Parkinson's Disease Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Parkinson's Disease, including details on symptoms, treatment, genetics, medication.

Detrimental deletions: mitochondria, aging and Parkinson's disease.

Biskup S, Moore DJ

Institute for Cell Engineering, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA.

As individuals enter their 80s, they are inevitably confronted with the problem of neuronal loss in the brain. The incidence of the common movement disorder 'mild parkinsonian signs' (MPS) is approximately 50% over the age of 85 years. It has long been known that the loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta is a neuropathological hallmark of Parkinson's disease (PD). Recently, two papers present clear evidence for a high burden of mitochondrial DNA deletions within substantia nigra neurons in aged individuals and individuals with PD, pointing towards a common pathway inevitably leading to neuronal dysfunction and death.

Published 28 September 2006 in Bioessays, 28(10): 963-7.
Full-text of this article is available online (may require subscription).

© 2004-2008 Parkinson's Disease Research Today. All Rights Reserved.