Disruption of the nuclear membrane by perinuclear inclusions of mutant huntingtin causes cell-cycle re-entry and striatal cell death in mouse and cell models of Huntington's disease.

ABSTRACT: Accumulation of N-terminal fragments of mutant huntingtin (mHTT) in the cytoplasm, nuclei and axons of neurons is a hallmark of Huntington's disease (HD), although how these fragments negatively impact neurons remains unclear. We followed the distribution of mHTT in the striata of transgenic R6/2-J2 HD mice as their motor function declined. The fraction of cells with diffuse, perinuclear or intranuclear mHTT changed in parallel with decreasing motor function. In transgenic mice, medium spiny neurons (MSNs) that exhibited perinuclear inclusions expressed cell-cycle markers typically not seen in the striata of normal mice, and these cells are preferentially lost as disease progresses. Electron microscopy reveals that perinuclear inclusions disrupt the nuclear envelope. The progression of per

SUBMITTER: Liu KY 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4381756 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature