Objective: To determine the expression of TAAR1 and TAAR2 mRNA in leukocytes of patients with Parkinson’s disease, depending on the stage of the disease and current therapy.

Background: Trace amines are compounds belonging to the class of endogenous amines present in the central nervous system in very low concentrations. In recent years, experimental evidence has been collected indicating the pathophysiological significance of trace monoamines and their receptors in various disorders of the central nervous system, including Parkinson’s disease (PD).

Method: The PD group consisted of 23 patients diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. The PD diagnosis was established in accordance with the UK Brain Bank Criteria. The group consisted of 11 men and 12 women aged 67 to 80 years. The PD stage was determined according to the Modified Hoehn and Yahr scale (H&Y scale). Of these, 6 patients received no therapy, 13 patients receiving levodopa therapy.  All PD patients were divided into two subgroups depending on the disease stage, according to the H&Y scale. The first subgroup included patients with stages 1.0-2.0 (subgroup PD1, n=11), the second – with stages 2.5-3.0 (subgroup PD2, n=12). The control group consisted of 6 relatively healthy volunteers, 2 men and 4 women, from 62 to 76 years. TAAR1 and TAAR 2 mRNA levels were determined by reverse transcription followed by real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). GAPDH and Cycr genes were selected as housekeeping genes.

Results: The level of TAAR1 mRNA in both subgroups was significantly lower than in the control and amounted to (0.91 ± 0.1) in the PD1 subgroup, (0.6 ± 0.1) in the PD2 subgroup vs (1.6 ± 0.4) in the control group (p <0.05). The TAAR2 mRNA level was in the PD1 subgroup (1.3 ± 0.2), in the PD2 subgroup (1.1 ± 0.2) and did not differ from the control group (1.1 ± 0.3). We compared TAAR1 and TAAR2 mRNA levels in native patients with those receiving levodopa. The level of TAAR1 mRNA in native patients was (1.2 ± 0.2) and did not differ from patients receiving therapy (0.8 ± 0.1), p = 0.15. The level of TAAR2 mRNA in native patients also did not differ from patients with treatment and was (0.5 ± 0.08) vs (0.6 ± 0.04), respectively.

Conclusion: The current study provides evidence in support of the possibility that trace amines are involved in the development of PD. This issue requires further study.

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MDS Abstracts - https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/decreased-expression-of-trace-amines-receptors-on-lymphocytes-in-parkinsons-disease/