Fig. 2: Transcripts related to cytoskeleton and synaptic function are differentially expressed in the hippocampus of the < 2 crit and ≥ 2 crit drinkers during extinction of alcohol seeking.
From: Hippocampal Cofilin and CFL1 gene variants are linked to Alcohol Use Disorder phenotypes
(A, B) Experimental timeline. Mice were trained to drink alcohol in the IntelliCages (n = 16), classified as < 2 crit (n = 5) and ≥ 2 crit drinkers (n = 5) and sacrificed after a second alcohol extinction test (day 90) (AUD score: t(8) = 3.78, p = 0.003). Hippocampus tissue was dissected from fresh brains for RNA-seq analysis. (C) A volcano plot illustrating DEGs in the hippocampus of < 2 crit and ≥ 2 crit drinkers. Only genes with FDR < 0.05 are shown. (D) Gene ontology analysis of molecular function (GO:MF) and cellular components (GO:CC) based on the genes deregulated (both up- and downregulated) in the hippocampus of < 2 crit vs. ≥ 2 crit drinkers (FDR cutoff 0.05). The network shows pathways in nodes. Two nodes are connected if they share 20% or more genes. Darker nodes are more significantly enriched gene sets while bigger nodes represent larger gene sets. Thicker connection between nodes represents more overlapped genes. (E) KEGG pathway analysis of the deregulated genes (both up- and downregulated) in the hippocampus of < 2 crit vs. ≥ 2 crit drinkers (FDR cutoff 0.05). (F) A volcano plot illustrating DEGs from Cytoskeletal protein binding,Tubulin binding and Actin binding nodes (GO:MF) in the hippocampus of < 2 crit vs. ≥ 2 crit drinkers. (G) Regulation of actin cytoskeleton pathway (KEGG) with indicated DEGs in the hippocampus of < 2 crit and ≥ 2 crit drinkers. (H) Cofilin (Cfl) mRNA levels in the hippocampus of alcohol-naive, < 2 crit and ≥ 2 crit drinkers (One-way ANOVA, F(2, 11) = 6.96, p = 0.011). Data are presented as means +/- SEM.
