Alpha-synuclein null mutation exacerbates the phenotype of a model of Menkes disease in female mice
Authors: Casey MegAnne , Zou Dan , Pera Renee A. Reijo , Cabin Deborah E. 
Published: November 2023

Genetic modifier screens provide a useful tool, in diverse organisms fromDrosophilatoC. elegansand mice, for recovering new genes of interest that may reduce or enhance a phenotype of interest. This study reports a modifier screen, based on N-ethyl-N-nitrosourea (ENU) mutagenesis and outcrossing, designed to increase understanding of the normal function of murine α-synuclein (Snca). HumanSNCAwas the first gene linked to familial Parkinson’s disease. Since the discovery of the genetic link ofSNCAto Parkinson’s nearly three decades ago, numerous studies have investigated the normal function of SNCA protein with divergent roles associated with different cellular compartments. Understanding of the normal function of murine Snca is complicated by the fact that mice with homozygous null mutations live a normal lifespan and have only subtle synaptic deficits. Here, we report that the first genetic modifier (a sensitized mutation) that was identified in our screen was the X-linked gene,ATPase copper transporting alpha (Atp7a).In humans, mutations inAtp7aare linked to to Menkes disease, a disease with pleiotropic phenotypes that include a severe neurological component.Atp7aencodes a trans-Golgi copper transporter that supplies the copper co-factor to enzymes that pass through the ER-Golgi network. Male mice that carry a mutation inAtp7adie within 3 weeks of age regardless ofSncagenotype. In contrast, here we show thatSncadisruption modifies the phenotype ofAtp7ain female mice. Female mice that carry theAtp7amutation, on anSncanull background, die earlier (prior to 35 days) at a significantly higher rate than those that carry theAtp7amutation on a wildtypeSncabackground ATPase copper transporting alpha. Thus,Sncanull mutations sensitize female mice to mutations inAtp7a,suggesting that Snca protein may have a protective effect in females, perhaps in neurons, given the co-expression patterns. Although data has suggested diverse functions for human and mouse α-synuclein proteins in multiple cell compartments, this is the first demonstration via use of genetic screening to demonstrate that Snca protein may function in the ER-Golgi system in the mammalian brain in a sex-dependent manner.

Author summary

This study sought to probe the normal function(s) of a protein associated with Parkinson’s disease, the second most common neurodegenerative disease in humans. We used a genetic modifier approach to uncover aspects of normal protein function, via mutagenesis of mice and screening for neurological problems that are decreased or enhanced in mice that are null for α-synuclein (Snca). Through these studies, we identified the X-linked gene that is mutated in Menkes disease in humans as a modifier of the nullSncaphenotype, specifically in female mice. The gene mutated in Menkes disease,ATP7a, encodes a copper transporter that is known to act in the trans-Golgi sub-cellular compartment. Genetic modifier effects suggest that Snca may also play a role in that compartment, potentially in the mammalian brain.