Molecular alterations in the extracellular matrix in the brains of newborns with congenital Zika syndrome.

Molecular alterations in the extracellular matrix in the brains of newborns with congenital Zika syndrome. Sci Signal. 2020 Jun 09;13(635): Authors: Aguiar RS, Pohl F, Morais GL, Nogueira FCS, Carvalho JB, Guida L, Arge LWP, Melo A, Moreira MEL, Cunha DP, Gomes L, Portari EA, Velasquez E, Melani RD, Pezzuto P, de Castro FL, Geddes VEV, Gerber AL, Azevedo GS, Schamber-Reis BL, Gonçalves AL, Junqueira-de-Azevedo I, Nishiyama MY, Ho PL, Schanoski AS, Schuch V, Tanuri A, Chimelli L, Vasconcelos ZFM, Domont GB, Vasconcelos ATR, Nakaya HI Abstract Zika virus (ZIKV) infection during pregnancy can cause a set of severe abnormalities in the fetus known as congenital Zika syndrome (CZS). Experiments with animal models and in vitro systems have substantially contributed to our understanding of the pathophysiology of ZIKV infection. Here, to investigate the molecular basis of CZS in humans, we used a systems biology approach to integrate transcriptomic, proteomic, and genomic data from the postmortem brains of neonates with CZS. We observed that collagens were greatly reduced in expression in CZS brains at both the RNA and protein levels and that neonates with CZS had several single-nucleotide polymorphisms in collagen-encoding genes that are associated with osteogenesis imperfecta and arthrogryposis. These findings were validated by immunohistochemistry and comparative analysis of collagen abundance in ZIKV-infected and uninfected samples. In ...
Source: Science Signaling - Category: Biomedical Science Authors: Tags: Sci Signal Source Type: research