Scientists at Yale School of Medicine have discovered that two specific proteins may play a critical role in how Parkinson’s disease spreads in the brain. This finding could help develop better treatments to slow down or even stop the disease.
Parkinson’s disease is a brain condition that gets worse over time. It happens when certain brain cells called neurons die off. This is mainly caused by the buildup of a damaged protein known as alpha-synuclein (α-synuclein). This protein does not fold correctly and can move from one neuron to another, causing damage along the way.
Until now, researchers didn’t fully understand how α-synuclein spreads between cells. But a new study, published in the journal Nature Communications, shows that two proteins found on the surface of brain cells—called mGluR4 and NPDC1—might help carry this harmful protein into healthy cells.
Dr. Stephen Strittmatter, the lead author of the study and a professor of neurology at Yale, says that understanding how α-synuclein enters brain cells could be the key to stopping Parkinson’s disease from getting worse.
In the U.S., Parkinson’s disease is becoming more common. About 1.1 million people are currently living with the disease, and nearly 90,000 more are diagnosed every year.
People with Parkinson’s often suffer from symptoms like shaking hands, trouble walking, and slower movements. These problems happen because the damaged α-synuclein spreads to parts of the brain that control movement.
To understand how α-synuclein gets into cells, the Yale researchers tested thousands of proteins on cell surfaces. They created over 4,000 different groups of cells, each with different surface proteins, and watched to see if any of them connected with α-synuclein.
Most did not—but 16 did, and two in particular stood out: mGluR4 and NPDC1. These proteins are found in dopamine neurons in a brain area called the substantia nigra, which is heavily affected in Parkinson’s disease.
The researchers then did experiments on mice. They introduced the misfolded α-synuclein into the brains of normal mice and saw that the mice developed symptoms similar to Parkinson’s disease. But when they used mice that lacked working versions of mGluR4 or NPDC1, the harmful protein didn’t build up, and the mice stayed healthy.
This means that mGluR4 and NPDC1 are likely needed for α-synuclein to enter brain cells and spread. When the researchers disabled these proteins, they were able to stop the disease from spreading and prevent symptoms.
This discovery opens up the possibility of creating new treatments that stop α-synuclein from spreading. Right now, treatments for Parkinson’s disease mainly focus on easing symptoms, but they don’t stop the disease from getting worse. Targeting these two proteins might offer a way to slow or even halt disease progression.
With more people expected to develop Parkinson’s as the population ages, finding new ways to treat or prevent the disease is more important than ever. Dr. Strittmatter says now is the time to make progress in understanding how to protect brain cells from dying.
If you care about Parkinson’s disease, please read studies that Vitamin B may slow down cognitive decline, and Mediterranean diet could help lower risk of Parkinson’s.
For more health information, please see recent studies about how wheat gluten might be influencing our brain health, and Olive oil: a daily dose for better brain health.
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