Posted on 05/23/2011 5:54:49 PM PDT by neverdem
Parkinson's is a degenerative condition that affects the brain The immune system may have a key role in the development of Parkinson's disease, say US researchers.
In a 20-year study of 4,000 people, half with Parkinson's disease, the team found an association between genes controlling immunity and the condition.
The results raise the possibility of new targets for drug development, Nature Genetics reports.
Parkinson's UK said the study strengthened the idea that immunity is an important driver of the disease.
The team were not just looking for a genetic cause of the disease, but also considered clinical and environmental factors.
During their search, they discovered that groups of genes collectively known as HLA genes are associated with the condition.
These genes are key for the immune system to differentiate between foreign invaders and the body's own tissues.
In theory, that enables the immune system to attack infectious organisms without turning on itself - but it is not always an infallible system.
The genes vary considerably between individuals.
Some versions of the genes are associated with increased risk or protection against infectious disease, while others can induce autoimmune disorders in which the immune system attacks the body's own tissues.
Inflammation
Multiple sclerosis has already been shown to be associated with the same HLA genetic variant seen in the latest study in Parkinson's disease, the researchers said.
It was already known that people who take anti-inflammatory drugs, such as ibuprofen, have a decreased risk of developing Parkinson's disease, which also supports the idea that the immune system has a role in the disease.
But this protective effect is not the same for everyone, probably because of genetic differences.
With better understanding of the link between Parkinson's disease, immunity and inflammation, it may be possible to design more effective drugs for treating...
(Excerpt) Read more at bbc.co.uk ...
Looks like a condition with auto-immune factors.
Smoking Helps Prevents Parkinson’s - Scientists Explore Why
It has long been known that smoking offers some protection against developing Parkinson’s disease and now a Queensland University of Technology PhD researcher has found out part of the reason why.
Yifu Deng of QUT’s School of Public Health studied the interplay between genetics, smoking and the development of Parkinson’s disease with 400 people who had Parkinson’s disease and 400 people without it.
Dr Deng looked at the genetic background of individuals in each group for the presence of the CYP2D6 gene, which had previously been suggested to metabolise the chemical compounds found in cigarette smoke, in both groups.
http://technocrat.net/d/2006/3/7/1197/
Smoking Helps Prevents Parkinson’s - Scientists Explore Why
It has long been known that smoking offers some protection against developing Parkinson’s disease and now a Queensland University of Technology PhD researcher has found out part of the reason why.
Yifu Deng of QUT’s School of Public Health studied the interplay between genetics, smoking and the development of Parkinson’s disease with 400 people who had Parkinson’s disease and 400 people without it.
Dr Deng looked at the genetic background of individuals in each group for the presence of the CYP2D6 gene, which had previously been suggested to metabolise the chemical compounds found in cigarette smoke, in both groups.
http://technocrat.net/d/2006/3/7/1197/
Smoking Helps Prevents Parkinson’s - Scientists Explore Why
It has long been known that smoking offers some protection against developing Parkinson’s disease and now a Queensland University of Technology PhD researcher has found out part of the reason why.
Yifu Deng of QUT’s School of Public Health studied the interplay between genetics, smoking and the development of Parkinson’s disease with 400 people who had Parkinson’s disease and 400 people without it.
Dr Deng looked at the genetic background of individuals in each group for the presence of the CYP2D6 gene, which had previously been suggested to metabolise the chemical compounds found in cigarette smoke, in both groups.
http://technocrat.net/d/2006/3/7/1197/
Maybe our poster here has Alzheimer’s and keeps forgetting that they posted already!
Thank you for the ping.
Thanks for the comment & link.
It is interesting.
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