Transcriptional and behavioral interaction between 22q11.2 orthologs modulates schizophrenia-related phenotypes in mice

Microdeletions of 22q11.2 represent one of the highest known genetic risk factors for schizophrenia. It is likely that more than one gene contributes to the marked risk associated with this locus. Two of the candidate risk genes encode the enzymes proline dehydrogenase (PRODH) and catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT), which modulate the levels of a putative neuromodulator (L-proline) and the neurotransmitter dopamine, respectively. Mice that model the state of PRODH deficiency observed in humans with schizophrenia show increased neurotransmitter release at glutamatergic synapses as well as deficits in associative learning and response to psychomimetic drugs. Transcriptional profiling and pharmacological manipulations identified a transcriptional and behavioral interaction between the Prodh and Comt genes that is likely to represent a homeostatic response to enhanced dopaminergic signaling in the frontal cortex. This interaction modulates a number of schizophrenia-related phenotypes, providing a framework for understanding the high disease risk associated with this locus, the expression of the phenotype, or both.