Exercises against parkinsonism
Parkinson's disease is a neurodegenerative disease accompanied by motor disorders and associated with the progressive destruction and death of neurons that produce the neurotransmitter dopamine.
It has long been discovered that endurance exercises, for unknown reasons, facilitate the course of Parkinson's disease. In the last decade, it has become known that exercise increases irisin levels, and the link between irisin and Alzheimer's disease, as well as Parkinson's disease, is being studied by many laboratories.
The research teams of Ted Dawson of Johns Hopkins University and Bruce Spiegelman of the Dana-Farber Cancer Research Institute worked together to study the link between irisin and Parkinson's disease.
First, Dawson and Spiegelman's groups created a laboratory model consisting of mouse brain cells designed to spread thin alpha-synuclein fibers. Alpha-synuclein clots kill dopamine-producing brain cells, which is a trigger factor for Parkinson's disease.
On cell lines, the researchers found that irisin prevents the accumulation of alpha-synuclein and the associated death of brain cells.
The groups then tested the effect of irisin on mouse models of Parkinson's disease. They injected alpha-synuclein into the basal nuclei, in particular, the striatum of the brain, where dopamine-producing neurons are located. Two weeks later, the researchers injected mice with a viral vector that increased the level of irisin in the blood, which is able to overcome the blood-brain barrier. Six months later, the irisin-treated mice had no motor impairments, while the placebo mice had a deficiency in grip strength and the ability to descend the pole.
Additional studies of the brain tissue of mice treated with irisin showed that the exercise hormone reduced the level of alpha-synuclein by 50-80%. The research team demonstrated that it accelerates the transport and degradation of alpha-synuclein by lysosomes in brain cells.
If the effectiveness of irisin is confirmed, it can be used for gene or recombinant protein therapy of neurodegenerative diseases. Irisin is a natural peptide hormone and has apparently evolved to overcome the blood-brain barrier, so research on irisin as a potential therapy for Parkinson's disease and other forms of neurodegeneration will continue.
Dawson and Spiegelman applied for patents for the use of irisin in Parkinson's disease. Spiegelman created the Boston-based biotech company Aevum Therapeutics Inc. to develop irisin for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases.
Article T.Kam et al. Amelioration of pathological α-synuclein-induced Parkinson's disease by irisin is published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Aminat Adzhieva, portal "Eternal Youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru Based on Johns Hopkins University: Exercise Hormone Halts Parkinson's Disease Symptoms in Mouse Study.