title: Morphometric and neurochemical alterations found in l-BMAA treated rats.
abstract: Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a neurodegenerative disease characterized by progressive muscle paralysis that reflects the motoneurons' degeneration. Several studies support the relationship between β-N-methylamino-l-alanine (l-BMAA), a neurotoxic amino acid produced by cyanobacteria and diatoms, and the sporadic occurrence of ALS and other neurodegenerative diseases. Therefore, the study of its neurotoxicity mechanisms has assumed great relevance in recent years. Recently, our research team has proposed a sporadic ALS animal model by l-BMAA administration in rats, which displays many pathophysiological features of human ALS. In this paper, we deepen the characterization of this model corroborating the occurrence of alterations present in ALS patients such as decreased muscle volume, thinning of the motor cortex, enlarged brain's lateral ventricles, and alteration of both bulbar nuclei and neurotransmitters' levels. Therefore, we conclude that l-BMAA treated rats could be a good model which mimics degenerative features that ALS causes in humans.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Biología Animal II, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, 28040 Madrid, Spain. Electronic address: estefania_nemesis@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Estefanía
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: de Munck
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Bioquímica y Biología Molecular I, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, 28040 Madrid, Spain. Electronic address: emmamunoz@ucm.es.
authors.forename: Emma
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Muñoz-Sáez
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Bioquímica y Biología Molecular I, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, 28040 Madrid, Spain. Electronic address: bgomezmi@pdi.ucm.es.
authors.forename: Begoña G
authors.initials: BG
authors.lastname: Miguel
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Biología Celular (Morfología Microscópica), Universidad Complutense de Madrid, 28040 Madrid, Spain. Electronic address: msolas@bio.ucm.es.
authors.forename: M Teresa
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Solas
authors.affiliation: Centro de Investigaciones Biológicas, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, 28040 Madrid, Spain. Electronic address: ana.martinez@csic.es.
authors.forename: Ana
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Martínez
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Biología Animal II, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, 28040 Madrid, Spain. Electronic address: rportero@bio.ucm.es.
authors.forename: Rosa M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Arahuetes
mesh_terms: D000599:Amino Acids, Diamino / Q000633:toxicity*; D000690:Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000473:pathology* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D000818:Animals; D000458:Cyanobacteria / Q000737:chemistry; D000087522:Cyanobacteria Toxins; D017377:Diatoms / Q000737:chemistry; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009044:Motor Cortex / Q000187:drug effects; D018482:Muscle, Skeletal / Q000187:drug effects; D009498:Neurotoxins / Q000633:toxicity*; D051381:Rats
chemical_list: D000599:Amino Acids, Diamino; D000087522:Cyanobacteria Toxins; D009498:Neurotoxins; C001824:beta-N-methylamino-L-alanine
keywords: ALS; Motor cortex; NMR; Neurotransmitters; Rat; l-BMAA