Masahiko Tomiyama

Role of serotonergic neurons in L-DOPA-derived extracellular dopamine in the striatum of 6-OHDA-lesioned rats.

The effect of L-dihydroxyphenylalanine (L-DOPA) on extracellular dopamine (DA) in the striatum was determined by microdialysis in 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA)-lesioned rats treated with and without the serotonergic neurotoxin 5,7-dihydroxytryptamine (5,7-DHT). At the same time the intensity of L-DOPA-induced rotational behavior was assessed. In 6-OHDA-lesioned rats treated with 5,7-DHT, L-DOPA (50 mg/kg, i.p.) increased extracellular DA only to 20% of that measured in animals not treated with 5,7-DHT. Likewise, 6-OHDA-lesioned rats treated with 5,7-DHT exhibited a significantly lower number of L-DOPA-induced rotations. These results suggest that serotonergic terminals in the striatum can convert exogenously administered L-DOPA into DA that can be released into the extracellular space.

Activation of 5-HT(1A) but not 5-HT(1B) receptors attenuates an increase in extracellular dopamine derived from exogenously administered L-DOPA in the striatum with nigrostriatal denervation.

In order to determine whether l‐DOPA‐derived extracellular dopamine (DA) in the striatum with dopaminergic denervation is affected by activation of serotonin autoreceptors (5‐HT1A and 5‐HT1B receptors), we applied in vivo brain microdialysis technique to 6‐hydroxydopamine‐lesioned rats and examined the effects of the selective 5‐HT1A receptor agonist 8‐hydroxy‐2‐(di‐n‐propylamino)tetralin (8‐OH‐DPAT) and the selective 5‐HT1B receptor agonist CGS‐12066 A on l‐DOPA‐derived extracellular DA levels. Single l‐DOPA injection (50 mg/kg i.p.) caused a rapid increase and a following decrease of extracellular DA, with a peak value at 100 min after l‐DOPA injection. Pretreatment with both 0.3 mg/kg and 1 mg/kg 8‐OH‐DPAT (i.p.) significantly attenuated an increase in l‐DOPA‐derived extracellular DA and the times of peak DA levels were prolonged to 150 min and 225 min after l‐DOPA injection, respectively. These 8‐OH‐DPAT‐induced changes in l‐DOPA‐derived extracellular DA were antagonized by further pretreatment with WAY‐100635, a selective 5‐HT1A antagonist. In contrast, intrastriatal perfusion with the 5‐HT1B agonist CGS‐12066 A (10 nm and 100 nm) did not induce any changes in l‐DOPA‐derived extracellular DA. Thus, stimulation of 5‐HT1A but not 5‐HT1B receptors attenuated an increase in extracellular DA derived from exogenous l‐DOPA. These results support the hypothesis that serotonergic neurons are primarily responsible for the storage and release of DA derived from exogenous l‐DOPA in the absence of dopaminergic neurons.

Reserpine pretreatment prevents increases in extracellular striatal dopamine following L-DOPA administration in rats with nigrostriatal denervation

Abstract: The influence of L‐DOPA and reserpine on extracellular dopamine (DA) levels in the striatum of intact and dopaminergic denervated rats was studied using the brain microdialysis technique. In intact rats, reserpine (5 mg/kg s.c.) reduced extracellular DA levels to 4% of basal values. L‐DOPA (50 mg/kg i.p.) had no effect on extracellular DA levels in reserpine‐pretreated rats. In rats with 6‐hydroxydopamine‐induced lesion of the nigrostriatal dopaminergic system, basal levels of extracellular DA were low but markedly increased by L‐DOPA (50 mg/kg i.p.). In 6‐hydroxydopamine‐lesioned rats, pretreatment with reserpine (5 mg/kg s.c.) diminished L‐DOPA (50 mg/kg i.p.)‐induced increases in extracellular DA levels to 16% of those obtained in denervated animals not pretreated with reserpine (p < 0.01). These results suggest that in the intact striatum, extracellular DA stems mainly from vesicular storage sites and that in the striatum with dopaminergic denervation, a large part of the L‐DOPA‐derived extracellular DA is also derived from a vesicular pool that is released by an exocytosis mechanism.

