Harrison, L.J., Moll, T., Cooper-Knock, J. orcid.org/0000-0002-0873-8689 et al. (1 more author) (Submitted: 2025) Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis-associated 3′ UTR enhancer embedded within CAV1 risk gene. [Preprint - bioRxiv] (Submitted)
Abstract
Enhancer elements that reside within 3′ untranslated regions (UTRs) are an understudied phenomenon. Given the independent regulatory functions of enhancers and 3′ UTRs - enhancers governing pre-transcriptional control of gene expression and 3′ UTRs mediating post-transcriptional regulation of messenger RNA (mRNA) fate - 3′ UTR-associated enhancers may integrate these complementary layers to coordinate gene expression across multiple regulatory stages. Non-coding variation, impacting regulatory DNA, underpins the genetic architecture of disease. Indeed, the vast majority of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) associated with human complex diseases map to the non-coding genome, with causal variants particularly enriched within enhancers. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a complex neurodegenerative disorder associated with non-coding risk variants, many of which are increasingly linked to enhancer disruption. The CAV1 gene, encoding the neuroprotective protein Caveolin-1, is a known ALS risk gene, yet the functional consequences of ALS-associated variation in its regulatory elements remain largely unexplored. Here, we combine genome-wide enhancer profiling with targeted experimental validation to define a previously uncharacterised ALS-associated enhancer embedded within the CAV1 3′ UTR, systematically assess its regulatory potential, and evaluate the impact of ALS-associated SNPs on enhancer function. We show that an individual ALS-associated SNP within this 3′ UTR-associated enhancer may disrupt function on multiple levels: at the DNA and chromatin level, by altering transcription factor binding with potential effects on recruitment of epigenetic co-regulators; and at the RNA level, by reshaping the structure and stability of a novel enhancer RNA transcribed from this locus. Collectively, our findings highlight this proximal CAV1/CAV2 enhancer as a functionally important regulatory element embedded with the 3′ UTR of an ALS risk gene, illustrate how non-coding variants can impact multiple layers of gene regulation, and provide mechanistic insight into how intragenic enhancers contribute to ALS risk. More broadly, this work underscores the importance of 3′ UTR-associated enhancers as modulators of risk gene expression and underexplored contributors to human complex disease.
Metadata
Item Type: | Preprint |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2025 The Author(s). This preprint is made available under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) |
Keywords: | Biological Sciences; Bioinformatics and Computational Biology; Genetics; Genetics; ALS; Neurosciences; Human Genome; Neurodegenerative; Rare Diseases; Brain Disorders; Biotechnology; Biological and endogenous factors; Normal biological development and functioning; Neurological |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Science (Sheffield) > School of Biosciences (Sheffield) The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health (Sheffield) > School of Medicine and Population Health |
Funding Information: | Funder Grant number WELLCOME TRUST (THE) 213501/Z/18/Z WELLCOME TRUST (THE) 216596/Z/19/Z |
Date Deposited: | 02 Oct 2025 15:35 |
Last Modified: | 02 Oct 2025 15:35 |
Status: | Submitted |
Identification Number: | 10.1101/2025.09.09.675029 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:232416 |