions of stationary mitochondria as well as their turnover remain to be elucidated. In this study, we investigated the regulation of spatiotemporal group dynamics of stationary mitochondria. We observed that the distribution of stationary mitochondrial spots along the unmyelinated and nonsynaptic axons is not random but rather relatively uniform both in vitro and in vivo. Intriguingly, whereas the positions of each mitochondrial spot changed over time, the overall distribution remained uniform. In addition, local inactivation of mitochondria inhibited the translocation of mitochondrial spots in adjacent axonal regions, suggesting that functional mitochondria enhance the motility of neighboring mitochondria. Furthermore, we showed that the ATP concentration was relatively high around mitochondria, and treating axons with phosphocreatine, which supplies ATP, reduced the immobile mitochondria induced by local mitochondrial inhibition. These observations indicate that intermitochondrial interactions, mediated by ATP signaling, control the uniform distribution of axonal mitochondria. The present study reveals a novel cellular system that collectively regulates stationary mitochondria in axons.

neuroscience↗

Tonically active neurons in the monkey dorsal striatum signal outcome feedback during trial-and-error search behavior

An animals choice behavior is shaped by the outcome feedback from selected actions in a trial-and-error approach. Tonically active neurons (TANs), presumed cholinergic interneurons in the striatum, are thought to be involved in the learning and performance of reward-directed behaviors, but it remains unclear how TANs are involved in shaping reward-directed choice behaviors based on the outcome feedback. To this end, we recorded activity of TANs from the dorsal striatum of two macaque monkeys (Macaca fuscata; 1 male, 1 female) while they performed a multi-step choice task to obtain multiple rewards. In this task, the monkeys first searched for a rewarding target from among three alternatives in a trial-and-error manner and then earned additional rewards by repeatedly choosing the rewarded target. We found that a considerable proportion of TANs selectively responded to either the reward or the no-reward outcome feedback during the trial-and-error search, but these feedback responses were not observed during repeat trials. Moreover, the feedback responses of TANs were similarly observed in any search trials, without distinctions regarding the predicted probability of rewards and the location of chosen targets. Unambiguously, TANs detected reward and no-reward feedback specifically when the monkeys performed trial-and-error searches, in which the monkeys were learning the value of the targets and adjusting their subsequent choice behavior based on the reward and no-reward feedback. These results suggest that striatal cholinergic interneurons signal outcome feedback specifically during search behavior, in circumstances where the choice outcomes cannot be predicted with certainty by the animals. HighlightsO_LITANs signal reward and no-reward outcome feedback when monkeys made search behaviors C_LIO_LITANs respond regardless of predicted reward probability or chosen target location C_LIO_LITANs may signal feedback outcomes when rewards cannot be predicted with certainty C_LI

neuroscience↗

Regulation of human development by ubiquitin chain editing of chromatin remodelers

Embryonic development occurs through commitment of pluripotent stem cells to differentiation programs that require highly coordinated changes in gene expression. Chromatin remodeling of gene regulatory elements is a critical component of how such changes are achieved. While many factors controlling chromatin dynamics are known, mechanisms of how different chromatin regulators are orchestrated during development are not well understood. Here, we describe LINKED (LINKage-specific-deubiquitylation-deficiency-induced Embryonic Defects) syndrome, a novel multiple congenital anomaly disorder caused by hypomorphic hemizygous missense variants in the deubiquitylase OTUD5/DUBA. Studying LINKED mutations in vitro, in mouse, and in models of neuroectodermal differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells, we uncover a novel regulatory circuit that coordinates chromatin remodeling pathways during early differentiation. We show that the K48-linkage-specific deubiquitylation activity of OTUD5 is essential for murine and human development and, if reduced, leads to aberrant cell-fate specification. OTUD5 controls differentiation through preventing the degradation of multiple chromatin regulators including ARID1A/B and HDAC2, mutation of which underlie developmental syndromes that exhibit phenotypic overlap with LINKED patients. Accordingly, loss of OTUD5 during early differentiation leads to less accessible chromatin at neural and neural crest enhancers and thus aberrant rewiring of gene expression networks. Our work identifies a novel mechanistic link between phenotypically related developmental disorders and an essential function for linkagespecific ubiquitin editing of substrate groups (i.e. chromatin remodeling complexes) during early cellfate decisions - a regulatory concept, we predict to be a general feature of embryonic development.

genetics↗

Genome-wide survey of tandem repeats by nanopore sequencing shows that disease-associated repeats are more polymorphic in the general population

Tandem repeats are highly mutable and contribute to the development of human disease by a variety of mechanisms. However, it is difficult to predict which tandem repeats may cause a disease. We performed a genome-wide survey of the millions of human tandem repeats using long read genome sequencing data from 16 humans. We found that known Mendelian disease-causing or disease-associated repeats, especially coding CAG and 5UTR GGC repeats, are relatively long and polymorphic in the general population. This method, especially if used in GWAS, may indicate possible new candidates of pathogenic or biologically important tandem repeats in human genomes.

