Cell Reports (Oct 2021)

The Parkinson’s-disease-associated mutation LRRK2-G2019S alters dopaminergic differentiation dynamics via NR2F1

  • Jonas Walter,
  • Silvia Bolognin,
  • Suresh K. Poovathingal,
  • Stefano Magni,
  • Deborah Gérard,
  • Paul M.A. Antony,
  • Sarah L. Nickels,
  • Luis Salamanca,
  • Emanuel Berger,
  • Lisa M. Smits,
  • Kamil Grzyb,
  • Rita Perfeito,
  • Fredrik Hoel,
  • Xiaobing Qing,
  • Jochen Ohnmacht,
  • Michele Bertacchi,
  • Javier Jarazo,
  • Tomasz Ignac,
  • Anna S. Monzel,
  • Laura Gonzalez-Cano,
  • Rejko Krüger,
  • Thomas Sauter,
  • Michèle Studer,
  • Luis Pereira de Almeida,
  • Karl J. Tronstad,
  • Lasse Sinkkonen,
  • Alexander Skupin,
  • Jens C. Schwamborn

Journal volume & issue
Vol. 37, no. 3
p. 109864

Abstract

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Summary: Increasing evidence suggests that neurodevelopmental alterations might contribute to increase the susceptibility to develop neurodegenerative diseases. We investigate the occurrence of developmental abnormalities in dopaminergic neurons in a model of Parkinson’s disease (PD). We monitor the differentiation of human patient-specific neuroepithelial stem cells (NESCs) into dopaminergic neurons. Using high-throughput image analyses and single-cell RNA sequencing, we observe that the PD-associated LRRK2-G2019S mutation alters the initial phase of neuronal differentiation by accelerating cell-cycle exit with a concomitant increase in cell death. We identify the NESC-specific core regulatory circuit and a molecular mechanism underlying the observed phenotypes. The expression of NR2F1, a key transcription factor involved in neurogenesis, decreases in LRRK2-G2019S NESCs, neurons, and midbrain organoids compared to controls. We also observe accelerated dopaminergic differentiation in vivo in NR2F1-deficient mouse embryos. This suggests a pathogenic mechanism involving the LRRK2-G2019S mutation, where the dynamics of dopaminergic differentiation are modified via NR2F1.

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