Developmental Dysregulation of Synaptic and Myelin-Related Genes in Frontal Cortex and Serum Infrared Spectroscopy Signature in the Valproic Acid Model of Autism | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article Developmental Dysregulation of Synaptic and Myelin-Related Genes in Frontal Cortex and Serum Infrared Spectroscopy Signature in the Valproic Acid Model of Autism Rodrigo Romcy-Pereira, Carolina Sousa, José Kroll, Juliana Brandao, and 6 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7781839/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Neural circuits emerge during development through dynamic interactions between genetic instructions and environmental cues that shape cell fate, connectivity, and the timing of myelination. In developmental disorders such as autism, abnormalities in sensory processing, social cognition, and motor behavior are thought to arise from disruptions in these processes. Here, we investigated early-life molecular changes following prenatal exposure to valproic acid (VPA), an environmentally induced model of autism. We integrated cortical gene expression analysis using RNA sequencing/qPCR, alternative splicing profiling, in situ myelin quantification, plasma serotonin determination, and machine learning-assisted classification of blood serum molecular profiles using infrared spectroscopic (FTIR) data. Our findings revealed downregulation of myelin-associated genes and upregulation of synapse-related genes in the frontal cortex of young VPA-exposed rats. qPCR confirmed reduced cortical expression of Mobp and PLP1 along with increased Penk and C1ql3 expression. Alternative splicing analysis identified numerous novel transcript variants, enriched in synaptic-related genes, indicating widespread post-transcriptional remodeling in VPA animals. These molecular alterations were accompanied by a significant reduction in myelin content within the cingulate and motor cortex of adult animals. Peripheral molecular profiling showed elevated plasma serotonin in VPA-treated animals and demonstrated that a support vector machine trained on serum FTIR spectra classified VPA-exposed animals with 85% accuracy. Collectively, our findings suggest that prenatal VPA exposure induces early dysregulation of myelin organization, synaptic gene networks, and RNA splicing programs, potentially leading to long-term impairments in neuronal communication and processing efficiency. Furthermore, our results highlight serum spectroscopic signatures as promising peripheral biomarkers for autism, warranting further investigation. Biological sciences/Neuroscience Health sciences/Biomarkers/Predictive markers animal model autism social behavior prefrontal cortex gene expression myelin serotonin Figures Figure 1 Figure 2 Figure 3 Figure 4 Figure 5 Figure 6 Figure 7 Full Text Additional Declarations The authors have declared there is NO conflict of interest to disclose Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-7781839","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":545141478,"identity":"80b6a9a9-bc64-4a14-b148-3dba848e8291","order_by":0,"name":"Rodrigo Romcy-Pereira","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAAA6UlEQVRIiWNgGAWjYBADHgYG5gNQNuMDIHEAp1IkLWwJUDazAVFaQLoMiNNiPrv32YOPe2xkzNvPfHvwse2eHINEMtvnAoY7+bi0yNw5bm4441kaj8yZ3O2GM9uKjYFamGfPYHhm2YBDi4REGps0z4HDPBIMudukedsSEhsk8g8z8zAcNsChA6Llz4H/PBL8b55J/wVrSWYmrIXhwAEeCYkcNmlGIrWwG/YcSAZqeWYm2XMuwZiN5zFQi8EzvLY8+HHAzl6CP/mZxI+yBDl+dpAtFXdwagECNmxcfBowtIyCUTAKRsEoQAcAzvRIHv5HHVIAAAAASUVORK5CYII=","orcid":"","institution":"Brain Institute, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Rodrigo","middleName":"","lastName":"Romcy-Pereira","suffix":""},{"id":545141479,"identity":"30d98b53-dbea-4757-ad55-967b846f0bd4","order_by":1,"name":"Carolina Sousa","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Brain Institute, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Carolina","middleName":"","lastName":"Sousa","suffix":""},{"id":545141480,"identity":"cf02ba09-cecf-4b50-b7ba-a6f16b4da905","order_by":2,"name":"José Kroll","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"José","middleName":"","lastName":"Kroll","suffix":""},{"id":545141481,"identity":"c2704b09-5e12-44f5-8b0b-929140fe27f3","order_by":3,"name":"Juliana Brandao","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Juliana","middleName":"","lastName":"Brandao","suffix":""},{"id":545141482,"identity":"628d1f62-d8f4-4957-884a-17503b5c4dc8","order_by":4,"name":"Sérgio Ruschi","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Sérgio","middleName":"","lastName":"Ruschi","suffix":""},{"id":545141483,"identity":"7fa4bc8a-53a6-482b-8cde-31700648aafd","order_by":5,"name":"Camilo Morais","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Camilo","middleName":"","lastName":"Morais","suffix":""},{"id":545141484,"identity":"4a72ffea-b408-4a00-abdd-ce22a000bd4e","order_by":6,"name":"Marfran dos Santos","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Marfran","middleName":"dos","lastName":"Santos","suffix":""},{"id":545141485,"identity":"73bab639-f516-4d07-927d-2cd19666520c","order_by":7,"name":"Rafael