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Lazarova M, Popatanasov A, Klissurov R, Stoeva S, Pajpanova T, Kalfin R, Tancheva L. Preventive Effect of Two New Neurotensin Analogues on Parkinson's Disease Rat Model. J Mol Neurosci 2018; 66:552-560. [PMID: 30374780 DOI: 10.1007/s12031-018-1171-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2018] [Accepted: 09/13/2018] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
Abstract
Close functional and anatomical interactions between the neurotensin (NT) and dopamine (DA) systems suggest that NT could be associated with Parkinson's Disease (PD). However, clinical use of NT is limited due to its rapid degradation. This has led to the synthesis of a number of new NT fragment 8-13 [NT(8-13)] analogues, such as NT2 and NT4, to avoid the fast biodegradation of NT. The aim of this study was to investigate the neuroprotective effects of NT2 and NT4 on an experimental model of Parkinson's disease in rats induced with 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) treatment, producing striatal lesions. Wistar male rats were divided into different groups: a sham-operated (SO) group, a striatal 6-OHDA-lesioned control group, two groups of 6-OHDA-lesioned rats treated for 5 days with NT2 or NT4 (10 mg/kg, intraperitoneally) and a NT-treated group as reference. During the first and second week post lesion the animals were subjected to a number of behavioral tests (apomorphine-induced rotations, rotarod, passive avoidance test), and brain tissue was evaluated histologically and also assessed for DA levels. The results showed that both the number of apomorphine-induced rotations and falls (rotarod test) increased in the 6-OHDA group relative to the SO group. At the same time, the 6-OHDA-treated group showed significant memory impairment, based on the to step-through test, compared to the SO group. Treatment with NT2 and NT4 significantly decreased the number of apomorphine-induced rotations and improved the memory of lesioned animals, with these NT analogues demonstrating better neuroprotective and neuromodulatory effects than NT. DA content in the brain of the PD rats treated with NT2 and NT4 increased, possibly due to attenuation of the loss of DA-ergic neurons. NT2 and NT4 were found to easily penetrate the blood-brain barrier and they showed a better stability than the reference NT neuropeptide. In conclusion, the NT approach represents an attractive strategy for the treatment of neurodegenerative disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Lazarova
- Institute of Neurobiology, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Acad. G. Bonchev Str., bl. 23, 1113, Sofia, Bulgaria
| | - Andrey Popatanasov
- Institute of Neurobiology, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Acad. G. Bonchev Str., bl. 23, 1113, Sofia, Bulgaria
| | | | - Svetlana Stoeva
- Institute of Neurobiology, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Acad. G. Bonchev Str., bl. 23, 1113, Sofia, Bulgaria
| | - Tamara Pajpanova
- Institute of Molecular Biology "Roumen Tsanev", Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Acad. G. Bonchev Str., bl. 21, 1113, Sofia, Bulgaria
| | - Reni Kalfin
- Institute of Neurobiology, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Acad. G. Bonchev Str., bl. 23, 1113, Sofia, Bulgaria
| | - Lyubka Tancheva
- Institute of Neurobiology, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Acad. G. Bonchev Str., bl. 23, 1113, Sofia, Bulgaria. .,Weizmann Institute of Science, 234 Herzl Str., 76100, Rehovot, Israel.
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