MPTP mouse model of PD

Forty-eight male and 38 female C57BL/6 mice (10-12 weeks old, 25±2 g) were purchased from Laboratory Animal Center of Guangdong Province. All above mice were housed in the isolated cages of the Center for Laboratory Animals at Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine on a temperature kept at 22-24 ^oC and 12 h light/dark cycle. Food and water were available with a standard diet ad libitum.

The sub-acute MPTP schedule was described as previously reported [67]. Mice were divided into two big groups by gender successively. Excluding the sham group, the mice were injected intraperitoneally with MPTP (Sigama-Aldrich) at a dose of 30 mg/kg once per day for five consecutive days.

Mice in the control group were received equivalent volumes of 0.9% saline (n=14, 8 males and 6 females). Three days after the last MPTP injection, mice were randomly separated into five groups and administrated intragastrically with either T-006 dissolved in olive oil at a dose of 1 mg/kg (n=14, 8 males and 6 females), 3 mg/kg (n=14, 8 males and 6 females) or 10 mg/kg (n=14, 8 males and 6 females), or with positive drug rasagiline dissolved in 0.9% saline at a dose of 1 mg/kg (n=14, 8 males and 6 females), once per day for 2 weeks. The remaining mice that had received MPTP injections (i.e. the MPTP-induced PD model group: n=16, 8 males and 8 females) as well as the sham group were treated with equivalent volumes of olive oil. At the end of drug administration, behavioral assessments were conducted.