The neurobiology of the substantia nigra pars compacta: from motor to sleep regulation.

Clinical characteristics of Parkinson's disease (PD) are the result of the degeneration of the neurons of the substantia nigra pars compacta (SNpc). Several mechanisms are implicated in the degeneration of nigrostriatal neurons such as oxidative stress, mitochondrial dysfunction, protein misfolding, disturbances of dopamine (DA) metabolism and transport, neuroinflammation, and necrosis/apoptosis. The literature widely explores the neurotoxic models elicited by 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) and 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA). Because of the models, it is known that basal ganglia, particularly substantia nigra, have been related to a diversity of functions, from motor to sleep regulation. Nevertheless, a current debate concerning the role of DA on the sleep-wake cycle is in progress. In summary, it is suggested that the dopaminergic system is implicated in the physiology of sleep, with particular regard to the influence of the SNpc neurons. The understanding of the functioning and connectivity of the SNpc neurons has become fundamental to discovering the neurobiology of these neurons.

Distinct effects of intranigral L-DOPA infusion in the MPTP rat model of Parkinson's disease.

The potential neuroprotective or neurotoxic effects of 3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine (L-DOPA) are yet to be understood. We examined the behavioral, immunohistochemical, tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) expression and neurochemical parameters after an intranigral administration of L-DOPA (10 microM) in rats. L-DOPA elicited a 30.5% reduction in dopaminergic neurons, while 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) (100 microg microL(-1)) produced a 53.6% reduction. A combined infusion of MPTP and L-DOPA generated a 42% reduction of nigral neurons. Motor parameters revealed that both the MPTP and L-DOPA groups presented impairments; however, the concomitant administration evoked a partial restorative effect. In addition, MPTP and L-DOPA separately induced reductions of TH protein expression within the substantia nigra. In contrast, the coadministration of MPTP and L-DOPA did not demonstrate such difference. The striatal levels of dopamine were reduced after MPTP or L-DOPA, with an increased turnover only for the MPTP group. In view of such results, it seems reasonable to suggest that L-DOPA could potentially produce dopaminergic neurotoxicity.

Blockage of dopaminergic D(2) receptors produces decrease of REM but not of slow wave sleep in rats after REM sleep deprivation.

Dopamine (DA) has, as of late, become singled out from the profusion of other neurotransmitters as what could be called a key substance, in the regulation of the sleep-wake states. We have hypothesized that dopaminergic D(2) receptor blockage induced by haloperidol could generate a reduction or even an ablation of rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. Otherwise, the use of the selective D(2) agonist, piribedil, could potentiate REM sleep. Electrophysiological findings demonstrate that D(2) blockage produced a dramatic reduction of REM sleep during the rebound (REB) period after 96 h of REM sleep deprivation (RSD). This reduction of REM sleep was accompanied by an increment in SWS, which is possibly accounted for the observed increase in the sleep efficiency. Conversely, our findings also demonstrate that the administration of piribedil did not generate additional increase of REM sleep. Additionally, D(2) receptors were found down-regulated, in the haloperidol group, after RSD, and subsequently up-regulated after REB group, contrasting to the D(1) down-regulation at the same period. In this sense, the current data indicate a participation of the D(2) receptor for REM sleep regulation and consequently in the REM sleep/SWS balance. Herein, we propose that the mechanism underlying the striatal D(2) up-regulation is due to an effect as consequence of RSD which originally produces selective D(2) supersensitivity, and after its period probably generates a surge in D(2) expression. In conclusion we report a particular action of the dopaminergic neurotransmission in REM sleep relying on D(2) activation.

The COX-2 inhibitor parecoxib produces neuroprotective effects in MPTP-lesioned rats.

The present study investigated the effects of the selective cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) inhibitor parecoxib (Bextratrade mark) in the prevention of motor and cognitive impairments observed in rats after an intranigral infusion of 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP), a model of the early phase of Parkinson's disease. The treatment with parecoxib (10 mg/kg) administered prior to the surgery and daily (2 mg/kg) for the subsequent 21 days, prevented the MPTP-treated rats from presenting decreased locomotor and exploratory behavior, increased immobility, and impairment while performing the cued version of the Morris water maze. Furthermore, parecoxib treatment also significantly prevented the reduction of tyrosine hydroxylase protein expression in the substantia nigra (7, 14 and 21 days after surgery), and in the striatum (14 and 21 days after surgery) as immunodetected by western blotting. These results strongly suggest that parecoxib exerts a neuroprotective effect on motor, tyrosine hydroxylase expression, and cognitive functions as it prevents their impairments within the confines of this animal model of the early phase of Parkinson's disease.

