Dopamine thioethers in neurodegeneration.

Dopamine oxidation is proposed to be a significant contributor to mesostriatal dopaminergic neurodegeneration, although the mechanisms are not fully resolved. Recent results from in vitro and in vivo models have suggested that some products from mercapturic acid pathway (MAP) metabolism of oxidized dopamine (DA) may contribute to dopaminergic neurodegeneration, and that at least one product of this pathway, 5-S-cysteinyldopamine (Cys-DA), is elevated in patients with advanced Parkinson's disease (PD). Here we review recent findings on MAP enzymes and their products in rodent brain and in diseased regions of brain from patients with mesostriatal dopaminergic neurodegeneration.