Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34355696›Full record

ArticleeLife2021

Expanding the MECP2 network using comparative genomics reveals potential therapeutic targets for Rett syndrome.

Irene Unterman, Idit Bloch, Simona Cazacu, Gila Kazimirsky, Bruria Ben-Zeev, Benjamin P Berman, Chaya Brodie, Yuval Tabach

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in eLife, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 9 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
9citing papers in PubMed
4.7field-weighted citation impact, top 5% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

9 citing papers in PubMed, 26 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. CladeOScope-GSA: Revealing Evolutionary Associations Across Gene Sets.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026
    Article
  2. Article
  3. Article
  4. Review
  5. Article
  6. Article
  7. State-of-the-art therapies for Rett syndrome.Developmental medicine and child neurology · 2023
    Review
  8. Article
  9. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.

Irene UntermanDepartment of Developmental Biology and Cancer Research, Institute for Medical Research Israel-Canada, Jerusalem, Israel.ORCID 0000-0002-5697-9612
Idit BlochDepartment of Developmental Biology and Cancer Research, Institute for Medical Research Israel-Canada, Jerusalem, Israel.
Simona CazacuHermelin Brain Tumor Center, Henry Ford Hospital, Detroit, United States.ORCID 0000-0002-6085-4177
Gila KazimirskyThe Mina and Everard Goodman Faculty of Life Sciences, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan, Israel.
Bruria Ben-ZeevEdmond and Lily Safra Children's Hospital, Chaim Sheba Medical Center, Ramat Gan, Israel.
Benjamin P BermanDepartment of Developmental Biology and Cancer Research, Institute for Medical Research Israel-Canada, Jerusalem, Israel.ORCID 0000-0002-2099-9005
Chaya BrodieThe Mina and Everard Goodman Faculty of Life Sciences, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan, Israel.
Yuval TabachDepartment of Developmental Biology and Cancer Research, Institute for Medical Research Israel-Canada, Jerusalem, Israel.ORCID 0000-0001-9521-3217
Bar-Ilan University · ILHenry Ford Hospital · USSheba Medical Center · IL

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Inactivating mutations in the Methyl-CpG Binding Protein 2 (MECP2) gene are the main cause of Rett syndrome (RTT). Despite extensive research into MECP2 function, no treatments for RTT are currently available. Here, we used an evolutionary genomics approach to construct an unbiased MECP2 gene network, using 1028 eukaryotic genomes to prioritize proteins with strong co-evolutionary signatures with MECP2. Focusing on proteins targeted by FDA-approved drugs led to three promising targets, two of which were previously linked to MECP2 function (IRAK, KEAP1) and one that was not (EPOR). The drugs targeting these three proteins (Pacritinib, DMF, and EPO) were able to rescue different phenotypes of MECP2 inactivation in cultured human neural cell types, and appeared to converge on Nuclear Factor Kappa B (NF-κB) signaling in inflammation. This study highlights the potential of comparative genomics to accelerate drug discovery, and yields potential new avenues for the treatment of RTT.

Indexed as

GenomicsHumansMethyl-CpG-Binding Protein 2Rett SyndromeMECP2 protein, humanMethyl-CpG-Binding Protein 2comparative genomicscomputational biologydimethyl fumarateerythropoietingeneticsgenomicshumanpacritinibphylogenetic profilingrett syndromesystems biology

Identifiers

PMID34355696
PMCPMC8346285
OpenAlexW3190662165

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.