News by Subject Medicine & Health

Public Release: 18-Jan-2019

How gut bacteria affect the treatment of Parkinson's disease

Patients with Parkinson's disease are treated with levodopa, which is converted into dopamine, a neurotransmitter in the brain. In a study published on Jan. 18, in the journal Nature Communications, scientists from the University of Groningen show that gut bacteria can metabolize levodopa into dopamine. As dopamine cannot cross the blood-brain barrier, this makes the medication less effective -- even in the presence of inhibitors that should prevent the conversion of levodopa.

Journal: Nature Communications

Public Release: 16-Jan-2019

Sea slug study illuminates how mitochondria move

Scripps Research Institute

Defects in the transport of cells' energy organelles are a suspected cause of diseases including Alzheimer's, ALS, Huntington's and Parkinson's. A new study reveals the genetics behind mitochondrial shifts.

Journal: Cell Reports
Funder: National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation

Public Release: 16-Jan-2019

High pesticide exposure among farmers linked to poor sense of smell later

Michigan State University

A Michigan State University study is the first to show an association between unusually high pesticide exposure and poor sense of smell among aging farmers.

Journal: Environmental Health Perspectives

Public Release: 15-Jan-2019

Defective glial cells can push neurons toward Parkinson's disease

IDIBELL-Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute

A team of scientists from IDIBELL, the University of Barcelona and CMR[B] have discovered that astrocytes are linked to the buildup of a toxic protein that is one the hallmarks of Parkinson's disease. The work, which appeared January 10 in the journal Stem Cell Reports, suggests an important role for glial cells in Parkinson's disease and offers potential new targets for developing therapies.

Journal: Stem Cell Reports
Funder: European Research Council-ERC, Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, AGAUR, CERCA Programme / Generalitat de Catalunya

Public Release: 10-Jan-2019

Defective glial cells can push neurons toward Parkinson's disease

Cell Press

Researchers from the University of Barcelona have shown that defective versions of human brain cells called astrocytes are linked to the buildup of a toxic protein that is the hallmark of Parkinson's disease. The studied astrocytes, derived from Parkinson's disease patients with a genetic mutation that affects cell clean-up functions, caused more accumulation of the toxin, alpha-synuclein, than those derived from healthy individuals. The work appears Jan. 10 in the journal Stem Cell Reports.

Journal: Stem Cell Reports

Public Release: 2-Jan-2019

New mouse model reminiscent of Leigh syndrome sheds light on mechanisms of neurodegeneration

VIB (the Flanders Institute for Biotechnology)

Leuven researchers led by professor Bart De Strooper (VIB-KU Leuven) have identified a new role for PARL, a protein that has been linked to Parkinson's disease. In this week's edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science, they report that mice lacking PARL display specific problems in the nervous system reminiscent of Leigh syndrome instead.

Journal: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

Public Release: 31-Dec-2018

Wireless 'pacemaker for the brain' could offer new treatment for neurological disorders

University of California - Berkeley

A new neurostimulator developed by engineers at the University of California, Berkeley, can listen to and stimulate electric current in the brain at the same time, potentially delivering fine-tuned treatments to patients with diseases like epilepsy and Parkinson's.

Journal: Nature Biomedical Engineering
Funder: Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, National Science Foundation

Public Release: 26-Dec-2018

Treatment of Parkinson's disease: Separating hope from hype

Bentham Science Publishers

This review emphasized the development of various non-pharmaceutical therapeutic approaches and mainly highlighted the cutting-edge treatments for PD including gene- and stem cell-based therapies, targeted delivery of neurotrophic factors, and brain stimulation techniques such as Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS), transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS), and Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS).

Journal: Current Gene Therapy

Public Release: 26-Dec-2018

Autophagy and mitochondria: Targets in neurodegenerative disorders

Bentham Science Publishers

Cellular homeostasis depends on the timely clearance of damaged cellular organelles and proteins via pathways including autophagy. Mitochondria and mitochondrial autophagy play a vital role in cellular health and failure of these pathways can have a devastating effect on cellular homeostasis. Here, the researchers review the involvement of mitochondrial and autophagy dysfunction in neurodegenerative disorders specifically focusing on Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and Huntington's disease.

Journal: CNS & Neurological Disorders - Drug Targets

Public Release: 26-Dec-2018

Kicking, yelling during sleep? Study finds risk factors for violent sleep disorder

American Academy of Neurology

Taking antidepressants for depression, having post-traumatic stress disorder or anxiety diagnosed by a doctor are risk factors for a disruptive and sometimes violent sleep disorder called rapid eye movement (REM) sleep behavior disorder, according to a study published in the Dec. 26, 2018, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. The study also found men are more likely to have the disorder.

Journal: Neurology

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