Complex Changes in the Efficiency of the Expression of Many Genes in Monogenic Diseases, Mucopolysaccharidoses, May Arise from Significant Disturbances in the Levels of Factors Involved in the Gene Expression Regulation Processes

Abstract

Monogenic diseases are primarily caused by mutations in a single gene; thus, they are commonly recognized as genetic disorders with the simplest mechanisms. However, recent studies have indicated that the molecular mechanisms of monogenic diseases can be unexpectedly complicated, and their understanding requires complex studies at the molecular level. Previously, we have demonstrated that in mucopolysaccharidoses (MPS), a group of monogenic lysosomal storage diseases, several hundreds of genes reveal significant changes in the expression of various genes. Although the secondary effects of the primary biochemical defect and the inefficient degradation of glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) might be considered, the scale of the changes in the expression of a large fraction of genes cannot be explained by a block in one biochemical pathway. Here, we demonstrate that in cellular models of 11 types of MPS, the expression of genes coding for proteins involved in the regulation of the expression of many other genes at various stages (such as signal transduction, transcription, splicing, RNA degradation, translation, and others) is significantly disturbed relative to the control cells. This conclusion was based on transcriptomic studies, supported by biochemical analyses of levels of selected proteins encoded by genes revealing an especially high level of dysregulation in MPS (EXOSC9, SRSF10, RPL23, and NOTCH3 proteins were investigated). Interestingly, the reduction in GAGs levels, through the inhibition of their synthesis normalized the amounts of EXOSC9, RPL23, and NOTCH3 in some (but not all) MPS types, while the levels of SRSF10 could not be corrected in this way. These results indicate that different mechanisms are involved in the dysregulation of the expression of various genes in MPS, pointing to a potential explanation for the inability of some therapies (such as enzyme replacement therapy or substrate reduction therapy) to fully correct the physiology of MPS patients. We suggest that the disturbed expression of some genes, which appears as secondary or tertiary effects of GAG storage, might not be reversible, even after a reduction in the amounts of the storage material.