Alcohol use disorder–associated gene FNDC4 alters glutamatergic and GABAergic neurogenesis in neural organoids

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Abstract

Large-cohort GWAS for alcohol use disorder (AUD) drug treatment outcomes and AUD risk have repeatedly identified genetic loci that are splicing quantitative trait loci for the fibronectin III domain containing 4 (FNDC4) gene in the brain. However, FNDC4 function in the brain and how it might contribute to AUD pathophysiology remain unclear. In the present study, we characterized GWAS loci–associated FNDC4 splice isoforms and demonstrated that FNDC4 alternative splicing results in loss of function for FNDC4. We also investigated FNDC4 function using CRISPR/Cas9 editing and the creation of human induced pluripotent stem cell–derived (iPSC-derived) neural organoids joined with single-nucleus RNA sequencing, a series of studies that showed that FNDC4 KO resulted in a striking shift in the relative proportions of glutamatergic and GABAergic neurons in iPSC-derived forebrain organoids as well as changes in their electrical activity. We further explored a potential mechanism(s) of FNDC4-dependent neurogenesis, and the results suggested a role for FNDC4 in mediating neural cell surface interactions. In summary, this series of experiments indicates that FNDC4 plays a role in regulating cerebral cortical neurogenesis in the brain. This regulation may contribute to the response to AUD pharmacotherapy as well as the effects of alcohol on the brain.

Authors

Xiujuan Zhu, August J. John, Sooan Kim, Li Wang, Enci Ding, Jing Zheng, Ateka Saleh, Irene Marín-Goñi, Abedalrahman Jomaa, Huanyao Gao, Meijie Wang, Ching Man Wai, Irene Moon, Cindy Chen, Alireza Agahi, Brandon J. Coombes, Tony M. Kerr, Nobuyoshi Suto, Liewei Wang, Mark A. Frye, Joanna M. Biernacka, Victor M. Karpyak, Hu Li, Richard M. Weinshilboum, Duan Liu