Ropinirole and Pramipexole Promote Structural Plasticity in Human iPSC-Derived Dopaminergic Neurons via BDNF and mTOR Signaling

Figure 2

Ropinirole promotes structural plasticity of human iPSC-derived and mouse mesencephalic DA neurons. (a–c) Representative photomicrographs of human F3, human NAS2 (70 days in culture), and mouse mesencephalic DA neurons (7 days in culture) 72 hrs after exposure to vehicle or to 10 μM ropinirole. Scale bar: 30 μm. (d–l) Concentration-response curves of the effect of ropinirole on maximal length of dendrites, number of primary dendrites, and soma area of (d–f) human F3 DA neurons, (g–i) human NAS2 DA neurons, and (j–l) mouse mesencephalic DA neurons. Shaded areas: (d–f) light blue, (g–i) light green, and (j–l) light red show no significant changes in structural plasticity between basal measurements and measurements after 72 hrs when cultures were exposed to vehicle. Data are expressed as mean ± SEM (, , and versus vehicle (0); post hoc Bonferroni’s test).