Drosophila carrying epilepsy-associated variants in the vitamin B6 metabolism gene PNPO display allele- and diet-dependent phenotypes

Pyridox(am)ine 5'-phosphate oxidase (PNPO) catalyzes the rate limiting step in the synthesis of pyridoxal 5'-phosphate (PLP), the active form of vitamin B6 required for the synthesis of neurotransmitters gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) and the monoamines. Pathogenic variants in PNPO have been increasingly identified in patients with neonatal epileptic encephalopathy and early onset epilepsy. These patients often exhibit different types of seizures and variable comorbidities. Recently, the PNPO gene has also been implicated in epilepsy in adults. It is unclear how these phenotypic variations are linked to specific PNPO alleles and to what degree diet can modify their expression. Using CRISPR-Cas9, we generated four knock-in Drosophila alleles, h(WT), h(R116Q), h(D33V), and h(R95H), in which the endogenous Drosophila PNPO was replaced by wild-type human PNPO complementary DNA (cDNA) and three epilepsy-associated variants. We found that these knock in flies exhibited a wide range of phenotypes, including developmental impairments, abnormal locomotor activities, spontaneous seizures, and shortened life span. These phenotypes are allele dependent, varying with the known biochemical severity of these mutations and our characterized molecular defects. We also showed that diet treatments further diversified the phenotypes among alleles, and PLP supplementation at larval and adult stages prevented developmental impairments and seizures in adult flies, respectively. Furthermore, we found that h(R95H) had a significant dominant-negative effect, rendering heterozygous flies susceptible to seizures and premature death. Together, these results provide biological bases for the various phenotypes resulting from multifunction of PNPO, specific molecular and/or genetic properties of each PNPO variant, and differential allele-diet interactions.

Automated summary

This study investigates the phenotypic variations resulting from PNPO mutations and the effects of different alleles and diet interactions. Using Drosophila as a model, the researchers generated knock-in flies with different PNPO alleles and found that they exhibited various phenotypes, including developmental impairments, abnormal locomotor activities, spontaneous seizures, and shortened life span. The severity of these phenotypes varied with the known biochemical severity of the mutations. Diet treatments further diversified the phenotypes, and supplementation with pyridoxal 5'-phosphate (PLP) prevented developmental impairments and seizures in flies. The study also revealed that one of the PNPO alleles had a dominant-negative effect, making heterozygous flies more susceptible to seizures and premature death.