Rescue of BDNF expression by the thalamic parafascicular nucleus with chronic treatment with the mGluR2/3 agonist LY379268 may contribute to the LY379268 rescue of enkephalinergic striatal projection neurons in R6/2 Huntington's disease mice.

ABSTRACT: We have found that daily subcutaneous injection with a maximum tolerated dose of the mGluR2/3 agonist LY379268 (20 mg/kg) beginning at 4 weeks of age dramatically improves the motor, neuronal and neurochemical phenotype in R6/2 mice, a rapidly progressing transgenic model of Huntington's disease (HD). We also previously showed that the benefit of daily LY379268 in R6/2 mice was associated with increases in corticostriatal brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), and in particular was associated with a reduction in enkephalinergic striatal projection neuron loss. In the present study, we show that daily LY379268 also rescues expression of BDNF by neurons of the thalamic parafascicular nucleus in R6/2 mice, which projects prominently to the striatum, and this increase too is linked to the r

SUBMITTER: Wang H 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8440436 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature