Viral vector-mediated overexpression of α-synuclein as a progressive model of Parkinson's disease
Author
Summary, in English
The discovery of the role of α-synuclein in the pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease (PD) has opened new possibilities for the development of more authentic models of Parkinson's disease. Recombinant adeno-associated virus (AAV) and lentivirus (LV) vectors are efficient tools for expression of genes locally in subsets of neurons in the brain and can be used to express human wild-type or mutated α-synuclein selectively in midbrain dopamine neurons. Using this approach, it is possible to trigger extensive PD-like cellular and axonal pathologies in the nigrostriatal projection, involving abnormal protein aggregation, neuronal dysfunction, and cell death that develop progressively over time. Targeted overexpression of human α-synuclein in midbrain dopamine neurons, using AAV vectors, reproduces many of the characteristic features of the human disease and provides, for the first time, a model of progressive PD that can be applied to both rodents and primates.
Department/s
Publishing year
2010
Language
English
Pages
89-111
Publication/Series
Progress in Brain Research
Volume
184
Document type
Journal article review
Publisher
Elsevier
Topic
- Neurosciences
Keywords
- Synuclein
- Dopamine
- Nigrostriatal system
- Motor impairment
- Adeno-associated virus
- Lentivirus
- Viral vectors
- Animal models
Status
Published
Research group
- Brain Repair and Imaging in Neural Systems (BRAINS)
- Neurobiology
ISBN/ISSN/Other
- ISSN: 1875-7855