treatment

Parkinson's Disease: the Current State of Treatment, Neuroendocrine Abnormalities and Links Between Motor Symptoms and Cognitive Function

Parkinson's Disease: the Current State of Treatment, Neuroendocrine Abnormalities and Links Between Motor Symptoms and Cognitive Function

Neurodegenerative diseases have debilitating consequences for the health and longevity of the nervous system. Parkinson’s disease (PD) is one of the most common neurodegenerative disorders with a typical onset between ages 55 and 65 that results from dopamine depletion in the brain. This dopamine loss occurs in the substantia nigra compacta (SNc), which accordingly is the target for many dopamine regeneration techniques. Additionally, several studies have suggested that an accumulation of the large protein, α-synuclein, is responsible for the loss of dopamine in this region. However, the association between α-synuclein and dopamine remains an active area of research. While there is no cure for the disease, pharmacological and surgical treatments have been developed to alleviate PD’s motor and non-motor symptoms. Currently, successful outcomes in experimental models provide hope for the effectiveness of cell therapy in the regeneration of dopamine. However, further investigation is needed to determine its effectiveness in humans. This literature review will highlight current progress in the efforts to restore and prevent the loss of dopamine in the brain as an avenue to treat PD. Among these are dopamine replacement therapy (DRT), Gemfibrozil and carotid body (CB) transplantation.