Scientists in China have discovered a cholesterol-related compound that may contribute to the development of Parkinson’s disease.
This compound, called 24-OHC, appears to help spread harmful protein clumps in the brain, which are a major feature of the disease.
The study, led by researchers at Wuhan University and published in PLOS Biology, suggests that blocking this compound could be a new way to treat Parkinson’s.
Parkinson’s disease is a disorder that affects movement and gets worse over time. It happens when brain cells that produce dopamine start to die.
One of the main signs of Parkinson’s is the buildup of tiny, sticky clumps of a protein called alpha-synuclein (alpha-Syn).
These clumps, known as Lewy bodies, spread from cell to cell, damaging neurons and leading to the symptoms of the disease, such as tremors, stiffness, and slow movement. Scientists have been searching for what triggers this process.
The research team focused on 24-OHC, a byproduct of cholesterol that is naturally found in the brain. They already knew that people with Parkinson’s disease have higher levels of 24-OHC and that its levels increase with age. But they wanted to find out if 24-OHC was actually helping to spread the harmful alpha-Syn clumps.
To test this idea, they measured 24-OHC levels in both Parkinson’s patients and in mice with a version of the disease. They found that 24-OHC was indeed higher in both cases. Next, they experimented with mice to see if lowering 24-OHC could slow the disease.
They genetically altered some of the mice so that they could not produce 24-OHC. These mice had fewer harmful protein clumps, less neuron damage, and better movement than mice that still had normal 24-OHC levels.
The researchers also studied the effect of 24-OHC on brain cells in a lab dish. When they added 24-OHC to healthy neurons, it caused normal alpha-Syn to turn into harmful, sticky clumps.
In another experiment, they injected harmful alpha-Syn into the brains of mice. When the protein was formed in the presence of 24-OHC, it spread more aggressively, leading to more neuron loss and worse movement problems.
These findings suggest that 24-OHC plays a direct role in making Parkinson’s disease worse by promoting the spread of toxic proteins. The researchers believe that blocking the production of 24-OHC could slow or even stop the progression of the disease.
This study offers an exciting new direction for Parkinson’s research. Scientists have long known that cholesterol metabolism changes in neurodegenerative diseases, but this study provides strong evidence that one specific cholesterol byproduct, 24-OHC, plays a key role in the spread of Parkinson’s disease.
One of the most promising aspects of this research is that drugs already exist that can block the production of 24-OHC. These drugs were originally developed for other conditions but could be repurposed for Parkinson’s treatment. If further research confirms these findings, clinical trials could begin to test whether such drugs could slow or stop the disease in humans.
However, this study was done mostly in mice, and human brains are more complex. More research is needed to confirm that blocking 24-OHC will have the same protective effects in people with Parkinson’s.
Additionally, while reducing 24-OHC appeared to help in mice, cholesterol metabolism is essential for brain function, so researchers will need to make sure that blocking 24-OHC does not cause unwanted side effects.
Despite these uncertainties, this discovery is important because it identifies a new possible target for treating Parkinson’s.
Instead of just managing symptoms, future treatments could focus on stopping the disease from getting worse at a molecular level. If successful, this could be a major breakthrough in how Parkinson’s disease is treated in the future.
The research findings can be found in PLOS Biology.
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