Bessa","email":"","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9507-3402","institution":"","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Rafael","middleName":"","lastName":"Bessa","suffix":""},{"id":545141486,"identity":"c27af075-7945-44ad-b368-a502793961a6","order_by":8,"name":"Kassio Lima","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Kassio","middleName":"","lastName":"Lima","suffix":""},{"id":545141487,"identity":"dae8c0a8-1ed7-4576-8648-ba929c5c63f4","order_by":9,"name":"Sandro Souza","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Sandro","middleName":"","lastName":"Souza","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2025-10-04 20:40:22","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7781839/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-7781839/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":96915610,"identity":"e6439727-eca0-4ddd-bce9-2225280c6214","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-27 14:07:26","extension":"pdf","order_by":0,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":954174,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"Manuscript.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7781839/v1/0543c588c26bc1f1f73b77dd.pdf"},{"id":96770529,"identity":"685ca8be-7cbf-4038-816f-be9c97d14d7f","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-25 23:59:30","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":2282881,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"Figure1.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7781839/v1/eb12d1dff9a7a34670f07bcb.pdf"},{"id":96770533,"identity":"c7f10b20-b33e-481c-9246-b7b46678ef82","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-25 23:59:30","extension":"pdf","order_by":2,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":782350,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"Figure2.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7781839/v1/214d76e5ef42907cfdb2489d.pdf"},{"id":96915490,"identity":"a856b916-8a23-453b-a33e-8f79d774528a","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-27 14:07:17","extension":"pdf","order_by":3,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":74085,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"Figure3.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7781839/v1/a69265e0906eba5ee936ea49.pdf"},{"id":96915059,"identity":"7a424dbb-1c95-49b6-b999-0de9cbcdada2","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-27 14:06:48","extension":"pdf","order_by":4,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":1198118,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"Figure4.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7781839/v1/460980a330a6469cb9b751ec.pdf"},{"id":96770539,"identity":"2dfbecea-07c1-4373-9510-0f82f5c1babc","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-25 23:59:31","extension":"pdf","order_by":5,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":3553323,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"Figure5.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7781839/v1/b8a0abcc379621a02dc34229.pdf"},{"id":96770534,"identity":"b1136c84-4002-4dc0-9fb9-9675eb08d538","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-25 23:59:31","extension":"pdf","order_by":6,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":1825444,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"Figure6.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7781839/v1/8fe80b1c0077e926a52a9b2b.pdf"},{"id":96770536,"identity":"ea61b3b0-5bde-4334-aa43-dfaa143e137c","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-25 23:59:31","extension":"pdf","order_by":7,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":2349026,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"Figure7.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7781839/v1/3f49587600204bb4b9f878ff.pdf"},{"id":96770538,"identity":"b8ef2e36-9988-4426-a95c-98228813b76b","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-25 23:59:31","extension":"json","order_by":8,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":11581,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"2025MP002498.json","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7781839/v1/bd519da4a932ffcacb9c9de8.json"},{"id":96770524,"identity":"1d32d79a-8c8a-4da3-9992-2823a4c66211","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-25 23:59:30","extension":"png","order_by":1,"title":"Figure 1","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":820168,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eA,\u003c/strong\u003e Experimental design showing the generation of the rodent model of autism, and the timing of the behavioral tests and tissue collection. Pregnant females received a systemic injection of valproic acid (500 mg/Kg i.p.;on E12.5) and postnatal development of pups was monitored until P35. Biological samples were collected from P8 to P60, spanning infancy, adolescence and adulthood for tissue and molecular analysis. \u003cstrong\u003eB\u003c/strong\u003e, VPA-treated females showed similar litter size as compared to saline-treated controls. \u003cstrong\u003eC-H,\u003c/strong\u003e Animals prenatally exposed to VPA show autistic-like developmental and behavioral deficits. \u003cstrong\u003eC,\u003c/strong\u003e Newborns exposed to VPA showed a delay in eye opening, a hallmark of postnatal development. \u003cstrong\u003eD\u003c/strong\u003e, Control and VPA-treatedrats showed similar gains of body weight between P7 and P21. However, after weaning (P28-P35), VPA-treated animals showed reduced weight gain compared to controls. \u003cstrong\u003eE\u003c/strong\u003e, VPA-treated rats showed increased locomotor activity. \u003cstrong\u003eF-G,\u003c/strong\u003e longer grooming episodes. \u003cstrong\u003eH,\u003c/strong\u003e and social interaction deficit. *, p \u0026lt; 0.05; **, p \u0026lt; 0.01 and ***, p \u0026lt; 0.001 (Student t-test or Mann-Whitney U test).