Background: α-Synuclein (α-Syn) is a protein implicated in the pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease (PD). α-Syn has been shown to associate with membranes and bind acidic phospholipids. However, the physiological importance of these associations to the integrity of axons is not fully clear.Methods: Biochemical, immunohistochemical and ultrastructural analyses in cultured neurons, transgenic mouse brains, PD and control human brains. Results:We analyzed the ultrastructure of cross-sectioned axons localized to white matter tracts (WMTs), within the dorsal striatum of old and symptomatic α-Syn transgenic mouse brains. The analysis indicated a higher density of axons of thinner diameter. Our findings in cultured cortical neurons indicate a role for α-Syn in elongation of the main axon and its collaterals, resulting in enhanced axonal arborization. We show that α-Syn effect to enhance axonal outgrowth is mediated through its activity to regulate membrane levels of the acidic phosphatidylinositol 4, 5-bisphosphate (PI4,5P 2 ). Moreover, our findings link α-Synenhanced axonal growth with evidence for axonal injury. In relevance to disease mechanisms, we detect in human brains evidence for a higher degree of corticostriatal glutamatergic plasticity within WMTs at early stages of PD. However, at later PD stages, the respective WMTs in the caudate are degenerated with accumulation of Lewy pathology. Conclusions:Our results show that through regulating PI4,5P 2 levels, α-Syn acts to elongate the main axon and collaterals, resulting in a higher density of axons in the striatal WMTs. Based on these results we suggest a role for α-Syn in compensating mechanisms, involving corticostriatal glutamatergic plasticity, taking place early in PD.

A marker for diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease (PD), which reflects on the occurrence of peripheral pathogenic mechanisms, would potentially improve therapy. The significance of α-Synuclein (α-Syn) expression in red blood cells (RBC) is currently unclear. Here we investigated whether RBC’s-expressed α-Syn may associate with PD. To this aim, we determined the levels of total and proteinase K-resistant α-Syn in samples of packed red blood cells (PRBCs). Twenty-one individuals with PD at various disease stages and 15 healthy controls, with similar demographic features, were recruited to this study. α-Syn levels were determined by their biochemical property to bind phospholipids, using a phospholipid-ELISA assay. A significantly lower ratio of total-to-proteinase K-resistant α-Syn levels was detected in PD patients than in the healthy control group. However, there was considerable overlap between the two groups. Suggesting a need for additional markers to be tested in combination with α-Syn levels. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first evidence for an association between RBCs-expressed α-Syn and pathogenic mechanisms involved in PD.

The validity of α-synuclein (α-Syn) as a biomarker for Parkinson's disease (PD) is still under investigation. Conventional methods for capture and quantitation of α-Syn protein in human samples are primarily based on anti-α-Syn antibodies. Specific and competent antibodies were raised against α-Syn. However, capture by anti-α-Syn antibodies may be limited to specific epitope recognition, attributed to protein structure or post-translational modifications. Hence, antibody-based methods for α-Syn capture raise a concern regarding their efficacy to detect the intracellular, unfolded α-Syn pool. An alternative is α-Syn capture by membrane lipids, i.e., to utilize the biochemical property of α-Syn to specifically bind membrane lipids and acquire a characteristic structure following binding. We determined α-Syn levels in human samples using immobilized lipids for α-Syn capture. The lipids used for α-Syn capture consist of phosphatidyl inositol (PI), phosphatidyl serine (PS), and phosphatidyl ethanolamine (PE). Addition of mono-sialoganglioside, GM1 ganglioside, to the immobilized lipids significantly improved α-Syn detection. Following capture, the lipid-bound α-Syn was detected using an anti-α-Syn antibody. Total α-Syn levels in whole blood cells (WBC), cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), and saliva were determined by the lipid-ELISA method.