Unidos contra el Parkinson

Un grupo de investigadores de la Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM) han convertido el mando de la consola Wii en una herramienta para personas discapacitadas. La idea, en fase de laboratorio, ha conseguido el reconocimiento de la comunidad científica y de los interesados, para quienes supone una notable reducción de precio respecto a aparatos parecidos.

Nuevos estudios pre-clínicos muestran resultados terapéuticos duraderos del silenciamiento de la alfa-synuclein gen cuando los pequeños RNAs de interferencia (siRNAs), las moléculas que median el RNAi, son administrados por entrega directa a la CNS en ratones.

Se cree que Alfa-synuclein desempeña un papel central en el desarrollo de la enfermedad de Parkinson, donde la acumulación de exceso de proteina alfa-synuclein se ha asociado con la causa y / o desarrollo de la enfermedad.

ScienceDaily (Nov. 15, 2008) - Researchers at Southern Methodist University (SMU) and The University of Texas at Dallas (UTD) have identified a group of chemical compounds that slow the degeneration of neurons, a condition behind old-age diseases like Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

Their findings are featured in the November 2008 edition of Experimental Biology and Medicine. SMU Chemistry Professor Edward R. Biehl and UTD Biology Professor Santosh D'Mello teamed to test 45 chemical compounds. Four were found to be the most potent protectors of neurons, the cells that are core components of the human brain, spinal cord and peripheral nerves.

The most common cause of neurodegenerative disease is aging. Current medications only alleviate the symptoms but do not affect the underlying cause - degeneration of neurons. The identification of compounds that inhibit neuronal death is of urgent and critical importance.

The synthesized chemicals identified by Biehl and D'Mello, called "3-substituted indolin-2-one compounds" are derivatives of another compound called GW5074 which was shown to prevent neurodegeneration in a past report published by the D'Mello lab. While effective at protecting neurons from decay or death, GW5074 is toxic to cells at slightly elevated doses, which makes it unsuitable for clinical testing in patients.

The newly identified, second generation compounds maintain the protective feature of GW5074 but are not toxic - even at very high doses - and hold promise in halting the steady march of neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.

"Sadly, neurodegenerative diseases are a challenge for our elderly population," D'Mello said. "People are living longer and are more impacted by diseases like Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) than ever before - which means we need to aggressively look for drugs that treat diseases. But most exciting now are our efforts to stop the effects of brain disease right in its tracks. Although the newly discovered compounds have only been tested in cultured neurons and mice, they do offer hope."

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Paris (AFP) - Un exceso de hierro, que provoca una degeneración de las células nerviosas, al parecer está implicado en la enfermedad de Parkinson, según investigadores franceses cuyos trabajos han sido publicados por el semanario científico estadounidense Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences del 27 de octubre.

La enfermedad de Parkinson, recuerda el Instituto nacional de Salud e Investigación Médica, es provocada por la degeneración de las células nerviosas dopaminérgicas (que sintetizan la dopamina, un neurotransmisor del cerebro) halladas en "la sustancia negra", una zona del cerebro.

Los investigadores, dirigidos por Etienne Hirsch, sometieron primero unos ratones a una toxina que provoca la enfermedad de Parkinson. Comprobaron entonces que el número de transportadores DMT1 que importan el hierro en las células nerviosas se duplicaba en los ratones, y que las concentraciones de hierro aumentaban fuertemente en las células.