Identification of NO-producing and -receptive cells in mesencephalic transplants in a rat model of Parkinson's disease: a study using NADPH-d enzyme- and NOSc/cGMP immunocytochemistry

Mitochondria: A Therapeutic Target for Parkinson's Disease?

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is one of the most common neurodegenerative disorders. The exact causes of neuronal damage are unknown, but mounting evidence indicates that mitochondrial-mediated pathways contribute to the underlying mechanisms of dopaminergic neuronal cell death both in PD patients and in PD animal models. Mitochondria are organized in a highly dynamic tubular network that is continuously reshaped by opposing processes of fusion and fission. Defects in either fusion or fission, leading to mitochondrial fragmentation, limit mitochondrial motility, decrease energy production and increase oxidative stress, thereby promoting cell dysfunction and death. Thus, the regulation of mitochondrial dynamics processes, such as fusion, fission and mitophagy, represents important mechanisms controlling neuronal cell fate. In this review, we summarize some of the recent evidence supporting that impairment of mitochondrial dynamics, mitophagy and mitochondrial import occurs in cellular and animal PD models and disruption of these processes is a contributing mechanism to cell death in dopaminergic neurons. We also summarize mitochondria-targeting therapeutics in models of PD, proposing that modulation of mitochondrial impairment might be beneficial for drug development toward treatment of PD.

Alterations of the expression and activity of midbrain nitric oxide synthase and soluble guanylyl cyclase in 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine-induced Parkinsonism in mice

The study was aimed at investigating the expression and the activity of neuronal nitric oxide synthase, and of soluble guanylyl cyclase and phosphodiesterase activities that regulate guanosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate level in the midbrain, in a mouse model of PD using 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine injections. Adult male mice of the C57/BL strain were given three i.p. injections of physiological saline or three i.p. injections of 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine solution in physiological saline at 2 h intervals (summary 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine dose: 40 mg/kg), and were killed 3, 7, or 14 days later. mRNA, protein level, and/or activities of neuronal nitric oxide synthase, soluble guanylyl cyclase, phosphodiesterase and guanosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate were determined. Immunohistochemistry showed about 75% decrease in the number of tyrosine hydroxylase-positive neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta. Mice treated with 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine showed increased midbrain guanylyl cyclase and total nitric oxide synthase activities at 3, 7, and 14 days post-treatment. The specific neuronal nitric oxide synthase inhibitor 7-nitroindazole (10 microM) and the specific inducible nitric oxide synthase inhibitor 1400W (10 microM) inhibited the 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine-induced excess in nitric oxide synthase activity by 63-70 and 13-25%, respectively. The increases in total midbrain nitric oxide synthase activity were accompanied by elevated guanosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate, enhanced expression of neuronal nitric oxide synthase and of the beta1 subunit of guanylyl cyclase at both mRNA and protein levels that persisted up to the end of the observation period, and by enhanced neuronal nitric oxide synthase and guanylyl cyclase beta1 immunoreactivities in substantia nigra pars compacta 7 and 14 days after the 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine treatment. The increases in guanylyl cyclase activity were found to occur exclusively due to increased maximal enzyme activity. No 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine-induced change in phosphodiesterase activity has been detected in any brain region studied. 7-Nitroindazole prevented a significant increase in 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine-induced midbrain guanosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate level and neurodegeneration of dopaminergic neurons. These results raise the possibility that the nitric oxide/guanylyl cyclase/guanosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate signaling pathway may play a role in maintaining dopaminergic neurons function in substantia nigra pars compacta.

Upregulation of guanylyl cyclase expression and activity in striatum of MPTP-induced parkinsonism in mice

The aim of our study was to investigate the expression and the activity of soluble guanylyl cyclase (GC) and phosphodiesterase (PDE) activities that regulate cGMP level in the striatum, hippocampus, and brain cortex in an animal model of PD, induced by 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP). We observed the increase of total activity and protein level of GC in striatum after MPTP injection. It was accompanied by an enhancement of both mRNA expression and protein level of GCbeta1 subunit. MPTP induces mRNA expression and elevates protein concentration of GCbeta1 in striatum up to 14 days after its injection, which in turn causes a marked enhancement of cGMP formation. Furthermore, the activation of GC occurs through change of maximal enzyme activity (V(max)). Simultaneously, no change in PDE activity has been detected in all investigated regions of the brain after MPTP. MPTP injection caused the elevation of GCbeta1 protein level in both the membrane and cytosol fractions being significantly higher in cytosol. Western blot analysis demonstrated about 45-67% decrease of tyrosine hydroxylase protein content in striatum. These data suggest that NO/cGMP signaling pathway may at least partially contribute to dopaminergic fiber degeneration in the striatum, the damage attributed to PD.

