Waterlogged brain region helps scientists gauge damage caused by Parkinson’s disease

Scientists at the University of Florida have discovered a new method of observing the brain changes caused by Parkinson’s disease, which destroys neurons important for movement. The development suggests that fluid changes in a specific brain area could provide a way to track that damage.

Parkinson’s disease increases the amount of “free” water in a particular brain area. Image courtesy of David Vaillancourt, Ph.D., University of Florida.

The researchers used a form of MRI that differentiates between water contained in brain cells and “free” water outside of cells. Their analysis focused on the substantia nigra, a brain structure where Parkinson’s disease kills neurons that use the chemical dopamine to communicate with other cells.

The results showed that the amount of free water in that brain area stayed the same over the course of a year in healthy individuals but increased in early-stage Parkinson’s patients during that period and increased further over the next three years.

This confirms and expands on a prior study by the same group that measured free water over just one year. The new findings also revealed the increase in free water was linked to worsening symptoms.

The researchers used a scale to evaluate patient’s movement problems, with Stage One on the scale being the least severe and Stage Five being the most advanced. Patients who moved up a stage on the scale during the four years of the study had a greater free water increase than patients who remained at the same stage, suggesting the change reflected Parkinson’s-related damage to neurons.

Parkinson’s disease destroys dopamine-producing cells in the substantia nigra, which connect to adjacent brain areas. This study showed that a greater free water increase in the substantia nigra was associated with a decrease in dopamine neuron activity in one of these nearby regions, supporting the idea that free water changes are related to progression of the disease.

The study’s results suggest that the MRI-based free water measurement could be used in Parkinson’s disease clinical trials. If a treatment slows or stops the increase in free water, it might be evidence that the drug is slowing the progressive loss of dopamine neurons. (National Institutes of Health)

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE

Excess Fat Disrupts Heart Cell's Energy System

A new study finds that lipid overload in heart cells, a common feature in diabetes and obesity, leads to misshapen mitochondria that don't produce energy efficiently.

Benefits of peanut allergy prevention strategy persist after one-year peanut avoidance

The benefits of regularly consuming peanut-containing foods early in life to prevent the development of peanut allergy persist even after stopping peanut consumption for one year.

Vitamin B3 might have been made in space, delivered to Earth by meteorites

Ancient Earth might have had an extraterrestrial supply of vitamin B3 delivered by carbon-rich meteorites, according to a new analysis by NASA-funded researchers. The result supports a theory that the origin of life may have been assisted by a supply of key molecules created in space and brought to Earth by comet and meteor impacts.

Health Effects of a Diet that Mimics Fasting

Dietary restriction has been shown in a variety of animal models to have many health benefits. Fasting, in which food isn’t consumed (but water is), represents the extreme form of restriction. Previous studies in animals and people suggested that periodic cycles of fasting may improve certain metabolic and immune functions.

Whole Grains Deliver on Health Benefits

A human nutrition study reaffirms the health benefits of substituting refined-grain products like white bread with whole-grain foods like whole-wheat bread, oatmeal, barley, rye, and brown or wild rice.

Healthy Diets Have Better Impact on Colorectal Cancer

People who improved to healthier diets after being diagnosed with Colorectal cancer as well as patients who followed one, had a lower risk of death from colorectal cancer and all causes.