Table 4

Expression, animal model and pharmacological studies on the reviewed scaffolding genes

GeneExpression studiesFunctional studiesSources
DLG1Reduced expression of DLG1 mRNA in PFC of schizophrenia patients68
Reduced expression of DLG1 protein in PFC of schizophrenia patients175
Administration of the NMDA receptor antagonist PCP caused an upregulation of DLG1 gene transcription in the neocortex of rats176Dracheva et al.68
Toyooka et al.175
Hiraoka et al.176
DLG2Increased DLG2 mRNA and decreased protein expression in prefrontal cortex and anterior cingulate cortex of schizophrenia patients177PSD-93 mutant mice exhibited deficits in LTP178
PSD-93 mutant mice showed cognitive abnormalities179
PSD-93 mutant mice did not show any abnormality of synaptic structure or function in cerebellum180
Kristiansen et al.177
Carlisle et al.178
Nithianantharajah et al.179
McGee et al.180
DLG3Increased DLG3 mRNA and protein expression in the thalamus of schizophrenia patients181
Decreased DLG3 protein expression in the thalamus of schizophrenia patients182
Mice lacking DLG3 exhibited impairments of spatial learning183Clinton et al.181
Clinton et al.182
Cuthbert et al.183
DLG4Increased DLG4 mRNA and decreased protein expression in ACC of schizophrenia patients177
Increased DLG4 mRNA and protein expression in thalamus of schizophrenia patients182,185
Increased DLG4 mRNA expression in the occipital cortex of schizophrenia patients186
Decreased DLG4 mRNA expression in the PFC of schizophrenia patients69
Decreased DLG4 mRNA and protein expression in the DLPFC of schizophrenia patients187
Decreased DLG4 protein expression in thalamus of schizophrenia patients182
Decreased DLG4 protein expression in hippocampus188,189
Decreased mRNA expression in the striatum190
No changes in either DLG4 mRNA or protein expression in PFC of schizophrenia patients175,186
No changes in either DLG4 mRNA or protein expression in the hippocampus of schizophrenia patients69,182
DLG4 mutant mice displayed schizophrenia and autism-spectrum disorder–like phenotypes184
DLG4 mutant mice displayed aberrant AMPA receptor-mediated transmission178,191
DLG4 mutant mice exhibited enhancement in LTP and deficit in LTD178,192194
DLG4 mutant mice exhibited disrupted synaptic plasticity and impaired learning192
Ketamine reduced DLG4 mRNA in cortical regions of rats195
Ohnuma et al.69
Toyooka et al.175
Kristiansen et al.177
Carlisle et al.178
Clinton et al.179
Clinton et al.182
Feyder et al.184
Clinton et al.185
Dracheva et al.186
Funk et al.187
Toro et al.188
Matosin et al.189
Kristiansen et al.190
Nakagawa et al.191
Migaud et al.192
Ehrlich et al.193
Xu et al.194
de Bartolomeis et al.195
DLGAP2DLGAP2 knockout mice displayed abnormal social behaviour196Jiang-Xie et al.196
SHANK1SHANK1 mutant mice showed alterations in motor system and social behaviour197199
SHANK1 mutant mice showed social communication deficits200
Silverman et al.197
Hung et al.198
Wöhr et al.199
Sungur et al.200
SHANK2SHANK2(−/−) mutant mice were hyperactive and displayed autistim-like behaviours, including social interaction and repetitive jumping201,202,203
SHANK2(−/−) mutant mice exhibited fewer dendritic spines, reduced basal synaptic transmission and reduced frequency of miniature excitatory postsynaptic currents201,203
SHANK2(−/−) mutant mice showed a decrease in NMDA receptor function. Direct stimulation of the NMDA receptor with a partial agonist normalized its function and improved social interaction.202
Schmeisset et al.201
Won et al.202
Ha et al.203
SHANK3SHANK3 mutant mice exhibited self-injurious repetitive grooming behaviours204,206,207 and social interaction,204,205,207,209,210 learning and memory205 deficits. They also showed anxiety and motor deficits206,208,209
SHANK3 mutant mice showed deficits in glutamatergic transmission and synaptic plasticity and reduced synaptic concentrations of scaffolding proteins (e.g., DLGAP3, Homer1).204,208210 Re-expression of the SHANK3 gene in adults led to improvements in synaptic protein composition, spine density and neural function, as well as selective rescue in autism-related phenotypes.208
Insulin-like growth factor-1 reversed synaptic and behavioural deficits in SHANK3 mutant mice206 and phenotypic changes in human neuronal models of Rett syndrome.211
SHANK3B knockout mice exhibited early hyperactivation and precocious maturation of corticostriatal circuits212
Arons et al.204
Wang et al.205
Bozdagi et al.206
Peça et al.207
Mei et al.208
Bozdagi et al.209
Yang et al.210
Marchetto et al.211
Peixoto et al.212
HOMER1Increased Homer1a protein expression in hippocampal interneurons of schizophrenia patients213
Increased Homer1a and decreased Homer1b protein expression in hippocampus of schizophrenia patients189
HOMER1 knockout mice displayed impaired fear memory formation214 and impaired LTP215
HOMER1 knockout mice showed abnormalities in motivational, emotional, cognitive and sensorimotor processing216
HOMER1 knockout mice also showed somatic growth retardation, poor motor coordination, enhanced sensory reactivity, learning deficits and increased aggression in social interaction218
Overexpression of HOMER1 in knockout mice reverted the cognitive and behavioural impairments217
Exposure to novel environments upregulated
HOMER1 mRNA in the hippocampus of rats219
Methamphetamine or cocaine administration upregulated HOMER1 mRNA in the neocortex of rats220
LSD or PCP administration upregulated
HOMER1 mRNA in the PFC of rats221,222
10Ketamine increased HOMER1 mRNA in the cortical regions, striatum and nucleus accumbens of rats195,223
Antipsychotics (haloperidol, olanzapine or clozapine) induced an increment of Homer1 protein expression in the cortex, the striatum, the caudate-putamen or nucleus accumbens of rats107,224228
de Bartolomeis et al.107
Matosin et al.189
de Bartolomeis et al.195
Leber et al.213
Inoue et al.214
Gerstein et al.215
Szumlinski et al.216
Lominac et al.217
Jaubert et al.218
Vazdarjanova et al.219
Fujiyama et al.220
Cochran et al.221
Nichols et al.222
Iasevoli et al.223
Iasevoli et al.224
Iasevoli et al.225
Ambesi-Impiombato et al.226
Polese et al.227
Tomasetti et al.228
  • ACC = anterior cingulate cortex; AMPA = α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methylisoxazole-4 propionic acid; LSD = lysergic acid; LTD = long-term depression; LTP = long-term potentiation; NMDA = N-methyl-d-aspartate; PCP = phencyclidine; PFC = prefrontal cortex; PSD = postsynaptic density.