Allopregnanolone restores dopaminergic neurons and motor performance in Parkinson’s disease mice and its molecular mechanisms / 解剖学报

ABSTRACT

[ Abstract] Objective To investigate the effects of allopregnanolone (APα) on the dopaminergic neurons in substantia nigra, striatal dopaminergic neural fibers and behavioral performance in Parkinson’ s disease (PD) model mice, as well as its possible molecular mechanisms. Methods C57BL / 6 adult male mice with 20-25 g at 3-month old (n = 90) were successively injected with 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) to generate a PD animal model. APα and its receptor γ-aminobutyric acid A receptor (GABAAR) antagonist—bicuculline (Bic) were successively injected. ELISA was used to detect the APα or dopamine concentration in the serum, cerebral cortex and striatum. The number of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) in the substantia nigra (SN) and striatal dopaminergic neural projections were examined by immunohistochemical staining. The expression levels of GABAAR in membrane fractions and Ca