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Two studies by neurological researchers at Rush University MedicalCenter suggest that, in the future, colonic tissue obtained duringeither colonoscopy or flexible sigmoidoscopy may be used to predictwho will develop Parkinson's disease , a neurodegenerative disorder of aging that that leads toprogressive deterioration of motor function due to loss of neuronsin the brain that produce dopamine, a neurotransmitter essential toexecuting movement. Currently, Parkinson's disease afflicts almost 5 million peopleworldwide. It is projected that by 2030, Parkinson's disease willaffect over 10 million individuals. A protein called alpha-synuclein is deposited in cells of the brainof patients with Parkinson's disease and is considered a pathologichallmark of the disorder. These protein aggregates form Lewybodies, a characteristic structure seen in Parkinson's diseasebrains at autopsy. Identification of the role of alpha-synucleinaggregation in neuronal dysfunction and death has broadenedunderstanding of how Parkinson's disease develops and introduced avaluable tool for tracking its progress. Physicians at Rush have demonstrated that the alpha-synucleinprotein can also be seen in the nerve cells in the wall of theintestines in research subjects with early Parkinson's disease, butnot in healthy subjects. In this study, 10 subjects with earlyParkinson's disease had flexible sigmoidoscopy, a technique likecolonoscopy, in which a flexible scope is inserted into the lowerintestine. In the flexible sigmoidoscopy technique, the scope isonly inserted about 8 inches and no colon preparation or anesthesiaare required. The procedure takes only 5-10 minutes. Now, a group of Rush scientists has become the first to demonstratealpha-synuclein aggregation in biological tissue obtained beforeonset of motor symptoms of Parkinson's disease. The studies, published in the journal Movement Disorders, were conducted by Dr. Kathleen M. Shannon, neurologist in theMovement Disorders and Parkinson's Center at Rush, and amultidisciplinary team of scientists at Rush. The team analyzedsamples of tissue obtained during colonscopy examinations that tookplace 2-5 years before the first symptom of Parkinson's diseaseappeared in 3 research subjects, and all 3 showed thecharacteristic protein in the wall of the lower intestine. "Recent clinical and pathological evidence supports the notion thatParkinson's disease may begin in the intestinal wall then spreadthrough the nerves to the brain. Clinical signs of intestinaldisease, such as constipation , Parkinson's disease diagnosis by more than a decade. Thesestudies suggest it may one day be possible to use colonic tissuebiopsy to predict who will develop motor Parkinson's disease," saidShannon. "Such tissue could be obtained at the time of screeningcolonoscopy, a procedure routinely applied for colon cancer surveillance beginning at age 50, and repeated every three to 10years in adults of middle age," said Shannon. Alternatively, the Rush investigators showed that colonic tissue iseasily obtained using flexible sigmoidoscopy, a technique that,unlike colonoscopy, requires no colon cleansing preparation orsedation, and can be performed in 10 minutes. Currently, diagnosis of Parkinson's disease depends on theappearance of such cardinal features as tremor, slowed movement,rigidity and gait problems. The clinical diagnosis can be difficultearly in the disease, and as many as 10 percent to 20 percent ofpatients may be misdiagnosed. Studies have shown that by the timeprimary symptoms appear, many patients with Parkinson's diseasewill have lost 60 percent to 80 percent or more ofdopamine-producing cells in the brain. "In view of a multi-billion-dollar translational research effortthat aims to identify agents that slow or stop the progression ofParkinson's disease, the need for accurate and timely diagnosticbiomarkers, including the potential for pre-motor diagnosis, isparticularly acute," the authors stated. "We believe that alpha-synuclein in the colonic submucosa may be apre-motor biomarker that easily can be studied in cohorts atincreased risk of developing Parkinson's disease (relatives ofParkinson's disease subjects, subjects with anosmia [inability tosmell], rapid eye movement sleep behavior disorder and others)." The Rush scientists stressed the need to replicate this finding inother populations, including normal controls as well as in subjectswith other neurodegenerative Parkinson's-like disorders, and todetermine the safest and highest-yield biomarker site. Additional References Citations. I am an expert from ethernet-serialconverter.com, while we provides the quality product, such as Serial Isolator Manufacturer , China Serial Port Hub, USB Cable Converters,and more.
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