title: DRPLA transgenic mouse substrains carrying single copy of full-length mutant human DRPLA gene with variable sizes of expanded CAG repeats exhibit CAG repeat length- and age-dependent changes in behavioral abnormalities and gene expression profiles.
abstract: Dentatorubral-pallidoluysian atrophy (DRPLA) is an autosomal dominant progressive neurodegenerative disorder with intellectual deterioration and various motor deficits including ataxia, choreoathetosis, and myoclonus, caused by an abnormal expansion of CAG repeats in the DRPLA gene. Longer expanded CAG repeats contribute to an earlier age of onset, faster progression, and more severe neurological symptoms in DRPLA patients. In this study, we have established DRPLA transgenic mouse lines (sublines) harboring a single copy of the full-length mutant human DRPLA gene carrying various lengths of expanded CAG repeats (Q76, Q96, Q113, and Q129), which have clearly shown motor deficits and memory disturbance whose severity increases with the length of expanded CAG repeats and age, and successfully replicated the CAG repeat length- and age-dependent features of DRPLA patients. Neuronal intranuclear accumulation of the mutant DRPLA protein has been suggested to cause transcriptional dysregulation, leading to alteration in gene expression and neuronal dysfunction. In this study, we have conducted a comprehensive analysis of gene expression profiles in the cerebrum and cerebellum of transgenic mouse lines at 4, 8, and 12 weeks using multiple microarray platforms, and demonstrated that both the number and expression levels of the altered genes are highly dependent on CAG repeat length and age in both brain regions. Specific groups of genes and their function categories were identified by further agglomerative cluster analysis and gene functional annotation analysis. Calcium signaling and neuropeptide signaling, among others, were implicated in the pathophysiology of DRPLA. Our study provides unprecedented CAG-repeat-length-dependent mouse models of DRPLA, which are highly valuable not only for elucidating the CAG-repeat-length-dependent pathophysiology of DRPLA but also for developing therapeutic strategies for DRPLA.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, The University of Tokyo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8655, Japan.
authors.forename: Kazushi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Suzuki
authors.forename: Jiayi
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.forename: Toshiya
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Sato
authors.forename: Keizo
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Takao
authors.forename: Tsuyoshi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Miyagawa
authors.forename: Mutsuo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Oyake
authors.forename: Mitunori
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yamada
authors.forename: Hitoshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Takahashi
authors.forename: Yuji
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Takahashi
authors.forename: Jun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Goto
authors.forename: Shoji
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Tsuji
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D000818:Animals; D006801:Humans; D018782:Maze Learning / Q000502:physiology; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D008822:Mice, Transgenic; D009043:Motor Activity / Q000235:genetics*; D009154:Mutation / Q000235:genetics*; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D011485:Protein Binding / Q000502:physiology; D059467:Transcriptome; D019680:Trinucleotide Repeat Expansion / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins; C095278:atrophin-1