Prosaposin maintains lipid homeostasis in dopamine neurons and counteracts experimental parkinsonism in rodents

Prosaposin (PSAP) modulates glycosphingolipid metabolism and variants have been linked to Parkinson’s disease (PD). Here, we find altered PSAP levels in the plasma, CSF and post-mortem brain of PD patients. Altered plasma and CSF PSAP levels correlate with PD-related motor impairments. Dopaminergic PSAP-deficient (cPSAP(DAT)) mice display hypolocomotion and depression/anxiety-like symptoms with mildly impaired dopaminergic neurotransmission, while serotonergic PSAP-deficient (cPSAP(SERT)) mice behave normally. Spatial lipidomics revealed an accumulation of highly unsaturated and shortened lipids and reduction of sphingolipids throughout the brains of cPSAP(DAT) mice. The overexpression of α-synuclein via AAV lead to more severe dopaminergic degeneration and higher p-Ser129 α-synuclein levels in cPSAP(DAT) mice compared to WT mice. Overexpression of PSAP via AAV and encapsulated cell biodelivery protected against 6-OHDA and α-synuclein toxicity in wild-type rodents. Thus, these findings suggest PSAP may maintain dopaminergic lipid homeostasis, which is dysregulated in PD, and counteract experimental parkinsonism.