The use of neurotrophic growth factors as a means of preventing loss of the dopaminergic (DA) neurons in the substantia nigra (SN) is becoming an accepted treatment strategy for Parkinson's disease (PD). In earlier studies, we showed that there was a selective loss of basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) immunoreactivity in DA neurons of the SN in PD suggesting that a deficiency of bFGF might contribute to cell death. As a preliminary step to assessing the potential for using bFGF or its analogs as therapeutic agents, the expression of fibroblast growth factor receptor-1 (FGFR-1) in the SN of normal and PD cases was investigated immunohistochemically. FGFR-1 immunoreactivity could be detected in DA neurons of the SN in young and old neurologically normal cases with an apparent decline with age. FGFR-1 immunoreactivity was also detected in many of the residual SN neurons in most of the idiopathic PD cases. These results indicate that FGFR-1 immunoreactivity, and possibly FGF binding activity, is retained in DA neurons in PD.
Copyright 1998 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.