A circular RNA Edis-Relish-castor axis regulates neuronal development in Drosophila

Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are a new group of noncoding/regulatory RNAs that are particularly abundant in the nervous system, however, their physiological functions are underexplored. Here we report that the brain-enriched circular RNA Edis (Ect4-derived immune suppressor) plays an essential role in neuronal development in Drosophila. We show that depletion of Edis in vivo causes defects in axonal projection patterns of mushroom body (MB) neurons in the brain, as well as impaired locomotor activity and shortened lifespan of adult flies. In addition, we find that the castor gene, which encodes a transcription factor involved in neurodevelopment, is upregulated in Edis knockdown neurons. Notably, castor overexpression phenocopies Edis knockdown, and reducing castor levels suppresses the neurodevelopmental phenotypes in Edis-depleted neurons. Furthermore, chromatin immunoprecipitation analysis reveals that the transcription factor Relish, which plays a key role in regulating innate immunity signaling, occupies a pair of sites at the castor promoter, and that both sites are required for optimal castor gene activation by either immune challenge or Edis depletion. Lastly, Relish mutation and/or depletion can rescue both the castor gene hyperactivation phenotype and neuronal defects in Edis knockdown animals. We conclude that the circular RNA Edis acts through Relish and castor to regulate neuronal development.