Topic: CHRFAM7A

ePoster: 2 ePosters

The human-specific nicotinic receptor subunit CHRFAM7A (dupα7) reduces α7 nAChR function in human iPSC-derived and transgenic mouse neurons

Gokce Ilayda Gorgulu Soztekin, Vinita Jagannath, Stephanie Pons, Matthias Groszer, Uwe Maskos, Sigismund Huck, Petra Scholze · FENS Forum 2024

We investigated the impact of the human-specific protein CHRFAM7A (dupα7) on the function of α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) in two different types of neurons: human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC)-derived cortical neurons, and superior cervical ganglion (SCG) neurons, taken from transgenic mice expressing CHRFAM7A. The CHRFAM7A co-assembles with CHRNA7 but lacks a major part of the extracellular N-terminal ligand-binding domain. We assessed the function of homomeric and hybrid pentameric receptors with Fura-2 calcium imaging and three different α7-specific ligands: PNU2829

ePoster · Neuroscience

Using human iPSC-derived microglia to study the function of the human-specific nicotinic receptor subunit, CHRFAM7A, in vitro and in vivo

Michiel Van der Zwan, Stéphanie Pons, Maria Llach Pou, Camille Thiberge, Alexandre Mathieu, Uwe Maskos, Isabelle Cloëz-Tayarani · FENS Forum 2024

The CHRNA7 gene codes for the alpha 7 nicotine acetylcholine receptor (alpha7-nAChR) subunit, which plays an anti-inflammatory role in microglia. The alpha7-nAChR is also involved in the phagocytosis of amyloid beta (ABeta) oligomers, an early marker of Alzheimer’s Disease (AD). A human specific duplication of CHRNA7 led to the formation of a new gene; CHRFAM7A. The gene product of CHRFAM7A, dup-alpha7, codes for a truncated subunit and is thought to negatively modulate the functions of alpha7-nAChR. The aim of the project is to comprehend how dup-alpha7 expression modulates alpha7-nAChR media

ePoster · Neuroscience