An antisense oligonucleotide-based strategy to ameliorate cognitive dysfunction in the 22q11.2 Deletion Syndrome

Adults and children with the 22q11.2 Deletion Syndrome demonstrate cognitive, social, and emotional impairments and high risk for schizophrenia. Work in mouse model of the 22q11.2 deletion provided compelling evidence for abnormal expression and processing of microRNAs. A major transcriptional effect of the microRNA dysregulation is upregulation of <i>Emc10,</i> a component of the ER membrane complex, which promotes membrane insertion of a subset of polytopic and tail-anchored membrane proteins. We previously uncovered a key contribution of EMC10 in mediating the behavioral phenotypes observed in 22q11.2 deletion mouse models. Here, we show that expression and processing of miRNAs is abnormal and <i>EMC10</i> expression is elevated in neurons derived from 22q11.2 deletion carriers. Reduction of <i>EMC10 levels</i> restores defects in neurite outgrowth and calcium signaling in patient neurons. Furthermore, antisense oligonucleotide administration and normalization of <i>Emc10</i> in the adult mouse brain not only alleviates cognitive deficits in social and spatial memory but remarkably sustains these improvements for over 2 months post-injection, indicating its therapeutic potential. Broadly, our study integrates findings from both animal models and human neurons to elucidate the translational potential of modulating <i>EMC10</i> levels and downstream targets as a specific venue to ameliorate disease progression in 22q11.2 Deletion Syndrome.