| First Author | Kwon Y | Year | 2019 |
| Journal | Biochem Biophys Res Commun | Volume | 516 |
| Issue | 4 | Pages | 1204-1210 |
| PubMed ID | 31296385 | Mgi Jnum | J:284009 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:6390224 | Doi | 10.1016/j.bbrc.2019.07.001 |
| Citation | Kwon Y, et al. (2019) betaPix heterozygous mice have defects in neuronal morphology and social interaction. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 516(4):1204-1210 |
| abstractText | betaPix activates Rho family small GTPases, Rac1 and Cdc42 as a guanine nucleotide exchange factor. Although overexpression of betaPix in cultured neurons indicates that betaPix is involved in spine morphogenesis and synapse formation in vitro, the in vivo role of betaPix in the neuron is not well understood. Recently, we generated betaPix knockout mice that showed lethality at embryonic day 9.5. Here, we investigate the neuronal role of betaPix using betaPix heterozygous mice that are viable and fertile. betaPix heterozygous mice show decreased expression levels of betaPix proteins in various tissues including the brain. Cultured hippocampal neurons from betaPix heterozygous mice show a decrease in neurite length and complexity as well as synaptic density. Both excitatory and inhibitory synapse densities are decreased in these neurons. Golgi-staining of hippocampal tissues from the brain of these mice show reduced dendritic complexity and spine density in the hippocampal neurons. Expression levels of NMDA- and AMPA-receptor subunits and Git1 protein in hippocampal tissues are also decreased in these mice. Behaviorally, betaPix heterozygous mice exhibit impaired social interaction. Altogether, these results indicate that betaPix is required for neurite morphogenesis and synapse formation, and the reduced expression of betaPix proteins results in a defect in social behavior. |
