Abstract
Huntington’s disease (HD) is a genetic disorder that arises from a mutation in the huntingtin gene, leading to the formation of toxic aggregates. These elements are predominantly deposited in neurons, with smaller amounts found in the cells of numerous peripheral organs. One such example is the adrenal glands, which are responsible for the production of catecholamines, such as dopamine, norepinephrine, and epinephrine, in addition to steroid hormones, including cortisol and aldosterone. Abnormalities in the concentrations of these produced factors have been demonstrated in both patients and animal models. However, there is a lack of studies related to the expression profile of genes responsible for adrenal physiological functions. The objective of this study was to ascertain whether there have been alterations in the expression of genes responsible for the processes of steroidogenesis and catechola-mine production in the adrenal glands of the R6/1 mouse model of HD. To this purpose, we employed quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) analyses to ascertain the relative expression levels of the genes responsible for these two processes. A significant decrease in the expression of genes involved in the catecholamine production pathway was observed, while no change in the expression of genes related to steroidogenesis was detected. This finding suggests that reduced gene expression may contribute to the impaired production of catecholamines in R6/1 mice.