Nan Zhang

The paper shows that Huntingtin (HTT) helps maintain mitochondrial DNA integrity by organizing a repair complex, which is disrupted by mutant HTT in Huntington's disease, leading to DNA damage and motor deficits in a fly model.

This study identifies a mechanism where HTT recruits BRG1 and NHEJ components to repair transcription-associated DSBs in neurons, and shows that mutant HTT impairs this process, contributing to HD pathology.