1Hum. Mol. Genet. 2011 Jan 20: 387-91
PMID21037240
TitleMost genome-wide significant susceptibility loci for schizophrenia and bipolar disorder reported to date cross-traditional diagnostic boundaries.
AbstractRecent findings from genetic epidemiology and from genome-wide association studies point strongly to a partial overlap in the genes that contribute susceptibility to schizophrenia and bipolar disorder (BD). Previous data have also directly implicated one of the best supported schizophrenia-associated loci, zinc finger binding protein 804A (ZNF804A), as showing trans-disorder effects, and the same is true for one of the best supported bipolar loci, calcium channel, voltage-dependent, L type, alpha 1C subunit (CACNA1C) which has also been associated with schizophrenia. We have undertaken a cross-phenotype study based upon the remaining variants that show genome-wide evidence for association in large schizophrenia and BD meta-analyses. These comprise in schizophrenia, SNPs in or in the vicinity of transcription factor 4 (TCF4), neurogranin (NRGN) and an extended region covering the MHC locus on chromosome 6. For BD, the strongly supported variants are in the vicinity of ankyrin 3, node of Ranvier (ANK3) and polybromo-1 (PBRM1). Using data sets entirely independent of their original discoveries, we observed strong evidence that the PBRM1 locus is also associated with schizophrenia (P = 0.00015) and nominally significant evidence (P < 0.05) that the NRGN and the extended MHC region are associated with BD. Moreover, considering this highly restricted set of loci as a group, the evidence for trans-disorder effects is compelling (P = 4.7 × 10(-5)). Including earlier reported data for trans-disorder effects for ZNF804A and CACNA1C, six out of eight of the most robustly associated loci for either disorder show trans-disorder effects.
SCZ Keywordsschizophrenia
2Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2012 Jan 36: 556-71
PMID21946175
TitleGenome wide association studies (GWAS) and copy number variation (CNV) studies of the major psychoses: what have we learnt?
Abstractschizophrenia (SZ) and bipolar disorder (BPD) have high heritabilities and are clinically and genetically complex. Genome wide association studies (GWAS) and studies of copy number variations (CNV) in SZ and BPD have allowed probing of their underlying genetic risks. In this systematic review, we assess extant genetic signals from published GWAS and CNV studies of SZ and BPD up till March 2011. Risk genes associated with SZ at genome wide significance level (p value<7.2 × 10(-8)) include zinc finger binding protein 804A (ZNF804A), major histocompatibility (MHC) region on chromosome 6, neurogranin (NRGN) and transcription factor 4 (TCF4). Risk genes associated with BPD include ankyrin 3, node of Ranvier (ANK3), calcium channel, voltage dependent, L type, alpha 1C subunit (CACNA1C), diacylglycerol kinase eta (DGKH), gene locus on chromosome 16p12, and polybromo-1 (PBRM1) and very recently neurocan gene (NCAN). Possible common genes underlying psychosis include ZNF804A, CACNA1C, NRGN and PBRM1. The CNV studies suggest that whilst CNVs are found in both SZ and BPD, the large deletions and duplications are more likely found in SZ rather than BPD. The validation of any genetic signal is likely confounded by genetic and phenotypic heterogeneities which are influenced by epistatic, epigenetic and gene-environment interactions. There is a pressing need to better integrate the multiple research platforms including systems biology computational models, genomics, cross disorder phenotyping studies, transcriptomics, proteomics, metabolomics, neuroimaging and clinical correlations in order to get us closer to a more enlightened understanding of the genetic and biological basis underlying these potentially crippling conditions.
SCZ Keywordsschizophrenia
3Biol. Psychiatry 2012 Oct 72: 645-50
PMID22560537
TitleReplication study and meta-analysis in European samples supports association of the 3p21.1 locus with bipolar disorder.
AbstractCommon genetic polymorphisms at chromosome 3p21.1, including rs2251219 in polybromo 1 (PBRM1), have been implicated in susceptibility to bipolar affective disorder (BP) through genome-wide association studies. Subsequent studies have suggested that this is also a risk locus for other psychiatric phenotypes, including major depression and schizophrenia.
To replicate the association, we studied 2562 cases with BP and 25,439 control subjects collected from seven cohorts with either genome-wide association or individual genotyping of rs2251219 and tagging single nucleotide polymorphisms across the PBRM1 gene. Results from the different case-control groups were combined with the inverse variance weighting method.
