Aconitum carmichaelii triggers neurotoxicity and Parkinson-like symptoms through initiation of ROS-mitochondrial apoptosis and the Nox5/DJ-1 signaling pathway

In this article number 10.1002/bmm2.12033, Meijun Pang, Xin Song and their co-workers systematically studied the molecular mechanism of neurotoxicity of zebrafish larvae caused by Aconitum carmichaelii (Chuanwu). They first assessed neuronal activity in the whole brain and found that the telencephalon was most sensitive to Chuanwu toxicity. Additionally, they found t-hat Chuanwu upregulated the nox5 gene and downregulated the dj1 gene, leading to excessive ROS production and mitochondrial mediated cell apoptosis, which resulted in neurotoxic effects and Parkinson-like behaviors in zebrafish larvae. This has extensive theoretical significance in the field of toxicity prevention and detoxification of Aconitum.