Better understanding of Parkinson’s disease onset during aging is important for improving diagnostics and developing strategies for therapeutic intervention. Scientists from the University Medical Center in Groningen have now identified genes and processes that may underlie what makes some people more susceptible to this disease. Their findings are described in an article published March 21 in the open-access journal PLoS Genetics.

On average, the population of the western world is living longer, resulting in an increased number of people with age-related neurological conditions, including Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease. A cure for these diseases remains elusive because their molecular cause is only partially understood. It has been noted, however, that accumulations of folded proteins are commonly found within the brain cells of those who suffer from these diseases. For this reason “protein misfolding” seems to form the basis of these diseases. … Continue Reading »