Mutant Huntingtin impairs neurodevelopment in human brain organoids through CHCHD2-mediated neurometabolic failure

Abstract Expansion of the glutamine tract (poly-Q) in the protein Huntingtin (HTT) causes the neurodegenerative disorder Huntington’s disease (HD). Emerging evidence suggests that mutant HTT (mHTT) disrupts brain development. To gain mechanistic insights into the neurodevelopmental impact of human mHTT, we engineered induced pluripotent stem cells to introduce a biallelic or monoallelic mutant 70Q expansion or to remove the poly-Q tract of HTT. 70Q introduction caused aberrant development of cerebral organoids with loss of neural progenitor organization. The early neurodevelopmental signature of mHTT highlighted the dysregulation of the protein coiled-coil-helix-coiled-coil-helix domain containing 2 (CHCHD2), a transcription factor involved in mitochondrial integrated stress response. CHCHD2 repression was associated with abnormal mitochondrial morpho-dynamics and elevated resting energy expenditure. Elimination of the poly-Q tract of HTT normalized CHCHD2 expression and mitochondrial defects. Hence, mHTT-mediated disruption of human neurodevelopment is paralleled by aberrant neurometabolic programming mediated by dysregulation of CHCHD2, which could then serve as an early intervention target for HD.