In our dataset, rs2251219 was associated with BP (odds ratio [OR] = .89, p = .003), and meta-analysis of previously published data with our nonoverlapping new data confirmed genome-wide significant association (OR = .875, p = 2.68 × 10(-9)). Genotypic data from the SGENE-plus consortium were used to examine the association of the same variant with schizophrenia in an overall sample of 8794 cases and 25,457 control subjects, but this was not statistically significant (OR = .97, p = .21).
There is strong evidence of association of rs2251219 with BP. However, our data do not support association of this marker with schizophrenia. Because the region of association has high linkage disequilibrium, forming a large haplotype block across many genes, it is not clear which gene is causally implicated in the disorder.
SCZ Keywordsschizophrenia
4In Silico Pharmacol 2013 -1 1: 15
PMID25505659
TitleComparison of gene expression profiles in the blood, hippocampus and prefrontal cortex of rats.
AbstractThe comparability of gene expression between blood and brain tissues is a central issue in neuropsychiatric research where the analysis of molecular mechanisms in the brain is of high importance for the understanding of the diseases and the discovery of biomarkers. However, the accessibility of brain tissue is limited. Therefore, knowledge about how easily accessible peripheral tissue, e. g. blood, is comparable to and reflects gene expression of brain regions will help to advance neuropsychiatric research.
Gene expression in the blood, hippocampus (HC) and prefrontal cortex (PFC) of genetically identical rats was compared using a genome-wide Affymetrix gene expression microarray covering 29,215 expressed genes. A total of 56.8% of 15,717 expressed genes were co-expressed in blood and at least one brain tissue, while 55.3% of all genes were co-expressed in all three tissues simultaneously. The overlapping genes included a set of genes of relevance to neuropsychiatric diseases, in particular bipolar disorder, schizophrenia and alcohol addiction. These genes included CLOCK, COMT, FAAH, NPY, NR3C1, NRGN, PBRM1, TCF4, and SYNE.
This study provides baseline data on absolute gene expression and differences between gene expression in the blood, HC and PFC brain tissue of genetically identical rats. The present data represents a valuable resource for future studies as it might be used for first information on gene expression levels of genes of interest in blood and brain under baseline conditions. Limitations of our study comprise possible contamination of brain tissue with blood and the non-detection of genes with very low expression levels. Genes that are more highly expressed in the brain than in the blood are of particular interest since changes in their expression, e.g. due to disease status, or treatment, are likely to be detected in an experiment. In contrast, genes with higher expression in the blood than in the brain are less informative since their higher baseline levels could superimpose variation in brain.
SCZ Keywordsschizophrenia
5PLoS ONE 2013 -1 8: e70964
PMID23967141
TitleGenetic variants on 3q21 and in the Sp8 transcription factor gene (SP8) as susceptibility loci for psychotic disorders: a genetic association study.
AbstractRecent genome-wide association studies (GWASs) investigating bipolar disorder (BD) have detected a number of susceptibility genes. These studies have also provided novel insight into shared genetic components between BD and schizophrenia (SCZ), two major psychotic disorders. To examine the replication of the risk variants for BD and the pleiotropic effect of the variants associated with BD, we conducted a genetic association study of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) that were selected based upon previous BD GWASs, which targeted psychotic disorders (BD and SCZ) in the Japanese population.
Forty-eight SNPs were selected based upon previous GWASs. A two-stage analysis was conducted using first-set screening (for all SNPs: BD?=?1,012, SCZ?=?1,032 and control?=?993) and second-set replication samples (for significant SNPs in the screening analysis: BD?=?821, SCZ?=?1,808 and control?=?2,149). We assessed allelic association between BD, SCZ, psychosis (BD+SCZ) and the SNPs selected for the analysis.
Eight SNPs revealed nominal association signals for all comparisons (Puncorrected<0.05). Among these SNPs, the top two SNPs (associated with psychosis: Pcorrected?=?0.048 and 0.037 for rs2251219 and rs2709722, respectively) were further assessed in the second-set samples, and we replicated the signals from the initial screening analysis (associated with psychosis: Pcorrected?=?0.0070 and 0.033 for rs2251219 and rs2709722, respectively). The meta-analysis between the current and previous GWAS results showed that rs2251219 in Polybromo1 (PBRM1) was significant on genome-wide association level (P?=?5×10(-8)) only for BD (P?=?9.4×10(-9)) and psychosis (P?=?2.0×10(-10)). Although the association of rs2709722 in Sp8 transcription factor (SP8) was suggestive in the Asian population (P?=?2.1×10(-7) for psychosis), this signal weakened when the samples size was increased by including data from a Caucasian population (P?=?4.3×10(-3)).
