MPTP: Advances from an Evergreen Neurotoxin

Since its discovery in 1976, 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) models in rodents and nonhuman primates have continuously renewed to keep up with progresses of Parkinson’s disease (PD) research. MPTP is able to reproduce almost all the clinical and neuropathological features of PD when administered to monkeys. In rodents, although MPTP does not reproduce all PD features in one, it is a very versatile neurotoxin that can model different aspects of PD pathology, depending upon the dose and regimen of administration. At the present time, a number of different MPTP models have been developed, allowing researchers to investigate either the classical PD neuropathology or pathological processes underlining more recently discovered aspects of the disease, such as central and peripheral nonmotor symptoms. In this chapter, primate and rodent MPTP models are reviewed, focusing mainly on the contribution that different MPTP protocols can offer to reproduce the multifaceted aspects of the disease.