Mitochondria and Parkinson’s Again

Fight Aging!

Do you want to live a longer life in good health? Simple practices can make some difference, such as exercise or calorie restriction. But over the long haul all that really matters is progress in medicine: building new classes of therapy to repair and reverse the known root causes of aging. The sooner these treatments arrive, the more lives will be saved. Find out how to help »

(From EurekAlert). A number of research groups have published recently on the relationship between age-related mitochondrial DNA damage and Parkinson's disease. Here is another: research "shows that oxygen free radicals are damaging proteins in mitochondria, the tiny cellular 'batteries' of brain cells. This damage may be one main cause of Parkinson's Disease (PD), the chronic movement disorder that affects at least one million Americans. [Scientists] believe the damage is taking place in a large protein structure called complex I, the first stop in the electron transport chain, which produces an electrical charge inside mitochondria. Mitochondria then use this electrical charge to make energy. ... complex I assembly in Parkinson's had 50 percent more damage from oxygen, [showed] evidence of not being properly assembled and had reduced electron flow." A good thing that methods of replacing damaged mitochondrial DNA are within sight.

Link: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2006-05/uovh-dfo051606.php