We found 3p21.1 (including PBRM1, strong linkage disequilibrium made it difficult to pinpoint the risk genes) and SP8 as risk loci for BD, SCZ and psychosis. Further replication studies will be required for conclusive results.
SCZ Keywordsschizophrenia
6Psychol Med 2015 -1 45: 2461-80
PMID25858580
TitleWhat is the impact of genome-wide supported risk variants for schizophrenia and bipolar disorder on brain structure and function? A systematic review.
AbstractThe powerful genome-wide association studies (GWAS) revealed common mutations that increase susceptibility for schizophrenia (SZ) and bipolar disorder (BD), but the vast majority were not known to be functional or associated with these illnesses. To help fill this gap, their impact on human brain structure and function has been examined. We systematically discuss this output to facilitate its timely integration in the psychosis research field; and encourage reflection for future research. Irrespective of imaging modality, studies addressing the effect of SZ/BD GWAS risk genes (ANK3, CACNA1C, MHC, TCF4, NRGN, DGKH, PBRM1, NCAN and ZNF804A) were included. Most GWAS risk variations were reported to affect neuroimaging phenotypes implicated in SZ/BD: white-matter integrity (ANK3 and ZNF804A), volume (CACNA1C and ZNF804A) and density (ZNF804A); grey-matter (CACNA1C, NRGN, TCF4 and ZNF804A) and ventricular (TCF4) volume; cortical folding (NCAN) and thickness (ZNF804A); regional activation during executive tasks (ANK3, CACNA1C, DGKH, NRGN and ZNF804A) and functional connectivity during executive tasks (CACNA1C and ZNF804A), facial affect recognition (CACNA1C and ZNF804A) and theory-of-mind (ZNF804A); but inconsistencies and non-replications also exist. Further efforts such as standardizing reporting and exploring complementary designs, are warranted to test the reproducibility of these early findings.
SCZ Keywordsschizophrenia
7Genome Med 2016 -1 8: 53
PMID27142060
TitleIdentification of the BRD1 interaction network and its impact on mental disorder risk.
AbstractThe bromodomain containing 1 (BRD1) gene has been implicated with transcriptional regulation, brain development, and susceptibility to schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. To advance the understanding of BRD1 and its role in mental disorders, we characterized the protein and chromatin interactions of the BRD1 isoforms, BRD1-S and BRD1-L.
Stable human cell lines expressing epitope tagged BRD1-S and BRD1-L were generated and used as discovery systems for identifying protein and chromatin interactions. Protein-protein interactions were identified using co-immunoprecipitation followed by mass spectrometry and chromatin interactions were identified using chromatin immunoprecipitation followed by next generation sequencing. Gene expression profiles and differentially expressed genes were identified after upregulating and downregulating BRD1 expression using microarrays. The presented functional molecular data were integrated with human genomic and transcriptomic data using available GWAS, exome-sequencing datasets as well as spatiotemporal transcriptomic datasets from the human brain.
We present several novel protein interactions of BRD1, including isoform-specific interactions as well as proteins previously implicated with mental disorders. By BRD1-S and BRD1-L chromatin immunoprecipitation followed by next generation sequencing we identified binding to promoter regions of 1540 and 823 genes, respectively, and showed correlation between BRD1-S and BRD1-L binding and regulation of gene expression. The identified BRD1 interaction network was found to be predominantly co-expressed with BRD1 mRNA in the human brain and enriched for pathways involved in gene expression and brain function. By interrogation of large datasets from genome-wide association studies, we further demonstrate that the BRD1 interaction network is enriched for schizophrenia risk.
Our results show that BRD1 interacts with chromatin remodeling proteins, e.g. PBRM1, as well as histone modifiers, e.g. MYST2 and SUV420H1. We find that BRD1 primarily binds in close proximity to transcription start sites and regulates expression of numerous genes, many of which are involved with brain development and susceptibility to mental disorders. Our findings indicate that BRD1 acts as a regulatory hub in a comprehensive schizophrenia risk network which plays a role in many brain regions throughout life, implicating e.g. striatum, hippocampus, and amygdala at mid-fetal stages.
SCZ Keywordsschizophrenia