A New Hope for Parkinson’s Treatment
Parkinson’s disease is a condition that affects many people. It’s mostly caused by a change in a specific gene in our body.
The gene has many jobs, including sending messages inside cells. When this gene changes, it makes too much of a particular protein. Previously, scientists didn’t know how to stop this from happening.
A Key Discovery
Dr. Yulan Xiong and her team at UConn Health made an important discovery. They found out what’s causing the extra protein to be made. They did this by studying genes in simple yeast cells.
They found that another thing in our cells, called ATIC, was controlling the gene at an early stage. This was unexpected and a new discovery. They also checked this in brain cells, fruit flies, and mice.
ATIC works with something we get from food like meat and certain vegetables. ATIC uses this to control the gene.
The team then used a drug that acts like ATIC. This drug could reduce the protein made by the changed gene. Dr. Xiong said, “This drug can help control the gene and this is a new way to possibly treat Parkinson’s disease.”
Before this, people only looked at one part of the gene’s work. Dr. Xiong’s team was the first to see the bigger picture.
Challenges and Next Steps
The drug they found has a problem. It can’t reach the brain easily. This is because our body has a protective shield around the brain. So, the team is now trying to change the drug so it can get into the brain.
They also want to make sure their discovery can be used to help people. They’re getting help from UConn’s Technology team to protect their work. They also want to connect with big companies that make Parkinson’s disease medicines.
Dr. Xiong and her team hope to test their findings in animals more and then in people soon. They want to find a new way to treat Parkinson’s disease.
If you care about Parkinson’s disease, please read studies about Vitamin E that may help prevent Parkinson’s disease, and Vitamin D could benefit people with Parkinson’s disease.
For more information about brain health, please see recent studies about new way to treat Parkinson’s disease, and results showing COVID-19 may be linked to Parkinson’s disease.
The study was published in The EMBO Journal.
Follow us on Twitter for more articles about this topic.
Copyright © 2023 Knowridge Science Report. All rights reserved.
