scholarly journals Modelling Parkinson’s Disease: iPSCs towards Better Understanding of Human Pathology

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 373
Author(s):  
Sahar Avazzadeh ◽  
Jara Maria Baena ◽  
Cameron Keighron ◽  
Yajaira Feller-Sanchez ◽  
Leo R. Quinlan

Parkinson’s Disease (PD) is a chronic neurodegenerative disorder characterized by motor and non-motor symptoms, among which are bradykinesia, rigidity, tremor as well as mental symptoms such as dementia. The underlying cause of Parkinson disease is degeneration of dopaminergic neurons. It has been challenging to develop an efficient animal model to accurately represent the complex phenotypes found with PD. However, it has become possible to recapitulate the myriad of phenotypes underlying the PD pathology by using human induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) technology. Patient-specific iPSC-derived dopaminergic neurons are available and present an opportunity to study many aspects of the PD phenotypes in a dish. In this review, we report the available data on iPSC-derived neurons derived from PD patients with identified gene mutations. Specifically, we will report on the key phenotypes of the generated iPSC-derived neurons from PD patients with different genetic background. Furthermore, we discuss the relationship these cellular phenotypes have to PD pathology and future challenges and prospects for iPSC modelling and understanding of the pathogenesis of PD.

2013 ◽  
Vol 2013 ◽  
pp. 1-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Noelia Granado ◽  
Sara Ares-Santos ◽  
Rosario Moratalla

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disorder predominantly affecting the elderly. The aetiology of the disease is not known, but age and environmental factors play an important role. Although more than a dozen gene mutations associated with familial forms of Parkinson's disease have been described, fewer than 10% of all cases can be explained by genetic abnormalities. The molecular basis of Parkinson's disease is the loss of dopamine in the basal ganglia (caudate/putamen) due to the degeneration of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra, which leads to the motor impairment characteristic of the disease. Methamphetamine is the second most widely used illicit drug in the world. In rodents, methamphetamine exposure damages dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra, resulting in a significant loss of dopamine in the striatum. Biochemical and neuroimaging studies in human methamphetamine users have shown decreased levels of dopamine and dopamine transporter as well as prominent microglial activation in the striatum and other areas of the brain, changes similar to those observed in PD patients. Consistent with these similarities, recent epidemiological studies have shown that methamphetamine users are almost twice as likely as non-users to develop PD, despite the fact that methamphetamine abuse and PD have distinct symptomatic profiles.


The neurodegenerative disorder is a prolonged persistence curse and effect on economic and physical challenges in an aging world. Parkinson has come in the second category of disability disorders and associated with progressive dopaminergic neuronal degeneration with severe motor complications. It is an observation that gradual disease progression causes 70% degeneration of striatal dopaminergic neurons. Globally there are around 7-10 million patients with Parkinson's disease, however, there are huge efforts for therapeutic improvement. According to studies, no single molecular pathway was pointed out as a single etiology to control disease progression due to a lack of targeted therapeutic strategies. Previously implemented symptomatic treatments include L-dopa (L-3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine), deep brain stimulation, and the surgical insertion of a medical device. This leads to dyskinesia, dystonia and a higher risk of major surgical complications respectively. However, not all the above-mentioned therapies cannot regenerate the dopaminergic neurons in Parkinson’s disease patients. Recent advances in the field of cellular therapy have shown promising outcomes by differentiation of multipotent mesenchymal stem cells into dopaminergic neurons under the influence of a regenerative substance. In this review, we have discussed the differentiation of dopaminergic neurons by using different cell types that can be used as a cellular therapeutic approach for Parkinson’s disease. The information was collected through a comprehensive search using the keywords, “Parkinson Disease, Dopamine, Brain derived neurotrophic factor and neuron from reliable search engines, PubMed, Google Scholar and Medline reviews from the year 2010 to 2020.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brett Fulleylove-Krause ◽  
Samantha Sison ◽  
Allison Ebert