Clinical availability of skin biopsy in the diagnosis of Parkinson's disease

To determine whether skin biopsy is practically useful in the premortem diagnosis for Parkinsons disease (PD), we examined Lewy pathology in the skin of the chest wall and leg, obtained from 6-mm punch biopsies, using phosphorylated alpha-synuclein antibody in 20 patients with clinically diagnosed PD. Abnormal accumulation of alpha-synuclein was found in the chest skin of two (10%) of 20 patients, but not in the leg. Although skin biopsy combined with a conventional immunohistochemistry for alpha-synuclein is not sufficient as a diagnostic tool, we could firstly demonstrate Lewy pathology in premortem tissue. The skin remains to be a promising tissue to be examined for the premortem diagnosis of PD.

A serotonin 5-HT1A receptor agonist prevents behavioral sensitization to L-DOPA in a rodent model of Parkinson's disease.

Marked fluctuation of dopamine concentration in the striatum following long-term L-DOPA administration contributes to the development of L-DOPA-induced motor complications including L-DOPA-induced dyskinesias and wearing-off in patients with Parkinsons disease. We have shown that pretreatment with 8-hydroxy-2-(di-n-propylamino)tetralin (8-OH-DPAT), a 5-HT1A (5-hydroxytryptamine) receptor agonist, alleviates fluctuation of dopamine levels in the dopamine-denervated striatum of 6-hydroxydopamine-lesioned (hemiparkinsonian) rats after L-DOPA treatment. To determine whether co-administration of 8-OH-DPAT with L-DOPA prevents L-DOPA-induced motor complications, we examined rotation behavior and levels of messenger RNAs coding for dynorphin and glutamic acid decarboxylase in the striatum of 6-hydroxydopamine-lesioned rats treated with L-DOPA alone or L-DOPA + 8-OH-DPAT, twice daily, for 2 weeks. Co-administration of 8-OH-DPAT inhibited an increase of rotation behavior to L-DOPA and L-DOPA-induced increases in levels of messenger RNAs coding for dynorphin and glutamic acid decarboxylase in the dopamine-denervated striatum, both of which are established indices of L-DOPA-induced motor complications. These results suggest that pharmaceutical products that stimulate 5-HT1A receptors could prove useful in prevention of the development of L-DOPA-induced motor complications in patients with Parkinsons disease.

Rapid induction of serotonergic hyperinnervation in the adult rat striatum with extensive dopaminergic denervation

The aim of our study was to determine whether serotonergic hyperinnervation is rapidly induced in the striatum of adult rats with extensive dopaminergic denervation. Immunohistochemical study was performed on the brain sections obtained at 2 and 8 weeks after injection of 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) into the medial forebrain bundle. The extent of dopaminergic denervation was evaluated as a percentage loss of tyrosine hydroxylase immunopositive neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta. The immunopositive areas for serotonin (5-HT) in the striatum were measured. In the lesioned rats 97.5+/-0.6% of dopamine neurons were lost. 5-HT immunopositive areas in the striatum were significantly increased both at 2 and 8 weeks after 6-OHDA injection (P<0.01). These results suggest that extensive dopaminergic denervation in adult rats induces rapid serotonergic hyperinnervation in the striatum as early as 2 weeks after lesioning.