genomics↗

Long-read sequencing identifies GGC repeat expansion in human-specific NOTCH2NLC associated with neuronal intranuclear inclusion disease

Neuronal intranuclear inclusion disease (NIID) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease characterized by eosinophilic hyaline intranuclear inclusions in neuronal and somatic cells. The wide range of clinical manifestations in NIID makes ante-mortem diagnosis difficult 1-8, but skin biopsy realized its ante-mortem diagnosis 9,10 and many NIID cases have been diagnosed by skin biopsy11,12. Most cases of NIID are sporadic, but several familial cases are known. Using a large NIID family, we conducted linkage mapping, found a 58.1-Mb linked-region at 1p22.1-q21.3 with a maximum logarithm of odds (LOD) score of 4.21, and successfully identified a GGC repeat expansion in the 5 portion of NOTCH2NLC in all affected members by long-read sequencing, but not in unaffected members. We further found the similar expansions in additional 8 unrelated families with NIID as well as 39 sporadic NIID patients. Repeat-primed PCR consistently detected the GGC repeat expansion in all the familial and sporadic patients diagnosed by skin biopsy, but never in unaffected family members nor 200 controls. This shows that pathogenic changes in a human-specific gene evolutionarily generated by segmental duplication indeed causes a human disease.

genetics↗

Identification of SMARCD1 as a syndromic intellectual disability gene that is required for memory and context-dependent regulation of neuronal genes in Drosophila

Mutations in several genes encoding components of the SWI/SNF chromatin remodeling complex cause syndromic intellectual disability (ID). Here, we report on 5 individuals with mutations in the SMARCD1 gene, presenting with ID, developmental delay, hypotonia, feeding difficulties, and small extremities. The mutations were proven to be de novo in 4 of the 5 individuals. Mutations in other SWI/SNF components cause Coffin-Siris, Nicolaides-Baraitser, or other syndromic ID disorders. Although the individuals presented here have some clinical overlap with these disorders, they lack the typical facial dysmorphisms. To gain insight into the function of SMARCD1 in neurons, we investigated the Drosophila ortholog, Bap60, in postmitotic memory-forming neurons of the adult Drosophila mushroom body (MB). Targeted knockdown of Bap60 in the MB of adult flies causes defects in long-term memory. Mushroom body specific transcriptome analysis revealed that Bap60 is required for context-dependent expression of genes involved in neuron function and development in juvenile flies when synaptic connections are actively being formed in response to experience. Taken together, we identify SMARCD1 mutations as a novel cause of ID, and establish a role for the SMARCD1 ortholog Bap60 in regulation of neurodevelopmental genes during a critical time window of juvenile adult brain development that is essential in establishing neuronal circuits that are required for learning and memory.

genetics↗

Robust detection of tandem repeat expansions from long DNA reads

Tandemly repeated sequences are highly mutable and variable features of genomes. Tandem repeat expansions are responsible for a growing list of human diseases, even though it is hard to determine tandem repeat sequences with current DNA sequencing technology. Recent long-read technologies are promising, because the DNA reads are often longer than the repetitive regions, but are hampered by high error rates. Here, we report robust detection of human repeat expansions from careful alignments of long (PacBio and nanopore) reads to a reference genome. Our method (tandem-genotypes) is robust to systematic sequencing errors, inexact repeats with fuzzy boundaries, and low sequencing coverage. By comparing to healthy controls, we can prioritize pathological expansions within the top 10 out of 700000 tandem repeats in the genome. This may help to elucidate the many genetic diseases whose causes remain unknown.

genetics↗

Frequent variants in the Japanese population determine quasi-Mendelian inheritance of rare retinal ciliopathy

Hereditary retinal degenerations (HRDs) are Mendelian diseases characterized by progressive blindness and caused by ultra-rare mutations. In a genomic screen of 331 unrelated Japanese patients, we identify a disruptive Alu insertion and a nonsense variant (p.Arg1933*) in the ciliary gene RP1, neither of which are rare alleles in Japan. p.Arg1933* is almost polymorphic (frequency = 0.6%, amongst 12,000 individuals), does not cause disease in homozygosis or heterozygosis, and yet is significantly enriched in HRD patients (frequency = 2.1%, i.e. a 3.5-fold enrichment; p-value = 9.2x10-5). Familial co-segregation and association analyses show that p.Arg1933* can act as a Mendelian mutation, in trans with the Alu insertion, but might also cause disease in association with two alleles in the EYS gene in a non-Mendelian pattern of heredity. Our results suggest that rare conditions such as HRDs can be paradoxically determined by relatively common variants, following a quasi-Mendelian model linking monogenic and complex inheritance.

genomics↗