Selective loss of subpopulations of ventral mesencephalic dopaminergic neurons in the monkey following exposure to MPTP

Tyrosine hydroxylase immunohistochemical examination of the mesencephalon of severely parkinsonian MPTP-treated macaque fascicularis monkeys revealed a marked loss of substantia nigra pars compacta (SNc) neurons in both medial and central portions of the nucleus with a relative sparing of neurons in the dorsal-most portions of the substantia nigra. These animals also sustained 20–65% loss of neurons in the substantia nigra pars lateralis area, ventral tegmental area (A-10), and the retrorubral area (A-8 cell group, and the parabrachialis pigmentosus region). These animals all had extreme striatal dopamine depletions. A monkey which received several small doses of MPTP and yet remained asypptomatic for a motor disorder (although it had demonstrable behavioral performance deficits) had only a loss only ventral SNc neurons, with no appreciable cells in associated ventral mesencephalic dopamine areas and no loss of striatal dopamine. These data suggest that the effects of MPTP are not as selective as originally thought and, more importantly, indicate that MPTP-induced parkinsonism in the primate may be more analogous to idiopathic Parkinson's disease, where cells other than SNc cells are affected. Furthermore, the present findings suggest that only certain mesencephalic dopamine neurons are susceptible to MPTP-induced damage. The unique characteristics of these neurons need to be elucidated.