Researchers Identify 6 New Genetic Factors for Parkinson’s Disease
Researchers at the National Institutes of Health identified six new genetic factors that contribute to Parkinson's disease.
For the study, researchers collected and combined data from existing genome-wide association studies that allow scientists to find common variants including subtle differences in the genetic codes of large group of individuals.
The data gathered from 18,000 patients found that the more variants a person has, greater the risk for developing the disorder in some cases. The risk can increase as high as three times, the research found.
"Unraveling the genetic underpinnings of Parkinson's is vital to understanding the multiple mechanisms involved in this complex disease, and hopefully, may one day lead to effective therapies," Andrew Singleton, Ph.D., a scientist at the NIH's National Institute on Aging (NIA) and senior author of the study, said in a press release.
Margaret Sutherland, Ph.D., a program director at the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), part of NIH, said that the findings of the study were important because of the identification of pathways and gene networks that may significantly increase the understanding of Parkinson's disease
"The replication phase of the study demonstrates the utility of the NeuroX chip for unlocking the secrets of neurodegenerative disorders," said Dr Sutherland. "The power of these high tech, data-driven genomic methods allows scientists to find the needle in the haystack that may ultimately lead to new treatments."
According to one recent study, an experimental anti-inflammatory drug, XPro1595, reduces the loss of motor function in people with Parkinson's disease. The research conducted on rat models showed that the drug when injected subcutaneously reaches the brain at sufficient levels to act opposed to the more invasive method of injecting it directly into the brain.
The current was published in Nature Genetics and was partially funded by the NIH.
