How α-Synuclein Aggregration Kills Neurons in Parkinson ' s Disease

Parkinson's disease is strongly linked to quality control of mitochondria in neurons. The condition is characterized by the loss of a vital population neurons responsible for generating the neurotransmitter dopamine, and it is this loss that produces the tremors and other motor dysfunction observed in patients. Parkinson's disease is also a proteopathy, however, in which α-synuclein clumps together to form solid deposits that harm brain cells. In the research noted here, scientists show that this α-synuclein aggregation kills neurons by damaging mitochondria and triggering mitochondrial mechanisms that produce the form of cell death called apoptosis. This might suggest a link to what is already known of the important portions of the biochemistry of Parkinson's disease; more active mitochondrial quality control might slow the harm done by α-synuclein by removing damaged mitochondria before they can trigger apoptosis. Parkinson's disease isn't the only synucleinopathy in which α-synuclein aggregation harms the function of the brain. Synucleinopathies are not the only class of proteopathy in the brain: amyloids and tau also form aggregates that are involved in the development of neurodegenerative conditions such as Alzheimer's disease. Finding ways to safely and reliably remove the excess molecular waste that accumulates within and between brain cells is a very important topic in medical research. Controlling one form of waste should provide benefits to patients suffe...
Source: Fight Aging! - Category: Research Authors: Tags: Daily News Source Type: blogs