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Updated: Aug 27, 2025

Rating L-DOPA-Induced Dyskinesias in the Unilaterally 6-OHDA-Lesioned Rat Model of Parkinson's Disease
Published on: October 4, 2021
A time-course study of urodynamic analyses in rat models with dopaminergic depletion induced through unilateral and
Chellappan Praveen Rajneesh1, Tsung-Hsun Hsieh2, Hung-Chou Chen3
1School of Biomedical Engineering, College of Biomedical Engineering, Taipei Medical University, Taipei City 11031, Taiwan; School of Medicine, Fu Jen Catholic University, New Taipei City 242062, Taiwan.
Background:
Bladder dysfunction is a common non-motor disorder in Parkinson's disease (PD). This study attempted to determine the bladder dysfunction with disease progression in the PD rat model produced from unilateral/bilateral injections of 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA).
Methods:
Cystometrographic (CMG) and external urethral sphincter electromyographic (EUS-EMG) measurements were scheduled in a time-course manner to determine the disease timing, onset, and severity. Animals were allotted into normal control, unilateral, bilateral 6-OHDA injected groups and subjected to scheduled CMG, EUS-EMG analyses at weeks 1, 2, and 4.
Results:
The urodynamic results concluded that voiding efficiency (VE) was reduced in both unilateral and bilateral PD rats at all-time points. VE had decreased from 57 ± 11% to 31 ± 7% in unilateral PD rats and in bilateral PD rats, a decreased VE of 20 ± 6% was observed compared to control and unilateral PD rats. The EMG results in unilateral PD rats indicated declines in bursting period (BP) (3.78-2.94 s), active period (AP) (93.38-88.75 ms), and silent period (SP) (161.62-114.30 ms). A sudden reduction was noticed in BP (3.62-2.82 s), AP (92.21-86.01 ms), and SP (128.61-60.16 ms) of bilateral PD rats than in control and unilateral PD rats. Histological evidence exhibited a progressive dopaminergic neurons (DA) depletion in the substantia nigra (SN) region in 6-OHDA lesioned rats.
Conclusion:
The experimental outcomes strongly implied that significant variations in bladder function and VE decline were due to the depletion of DA neurons in the SN region of the brain.

