Figure 7.

Summary of the effects of PC loss in DA neurons on striatonigral integrity. (A) In control mice, DA and striatal neurons are characterized by PC (in blue) and dopamine is released in the striatum (yellow circles) via DA projections. In the Ift88 cKO mice, the number of DA neurons showing primary cilia is drastically reduced, resulting in striatal neurons characterized by an increased length of primary cilia. (B) TH immunoreactivity (green) in the striatum and in SN DA neurons is reduced upon MPTP treatment and in the non-treated Ift88 cKO mice, but this is not exacerbated in the MPTP-treated Ift88 cKO mice. Abbreviations: Cpu, caudate putamen; SNpc, substantia nigra pars compacta.