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Rasd2 Modulates Psychotomimetic Drug Effects in Mice and Schizophrenia-related Phenotypes in Humans

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 April 2020

D. Vitucci ,
A. Di Giorgio ,
F. Napolitano ,
B. Pelosi ,
G. Blasi ,
F. Errico ,
M.T. Attrotto ,
B. Gelao ,
L. Fazio  and
P. Taurisano
...Show all authors
D. Vitucci
Affiliation:
Laboratory of Behavioural Neurosciences, Ceinge Biotecnologie Avanzate, Naples, Italy
A. Di Giorgio
Affiliation:
Group of Psychiatric Neuroscience Department of Neuroscience Basic Sciences and Sense Organs, University of Bari “Aldo Moro”, Bari, Italy
F. Napolitano
Affiliation:
Laboratory of Behavioural Neurosciences, Ceinge Biotecnologie Avanzate, Naples, Italy
B. Pelosi
Affiliation:
Department of Biology, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
G. Blasi
Affiliation:
Group of Psychiatric Neuroscience Department of Neuroscience Basic Sciences and Sense Organs, University of Bari “Aldo Moro”, Bari, Italy
F. Errico
Affiliation:
Laboratory of Behavioural Neurosciences, Ceinge Biotecnologie Avanzate, Naples, Italy
M.T. Attrotto
Affiliation:
Group of Psychiatric Neuroscience Department of Neuroscience Basic Sciences and Sense Organs, University of Bari “Aldo Moro”, Bari, Italy
B. Gelao
Affiliation:
Group of Psychiatric Neuroscience Department of Neuroscience Basic Sciences and Sense Organs, University of Bari “Aldo Moro”, Bari, Italy
L. Fazio
Affiliation:
Group of Psychiatric Neuroscience Department of Neuroscience Basic Sciences and Sense Organs, University of Bari “Aldo Moro”, Bari, Italy
P. Taurisano
Affiliation:
Group of Psychiatric Neuroscience Department of Neuroscience Basic Sciences and Sense Organs, University of Bari “Aldo Moro”, Bari, Italy
A. Di Maio
Affiliation:
Laboratory of Behavioural Neurosciences, Ceinge Biotecnologie Avanzate, Naples, Italy
V. Marsili
Affiliation:
Laboratory of Behavioural Neurosciences, Ceinge Biotecnologie Avanzate, Naples, Italy
M. Pasqualetti
Affiliation:
Department of Biology, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
A. Bertolino
Affiliation:
Group of Psychiatric Neuroscience Department of Neuroscience Basic Sciences and Sense Organs, University of Bari “Aldo Moro”, Bari, Italy
A. Usiello
Affiliation:
Laboratory of Behavioural Neurosciences, Ceinge Biotecnologie Avanzate, Naples, Italy

Abstract

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Background

Rasd2 is a striatal GTP-binding protein that modulates Akt and mTOR signaling cascades, well known to be highly vulnerable pathways in psychiatric disorders.

Aims

We investigated the association of Rasd2 and its genetic variation with a series of prefronto-striatal phenotypes related to psychosis in rodents and humans.

Objectives

We want to provide evidence that Rasd2 controls the vulnerability to schizophrenia-related behavior induced by psychothomimetic drugs in mice. Moreover, we aim to find genetic variations within the Rasd2 gene that influence a series of brain schizophrenia-related phenotypes in human.

Methods

Rasd2 knockout mice were employed to evaluate schizophrenia-like behaviors induced by psychotomimetic drugs like amphetamine and phencyclidine. Furthermore, we investigated if RASD2genetic variations in humans are associated with mRNA expression in post-mortem prefrontal cortex, as well as prefrontal and striatal grey matter volume and physiology during working memory as measured with MRI in healthy subjects. Finally, we assessed RASD2mRNA expression levels in post-mortem brains of patients with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.

Results

We found that both psychotomimetics triggered greater vulnerability to motor stimulation and to prepulse inhibition deficits in Rasd2 mutants. In humans, we found that a genetic variation (rs6518956) within RASD2 predicts prefrontal mRNA expression as well as prefrontal grey matter volume and prefronto-striatal activity during working memory. Finally, we reported that RASD2 mRNA expression is slightly reduced in post-mortem prefrontal cortex of patients with schizophrenia.

Conclusions

Collectively, our data suggests that RASD2represents a gene of potential interest in psychiatric disorders for its ability to modulate prefronto-striatal phenotypes related to schizophrenia.

Type
Article: 1699
Information
European Psychiatry , Volume 30 , Issue S1: Abstracts of the 23rd European Congress of Psychiatry , March 2015 , pp. 1
Copyright
Copyright © European Psychiatric Association 2015
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