Paradoxical sleep deprivation modulates tyrosine hydroxylase expression in the nigrostriatal pathway and attenuates motor deficits induced by dopaminergic depletion.

The nigrostriatal pathway is very likely involved in sleep regulation, considering the occurrence and high prevalence of sleep-related disorders in patients with Parkinson's disease. Indeed, dopaminergic neurons in the ventral tegmental area were recently shown to fire in bursts during paradoxical sleep (PS), but little is known about the activity of the nigrostriatal dopamine (DA) cells in relation to PS. In view of that we hypothesized that paradoxical sleep deprivation (PSD) may play a relevant role in nigrostriatal tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) expression and, subsequently, in sleep rebound. The present study was designed to determine the effects of PSD in the nigrostriatal pathway in mice by means of neurochemical and behavioral approaches. Intraperitoneal reserpine (1 mg/kg) associated to α-methyl-p-tyrosine (αMT) (250 mg/kg) to produce catecholamine depletion, or rotenone (10 mg/kg) to increase striatal DA turnover were injected 30 min before the 24 h of PSD. Catalepsy and open-field tests indicated that motor deficits induced by reserpine-αMT were counteracted by PSD, which, in contrast, potentiated the motor impairment induced by rotenone. Besides, PSD produced down-regulation on TH expression within the substantia nigra pars compacta and striatum, without affecting the number or the optical density of dopaminergic neurons present in the respective areas. Interestingly, PSD potentiated the downregulation of TH expression in the substantia nigra pars compacta and striatum induced by the co-administration of reserpine-αMT. These results reinforce the notion of a strong participation of DA in PS, as a consequence of the modulation of TH protein expression in the nigrostriatal pathway.

Modulation of sickness behavior by sleep: the role of neurochemical and neuroinflammatory pathways in mice.

Activation of the immune system elicits several behavioral changes that are collectively called sickness behavior and consists in a strategy to overcome infection. Sleep deprivation can increase susceptibility to pathogens and to behavioral alterations. Thus, the present study aimed to determine how paradoxical sleep deprivation (PSD) affects the behavioral and neurochemical responses to lipopolysaccharide (LPS, potent activator of the immune response). Adult inbred mice were paradoxical sleep deprived (72 h), whereas the control group was kept in their home cages. Both groups received either an injection of saline or LPS (5, 10 or 20 microg/animal ip) before behavioral tasks and tissue collection. During the recovery sleep period, LPS provoked a strong inhibition of sleep rebound due to a suppression of paradoxical sleep. PSD increased the susceptibility of mice to LPS-induced immobility in the open field, which was capable of affecting the anxiety-like behavior also. These altered behavioral responses to LPS were accompanied by reduction in dopamine turnover within the striatum and increased expression of cyclooxygenase-2 in the cortex. The study provides some insights into how the sleep-wake cycle affects the expression of sickness behavior induced by LPS.

The role of the substantia nigra pars compacta in regulating sleep patterns in rats.

BACKGROUND: As of late, dopaminergic neurotransmission has been recognized to be involved in the generation of sleep disturbances. Increasing evidence shows that sleep disturbances in Parkinson's disease (PD) patients are mostly related to the disease itself, rather than being a secondary phenomenon. Evidence contained in the literature lends support to the hypothesis that the dopaminergic nigrostriatal pathway is closely involved in the regulation of sleep patterns. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: To test this hypothesis we examined the electrophysiological activity along the sleep-wake cycle of rats submitted to a surgically induced lesion of the SNpc by 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP). We demonstrated that a 50% lesion of the substantia nigra pars compacta (SNpc) suffices to produce disruptions of several parameters in the sleep-wake pattern of rats. A robust and constant decrease in the latency to the onset of slow wave sleep (SWS) was detected throughout the five days of recording in both light [F((22.16)) = 72.46, p<0.0001] and dark [F((22.16)) = 75.0, p<0.0001] periods. Also found was a pronounced increase in the percentage of sleep efficiency during the first four days of recording [F((21.15)) = 21.48, p<0.0001], in comparison to the sham group. Additionally, the reduction in the SNpc dopaminergic neurons provoked an ablation in the percentage of rapid eye movement sleep (REM) during three days of the sleep-wake recording period with a strong correlation (r = 0.91; p<0.0001) between the number of dopaminergic neurons lost and the percentage decrease of REM sleep on the first day of recording. On day 4, the percentage of REM sleep during the light and dark periods was increased, [F((22.16)) = 2.46, p<0.0007], a phenomenon consistent with REM rebound. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: We propose that dopaminergic neurons present in the SNpc possess a fundamental function in the regulation of sleep processes, particularly in promoting REM sleep.