ANIMAL MODELS FOR HUNTINGTON’S DISEASES: A REVIEW

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ANIMAL MODELS FOR HUNTINGTON’S DISEASES: A REVIEW 

Journal Title: International Research Journal of Pharmacy (IRJP) - Year 2012, Vol 3, Issue 10

Abstract

Huntington's disease (HD) is an inherited autosomal, progressive neurodegenerative disorder associated with involuntary abnormal movements (chorea), cognitive impairments and psychiatric disturbances. HD is caused by an abnormal expansion of a CAG region located in exon 1 of the gene encoding the huntingtin protein (Htt) and is the causative factor in the pathogenesis of HD Animal models of HD have provided insight into disease pathology and the outcomes of thera- peutic strategies. Earlier studies of HD most often used toxin-induced models to study mitochondrial impairment and excitotoxicity-induced cell death, which are both mechanisms of degeneration seen in the HD brain. These models, based on 3-nitropropionic acid and quinolinic acid, respectively, are still often used in HD studies. The discovery in 1993 of the huntingtin mutation led to the creation of newer models that incorporate a similar genetic defect. These models, which include transgenic and knock-in rodents, are more representative of the HD progression and pathology. An even more recent model that uses a ovine transgenic model (sheep model),fly models ,cell cultures models for better understanding of gene mutation in and in mammalian and nonhuman primates, as it is difficult to produce genetic models in these species. This article examines the aforementioned models and describes their use in HD research, including aspects of the creation, de- livery, pathology, and tested therapies for each model. 

Authors and Affiliations

Manisha Sharma , Sunil Kumar , Nidhi Sharma

Keywords

EP ID EP156243
DOI -
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