Important progress has been made in the study of the pathogenesis of neurodevelopmental disorders

, June 16 (Xinhua) -- The research team of china's
Aquatic Biology Research Institute has made important progress in the study of the pathogenesis of neurodevelopmental disorders. The research results reveal the pathogenic mechanism of functionally dependent neuroprotein mutations and provide new ideas for drug research and development.
-dependent neuroprotein (ADNP) is a widely expressed transcription factor in the brain, and its mutations can lead to a rare neurodevelopmental disorder. At the same time, ADNP is also one of the autistic susceptible genes with the highest frequency of mutations.team of researchers at the Institute of Aquatic Sciences used mouse embryonic stem cells and zebrafish as introphy and introphy models, revealing for the first time the key role of ADNP in neuro-induction and differentiation. Further studies have found that ADNP promotes nerve induction and differentiation by regulating the stability of β-catenin, a key factor in the Wnt signaling path. This study provides a theoretical basis for explaining the pathogenesis of diseases related to neurodevelopmental defects caused by ADP mutations, and provides a new way of thinking for drug development for the treatment of related diseases. The findings were published recently in the journal Nature Communications.
the world, the incidence of neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism has been on the rise in recent years. According to the 2019 Report on the Development of China's Autism Education and Rehabilitation Industry III., the incidence of autism in China is 0.7%, and there are now more than 10 million people with autism spectrum disorders, of whom more than 2 million are children under the age of 12, and are increasing at a rate of 200,000 per year. Due to the lack of in-depth understanding of the causes of related diseases, there is no effective clinical treatment.