Sepiapterin reductase expression is increased in Parkinson's disease brain tissue.

ABSTRACT: The PARK3 locus on chromosome 2p13 has shown linkage to both the development and age of onset of Parkinson's disease (PD). One candidate gene at this locus is sepiapterin reductase (SPR). Sepiapterin reductase catalyzes the final step in the biosynthetic pathway of tetrahydrobiopterin (BH(4)), an essential cofactor for aromatic amino acid hydrolases including tyrosine hydroxylase, the rate-limiting enzyme in dopamine synthesis. The expression of SPR was assayed using semiquantitative real-time RT-PCR in human post-mortem cerebellar tissue from neuropathologically confirmed PD cases and neurologically normal controls. The expression of other enzymes involved in BH(4) biosynthesis, including aldose reductase (AKR1B1), carbonyl reductase (CBR1 and CBR3), GTP-cyclohydrolase I (GCH1), and 6-pyr

SUBMITTER: Tobin JE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC1868471 | biostudies-literature | 2007 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature