Mitochondrial Dysfunction in Skeletal Muscle of Rotenone-Induced Rat Model of Parkinson's Disease: Nanophytosomes as Therapeutic Approach.

The development of new therapeutic options for Parkinson's disease (PD) requires formulations able to mitigate both brain degeneration and motor dysfunctions. Nanophytosomes, an oral mitochondria-targeted formulation developed with membrane polar lipids and elderberry anthocyanin-enriched extract, promote significant brain benefits on a rotenone-induced rat model of PD. In the present work, the effects of Nanophytosome treatment on the skeletal muscle tissues are disclosed. It is unveiled that the rotenone-induced PD rat model exhibits motor disabilities and skeletal muscle tissues with deficient activity of mitochondrial complexes I and II along with small changes in antioxidant enzyme activity and skeletal muscle lipidome. Nanophytosome treatment mitigates the impairment of complexes I and II activity, improving the mitochondrial respiratory chain performance at levels that surpass the control. Therefore, -Nanophytosome competence to overcome the PD-related motor disabilities should be also associated with its positive outcomes on skeletal muscle mitochondria. Providing a cellular environment with more reduced redox potential, -Nanophytosome treatment improves the skeletal muscle tissue's ability to deal with oxidative stress stimuli. The PD-related small changes on skeletal muscle lipidome were also counteracted by Nanophytosome treatment. Thus, the present results reinforces the concept of Nanophytosomes as a mitochondria-targeted therapy to address the neurodegeneration challenge.