Proteomic analysis of growth cones from WT and HD mice

Although Huntington’s disease (HD) is a late onset neurological condition, studies suggest a developmental contribution to its adult manifestations. Imaging studies in presymptomatic HD gene carriers revealed early alterations in white matter tract with a marked defect in the corpus callosum. This tract is mainly formed by axons projecting from layer II/III neurons. HD leads to microtubule bundling defects in the growth cone, the cellular compartment that drives axonal growth. We performed a mass spectrometry-based proteomic analysis of growth cones from WT (HdhQ7/Q7) and HD (HdhQ7/Q111) mice to identify proteins involved in HD-induced phenotypes on axonal growth and on the growth cone microtubule cytoskeleton.