Mutant LRRK2R1441G BAC transgenic mice recapitulate cardinal features of Parkinson's disease

Mutations in LRRK2 can cause Parkinson's disease. The authors create a transgenic mouse model of LRRK2 that recapitulates several cardinal features of the disease. Mutations in leucine-rich repeat kinase 2 ( LRRK2 ) are the most common genetic cause of Parkinson's disease. We created a LRRK2 transgenic mouse model that recapitulates cardinal features of the disease: an age-dependent and levodopa-responsive slowness of movement associated with diminished dopamine release and axonal pathology of nigrostriatal dopaminergic projection. These mice provide a valid model of Parkinson's disease and are a resource for the investigation of pathogenesis and therapeutics.