- Academic Editor
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Objective: Levodopa (L-DOPA) is the primary treatment for Parkinson’s
disease (PD). Nevertheless, the underlying mechanism of its action is not
entirely learned. This study aims to probe the action of L-DOPA on NLR pyrin
domain containing 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome activation and tyrosine hydroxylase (TH)
levels in the striatum (STR) and substantia nigra (SN) of mice with PD symptoms.
Methods: PD was simulated by administering
1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP; 25 mg/kg/d) to induce mice,
followed by L-DOPA (8 mg/kg/d) treatment. The behavioral performance of the mice
was assessed using the pole test, balance beam, and rotarod test. After
euthanasia with 120 mg/kg sodium pentobarbital, STR and SN were collected for
evaluation of protein level of TH, NLR pyrin domain containing 3 (NLRP3), ASC and Cleaved caspase-1 using Western
blot and mRNA levels of TH, inflammatory factors IL-1