\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"Figure1.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7781839/v1/f1503bf8924d5c22f9cf273f.png"},{"id":96770525,"identity":"60420335-3668-4b87-bc5d-7e69be4abdbc","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-25 23:59:30","extension":"png","order_by":2,"title":"Figure 2","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":1014840,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eRNA sequencing profile of the frontal cortex of P15 newborn rats (VPA-treated vs. age-matched controls). \u003cstrong\u003eA,\u003c/strong\u003e Tissue dissection and basic RNAseq statistics. \u003cstrong\u003eB\u003c/strong\u003e, Volcano plot of differentially cortical expression between VPA and controls. \u003cstrong\u003eC\u003c/strong\u003e, Gene expression plot in FPKM units highlighting the down-regulation of myelin-related genes (Plp1, Mobp, Cnp, Cldn11, Mag: \u003cem\u003ein blue\u003c/em\u003e) in VPA-treated rats compared to controls. \u003cstrong\u003eD\u003c/strong\u003e, Gene ontology analysis shows a significant enrichment of GABAergic, dopaminergic, glutamatergic and neuropeptide signaling among up-regulated genes. In contrast, myelin-related genes were significantly more represented among down-regulated genes. \u003cstrong\u003eE\u003c/strong\u003e, KEGG pathways analysis shows significant enrichment in neuroactive ligand-receptor interaction, calcium-signaling pathway and axon guidance. \u003cstrong\u003eF,\u003c/strong\u003e Differentially expressed genes in VPA-treated animals have 19 common genes present in the SFARI gene database (Q2-2025 Report), which corresponds to ~10% of the VPA-related DEGs.\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"Figure2.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7781839/v1/87abd1a244eb5068f3d2f212.png"},{"id":96914994,"identity":"3061da53-7162-4a79-8782-25950de9be68","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-27 14:06:43","extension":"png","order_by":3,"title":"Figure 3","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":272201,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eDistribution of autism-related genes in human and rat chromosomes. \u003cstrong\u003eA\u003c/strong\u003e, Enrichment of autism-related genes across human chromosomes. In \u003cem\u003ecircles\u003c/em\u003e, the expected number of genes to be affected, considering the fraction of protein-coding genes in each chromosome and the \u003cem\u003ebars\u003c/em\u003e, the actual number of autism-related SFARI score 1-2 genes reported (SFARI database, Q2-2025 Report). \u003cem\u003eDotted-circles\u003c/em\u003e indicate chromosomes enriched for autism-related genes. \u003cstrong\u003eB,\u003c/strong\u003eHuman-to-rat chromosome mapping of enriched SFARI score 1-2 genes based on the conserved synteny mapping between the two genomes - humanGRCh38 (primary) and rat Rnor_6.0 assemblies/RGD-VCMap v1.0.3. \u003cstrong\u003eC,\u003c/strong\u003eEnrichment of VPA-modulated gene expression across the rat chromosomes. In \u003cem\u003ecircles\u003c/em\u003e, the expected number of genes to be affected, considering the fraction of protein-coding in each chromosome and the \u003cem\u003ebars\u003c/em\u003e, the actual number of DEGs induced by prenatal exposure to VPA. \u003cem\u003eDotted-circles\u003c/em\u003eindicate chromosomes enriched for VPA-modulated genes. \u003cstrong\u003eD,\u003c/strong\u003e Number of up-regulated (\u003cem\u003edark green\u003c/em\u003e) and down-regulated (\u003cem\u003elight green\u003c/em\u003e) genes induced by prenatal exposure to VPA and their location across the rat chromosomes. \u003cstrong\u003eE,\u003c/strong\u003e Fraction of VPA-induced DEGs in each chromosome, i.e. number of differentially expressed genes in the chromosome divided by the total number of genes in that same chromosome.\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"Figure3.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7781839/v1/12aadb8cd7f7c708f7630a04.png"},{"id":96770527,"identity":"0c7ba774-5f0e-4187-82b7-b808d7384142","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-25 23:59:30","extension":"png","order_by":4,"title":"Figure 4","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":551903,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eValidation of the cortical differential expression between P15 newborn VPA-treated rats and controls. \u003cstrong\u003eA\u003c/strong\u003e, Experimental flowchart. Frontal cortex samples were identically collected and prepared for qPCR analysis. \u003cstrong\u003eB-C\u003c/strong\u003e, VPA-treated animals exhibited significantly lower frontal cortex expression of the myelin-associated genes Mobp and Plp1 than controls. \u003cstrong\u003eC\u003c/strong\u003e, VPA-treated animals exhibited significantly higher frontal cortex expression of the synaptic transmission-associated genes Penk and C1ql3 than controls. *, p \u0026lt; 0.05 (Student t-test).\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"Figure4.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7781839/v1/24c75800245af5fd1cea6a17.png"},{"id":96770530,"identity":"b46d661d-573c-43c7-b25c-36f3c1f54caf","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-25 23:59:30","extension":"png","order_by":5,"title":"Figure 5","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":1332907,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eAltered myelin development in VPA-treated animals. \u003cstrong\u003eA,\u003c/strong\u003e Histological procedure to quantify brain tissue myelin. Brain regions analyzed are depicted in colors. Corpus callosum (in \u003cem\u003eorange\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003etop\u003c/em\u003e). Motor cortex (MC, \u003cem\u003eyellow\u003c/em\u003e), Cingulate cortex (Cg, \u003cem\u003eblue\u003c/em\u003e), Prelimbic cortex (PL, \u003cem\u003eorange\u003c/em\u003e), somatosensory cortex (SS, \u003cem\u003edark blue\u003c/em\u003e) \u003cstrong\u003eB,\u003c/strong\u003eCorpus callosum myelin staining in brain sections from VPA-treated and control animals at ages P15 and P60. \u003cstrong\u003eC,\u003c/strong\u003eSignificant lower myelin levels were observed in the Cg and MC of VPA-treated animals as compared to controls. *, p \u0026lt; 0.05 (Student t-test)\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"Figure5.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7781839/v1/2bce131c586c1fa1e81b5583.png"},{"id":96916599,"identity":"bd205c04-d284-44de-a61b-cee7f4af7f8d","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-27 14:08:46","extension":"png","order_by":6,"title":"Figure 6","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":938088,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eAlternative splicing in the frontal cortex of VPA-treated rats. \u003cstrong\u003eA,\u003c/strong\u003e Splicing events evaluated: 3’ splice site, 5’ splice site, exon skipping and intron retention (\u003cem\u003enot shown\u003c/em\u003e). Example of the \u003cem\u003enrxn2\u003c/em\u003e gene in control and VPA-treated samples. ; \u003cstrong\u003eB,\u003c/strong\u003e Differential expression in alternative spliced genes (deSG). Fifty-eight genes had a differential expression of some splicing variant in VPA-treated animals compared to controls. Out of the 58 deSG, 24 genes occurred specifically in the VPA model of autism and 17 were shared with controls. Unknown splicing variants represented the majority of differentially expressed variants in VPA-treated animals. \u003cstrong\u003eC,\u003c/strong\u003e Chromosomal distribution of alternatively spliced genes. \u003cstrong\u003eD,\u003c/strong\u003e Gene ontology analysis of VPA-specific deSG shows a significant enrichment of genes related to synaptic transmission. \u003cstrong\u003eE,\u003c/strong\u003e List of VPA-specific splicing variants with predicted loss of function - some of them previously associated with \u003cem\u003eautism\u003c/em\u003e based on the SFARI database\u003csup\u003e1\u003c/sup\u003e. \u003cem\u003eExpression\u003c/em\u003e is shown as ratios relative to the summed counts of all variants\u003csup\u003e2\u003c/sup\u003e. \u003cem\u003eCell type\u003c/em\u003e indicates the cell population in which relative expression is enriched.\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"Figure6.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7781839/v1/49aeb3ccc803ab47b2f0ab94.png"},{"id":96770532,"identity":"1d9ebafa-6485-48df-9005-98de19efe221","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-25 23:59:30","extension":"png","order_by":7,"title":"Figure 7","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":909272,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eSerotonin levels and FTIR spectroscopy of blood plasma from VPA-treated animals. \u003cstrong\u003eA,\u003c/strong\u003e Significantly higher levels of serotonin were observed in experimental animals compared to controls. *, p \u0026lt; 0.05 (Student t-test). \u003cstrong\u003eB,\u003c/strong\u003e FTIR spectra. Full spectrum example and individual superposed spectra after removal of CO\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e interference and absorptions below 900 cm\u003csup\u003e-1\u003c/sup\u003e region (no biological information). The region between 900–1177 cm\u003csup\u003e-1\u003c/sup\u003e was also removed since no absorption band was observed. Savitzky-Golay smoothing (window = 15 points, 2nd order polynomial), automatic weighted least squares baseline correction (3rd order polynomial fitting). \u003cstrong\u003eC,\u003c/strong\u003e Difference-between-mean support vectors spectra and mean-centred spectra (\u003cem\u003etop\u003c/em\u003e). Higher influence for controls at: 3500 – 3180 cm\u003csup\u003e-1\u003c/sup\u003e and 1700 – 1380 cm\u003csup\u003e-1\u003c/sup\u003e and higher influence for experimental (VPA) samples at: 3740 – 3685 cm\u003csup\u003e-1\u003c/sup\u003e. Individual scaled spectra at the bottom: VPA-treated (\u003cem\u003ered\u003c/em\u003e) and control samples (\u003cem\u003eblue\u003c/em\u003e) \u003cstrong\u003eD,\u003c/strong\u003e Support Vector Machine classification of blood FTIR spectra from VPA-treated and controls.