Levodopa Rescues Retinal Function in the Transgenic A53T Alpha-Synuclein Model of Parkinson's Disease

Authors

Katie K N Tran
Vickie H Y Wong
Kirstan A Vessey
David I Finkelstein
Bang V Bui
Christine T O Nguyen

Publication Date

1-8-2024

Journal

Biomedicines

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Loss of substantia nigra dopaminergic cells and alpha-synuclein (α-syn)-rich intraneuronal deposits within the central nervous system are key hallmarks of Parkinson's disease (PD). Levodopa (L-DOPA) is the current gold-standard treatment for PD. This study aimed to evaluate

METHODS: Anaesthetised 6-month-old mice expressing human A53T alpha-synuclein (HOM) and wildtype (WT) control littermates were intraperitoneally given 20 mg/kg L-DOPA (50 mg levodopa, 2.5 mg benserazide) or vehicle saline (

RESULTS: We found that photoreceptor (a-wave) and bipolar cell (b-wave) ERG responses (

CONCLUSIONS: These findings deepen our understanding of dopamine and alpha-synuclein interactions in the retina and provide a high-throughput preclinical framework, primed for translation, through which novel therapeutic compounds can be objectively screened and assessed for fast-tracking PD drug discovery.

Keywords

A53T mice, levodopa, Parkinson’s disease, electroretinography, optical coherence tomography, amacrine cells, immunohistochemistry

Comments

Supplementary Materials

PMID: 38255235