Defective synaptic connectivity and axonal neuropathology in a human iPSC-based model of familial Parkinson's disease

alpha-Synuclein (alpha Syn) is the major gene linked to sporadic Parkinson's disease (PD), whereas the G209A (p.A53T) alpha Syn mutation causes a familial form of PD characterized by early onset and a generally severe phenotype, including nonmotor manifestations. Here we generated de novo induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) from patients harboring the p.A53T mutation and developed a robust model that captures PD pathogenic processes under basal conditions. iPSC-derived mutant neurons displayed novel disease-relevant phenotypes, including protein aggregation, compromised neuritic outgrowth, and contorted or fragmented axons with swollen varicosities containing alpha Syn and Tau. The identified neuropathological features closely resembled those in brains of p.A53T patients. Small molecules targeting alpha Syn reverted the degenerative phenotype under both basal and induced stress conditions, indicating a treatment strategy for PD and other synucleinopathies. Furthermore, mutant neurons showed disrupted synaptic connectivity and widespread transcriptional alterations in genes involved in synaptic signaling, a number of which have been previously linked to mental disorders, raising intriguing implications for potentially converging disease mechanisms.