• M Niu, R Xu, J Wang, B Hou, and A Xie.
• Department of Neurology, The Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University, Qingdao, China.
• Neuroscience. 2016 Jun 14; 325: 39-49.

AbstractIncreasing evidence suggests that microRNAs (miRs) play a significant role in the pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease (PD). MiR-133b, which is significantly decreased in the PD midbrain, has recently been shown to promote neurite outgrowth and enhance neural functional recovery. However, the role of miR-133b in PD has not been clearly established. Here, using a well-established PD model culture based on the neurotoxin 1-methyl-4-phenyl-pyridinium (MPP(+)), we demonstrated that miR-133b could promote axon outgrowth in dopaminergic neurons (DNs) and ameliorated MPP(+)-induced axon degeneration. Additional experiments suggested that the mechanisms of this miR-133b-mediated effect might rely on RhoA inhibition. We demonstrated that RhoA, an inhibitor of axonal growth, was increased in DNs under MPP(+) treatment, and this increase could be attenuated by miR-133b overexpression. Moreover, we demonstrated that the induced expression of miR-133b could inhibit α-synuclein, which is critically involved in the pathological process of PD. Furthermore, we found that overexpression of miR-133b abrogated the MPP(+)-induced decrease in the Bcl-2/Bax ratio and upregulated phosphorylated Akt (p-Akt), which is a pro-survival kinase. Together these findings reveal novel roles for miR-133b in the pathogenesis of PD and provide new therapeutic avenues for the treatment of the disease.Copyright © 2016 IBRO. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

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