Preserved social development but impaired executive function in a Shank3-deficient rat model of Phelan-McDermid syndrome

Abstract

Phelan-McDermid syndrome (PMS) is a genetic neurodevelopmental disorder caused by a microdeletion within chromosome 22q13.3 1–6, and accounts for ∼1-3% of cases of autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Individuals with PMS typically present with neonatal hypotonia, severe speech delay, intellectual disability, motor impairments, and autism-related features, although additional manifestations such as epilepsy, sleep disturbances, and developmental regression are common. As in ASD, there is considerable heterogeneity in cognitive and behavioral impairments in PMS, making it difficult to determine which features arise directly from SHANK3/Shank3 deficiency and how deficits manifest across development. In the present study, we transferred the targeted Shank3 mutation, previously characterized on the Sprague Dawley background, onto the Long-Evans strain and performed a longitudinal behavioral assessment of Shank3-deficient rats from infancy to adulthood. The rats were evaluated for delays in early sensory and motor development, and ultrasonic vocalizations as neonates, social behavior, short term memory and gait as juveniles, and cognitive-executive dysfunction using a touchscreen-based visual discrimination and reversal learning task as adults. Despite profound reductions and/or complete loss of Shank3 protein expression, heterozygous and homozygous male and female rats showed normal physical and neurological reflexes across development, yet female Shank3 knockout pups showed a selective reduction in distress-associated ultrasonic vocalizations. As juveniles, subtle abnormalities emerged in short-term memory and limb coordination, while social preference for novelty and recognition was normal. Prominent behavioral abnormalities were observed in adults characterized by rapid and error-prone responding to visual stimuli during discrimination learning and reversal. These data suggest that rats with complete or partial Shank3 deficiency produce a selective behavioral profile in which high-order cognitive dysfunction is more pronounced than deficits in basic sensorimotor or select social behaviors. More broadly, these findings highlight executive dysfunction as a key consequence of the loss of Shank3. For the first time, we report the loss of Shank3 expression on a Long-Evans background strain as a valuable translational tool for investigating cognitive dysfunction and therapeutic windows in Shank3-associated disorders.