Curt Freed, M.D. University of Colorado Health Sciences center Current Scientific Potential Several preventive and restorative strategies such as neural cell transplantation, neural growth factors, gene therapy techniques and surgical therapies, show promise in animal studies or human clinical trials. The symptoms of Parkinson's disease result from the degeneration of nerve cells in the mid-brain, and the corresponding loss of the neurotransmitting chemical, dopamine, produced by those cells. These results add to the growing body of evidence implicating environmental and chemical influences in the development of Parkinson's - particularly in patients diagnosed over the age of fifty. Other researchers have identified and mapped one gene, for the protein alpha-synuclein, which is linked to a small number of Parkinson's cases. For at least one documented family, in individuals where the gene is flawed, Parkinson's occurs.
Scientists expect to discover other genes linked in a similar way to the disorder.
This information may begin to identify people at risk. Neural Cells Transplants Researchers have implanted neural tissue into the degenerated area of the brain and proven that the new cells can thrive and renew production of dopamine. Dramatic results have been achieved in clinical studies, and the requirements for a consistently effective therapy are being developed through continuing animal and human clinical tests. Meanwhile, development of unlimited cell sources are well underway. Research is also ongoing with xenotrophic, or non-human, sources for replacement cell lines.