PGC-1α pathway dysregulation disrupts myofiber specification in a mouse model of SBMA.

Abstract

Skeletal muscle pathology is a critical but poorly understood contributor to neuromuscular degeneration in spinal and bulbar muscular atrophy (SBMA), a CAG/polyglutamine (polyQ) expansion disorder caused by mutation in the androgen receptor (AR). Using a gene-targeted SBMA mouse model, we applied single-nucleus RNA sequencing to identify a disease-specific population of skeletal muscle myonuclei that replaced normal myonuclear subtypes. This transition was associated with dysregulation of the pathway governed by PGC-1α, a central regulator of myofiber specification and metabolic identity. PGC-1α dysfunction in SBMA muscle was age-, hormone-, and polyQ length-dependent and was partially rescued by subcutaneous delivery of AR-targeted antisense oligonucleotides. Integrated ChIP-seq and RNA-seq analyses revealed that aberrant PGC-1α activity promoted the expression of a distinct set of myofiber specification genes while downregulating those that define healthy Type IIb and Type IIx myonuclei. We propose a model in which this dysfunction arose downstream of polyQ-mediated sequestration of PGC-1α cofactors MEF2, CREB, and CBP, leading to transcriptional reprogramming and cellular dysfunction. These findings implicated PGC-1α dysregulation as a key event linking AR polyQ expansion to skeletal muscle degeneration and suggested a shared mechanism for polyQ-mediated muscle pathology across related neurodegenerative diseases.