RT Journal Article
T1 Resilience of striatal synaptic plasticity over early structural adaptations in premotor parkinsonism
A1 Merino-Galan, Leire
A1 Zamarbide, Marta
A1 Belloso-Iguerategui, Arantzatzu
A1 Alonso-Moreno, Marta
A1 Gago-Calderón, Belén
A1 Reinares-Sebastián, Alejandro
A1 Blesa, Javier
A1 Dumitriu, Dani
A1 Quiroga-Varela, Ana
A1 Rodríguez-Oroz, María Cruz
K1 Parkinson, Enfermedad de - Modelos animales
K1 Neuroplasticidad
AB Parkinson's disease has a long premotor phase with ongoing dopaminergic degeneration, yet its compensatory mechanisms remain unclear. Using a rat model with A53T α-synuclein overexpression in the substantia nigra, we analyzed striatal synaptic changes at 72 h, 1, 2, and 4 weeks post-inoculation, before motor signs appeared. Dopamine concentration decreased from 72 h, and chemical long-term potentiation was simultaneously inhibited, partially recovering by 4 weeks. At this time point, dopaminergic degeneration and post-synaptic morphological and ultrastructural dendritic spine remodelling became significant. These changes included a reduction in thin dendritic spines, an increase in mushroom spine head volume, a decrease in smooth endoplasmic reticulum-containing spines, and an increase in dendritic branching. In conclusion, impaired striatal dopaminergic neurotransmisson diminishes striatal synaptic plasticity, which can be partially restored through complex structural changes in striatal spines. These adaptations might represent fundamental homeostatic mechanisms regulating synaptic function during the premotor stage of Parkinson's disease.
PB Nature Research
YR 2025
FD 2025
LK https://hdl.handle.net/10630/38968
UL https://hdl.handle.net/10630/38968
LA eng
NO NPJ Parkinsons Dis  . 2025 Jun 3;11(1):146
NO Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ISCIII)/ PI14/00763; Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ISCIII) PI19/01915
DS RIUMA. Repositorio Institucional de la Universidad de Málaga
RD 20 ene 2026