USP7/Maged1-mediated H2A monoubiquitination in the paraventricular thalamus: an epigenetic mechanism involved in cocaine use disorder

The risk of developing drug addiction is strongly influenced by the epigenetic landscape and chromatin remodeling. While histone modifications such as methylation and acetylation have been studied in the ventral tegmental area and nucleus accumbens (NAc), the role of H2A monoubiquitination remains u...

Descripción completa

Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Cheron, Julian, Beccari, Leonardo, Hagué, Perrine, Icick, Romain, Despontin, Chloé, Carusone, Teresa, Defrance, Matthieu, Bhogaraju, Sagar, Martín García, Elena, 1975-, Capellan, Roberto, Maldonado, Rafael, 1961-, Vorspan, Florence, Bonnefont, Jérôme, d'Exaerde, Alban de Kerchove
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2023
País:España
Institución:Universitat Pompeu Fabra
Repositorio:Repositorio Digital de la UPF
OAI Identifier:oai:repositori.upf.edu:10230/58961
Acceso en línea:http://hdl.handle.net/10230/58961
http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-44120-2
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Addiction
Epigenetics in the nervous system
Descripción
Sumario:The risk of developing drug addiction is strongly influenced by the epigenetic landscape and chromatin remodeling. While histone modifications such as methylation and acetylation have been studied in the ventral tegmental area and nucleus accumbens (NAc), the role of H2A monoubiquitination remains unknown. Our investigations, initially focused on the scaffold protein melanoma-associated antigen D1 (Maged1), reveal that H2A monoubiquitination in the paraventricular thalamus (PVT) significantly contributes to cocaine-adaptive behaviors and transcriptional repression induced by cocaine. Chronic cocaine use increases H2A monoubiquitination, regulated by Maged1 and its partner USP7. Accordingly, Maged1 specific inactivation in thalamic Vglut2 neurons, or USP7 inhibition, blocks cocaine-evoked H2A monoubiquitination and cocaine locomotor sensitization. Additionally, genetic variations in MAGED1 and USP7 are linked to altered susceptibility to cocaine addiction and cocaine-associated symptoms in humans. These findings unveil an epigenetic modification in a non-canonical reward pathway of the brain and a potent marker of epigenetic risk factors for drug addiction in humans.