Disorders of the Nervous System
Author: Angela Isabel Tissone | Email: anyisone@gmail.com
Angela Isabel Tissone1°, Joaquin Alejo Quintana1°2°3°,Florencia Faccioli1°3°, María Soledad Espósito1°3°
1° Laboratorio de Neurobiología del Movimiento, dpto de Física Médica, Centro Atómico Bariloche
2° Universidad Nacional del Comahue
3° Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, CONICET
Parkinson’s Disease (PD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder that affects different populations of neurons. The characteristic symptoms that define the clinical presentation of the disease are threefold: rigidity, bradykinesia, and resting tremor. Additionally, PD patients exhibit various symptoms that often precede the onset of motor symptoms by years and involve neurodegeneration in regions distinct from those causing the motor symptoms. Moreover, PD is characterized by the presence of intracellular protein aggregates known as Lewy bodies, with alpha-synuclein being their primary constituent. In our laboratory, we developed a tool capable of generating animal models of PD through a CRE-dependent virus (pαSyn) that enables the expression of alpha-synuclein. Targeting the pαSyn virus to the Substantia Nigra pars compacta (SNpc) triggered the death of dopaminergic neurons, neurodegeneration in the nigrostriatal pathway, and the presence of Lewy body markers. Additionally, motor deficits were observed in behavioral tests such as the rotarod and open field. To further characterize our model, this study focuses on two key PD symptoms: bradykinesia and difficulty initiating movement. To this end, we used a novel behavioral test that measures the latency in locomotion initiation. By again targeting the pαSyn virus to the SNpc, we will investigate whether our model exhibits a phenotype similar to the freezing of gait characteristic of PD.