BACKGROUND Gastrodia elata Blume (GEB), commonly used medicinal herb, has been reported as a promising candidate for neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson's disease. The dopamine precursor, L-3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine (L-DOPA), is the gold-standard drug for Parkinson's disease, but long-term treatment results in the L-dopa-induced dyskinesia (LID). This study was undertaken to examine t...

We studied tracer distributions in positron emission tomography of ligands for dopamine D1 receptors ([11C]SCH23390) and D2 receptors ([11C]raclopride) and the dopamine precursor analog 6-[18F]fluoro-L-3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine ([18F]FDOPA), as a measurement of presynaptic dopaminergic function, in the brain after 6-hydroxydopamine lesioning of the medial forebrain bundle in rats. The unilater...

Growing evidence suggests that abnormal synaptic plasticity of cortical neurons underlies levodopa-induced dyskinesia (LID) in Parkinson's disease (PD). Spine morphology reflects synaptic plasticity resulting from glutamatergic transmission. We previously reported that enlargement of the dendritic spines of intratelencephalic-type (IT) neurons in the primary motor cortex (M1) is linked to the d...

Administration of 6-hydroxydopamine to adult rats results in changes in the superior cervical ganglion similar to those noted after axotomy; namely, a decrease in muscarinic receptor binding and increases in activities of the oxidative enzymes of the pentose phosphate pathway. These changes were either prevented or attenuated markedly by the systemic administration of nerve growth factor. Admin...

In both Parkinson disease and in animal models of Parkinson disease, there is a microglial reaction in addition to the loss of dopaminergic neurons in the ventral midbrain. To determine the pathological role of this microglial reaction, we analyzed the kinetics of microglial activation and dopaminergic cell death induced in rats with the neurotoxin 6-hydroxydopamine. As early as Day 1 after the...

In the 6-hydroxydopamine model of Parkinson's disease in the rat, there is a significant reduction in the number of dendritic spines on the principal projection neurons in the neostriatum, presumably attributable to loss of the nigrostriatal dopamine input. These spines invariably receive input from terminals forming asymmetric synapses that originate mainly from the cortex. The object of the p...

Objectives: We aimed to investigate the neuroprotective effects of linagliptin in an vitro 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) Parkinson’s disease model. Methods: 6-OHDA (200 µM) were administered SH-SY5Y cells for 24 h induce model vitro. Cells treated with (1, 10, 50 and 100 nM) 30 minutes before administration. Cell viability was examined by 3-[4,5-dimethylthiazole-2-yl]-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromi...

BACKGROUND Lactulose is a synthetic disaccharide that can be catalyzed only by intestinal bacteria in humans and rodents, and a large amount of hydrogen is produced by bacterial catalysis of lactulose. We previously reported marked effects of ad libitum administration of hydrogen water on prevention of a rat model of Parkinson's disease (PD). METHODS End-alveolar breath hydrogen concentration...

Background and Objective: Parkinson's disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disease with selective damage of mesencephalic dopaminergic neurons. Due to the protective, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant effect of Hypericum perforatum (HP), this study was undertaken to assess dose-dependent effect of HP hydroalcoholic extract on motor imbalance following intrastriatal injection of 6-hydroxydopamin...