Inhibition of DYRK1A can alleviate MPTP/MPP⁺-induced neuronal apoptosis and mitochondrial damage

The dual specificity tyrosine-regulated kinase 1a (DYRK1A) gene plays a crucial role in developing midbrain dopamine neurons. DYRK1A is closely related to Parkinson's disease(PD), and there are not many relevant studies. This paper focuses on the potential role of DYRK1A in the initiation and progression of PD and the discovery of therapeutic targets for PD. 94 PD patients and healthy controls were included as research subjects, and the levels of DYRK1A, α-synuclein(α-syn), phosphorylated α-synuclein(p-α-syn) in plasma and α-syn, p-α-syn in erythrocytes were detected by ELISA. Differences in plasma DYRK1A between the PD group and the control group and the relevant influencing factors of plasma DYRK1A in the PD group were statistically analyzed. Different concentrations of Harmine, a DYRK1A inhibitor, were added to the mouse model of PD and DYRK1A was knocked down in MN9D cells to investigate changes in animal behavior, neuronal apoptosis, mitochondrial damage and autophagy after inhibition of DYRK1A expression. We found that plasma DYRK1A was elevated in PD patients and correlated with plasma α-syn, p-α-syn, and erythrocyte α-syn and p-α-syn levels. Expression of DYRK1A was upregulated in the animal model and cellular model, and the DYRK1A inhibitor ameliorated behavioral deficits and attenuated neuronal apoptosis; knockdown of DYRK1A attenuated apoptosis, whereas overexpression of DYRK1A exacerbated apoptosis. Furthermore, we also found that DYRK1A inhibitor or knockdown of DYRK1A can reduce mitochondrial damage and promote autophagy. Inhibition of DYRK1A may be a future target for treating PD.