Investigators at the Stanford University School of Medicine have pinpointed a molecular defect that seems almost universal among patients with Parkinson’s disease and those at a high risk of acquiring it.
Investigators at the Stanford University School of Medicine have pinpointed a molecular defect that seems almost universal among patients with Parkinson’s disease and those at a high risk of acquiring it.
The discovery could provide a way of detecting the neurodegenerative disorder in its earliest stages, before symptoms start to manifest. And it points to the possibility of halting the disease’s progression. The defect appears to be exclusive to individuals with Parkinson’s disease.
“We’ve identified a molecular marker that could allow doctors to diagnose Parkinson’s accurately, early and in a clinically practical way,” said Xinnan Wang, MD, PhD, associate professor of neurosurgery. “This marker could be used to assess drug candidates’ capacity to counter the defect and stall the disease’s progression.”
The scientists also identified a compound that appears to reverse the defect in cells taken from Parkinson’s patients. In animal models of the disease, the compound prevented the death of the neurons whose loss underlies the disease.
Read more at: Stanford Medicine
