@article{8522270,
  abstract     = {{BACKGROUND: Recent genetic association studies have linked the cadherin-based adherens junction protein alpha-T-catenin (αT-cat, CTNNA3) with the development of autism. Where αT-cat is expressed in the brain, and how its loss could contribute to this disorder, are entirely unknown.
METHODS: We used the αT-cat knockout mouse to examine the localization of αT-cat in the brain, and we used histology and immunofluorescence analysis to examine the neurobiological consequences of its loss.
RESULTS: We found that αT-cat comprises the ependymal cell junctions of the ventricles of the brain, and its loss led to compensatory upregulation of αE-cat expression. Notably, αT-cat was not detected within the choroid plexus, which relies on cell junction components common to typical epithelial cells. While αT-cat was not detected in neurons of the cerebral cortex, it was abundantly detected within neuronal structures of the molecular layer of the cerebellum. Although αT-cat loss led to no overt differences in cerebral or cerebellar structure, RNA-sequencing analysis from wild type versus knockout cerebella identified a number of disease-relevant signaling pathways associated with αT-cat loss, such as GABA-A receptor activation.
CONCLUSIONS: These findings raise the possibility that the genetic associations between αT-cat and autism may be due to ependymal and cerebellar defects, and highlight the potential importance of a seemingly redundant adherens junction component to a neurological disorder.}},
  articleno    = {{2}},
  author       = {{Folmsbee, Stephen Sai and Wilcox, Douglas R and Tyberghein, Koen and De Bleser, Pieter and Tourtellotte, Warren G and van Hengel, Jolanda and Van Roy, Frans and Gottardi, Cara J}},
  issn         = {{2049-9256}},
  journal      = {{JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR PSYCHIATRY}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  pages        = {{13}},
  title        = {{αT-catenin in restricted brain cell types and its potential connection to autism}},
  url          = {{http://doi.org/10.1186/s40303-016-0017-9}},
  volume       = {{4}},
  year         = {{2016}},
}

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