Vascular contribution to 16p11.2 deletion autism syndrome modeled in mice

While the neuronal underpinnings of autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are being unraveled, vascular contributions to ASD remain elusive. Here, we investigated postnatal cerebrovascular development in the 16p11.2df/+ mouse model of 16p11.2 deletion ASD syndrome. We discovered that 16p11.2 hemizygosity leads to male-specific, endothelium-dependent structural and functional neurovascular abnormalities. In 16p11.2df/+ mice, endothelial dysfunction resulted in impaired cerebral angiogenesis at postnatal day (P) 14, and in altered neurovascular coupling and cerebrovascular reactivity at P50. Moreover, we showed defective angiogenesis in primary 16p11.2df/+ mouse brain endothelial cells and in iPSC-derived endothelial cells from human 16p11.2 deletion carriers. Finally, we found that mice with endothelium-specific 16p11.2 deletion (16p11.2DEC) partially recapitulated some behavioral changes seen in 16p11.2 syndrome, specifically hyperactivity and impaired motor learning. By showing that developmental 16p11.2 haploinsufficiency from endothelial cells results in neurovascular and behavioral changes in adults, our results point to a potential role for endothelial impairment in ASD. Overall design: 16 RNA samples (i.e. 16 biological replicates) from 32 mice were produced in total for RNA deep sequencing.