Mitochondria “Shackled” by Mutant Huntingtin: Analysis of Morphological Alterations and Disruptions of Intracellular Transport

Mitochondria are semi-autonomous, multifunctional organelles that supply cells with energy. They are highly dynamic structures, capable of moving, fusing, dividing, and forming branched networks. The number, density, and complexity of mitochondrial network are unique to each cell type and reflect cellular demands for ATP and other mitochondria-dependent metabolites. Mitochondrial dysfunction is a hallmark of many neurodegenerative diseases; however, the relationships between neurodegeneration and mitochondrial morphogenesis, intracellular localization, and dynamics remain incompletely understood. Interpretation and comparison of published data are complicated by the diversity of analytical approaches used to study mitochondrial behavior. In this research, we investigated the effects of a pathogenic mutation in the huntingtin protein (HTT), which causes Huntington's disease (HD), on mitochondrial morphology and motility, with particular emphasis on associated disruptions in the cytoskeletal organization. We performed a systematic evaluation of automated mitochondrial analysis tools and selected <i>MiNA</i>, <i>TrackMate</i>, and <i>JACoP</i> as the optimal platforms for quantitative assessment of the effects of mutant HTT (mHTT) on the mitochondrial morphology, motility, and interaction with cytoskeletal components and identification of specific disruptions directly related to HD pathogenesis. Our analysis revealed that mitochondria in mHTT-expressing cells are significantly shorter, more branched, and less motile than in control cells. Moreover, their interactions with microtubules and vimentin intermediate filaments are markedly altered. Together, these findings establish a link between HD and specific defects in the mitochondrial network, thus contributing to understanding cellular mechanisms of HD development, and suggest that mHTT disrupts the interaction of mitochondria with cytoskeletal components responsible for their movement and distribution in the cell, thereby negatively affecting mitochondrial motility and morphology.