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Handley RR, Reid SJ, Burch Z, Jacobsen JC, Gillis T, Correia K, Rudiger SR, McLaughlin CJ, Bawden CS, MacDonald ME, Wheeler VC, Snell RG. Somatic CAG Repeat Stability in a Transgenic Sheep Model of Huntington's Disease. J Huntingtons Dis 2024; 13:33-40. [PMID: 38393920 DOI: 10.3233/jhd-231516] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/25/2024]
Abstract
Somatic instability of the huntingtin (HTT) CAG repeat mutation modifies age-at-onset of Huntington's disease (HD). Understanding the mechanism and pathogenic consequences of instability may reveal therapeutic targets. Using small-pool PCR we analyzed CAG instability in the OVT73 sheep model which expresses a full-length human cDNA HTT transgene. Analyses of five- and ten-year old sheep revealed the transgene (CAG)69 repeat was remarkably stable in liver, striatum, and other brain tissues. As OVT73 sheep at ten years old have minimal cell death and behavioral changes, our findings support instability of the HTT expanded-CAG repeat as being required for the progression of HD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Renee R Handley
- Centre for Brain Research, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Suzanne J Reid
- Centre for Brain Research, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Zoe Burch
- Center for Genomic Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Jessie C Jacobsen
- Centre for Brain Research, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Tammy Gillis
- Center for Genomic Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Kevin Correia
- Center for Genomic Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Skye R Rudiger
- Molecular Biology and Reproductive Technology, Laboratories, South Australian Research and Development Institute, Adelaide, SA, Australia
| | - Clive J McLaughlin
- Molecular Biology and Reproductive Technology, Laboratories, South Australian Research and Development Institute, Adelaide, SA, Australia
| | - C Simon Bawden
- Molecular Biology and Reproductive Technology, Laboratories, South Australian Research and Development Institute, Adelaide, SA, Australia
| | - Marcy E MacDonald
- Center for Genomic Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Neurology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Vanessa C Wheeler
- Center for Genomic Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Neurology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Russell G Snell
- Centre for Brain Research, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
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Akyol S, Ashrafi N, Yilmaz A, Turkoglu O, Graham SF. Metabolomics: An Emerging "Omics" Platform for Systems Biology and Its Implications for Huntington Disease Research. Metabolites 2023; 13:1203. [PMID: 38132886 PMCID: PMC10744751 DOI: 10.3390/metabo13121203] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2023] [Revised: 11/29/2023] [Accepted: 12/02/2023] [Indexed: 12/23/2023] Open
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD) is a progressive, fatal neurodegenerative disease characterized by motor, cognitive, and psychiatric symptoms. The precise mechanisms of HD progression are poorly understood; however, it is known that there is an expansion of the trinucleotide cytosine-adenine-guanine (CAG) repeat in the Huntingtin gene. Important new strategies are of paramount importance to identify early biomarkers with predictive value for intervening in disease progression at a stage when cellular dysfunction has not progressed irreversibly. Metabolomics is the study of global metabolite profiles in a system (cell, tissue, or organism) under certain conditions and is becoming an essential tool for the systemic characterization of metabolites to provide a snapshot of the functional and pathophysiological states of an organism and support disease diagnosis and biomarker discovery. This review briefly highlights the historical progress of metabolomic methodologies, followed by a more detailed review of the use of metabolomics in HD research to enable a greater understanding of the pathogenesis, its early prediction, and finally the main technical platforms in the field of metabolomics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sumeyya Akyol
- NX Prenatal Inc., 4350 Brownsboro Road, Louisville KY 40207, USA;
| | - Nadia Ashrafi
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Oakland University-William Beaumont School of Medicine, 318 Meadow Brook Road, Rochester, MI 48309, USA; (N.A.); (A.Y.); (O.T.)
| | - Ali Yilmaz
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Oakland University-William Beaumont School of Medicine, 318 Meadow Brook Road, Rochester, MI 48309, USA; (N.A.); (A.Y.); (O.T.)
- Metabolomics Division, Beaumont Research Institute, 3811 W. 13 Mile Road, Royal Oak, MI 48073, USA
| | - Onur Turkoglu
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Oakland University-William Beaumont School of Medicine, 318 Meadow Brook Road, Rochester, MI 48309, USA; (N.A.); (A.Y.); (O.T.)
| | - Stewart F. Graham
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Oakland University-William Beaumont School of Medicine, 318 Meadow Brook Road, Rochester, MI 48309, USA; (N.A.); (A.Y.); (O.T.)
- Metabolomics Division, Beaumont Research Institute, 3811 W. 13 Mile Road, Royal Oak, MI 48073, USA
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Morton AJ. Sleep and Circadian Rhythm Dysfunction in Animal Models of Huntington's Disease. J Huntingtons Dis 2023; 12:133-148. [PMID: 37334613 PMCID: PMC10473141 DOI: 10.3233/jhd-230574] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 05/23/2023] [Indexed: 06/20/2023]
Abstract
Sleep and circadian disruption affects most individuals with Huntington's disease (HD) at some stage in their lives. Sleep and circadian dysregulation are also present in many mouse and the sheep models of HD. Here I review evidence for sleep and/or circadian dysfunction in HD transgenic animal models and discuss two key questions: 1) How relevant are such findings to people with HD, and 2) Whether or not therapeutic interventions that ameliorate deficits in animal models of HD might translate to meaningful therapies for people with HD.
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Affiliation(s)
- A. Jennifer Morton
- Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
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