Rats Harboring S284L Chrna4 Mutation Show Attenuation of Synaptic and Extrasynaptic GABAergic Transmission and Exhibit the Nocturnal Frontal Lobe Epilepsy Phenotype

Mutations of genes encoding α4, β2, or α2 subunits (CHRNA4, CHRNB2, or CHRNA2, respectively) of nAChR [neuronal nicotinic ACh (acetylcholine) receptor] cause nocturnal frontal lobe epilepsy (NFLE) in human. NFLE-related seizures are seen exclusively during sleep and are characterized by three distinct seizure phenotypes: “paroxysmal arousals,” “paroxysmal dystonia,” and “episodic wandering.” We generated transgenic rat strains that harbor a missense mutation S284L, which had been identified in CHRNA4 in NFLE. The transgenic rats were free of biological abnormalities, such as dysmorphology in the CNS, and behavioral abnormalities. The mRNA level of the transgene (mutant Chrna4) was similar to the wild type, and no distorted expression was detected in the brain. However, the transgenic rats showed epileptic seizure phenotypes during slow-wave sleep (SWS) similar to those in NFLE exhibiting three characteristic seizure phenotypes and thus fulfilled the diagnostic criteria of human NFLE. The therapeutic response of these rats to conventional antiepileptic drugs also resembled that of NFLE patients with the S284L mutation. The rats exhibited two major abnormalities in neurotransmission: (1) attenuation of synaptic and extrasynaptic GABAergic transmission and (2) abnormal glutamate release during SWS. The currently available genetically engineered animal models of epilepsy are limited to mice; thus, our transgenic rats offer another dimension to the epilepsy research field.

Reuptake of L-DOPA-derived extracellular dopamine in the striatum with dopaminergic denervation via serotonin transporters.

The aim of our present study was to determine whether exogenous L-DOPA-derived extracellular dopamine (DA) in the denervated striatum is taken up via serotonin (5-HT) transporters. Rats with dopaminergic denervation by 6-hydroxydopamine were injected with L-DOPA 50 mg/kg (i.p.) and extracellular DA levels in the denervated striatum were measured using in vivo microdialysis technique. During the experiments, fluoxetine, a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor, was locally perfused into the striatum through the microdialysis probe. Cumulative amounts of L-DOPA-derived extracellular DA during 300 min were increased by fluoxetine dose-dependently (10 microM and 50 microM). These results suggest that reuptake of DA via 5-HT transporters plays an important role in the clearance of L-DOPA-derived DA from the extracellular space when dopaminergic neurons are extensively denervated.

Reuptake of L-DOPA-derived extracellular DA in the striatum of a rodent model of Parkinson's disease via norepinephrine transporter.

To determine the role of norepinephrine transporter in reuptake of L‐DOPA‐derived extracellular DA in the DA‐denervated Parkinsonian striatum, we examined extracellular DA levels in the striatum of 6‐hydroxyDA‐lesioned rats that received L‐DOPA (50 mg/kg with 12.5 mg/kg of benserazide) and L‐DOPA plus desipramine (25 mg/kg), a selective norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor, using in vivo microdialysis. The pretreatment with desipramine increased levels of extracellular DA derived from administrated L‐DOPA in the DA‐denervated striatum. This study provides evidence that L‐DOPA‐derived DA is taken up by the norepinephrine transporter, instead of the dopamine transporter, in the striatum with dopaminergic denervation. This result suggests that the norepinephrine transporter could be a promising target in the treatment for Parkinsons disease. Synapse 62:632–635, 2008.

Morphologic changes of dendritic spines of striatal neurons in the levodopa-induced dyskinesia model.

Maladaptive plasticity at corticostriatal synapses plays an important role in the development of levodopa‐induced dyskinesia. Recently, it has been shown that synaptic plasticity is closely linked to morphologic changes of dendritic spines. To evaluate morphologic changes of dendritic spines of two types of striatal medium spiny neurons, which project to the internal segment of globus pallidus or the external segment of globus pallidus, in the levodopa‐induced dyskinesia model, we used 6‐hydroxydopamine‐lesioned rats chronically treated with levodopa. Dendritic spines were decreased and became enlarged in the direct pathway neurons of the model of levodopa‐induced dyskinesia. The same levodopa treatment to normal rats, in which no dyskinesia was observed, also induced enlargement of dendritic spines, but not a decrease in density of spines in the direct pathway neurons. These results suggest that a loss and enlargement of dendritic spines in the direct pathway neurons plays important roles in the development of levodopa‐induced dyskinesia.