Huntington disease oligodendrocyte maturation deficits revealed by single-nucleus RNAseq are rescued by thiamine-biotin supplementation

Abstract

<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title><jats:p>The complexity of affected brain regions and cell types is a challenge for Huntington’s disease (HD) treatment. Here we use single nucleus RNA sequencing to investigate molecular pathology in the cortex and striatum from R6/2 mice and human HD post-mortem tissue. We identify cell type-specific and -agnostic signatures suggesting oligodendrocytes (OLs) and oligodendrocyte precursors (OPCs) are arrested in intermediate maturation states. OL-lineage regulators <jats:italic>OLIG1</jats:italic> and <jats:italic>OLIG2</jats:italic> are negatively correlated with CAG length in human OPCs, and ATACseq analysis of HD mouse NeuN-negative cells shows decreased accessibility regulated by OL maturation genes. The data implicates glucose and lipid metabolism in abnormal cell maturation and identify <jats:italic>PRKCE</jats:italic> and Thiamine Pyrophosphokinase 1 (<jats:italic>TPK1</jats:italic>) as central genes. Thiamine/biotin treatment of R6/1 HD mice to compensate for <jats:italic>TPK1</jats:italic> dysregulation restores OL maturation and rescues neuronal pathology. Our insights into HD OL pathology spans multiple brain regions and link OL maturation deficits to abnormal thiamine metabolism.</jats:p>