Nonallele Specific Silencing of Ataxin-7 Improves Disease Phenotypes in a Mouse Model of SCA7

Spinocerebellar ataxia type 7 (SCA7) is a late-onset neurodegenerative disease characterized by ataxia and vision loss with no effective treatments in the clinic. The most striking feature is the degeneration of Purkinje neurons of the cerebellum caused by the presence of polyglutamine-expanded atax...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Molecular therapy 2014-09, Vol.22 (9), p.1635-1642
Main Authors: Ramachandran, Pavitra S, Boudreau, Ryan L, Schaefer, Kellie A, La Spada, Albert R, Davidson, Beverly L
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Alleles
Animals
Ataxia
Ataxin-7
Cloning
Cytomegalovirus
Disease
Disease Models, Animal
Gene Expression Regulation
Genes
Medicine
Mice
Mice, Inbred C57BL
MicroRNAs
Motor ability
Motor Activity
Mutation
Nerve Tissue Proteins - antagonists & inhibitors
Nerve Tissue Proteins - genetics
Original
Proteins
Purkinje Cells - metabolism
Purkinje Cells - pathology
RNA Interference
Spinocerebellar Ataxias - genetics
Spinocerebellar Ataxias - physiopathology
Spinocerebellar Ataxias - therapy
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Summary:Spinocerebellar ataxia type 7 (SCA7) is a late-onset neurodegenerative disease characterized by ataxia and vision loss with no effective treatments in the clinic. The most striking feature is the degeneration of Purkinje neurons of the cerebellum caused by the presence of polyglutamine-expanded ataxin-7. Ataxin-7 is part of a transcriptional complex, and, in the setting of mutant ataxin-7, there is misregulation of target genes. Here, we designed RNAi sequences to reduce the expression of both wildtype and mutant ataxin-7 to test if reducing ataxin-7 in Purkinje cells is both tolerated and beneficial in an animal model of SCA7. We observed sustained reduction of both wildtype and mutant ataxin-7 as well as a significant improvement of ataxia phenotypes. Furthermore, we observed a reduction in cerebellar molecular layer thinning and nuclear inclusions, a hallmark of SCA7. In addition, we observed recovery of cerebellar transcripts whose expression is disrupted in the presence of mutant ataxin-7. These data demonstrate that reduction of both wildtype and mutant ataxin-7 by RNAi is well tolerated, and contrary to what may be expected from reducing a component of the Spt-Taf9-Gcn5 acetyltransferase complex, is efficacious in the SCA7 mouse.
ISSN:1525-0016
1525-0024
DOI:10.1038/mt.2014.108