Regional differences in the vulnerability of substantia nigra dopaminergic neurons in weaver mice

• Authors: J. Marti , M.C. Santa-Cruz , V. Molina , R. Serra , S.A. Bayer , B. Ghetti , J.P. Hervas
• Languages of publication: EN

Abstracts

EN

Vulnerability of midbrain dopaminergic (DA) neurons in the weaver mouse was studied at postnatal (P) days 8 and 90, in chosen coronal levels throughout the anteroposterior (AP) extent of the substantia nigra pars compacta (SNc). Wild-type (+/+) and homozygous weaver (wv/wv) mice used were the offspring of pregnant dams injected in several cases with tritiated thymidine on embryonic days 11-15. DA neurons were identified for their tyrosine hydroxylase immunoreactivity. Data reveal that at P8, the frequency of both +/+ and wv/wv late-generated DA cells increases from rostral to caudal SNc. No apparent DA-cell loss was observed at P8 in the mutant genotype, irrespective of the AP level considered. However, throughout the AP, there was a significant reduction in the number of these neurons at any level in 90-day-old weavers. Comparison of P8 and P90 +/+ SNc suggests that cell death is not a major aspect in the developmental regulation of normal DA neurons, although numerical cell depletion in the postnatal development of weaver SNc probably results from the amplification of a basal cell-death process, which affected all the coronal levels studied.

Keywords

EN

DOPAMINERGIC NEURON; TYROSINE HYDROXYLASE; WEAVER MOUSE

Discipline

• EXPERIMENTAL_BIOLOGY_&_MEDICINE: EXPERIMENTAL BIOLOGY & MEDICINE

• Publisher: Marceli Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology, Polish Academy of Sciences
• Journal: Acta Neurobiologiae Experimentalis
• Year: 2009
• Volume: 69
• Issue: 2
• Pages: 198-206

Contributors

author

J. Marti

author

M.C. Santa-Cruz

author

V. Molina

author

R. Serra

author

S.A. Bayer

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B. Ghetti

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J.P. Hervas

• Document Type: ARTICLE
• Publication order reference: Joaquin Marti, Faculty of Biosciences, Department of Cellular Biology, Physiology and Immunology, Citology and Histology Unit, Autonomous University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain