Opposite day: Neurodevelopmental conditions may arise from disruptions in the systems-level maturation of neuronal circuits, according to a new preprint. The investigators compared the effects of SYNGAP1 haploinsufficiency in mice with the effects of SYNGAP1 disruption in cortical excitatory neurons. The former induced two altered and opposing patterns of neuronal activity in the cortex, whereas the latter induced only one change. Altered SYNGAP1 functioning during this developmental window of circuit assembly offers clues to how co-occurring hypo- and hyperfunctional network states arise. The Transmitter has previously covered efforts to investigate this gene in the hopes of identifying therapeutic avenues for SYNGAP1-related intellectual disability.
Autism research spotted this week:
- “Inflammation increases the penetrance of behavioral impairment in SHANK3 haploinsufficiency mice—can it explain the behavioral regression in autism?” Molecular Psychiatry
