title: Partial characterisation of murine huntingtin and apparent variations in the subcellular localisation of huntingtin in human, mouse and rat brain.
abstract: Huntington's disease (HD) is an inherited neurodegenerative disorder caused by the expansion of a CAG repeat in a gene coding for a protein of unknown function. We have raised a polyclonal antibody against a 12 amino acid peptide (residues 2110-2121 of human huntingtin) which specifically recognises huntingtin on Western blots of human, rat and mouse brain. We have characterised huntingtin expression in the mouse. The protein was detected on Western blots of all mouse tissues examined, with the highest expression seen in brain. Human, mouse and rat brain were fractionated by differential centrifugation and discontinuous Percoll gradients. The fractions were analysed by Western blotting for huntingtin and synaptophysin (a synaptic vesicle localised protein). In mouse brain, huntingtin was localised in the soluble S3 fraction; in rat brain it was localised in the soluble S3 fraction and also in the membrane P2 and P3 fractions; in both normal and HD-affected human brain, huntingtin was membrane bound with a distribution essentially the same as that of synaptophysin. These observed differences in the subcellular localisation of huntingtin between mouse and human brain are important in the context of mouse models for HD.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Medical Genetics, University of Wales College of Medicine, Heath Park, Cardiff, UK.
authors.forename: J D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Wood
authors.forename: J C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: MacMillan
authors.forename: P S
authors.initials: PS
authors.lastname: Harper
authors.forename: P R
authors.initials: PR
authors.lastname: Lowenstein
authors.forename: A L
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Jones
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D000906:Antibodies / Q000276:immunology; D015153:Blotting, Western; D001921:Brain / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D000071058:Huntingtin Protein; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D009687:Nuclear Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D010446:Peptide Fragments / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D051381:Rats; D013347:Subcellular Fractions
chemical_list: D000906:Antibodies; C086055:HTT protein, human; C506812:Htt protein, mouse; C499524:Htt protein, rat; D000071058:Huntingtin Protein; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins; D009687:Nuclear Proteins; D010446:Peptide Fragments