title: Intrastriatal injection of sonic hedgehog reduces behavioral impairment in a rat model of Parkinson's disease.
abstract: Sonic hedgehog (Shh), a member of hedgehog (hh) family of signaling molecules, is necessary for normal axial patterning and cellular differentiation in the developing central nervous system. Shh also promotes the survival of fetal dopaminergic neurons and protects cultures of fetal midbrain dopaminergic neurons from the toxic effects of N-methyl-4-phenylpyridinium (MPP(+)), a neurotoxin that selectively injures nigral dopaminergic neurons. The mRNA expression of Shh and its putative receptor in the adult brain indicates an important role of Shh in the mature nervous system in addition to its roles during embryogenesis. In this study we examined the behavioral and anatomical effects of intrastriatal injection of singly myristoylated wild-type human Sonic hedgehog N-terminal fragment (Shh-M) in a rat model of Parkinson's disease (PD). Five groups of rats received a series of four intrastriatal injections of Shh-M (180 ng, 540 ng, or 4.275 microg per injection), glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) (1 microg/injection), or vehicle on days 1, 3, 5, and 8. On day 4, the animals received an intrastriatal injection of 15 microg 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) free base. Intrastriatal administration of Shh (180 ng/injection) twice before and after a single intrastriatal injection of 6-OHDA reduced apomorphine- and amphetamine-induced rotation and forelimb akinesia and partially preserved dopaminergic axons in the striatum. This is the first demonstration in vivo that Shh reduces behavioral deficits induced by intrastriatal 6-OHDA lesion and suggests that Shh may be useful in the treatment of disorders that affect the nigrostriatal system, such as PD.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosciences, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093, USA.
authors.forename: Kyoko
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Tsuboi
authors.forename: Clifford W
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: Shults
mesh_terms: D000661:Amphetamine; D000818:Animals; D001058:Apomorphine; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000187:drug effects*; D003342:Corpus Striatum / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D004334:Drug Administration Schedule; D005260:Female; D051100:Glial Cell Line-Derived Neurotrophic Factor; D053823:Hedgehog Proteins; D006801:Humans; D008845:Microinjections; D009043:Motor Activity / Q000187:drug effects; D019814:Myristic Acid / Q000737:chemistry; D009414:Nerve Growth Factors; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins / Q000008:administration & dosage; D009928:Organ Specificity; D016627:Oxidopamine; D010302:Parkinson Disease, Secondary / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D010446:Peptide Fragments / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D051381:Rats; D015534:Trans-Activators / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000737:chemistry; D014446:Tyrosine 3-Monooxygenase / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: C495039:GDNF protein, human; C495041:Gdnf protein, rat; D051100:Glial Cell Line-Derived Neurotrophic Factor; D053823:Hedgehog Proteins; D009414:Nerve Growth Factors; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins; D010446:Peptide Fragments; C509239:SHH protein, human; D015534:Trans-Activators; D019814:Myristic Acid; D016627:Oxidopamine; D000661:Amphetamine; D014446:Tyrosine 3-Monooxygenase; D001058:Apomorphine