Prevention of Treacher Collins syndrome craniofacial anomalies in mouse models via maternal antioxidant supplementation

• Published in: Nature communications Vol. 7; no. 1; p. 10328
• Main Authors: Sakai, Daisuke, Dixon, Jill, Achilleos, Annita, Dixon, Michael, Trainor, Paul A.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Nature Publishing Group UK 21.01.2016; Nature Publishing Group; Nature Portfolio
• Subjects: 13; 13/106; 14/19; 38; 38/1; 38/15; 42; 631/136/1425; 631/80/82; 64/60; 692/699/1670/1669; 692/700/565/2072; Animals; Antioxidants - administration & dosage; Dietary Supplements - analysis; Disease Models, Animal; Female; Humanities and Social Sciences; Humans; Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins; Male; Mandibulofacial Dysostosis - embryology; Mandibulofacial Dysostosis - genetics; Mandibulofacial Dysostosis - metabolism; Mandibulofacial Dysostosis - prevention & control; Maternal Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; Mice; Mice, Inbred C57BL; multidisciplinary; Nuclear Proteins - genetics; Nuclear Proteins - metabolism; Phosphoproteins - genetics; Phosphoproteins - metabolism; Pregnancy; Science; Science (multidisciplinary)
• ISSN: 2041-1723; 2041-1723
• DOI: 10.1038/ncomms10328

Craniofacial anomalies account for approximately one-third of all birth defects and are a significant cause of infant mortality. Since the majority of the bones, cartilage and connective tissues that comprise the head and face are derived from a multipotent migratory progenitor cell population called the neural crest, craniofacial disorders are typically attributed to defects in neural crest cell development. Treacher Collins syndrome (TCS) is a disorder of craniofacial development and although TCS arises primarily through autosomal dominant mutations in TCOF1 , no clear genotype–phenotype correlation has been documented. Here we show that Tcof1 haploinsufficiency results in oxidative stress-induced DNA damage and neuroepithelial cell death. Consistent with this discovery, maternal treatment with antioxidants minimizes cell death in the neuroepithelium and substantially ameliorates or prevents the pathogenesis of craniofacial anomalies in Tcof1 +/− mice. Thus maternal antioxidant dietary supplementation may provide an avenue for protection against the pathogenesis of TCS and similar neurocristopathies. The TCOF1 gene is mutated in Treacher Collin's syndrome, a congenital craniofacial syndrome. Here, the authors show that Tcof1 loss-of-function results in oxidative stress induced DNA damage and neuroepithelial cell death, and addition of antioxidants to pregnant mutant mice protected against these defects.