| First Author | Choi WS | Year | 2017 |
| Journal | Sci Rep | Volume | 7 |
| Pages | 44989 | PubMed ID | 28327638 |
| Mgi Jnum | J:260020 | Mgi Id | MGI:6150107 |
| Doi | 10.1038/srep44989 | Citation | Choi WS, et al. (2017) Conditional deletion of Ndufs4 in dopaminergic neurons promotes Parkinson's disease-like non-motor symptoms without loss of dopamine neurons. Sci Rep 7:44989 |
| abstractText | Reduction of mitochondrial complex I activity is one of the major hypotheses for dopaminergic neuron death in Parkinson''s disease. However, reduction of complex I activity in all cells or selectively in dopaminergic neurons via conditional deletion of the Ndufs4 gene, a subunit of the mitochondrial complex I, does not cause dopaminergic neuron death or motor impairment. Here, we investigated the effect of reduced complex I activity on non-motor symptoms associated with Parkinson''s disease using conditional knockout (cKO) mice in which Ndufs4 was selectively deleted in dopaminergic neurons (Ndufs4 cKO). This conditional deletion of Ndufs4, which reduces complex I activity in dopamine neurons, did not cause a significant loss of dopaminergic neurons in substantia nigra pars compacta (SNpc), and there was no loss of dopaminergic neurites in striatum or amygdala. However, Ndufs4 cKO mice had a reduced amount of dopamine in the brain compared to control mice. Furthermore, even though motor behavior were not affected, Ndufs4 cKO mice showed non-motor symptoms experienced by many Parkinson''s disease patients including impaired cognitive function and increased anxiety-like behavior. These data suggest that mitochondrial complex I dysfunction in dopaminergic neurons promotes non-motor symptoms of Parkinson''s disease and reduces dopamine content in the absence of dopamine neuron loss. |