Peroxynitrite and mitochondrial dysfunction in the pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease

Nitric oxide (NO), in excess, behaves as a cytotoxic substance mediating the pathological processes that cause neurodegeneration. The NO-induced dopaminergic cell loss causing Parkinson's disease (PD) has been postulated to include the following: an inhibition of cytochrome oxidase, ribonucleotide reductase, mitochondrial complexes I, II, and IV in the respiratory chain, superoxide dismutase, glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase; activation or initiation of DNA strand breakage, poly(ADP-ribose) synthase, lipid peroxidation, and protein oxidation; release of iron; and increased generation of toxic radicals such as hydroxyl radicals and peroxynitrite. NO is formed by the conversion of L-arginine to L-citrulline by NO synthase (NOS). At least three NOS isoforms have been identified by molecular cloning and biochemical studies: a neuronal NOS or type 1 NOS (nNOS), an immunologic NOS or type 2 NOS (iNOS), and an endothelial NOS or type 3 NOS (eNOS). The enzymatic activities of eNOS or nNOS are induced by phosphorylation triggered by Ca(2+) entering cells and binding to calmodulin. In contrast, the regulation of iNOS seems to depend on de novo synthesis of the enzyme in response to a variety of cytokines, such as interferon-gamma and lipopolysaccharide. The evidence that NO is associated with neurotoxic processes underlying PD comes from studies using experimental models of this disease NOS inhibitors can prevent 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP)-induced dopaminergic neurotoxicity. Furthermore, NO fosters dopamine depletion, and the said neurotoxicity is averted by nNOS inhibitors such as 7-nitroindazole working on tyrosine hydroxylase-immunoreactive neurons in substantia nigra pars compacta. Moreover, mutant mice lacking the nNOS gene are more resistant to MPTP neurotoxicity when compared with wild-type littermates. Selegiline, an irreversible inhibitor of monoamine oxidase B, is used in PD as a dopaminergic function-enhancing substance. Selegiline and its metabolite, desmethylselegiline, reduce apoptosis by altering the expression of a number of genes, for instance, superoxide dismutase, Bcl-2, Bcl-xl, NOS, c-Jun, and nicotinamide adenine nucleotide dehydrogenase. The selegiline-induced antiapoptotic activity is associated with prevention of a progressive reduction of mitochondrial membrane potential in preapoptotic neurons. As apoptosis is critical to the progression of neurodegenerative disease, including PD, selegiline or selegiline-like compounds to be discovered in the future may be efficacious in treating PD.

Sustained pharmacological inhibition of nitric oxide synthase does not affect the survival of intrastriatal rat fetal mesencephalic transplants

The objective of the present study was to investigate the potential role of the free radical nitric oxide (NO) in the development of fetal rat mesencephalic neurons grafted in a 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) lesioned rat model of Parkinson's disease. First, using nitric oxide synthase (NOS)-immunocytochemistry and reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate-diaphorase (NADPH-d) histochemistry, we investigated the presence of the neuronal isoform of NOS (nNOS) in intrastriatal mesencephalic grafts. During the course of the experiment (16 weeks) an increase in the staining intensity and the number of nNOS/NADPH-d positive cells within the grafts was observed, as well as a gradual maturation of dopaminergic neurons. In addition, within both the host striatal and grafted mesencephalic tissue, a NO-dependent accumulation of cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP) was detected, indicating the presence of guanylate cyclase, i.e., the target-enzyme for NO. Secondly, to determine the impact of NO on the survival of grafted dopaminergic neurons, 6-OHDA lesioned rats received mesencephalic grafts and were subsequently treated with the competitive NOS-inhibitor Nomega-nitro-l-arginine methylester (l-NAME). After chronic treatment for 4 weeks, tyrosine hydroxylase immunocytochemistry revealed no apparent differences between the survival of grafted dopaminergic neurons in control- or l-NAME treated animals, respectively. As the maturation of grafted dopaminergic neurons coincides with a gradual increase in the expression of nNOS within the graft and since dopaminergic cell numbers are not changed upon administration of l-NAME, it is concluded that endogenously produced and potentially toxic NO does not affect the survival of grafted fetal dopaminergic neurons.

Endogenous nitric oxide facilitates striatal dopamine and glutamate efflux in vivo: role of ionotropic glutamate receptor-dependent mechanisms

