Gene therapy for Parkinson's

Parkinson's is a disease that has been around for years and still remains without a cure. In people with Parkinson's, the production of GABA is low and have over stimulation in the subthalamic nucleus of the brain. This causes stress on the dopamine producing neurons which results in rigid muscles, tremors, and sluggish movements. But, is long-lasting treatment closer than we thought?

Andrew Feingin of the Feinstein Institute for Medical Research conducted an "open lab" trial in 2007 that injected glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD), a gene the promotes the production of GABA, helps improve the condition of Parkinson's patients.

To put this therapy to the test, another trial was conducted. This time it was a double blind trial where only the surgeons, not the patients or the doctors, know who received the placebo or who received the treatment. During this trial, 65 people with Parkinson's were used a subjects - 23 received the treatment, 22 received a saline solution, and 20 received nothing. At one, three, and six months later, the researchers took measurements of the patients symptoms and found that those who had received the treatment showed a 23.1 percent improvement in motor functions. The patients who had received the saline solution showed only a 12.7 percent improvement. Overall, the treatment was affective and well tolerated.

I found this article interesting because I know that advancements in Parkinson's have been sparse. This treatment shows incredible strides in the improvements in the motor skills of these patients and provides a promising future for Parkinson's research.