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Environmental neurotoxin‐induced progressive model of parkinsonism in rats
Author(s) -
Shen WeiBin,
McDowell Kimberly A.,
Siebert Aubrey A.,
Clark Sarah M.,
Dugger Natalie V.,
Valentino Kimberly M.,
Jinnah H. A.,
Sztalryd Carole,
Fishman Paul S.,
Shaw Christopher A.,
Jafri M. Samir,
Yarowsky Paul J.
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
annals of neurology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 4.764
H-Index - 296
eISSN - 1531-8249
pISSN - 0364-5134
DOI - 10.1002/ana.22018
Subject(s) - parkinsonism , cycad , striatum , substantia nigra , neurotoxin , neuroscience , dopamine , neurodegeneration , pars compacta , biology , dopaminergic , medicine , endocrinology , botany , disease
Objective Exposure to a number of drugs, chemicals, or environmental factors can cause parkinsonism. Epidemiologic evidence supports a causal link between the consumption of flour made from the washed seeds of the plant Cycas micronesica by the Chamorro population of Guam and the development of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis/parkinsonism dementia complex. Methods We now report that consumption of washed cycad flour pellets by Sprague‐Dawley male rats induces progressive parkinsonism. Results Cycad‐fed rats displayed motor abnormalities after 2 to 3 months of feeding such as spontaneous unilateral rotation, shuffling gait, and stereotypy. Histological and biochemical examination of brains from cycad‐fed rats revealed an initial decrease in the levels of dopamine and its metabolites in the striatum (STR), followed by neurodegeneration of dopaminergic (DAergic) cell bodies in the substantia nigra (SN) pars compacta (SNc). α‐Synuclein (α‐syn; proteinase K‐resistant) and ubiquitin aggregates were found in the DAergic neurons of the SNc and neurites in the STR. In addition, we identified α‐syn aggregates in neurons of the locus coeruleus and cingulate cortex. No loss of motor neurons in the spinal cord was found after chronic consumption of cycad flour. In an organotypic slice culture of the rat SN and the striatum, an organic extract of cycad causes a selective loss of dopamine neurons and α‐syn aggregates in the SN. Interpretation Cycad‐fed rats exhibit progressive behavioral, biochemical, and histological hallmarks of parkinsonism, coupled with a lack of fatality. ANN NEUROL 2010;68:70–80