We have investigated the influence of the nitric oxide synthase (NOS) substrate, NG-hydroxy-L-arginine (H-ARG) on dopamine (DA) and glutamate (GLU) efflux in vivo using concentric microdialysis probes implanted in the anterior-medial striatum of chloral hydrate-anesthetized rats. Intrastriatal infusion of H-ARG (100 microM, 200 microM, or 1 mM for 120 min) increased DA efflux in a dose-dependent fashion. The facilitatory effect of H-ARG (1 mM) on DA efflux was abolished following pretreatment (80 min) with the constitutive NOS inhibitor 7-nitroindazole (7-NI, 10 microM) but unaffected by L-NG(1-iminoethyl) lysine (100 microM) infusion. As both H-ARG (1 mM) and the NO-generator (+/-)-S-nitroso-N-acetylpenicillamine (1 mM) were observed to increase GLU efflux concurrently with the effect on DA efflux, we evaluated the potential intermediary role of GLU in NO-facilitated DA efflux using ionotropic GLU receptor antagonists. Local infusion of dizocilpine maleate (10 microM) or (+/-)-2-amino-3-[3-(carboxymethoxy)-5-methyl-isoxazol-4-yl] propionic acid (100 microM), attenuated the H-ARG (1 mM)-induced elevation of extracellular DA levels. Conversely, similar treatment with the kainate receptor antagonist d-gamma-glutamyl-aminomethanesulfonic acid did not alter H-ARG-induced DA efflux. To evaluate the regulatory influence of striatal NO on NMDA receptor activation, NMDA (100 microM) was co-perfused with either H-ARG (2 mM) or 7-NI (10 microM). While co-perfusion with 7-NI potentiated NMDA-induced DA efflux, similar treatment with H-ARG (2 mM) abolished the effect. These results demonstrate that endogenous NO production, stimulated via H-ARG-dependent activation of type 1 NOS, enhances striatal DA efflux via an increase in glutamatergic tone on ionotropic GLU-receptors. At higher levels of NOS activation (following H-ARG (2 mM) or NMDA infusion), NO may block glutamatergic neurotransmission via inhibition of NMDA receptor function.

Mesencephalic neuron death induced by congeners of nitrogen monoxide is prevented by the lazaroid U-83836E

We explored the effects of congeners of nitrogen monoxide (NO) on cultured mesencephalic neurons. Sodium nitroprusside (SNP) was used as a donor of NO, the congeners of which have been found to exert either neurotoxic or neuroprotective effects depending on the surrounding redox milieu. In contrast to a previous report that suggests that the nitrosonium ion (NO+) is neuroprotective to cultured cortical neurons, we found that the nitrosonium ion reduces the survival of cultured dopamine neurons to 32% of control. There was a trend for further impairment of dopamine neuron survival, to only 7% of untreated control, when the cultures were treated with SNP plus ascorbate, i.e. when the nitric oxide radical (NO.) had presumably been formed. We also evaluated the effects of an inhibitor of lipid peroxidation, the lazaroid U-83836E, against SNP toxicity. U-83836E exerted marked neuroprotective effects in both insult models. More than twice as many dopamine neurons (75% of control) survived when the lazaroid was added to SNP-treated cultures and the survival was increased eight-fold (to 55% of control) when U-83836E was added to cultures treated with SNP plus ascorbate. We conclude that the congeners of NO released by SNP are toxic to mesencephalic neurons in vitro and that the lazaroid U-83836E significantly increases the survival of dopamine neurons in situations where congeners of NO are generated.

Effects of unilateral vagotomy on nitric oxide synthase and histamine H3 receptors in the rat dorsal vagal complex

Nitric oxide synthase (NOS) and histamine H3 receptors are both markedly increased by neuronal injuries. To examine whether peripheral axotomy produced differential changes in NOS and H3 receptors, both NOS and H3 receptors were measured in the dorsal vagal complex after unilateral vagotomy. The presence of NOS-positive neurons was examined using both NADPH-diaphorase histochemistry and neuronal NOS-immunohistochemistry in rats vagotomized at the mid-cervical level. NADPH-diaphorase activity and NOS-immunoreactivity were markedly enhanced on the dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus (DMX) and in the ambiguous nucleus at the denervated side. Intraperitoneal injection of NOS inhibitors, N omega-nitro-L-arginine (10 mg/kg) or dexamethasone (0.5 mg/kg) attenuated the increase in NADPH-diaphorase activity. Glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) was similarly induced 2 weeks after vagotomy in the vagal complex and surrounding area. Histamine H3 receptors in the vagal complex were visualized with [3H]N alpha-methylhistamine. The ligand-labeled H3 receptors were mainly located at the nucleus of the solitary tract (NST). The densities of H3 receptors did not change in the NST after unilateral vagotomy. These results suggest that peripheral axotomy such as mid-cervical vagotomy preferentially induces NOS in damaged neurons without affecting the level of H3 receptors.

Developmental pattern of NADPH-diaphorase activity and nitric oxide-stimulated cGMP immunoreactivity in the frontal rat cortex and its role in functional recovery from aspiration lesions

The present study was undertaken to (1) explore the cortical nitric oxide (NO)-system during postnatal development and (2) to see whether or not the NO-system reacts differentially after neonatal and adult lesions of the medial prefrontal cortex. Three aspects of the NO-system were studied, i.e., NADPH-diaphorase (NADPH-d) activity, sodium nitroprusside (SNP)- and N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA)-stimulated cGMP-immunoreactivity (cGMP-IR). It was shown that: (1) the development of NADPH-d activity containing cells is continued in the period from P6 until P21; (2) during the same period, large developmental changes take place in basal, and SNP- or NMDA-stimulated cGMP-IR in the cortex. These changes are regionally specific and follow the general cortical developmental pattern; and (3) aspiration lesions do not induce major changes in the distribution of NADPH-d activity or cGMP-IR, either basal, SNP- or NMDA-stimulated.