\u003cstrong\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"Figure7.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7781839/v1/5e62d509d9cbfa19e9c64295.png"},{"id":98628395,"identity":"8b65014e-7941-49f3-b42b-33a72cb1d49b","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-12-19 17:11:26","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":2343162,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"Article File","description":"","filename":"Manuscript.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7781839/v1_covered_df357836-2f10-40e4-8722-e02e2f262817.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"The authors have declared there is \u003cb\u003eNO\u003c/b\u003e conflict of interest to disclose","formattedTitle":"Developmental Dysregulation of Synaptic and Myelin-Related Genes in Frontal Cortex and Serum Infrared Spectroscopy Signature in the Valproic Acid Model of Autism","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":true,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"
[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true},"keywords":"animal model, autism, social behavior, prefrontal cortex, gene expression, myelin, serotonin","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7781839/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-7781839/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"Neural circuits emerge during development through dynamic interactions between genetic instructions and environmental cues that shape cell fate, connectivity, and the timing of myelination. In developmental disorders such as autism, abnormalities in sensory processing, social cognition, and motor behavior are thought to arise from disruptions in these processes. Here, we investigated early-life molecular changes following prenatal exposure to valproic acid (VPA), an environmentally induced model of autism. We integrated cortical gene expression analysis using RNA sequencing/qPCR, alternative splicing profiling, in situ myelin quantification, plasma serotonin determination, and machine learning-assisted classification of blood serum molecular profiles using infrared spectroscopic (FTIR) data. Our findings revealed downregulation of myelin-associated genes and upregulation of synapse-related genes in the frontal cortex of young VPA-exposed rats. qPCR confirmed reduced cortical expression of Mobp and PLP1 along with increased Penk and C1ql3 expression. Alternative splicing analysis identified numerous novel transcript variants, enriched in synaptic-related genes, indicating widespread post-transcriptional remodeling in VPA animals. These molecular alterations were accompanied by a significant reduction in myelin content within the cingulate and motor cortex of adult animals. Peripheral molecular profiling showed elevated plasma serotonin in VPA-treated animals and demonstrated that a support vector machine trained on serum FTIR spectra classified VPA-exposed animals with 85% accuracy. Collectively, our findings suggest that prenatal VPA exposure induces early dysregulation of myelin organization, synaptic gene networks, and RNA splicing programs, potentially leading to long-term impairments in neuronal communication and processing efficiency. Furthermore, our results highlight serum spectroscopic signatures as promising peripheral biomarkers for autism, warranting further investigation.","manuscriptTitle":"Developmental Dysregulation of Synaptic and Myelin-Related Genes in Frontal Cortex and Serum Infrared Spectroscopy Signature in the Valproic Acid Model of Autism","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2025-11-25 23:59:26","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7781839/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"
[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"f23c5a6d-1629-4074-ac6b-642fca896394","owner":[],"postedDate":"November 25th, 2025","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"posted","subjectAreas":[{"id":58001763,"name":"Biological sciences/Neuroscience"},{"id":58001764,"name":"Health sciences/Biomarkers/Predictive markers"}],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2025-12-19T10:21:25+00:00","versionOfRecord":[],"versionCreatedAt":"2025-11-25 23:59:26","video":"","vorDoi":"","vorDoiUrl":"","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-7781839","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-7781839","identity":"rs-7781839","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"8U1c8b4HqxoKbykW_rLl7","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}
Text is read by the "Ask this paper" AI Q&A widget below.
Extraction quality varies by source — PMC NXML preserves structure
cleanly, OA-HTML may include some navigation residue, and OA-PDF can
have broken hyphenation. The publisher copy
(via DOI)
is the canonical version.