Parkinson's disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disorder that is marked by the accumulation of the protein, α-synuclein (αS), into clumps known as Lewy bodies, which diminish neural health. Now, researchers from Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) report the development of a mouse model to induce PD-like αS aggregation, leading to resting tremor and abnormal movement control. The mouse responds to L-DOPA, similarly to patients with PD. The team's study (“Abrogating Native α-Synuclein Tetramers in Mice Causes a L-DOPA-Responsive Motor Syndrome Closely Resembling Parkinson’s Disease”) on the use of this transgenic mouse model appears in Neuron . “α-Synuclein (αS) regulates vesicle exocytosis but forms insoluble deposits in PD. Developing disease-modifying therapies requires animal models that reproduce cardinal features of PD. We recently described a previously unrecognized physiological form of αS, α-helical tetramers, and showed that familial PD-causing missense mutati
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