Study finds protein to open new doors on autism and other brain disorders

This study has thrown new light on autism and other neurodevelopmental disorders

A new study has found that a protein that stays on for a prolonged period of time on the membrane may affect the connections or synapses between the brain cells. Rockfeller scientist Mary E Hatten and research associate Hourinaz Behesti showed that the protein ASTN2 helps in moving the proteins away from the membrane at appropriate time. Not just that, the researchers have also come up with a mechanism where defects in ASTN2 result in neurodevelopmental disorders like autism and intellectual disabilities. Professor Hatten also demonstrated how ASTN2 acts as such a trafficker during cell migration in early development, according to a recent media report.

The study that has been published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences has shown that the protein appears to be disproportionally expressed in the cerebellum, a part that may control complicated aspects of cognition along with its more-established role in monitoring movement. A special microscopy technique was used to analyse where ASTN2 is expressed in the mouse cerebellum. It was found that it appears significantly in components of neurons responsible for moving proteins around, highlighted a recent media report. The researchers also identified a bunch of molecules that gets stuck to ASTN2. These binding partners included proteins involved in synapse formation and protein trafficking, say the researchers.

"Our data suggest that people who have mutations in ASTN2 make less of the protein, which leads to slower or weaker synapses," reportedly said Behesti. According to the researchers, without adequate ASTN2, proteins do get collected on the surface of the cells, hindering neuronal connections and communication.