Abstract Objectives: Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a common neurodegenerative disorder caused by the loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra. Although the underlying mechanisms of dopaminergic neuron loss is not fully understood, evidence suggests mitochondrial malfunction as a key contributor to disease pathogenesis. We previously found that human PD patient stem cell-derived dopaminergic neurons exhibit reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+) levels and reduce activity of sirtuins, a group of NAD+-dependent deacetylase enzymes that participate in the regulation of mitochondrial function, energy production, and cell survival. Thus, here we tested whether treatment of PD stem cell-derived dopaminergic neurons with nicotinamide mononucleotide (NMN), an NAD+ precursor, could increase NAD+ levels and improve sirtuin activity. Results: We treated PD iPSC-derived dopaminergic neurons with NMN and found that NAD+ levels did increase. The deacetylase activity of sirtuin (SIRT) 2 was improved with NMN treatment, but NMN had no impact on deacetylase activity of SIRT 1 or 3. These results suggest that NMN can restore NAD+ levels and SIRT 2 activity, but that additional mechanisms are involved SIRT 1 and 3 dysregulation in PD dopaminergic neurons.


Author(s):  
Vaibhav Walia ◽  
Ashish Gakkhar ◽  
Munish Garg

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disorder in which a progressive loss of the dopaminergic neurons occurs. The loss of the neurons is most prominent in the substantia nigra region of the brain. The prevalence of PD is much greater among the older patients suggesting the risk of PD increases with the increase of age. The exact cause of the neurodegeneration in PD is not known. In this chapter, the authors introduce PD, demonstrate its history, pathogenesis, neurobiology, sign and symptoms, diagnosis, and pharmacotherapy.


2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (12) ◽  
pp. 4250
Author(s):  
Yuzuru Imai

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is the second most common neurodegenerative disorder characterized by age-dependent motor dysfunction and degeneration of the midbrain dopaminergic neurons [...]


2013 ◽  
Vol 18 (5) ◽  
pp. 522-533 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jun Peng ◽  
Qiuyue Liu ◽  
Mahendra S. Rao ◽  
Xianmin Zeng

To begin to develop a high-throughput assay system to evaluate potential small-molecule therapy for Parkinson’s disease (PD), we have performed a low-throughput assay with a small number of compounds using human pluripotent stem cell–derived dopaminergic neurons. We first evaluated the role of 44 compounds known to work in rodent systems in a 1-methyl-4-phenylpyridinium (MPP+) assay in a 96-well format using the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide assay as a readout for neuroprotection. Glial cell–derived neurotrophic factor was used as a positive control because of its well-documented neuroprotective effect on dopaminergic neurons, and two concentrations of each drug were tested. Of 44 compounds screened, 16 showed a neuroprotective effect at one or both dosages tested. A dose-response curve of a subset of the 16 positives was established in the MPP+ model. In addition, we validated neuroprotective effects of these compounds in a rotenone-induced dopaminergic neuronal cell death, another established model for PD. Our human primary dopaminergic neuron-based assays provide a platform for rapid screening and/or validation of potential neuroprotective agents in PD treatment using patient-specific cells and show the importance of using human cells for such assays.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Javier Jarazo ◽  
Kyriaki Barmpa ◽  
Isabel Rosety ◽  
Lisa M. Smits ◽  
Jonathan Arias-Fuenzalida ◽  
...  

AbstractThe etiology of Parkinson’s disease (PD) is only partially understood despite the fact that environmental causes, risk factors, and specific gene mutations are contributors to the disease. Biallelic mutations in the PTEN-induced putative kinase 1 (PINK1) gene involved in mitochondrial homeostasis, vesicle trafficking, and autophagy, are sufficient to cause PD. By comparing PD patient-derived cells, we show differences in their energetic profile, imbalanced proliferation, apoptosis, mitophagy, and a reduced differentiation efficiency to dopaminergic neurons compared to control cells. Using CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing, correction of a patient’s point mutation ameliorated the metabolic properties and neuronal firing rates but without reversing the differentiation phenotype. However, treatment with 2-Hydroxypropyl-β-Cyclodextrin (HP-β-CD) increased the mitophagy capacity of neurons leading to an improved dopaminergic differentiation of patient specific neurons in midbrain organoids. In conclusion, we show that treatment with a repurposed compound is sufficient for restoring dopaminergic differentiation of PD patient-derived cells.


2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 47-65
Author(s):  
Falaq Naz ◽  
Yasir Hasan Siddique

Parkinson’s Disease (PD) is a complex neurodegenerative disorder that mainly results due to the loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra of the midbrain. It is well known that dopamine is synthesized in substantia nigra and is transported to the striatum via nigrostriatal tract. Besides the sporadic forms of PD, there are also familial cases of PD and number of genes (both autosomal dominant as well as recessive) are responsible for PD. There is no permanent cure for PD and to date, L-dopa therapy is considered to be the best option besides having dopamine agonists. In the present review, we have described the genes responsible for PD, the role of dopamine, and treatment strategies adopted for controlling the progression of PD in humans.


2020 ◽  
pp. 1-22
Author(s):  
Anne-Marie Castonguay ◽  
Claude Gravel ◽  
Martin Lévesque

Parkinson’s disease is a neurodegenerative disorder mainly characterized by the degeneration of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra. Degenerating neurons contain abnormal aggregates called Lewy bodies, that are predominantly composed of the misfolded and/or mutated alpha-synuclein protein. Post-translational modifications, cellular stress, inflammation and gene mutations are thought to trigger its pathological misfolding and aggregation. With alpha-synuclein pathology being strongly associated with dopaminergic neuronal toxicity, strategies aimed to reduce its burden are expected to be beneficial in slowing disease progression. Moreover, multiple sources of evidence suggest a cell-to-cell transmission of pathological alpha-synuclein in a prion-like manner. Therefore, antibodies targeting extra- or intracellular alpha-synuclein could be efficient in limiting the aggregation and transmission. Several active and passive immunization strategies have been explored to target alpha-synuclein. Here, we summarize immunotherapeutic approaches that were tested in pre-clinical or clinical studies in the last two decades in an attempt to treat Parkinson’s disease.


2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (3) ◽  
pp. 207-222
Author(s):  
Tapan Behl ◽  
Ishnoor Kaur ◽  
Arun Kumar ◽  
Vineet Mehta ◽  
Gokhan Zengin ◽  
...  

: The limitations of conventional treatment therapies in Parkinson’s disorder, a common neurodegenerative disorder, lead to the development of an alternative gene therapy approach. Multiple treatment options targeting dopaminergic neuronal regeneration, production of enzymes linked with dopamine synthesis, subthalamic nucleus neurons, regulation of astrocytes and microglial cells and potentiating neurotrophic factors, were established. Viral vector-based dopamine delivery, prodrug approaches, fetal ventral mesencephalon tissue transplantation and dopamine synthesizing enzyme encoding gene delivery are significant therapies evidently supported by numerous trials. The review primarily elaborates on the significant role of glial cell-line derived neurotrophic factor in alleviating motor symptoms and the loss of dopaminergic neurons in Parkinson’s disease. Neuroprotective and neuroregenerative effects of GDNF were established via preclinical and clinical study outcomes. The binding of GDNF family ligands with associated receptors leads to the formation of a receptor-ligand complex activating Ret receptor of tyrosine kinase family, which is only expressed in dopaminergic neurons, playing an important role in Parkinson’s disease, via its association with the essential protein encoded genes. Furthermore, the review establishes delivery aspects, like ventricular delivery of recombinant GDNF, intraparenchymal and intraputaminal delivery using infusion catheters. The review highlights problems and challenges of GDNF delivery, and essential measures to overcome them, like gene therapy combinations, optimization of delivery vectors, newer targeting devices, motor symptoms curbing focused ultrasound techniques, modifications in patient selection criteria and development of novel delivery strategies based on liposomes and encapsulated cells, to promote safe and effective delivery of neurotrophic factor and establishment of routine treatment therapy for patients.


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