Decrease in ITGA7 Levels Is Associated with an Increase in α-Synuclein Levels in an MPTP-Induced Parkinson's Disease Mouse Model and SH-SY5Y Cells

The Integrated Approach to Inherited Disorders in Neurotransmitters from Molecules to Systems

This Special Issue focusses on monoamine neurotransmitters responsible for mediating neuronal transmission [...].

Association between Decreased ITGA7 Levels and Increased Muscle α-Synuclein in an MPTP-Induced Mouse Model of Parkinson's Disease

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disease characterized by the loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra (SN), reducing dopaminergic levels in the striatum and affecting motor control. Herein, we investigated the potential relationship between integrin α7 (ITGA7) and α-synuclein (α-syn) in the muscle of methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6 tetrahydropyridine (MPTP)-induced mice and C2C12 cells. To characterize the pathology of PD, we examined the expression of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) in the SN of the midbrain. Compared with the control group, MPTP-treated mice showed a significant decrease in TH expression in the SN, accompanied by a significant decrease in muscle ITGA7 expression. Compared with the control group, α-syn expression was increased in the MPTP group. Furthermore, the pattern of α-syn expression in the MPTP group was similar to the ITGA7 expression pattern in the control group (linear forms). To determine the relationship between ITGA7 and PD, we examined the expression of ITGA7 and α-syn after ITGA7 knockdown using siRNA in C2C12 cells. ITGA7 expression significantly decreased while α-syn expression significantly increased in siRNA-treated C2C12 cells. These results suggest that decreased ITGA7 muscle expression could increase α-syn expression. Moreover, α-syn accumulation, induced by decreased muscle ITGA7, might contribute to PD pathology.

Regulation and bioinformatic analysis of circ_0015891/miR-129-1-3p axis in methamphetamine-induced dopaminergic apoptosis

Methamphetamine (METH) abuse can result in severe neurotoxicity, for which the mechanism is not yet clear. In the present study, we investigated the role of noncoding RNAs in METH-induced dopaminergic neurotoxicity, and analyzed the underlying mechanism using bioinformatic methods. We confirmed by flow cytometry that miR-129-1-3p is involved in promoting dopaminergic apoptosis under METH treatment and its role could be inhibited by a high concentration of circ_0015891. Also, we combined transcriptomic data with bioinformatics to explore the downstream mechanism of miR-129-1-3p regulation of METH-induced apoptosis, highlighted the potentially pivotal figure of response to nutrition. Further bioinformatic analysis of circ_0015891 was conducted as well and showed that circ_0015891 was the sponge of various microRNAs that effect apoptosis by different mechanisms. Collectively, we found a novel circ_0015891/miR-129-1-3p axis that may be a promising therapeutic target for METH-induced dopaminergic neurotoxicity.