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Evolutionary and biomedical implications of sex differences in the primate brain transcriptome
Alex R DeCasien1, Kenneth L Chiou2, Camille Testard3
1Department of Anthropology, New York University, New York, NY, USA; New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology, New York, NY, USA; Section on Developmental Neurogenomics, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, MD, USA.
Cell Genomics
|June 28, 2024
Summary
Rhesus macaques show gene expression patterns similar to humans, supporting their use in studying sex-biased neurological disorders like autism. This research aids understanding of disease mechanisms and potential treatments.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Genetics
- Developmental Biology
Background:
- Sex differences are observed in the prevalence of neurodevelopmental and neurodegenerative diseases.
- Understanding the genetic and molecular basis of these sex differences is crucial for developing targeted therapies.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate sex-biased gene expression in the rhesus macaque brain.
- To assess the translatability of the rhesus macaque model for studying sex-biased neurological conditions in humans.
Main Methods:
- Generation of one of the largest multi-brain-region bulk transcriptional datasets in rhesus macaques.
- Characterization of sex-biased gene expression patterns and their associated regulatory mechanisms.
Main Results:
- Identified sex-biased gene expression patterns in macaques mirroring those in humans.
- Found overlapping regulatory mechanisms, biological processes, and genes linked to human sex-biased disorders, including autism.
- Demonstrated that sex-biased genes exhibit greater genetic variance and tissue-specific expression.
Conclusions:
- The rhesus macaque is a valuable translational model for studying sex-biased neurological diseases.
- Findings provide insights into the biological underpinnings of sex-biased disease prevalence.
- Sex-biased genes may evolve more rapidly due to increased expression variance and tissue specificity.
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