Parkinson's drugs will be tested on goldfish

Technion researchers in collaboration with the American National Health Center (NIH) succeeded in building a model that simulates Parkinson's disease in goldfish * This model is already used for further research and the development of drugs for the disease

Technion researchers at the Rappaport Research Institute in the Faculty of Medicine in collaboration with the US National Health Center (NIH) have succeeded in building a model simulating Parkinson's disease in goldfish. This was reported by the prestigious scientific journal Nature protocols.

Parkinson's disease has been modeled in humans, lower primates, and to a limited extent in other vertebrates using the MPTP toxin. The goldfish model developed by Professor Musa Ziman of the Technion has attracted a lot of attention over the past 15 years as a system for the study of anti-Parkinson drugs. He himself used it in the development of the "Teva" company's Resagelin drug, against Parkinson's disease.

"In the past, it was reported that Parkinson's syndrome can be created in the common goldfish (Carassius auratus) by a single dose of MPTP," says Dr. Orly Weinerb, who edited the protocol. "Our article describes the simple and relatively cheap model of Parkinson's in a goldfish. The procedure takes 14 to 30 days - depending on the number of individuals and the research plan. The availability of the nervous system, the neural density and other features make this model an attractive system for studying Parkinson's disease, as well as for researching potential drugs for the disease."

The introduction of a single dose of MPTP to fish causes a reversible Parkinson-like symptom, characterized by slow movement and tremors of the fish, which reaches its full extent three days after the introduction of the MPTP. The reduction in movement and tremors occur at the same time as the loss of dopamine and norepinephrine (important relays in the brain) in the forebrain and midbrain and in other areas of the brain. The toxic oxidation product of the MPTP - the MPP+ - formed by the inspiration of the enzyme monoamine oxidase B accumulates in the forebrain and midbrain, penetrates the neurons and causes the death of the cells. In addition, the toxicity of MPTP in the brain is blocked by inhibitors of monoamine oxidase B, such as the drug rasagiline.

"It is a special and simple model that is now used for further research," says Dr. Weinerv. "We have proven that a drug to treat Parkinson's disease can also work on fish and other organisms. The prototype of the drug rasajalin was able to cure the fish. The blood barrier in the fish brain is more permeable than the human one, so it is easier to inject drugs into the brain and test their effect."