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While the consequences of nuclear DNA damage have been well studied, the exact consequences of acute and selective mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) damage are less understood. DNA damaging chemotherapeutic drugs are known to activate p53-dependent apoptosis in response to sustained nuclear DNA damage. While it is recognized that whole-cell exposure to these drugs also damages mtDNA, the specific contribution of mtDNA damage to cellular degeneration is less clear. To examine this, we induced selective mtDNA damage in neuronal axons using microfluidic chambers that allow for the spatial and fluidic isolation of neuronal cell bodies (containing nucleus and mitochondria) from the axons (containing mitochondria). Exposure of the DNA damaging drug cisplatin selectively to only the axons induced mtDNA damage in axonal mitochondria, without nuclear damage. We found that this resulted in the selective degeneration of only the targeted axons that were exposed to DNA damage, where ROS was induced but mitochondria were not permeabilized. mtDNA damage-induced axon degeneration was not mediated by any of the three known axon degeneration pathways: apoptosis, axon pruning, and Wallerian degeneration, as Bax-deficiency, or Casp3-deficiency, or Sarm1-deficiency failed to protect the degenerating axons. Strikingly, p53, which is essential for degeneration after nuclear DNA damage, was also not required for degeneration induced with mtDNA damage. This was most evident when the p53-deficient neurons were globally exposed to cisplatin. While the cell bodies of p53-deficient neurons were protected from degeneration in this context, the axons farthest from the cell bodies still underwent degeneration. These results highlight how whole cell exposure to DNA damage activates two pathways of degeneration; a faster, p53-dependent apoptotic degeneration that is triggered in the cell bodies with nuclear DNA damage, and a slower, p53-independent degeneration that is induced with mtDNA damage.

p53 is required for nuclear but not mitochondrial DNA damage-induced degeneration