Stress and inflammation may help trigger Parkinson’s disease: study
Global News
Environmental factors like prolonged stress, chronic inflammation and toxic exposure could play a key role in triggering Parkinson's disease, even in people without genetic risk.
Environmental factors like prolonged stress, chronic inflammation and toxic exposure could play a key role in triggering Parkinson’s disease, even in people without genetic risk, a Canadian study has found.
A team from McGill University in Montreal published a paper last month in Nature Neuroscience that may have uncovered a new link between the immune system and the development of Parkinson’s disease.
The researchers discovered that an immune response plays a crucial role in forming toxic protein clumps, known as Lewy bodies, within brain cells, contributing to the disease’s progression.
“Our findings suggest anyone can develop Parkinson’s if exposed to the right environment, and so a genetic predisposition to disease may not be necessary,” said senior author Peter McPherson, professor of Neurology and Neurosurgery and Anatomy and Cell Biology at Montreal Neurological Institute-Hospital.
“This marks a significant step forward to understanding key aspects of Parkinson’s and other neurological diseases,” he said in a Friday media release.
Parkinson’s disease is a progressive neurological disorder that affects movement, often causing tremors, stiffness and difficulty with balance and coordination. It is also the fastest-growing neurological condition worldwide, and that is likely due to an aging population as well as better tools to diagnose disease, explained Angelica Asis, vice-president of research at Parkinson Canada.
More than 100,000 Canadians live with Parkinson’s and 30 more are diagnosed every day. As the population ages, the incidence of Parkinson’s is expected to rise, and by 2034, it is projected that 150,048 Canadians will have Parkinson’s, she added.
The disease happens when certain brain cells, called dopamine-producing neurons, start to become damaged and die. These cells are crucial for smooth movement and coordination and when they’re lost, it leads to shaking, stiffness and difficulty moving, which are common symptoms of Parkinson’s.
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