MPTP induces alpha-synuclein aggregation in the substantia nigra of baboons

1-Methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-retrahydropyridine (MPTP) neurotoxicity reproduce s many of the features of Parkinson's disease (PD). alpha-Synuclein has bee n identified as a prominent component of the Lewy body (LB), the pathologic al hallmark of PD. MPTP-treated primates have been reported to develop intr aneuronal inclusions but not true Lewy bodies. We administered MPTP to babo ons and used a monoclonal alpha-synuclein antibody to define the relationsh ip between neuronal degeneration and alpha-synuclein immunoreactivity in th e substantia nigra. MPTP-induced neuronal degeneration was associated with the redistribution of alpha-synuclein from its normal synaptic location to aggregates in degenerating neuronal cell bodies. alpha-Synuclein aggregatio n induced by MPTP models the early stages of Lewy body formation and may be a fundamental step in the evolution of neuronal degeneration in PD. NeuroR eport 11:211-213 (C) 2000 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.