Parkinson’s disease is a brain disorder that causes unintentional or uncontrolled movements including trembling, stiffness, and issues with balance and coordination.There are currently no disease modifying therapies for Parkinson’s disease available that can alter the course of the disease. Researchers from theAnschutz Medical Campus are leading a group of experts from across the world who are attempting to change that.
The protein αSyn is mostly expressed in neurons and has been linked to neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s disease and Lewy body dementia. This new study identifies a new mechanism linking interferon activation and αSyn function in neurons as a possible trigger for Parkinson’s disease development.
To investigate the mechanism of αSyn-induced immune responses to viral infections in the brain, the researchers challenged αSyn knock-out mice and human αSyn KO dopaminergic neurons withvirus infection. They discovered that αSyn is required for neuronal expression of interferon-stimulated genes . They then found that following any stimulus that triggers interferon signals, a type of immune response, αSyn interacts with signaling proteins in neurons to trigger the expression of ISGs.
The scientists state that these findings demonstrate that αSyn responds to infection and inflammatory pathways and that this connection may have a crucial role in the development of Parkinson’s disease. The next critical step is to see whether interactions between interferon and αSyn result in the formation of toxic forms of misfolded αSyn known as fibrils, which have been found in Parkinson’s disease.
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