Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10356/103393
Title: p53-sensitive epileptic behavior and inflammation in Ft1 hypomorphic mice
Authors: Vernì, Fiammetta
Saggio, Isabella
Burla, Romina
La Torre, Mattia
Zanetti, Giorgia
Bastianelli, Alex
Merigliano, Chiara
Del Giudice, Simona
Vercelli, Alessandro
Di Cunto, Ferdinando
Boido, Marina
Keywords: DRNTU::Science::Biological sciences
Epilepsy
Aging
Issue Date: 2018
Source: Burla, R., La Torre, M., Zanetti, G., Bastianelli, A., Merigliano, C., Del Giudice, S., . . . Saggio, I. (2018). p53-sensitive epileptic behavior and inflammation in Ft1 hypomorphic mice. Frontiers in Genetics, 9, 581-. doi:10.3389/fgene.2018.00581
Series/Report no.: Frontiers in Genetics
Abstract: Epilepsy is a complex clinical condition characterized by repeated spontaneous seizures. Seizures have been linked to multiple drivers including DNA damage accumulation. Investigation of epilepsy physiopathology in humans imposes ethical and practical limitations, for this reason model systems are mostly preferred. Among animal models, mouse mutants are particularly valuable since they allow conjoint behavioral, organismal, and genetic analyses. Along with this, since aging has been associated with higher frequency of seizures, prematurely aging mice, simulating human progeroid diseases, offer a further useful modeling element as they recapitulate aging over a short time-window. Here we report on a mouse mutant with progeroid traits that displays repeated spontaneous seizures. Mutant mice were produced by reducing the expression of the gene Ft1 (AKTIP in humans). In vitro, AKTIP/Ft1 depletion causes telomere aberrations, DNA damage, and cell senescence. AKTIP/Ft1 interacts with lamins, which control nuclear architecture and DNA function. Premature aging defects of Ft1 mutant mice include skeletal alterations and lipodystrophy. The epileptic behavior of Ft1 mutant animals was age and sex linked. Seizures were observed in 18 mutant mice (23.6% of aged ≥ 21 weeks), at an average frequency of 2.33 events/mouse. Time distribution of seizures indicated non-random enrichment of seizures over the follow-up period, with 75% of seizures happening in consecutive weeks. The analysis of epileptic brains did not reveal overt brain morphological alterations or severe neurodegeneration, however, Ft1 reduction induced expression of the inflammatory markers IL-6 and TGF-β. Importantly, Ft1 mutant mice with concomitant genetic reduction of the guardian of the genome, p53, showed no seizures or inflammatory marker activation, implicating the DNA damage response into these phenotypes. This work adds insights into the connection among DNA damage, brain function, and aging. In addition, it further underscores the importance of model organisms for studying specific phenotypes, along with permitting the analysis of genetic interactions at the organismal level.
URI: https://hdl.handle.net/10356/103393
http://hdl.handle.net/10220/47298
DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2018.00581
Schools: School of Biological Sciences 
Rights: © 2018 Burla, La Torre, Zanetti, Bastianelli, Merigliano, Del Giudice, Vercelli, Di Cunto, Boido, Vernì and Saggio. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
Fulltext Permission: open
Fulltext Availability: With Fulltext
Appears in Collections:SBS Journal Articles

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