As this article explains, there are some very small molecules that have been found to protect cells from alpha-synuclein toxicity. This has been known as a strong sign of Parkinson’s disease. Parkinson’s is a neurodegenerative disease that causes tremors and slowed movement. It can develop to the point of impaired speech and no movement. Parkinson’s does not have a cure. Julie Su, the co-author of the paper explains, “ In this research, we used yeast as a Parkinson’s disease system to identify the compounds that really work in two higher order model systems of Parkinson’s.” It has been found that four molecules prevented the development of certain traits that are thought to lead to Parkinson’s, including the build up of alpha-synuclein. The research was done on yeast that produced this alpha-synuclein in cells. These cells began to show the effects the same as those in Parkinson’s patients. The scientists then screened numerous small compounds to see if they would stop the traits in the yeast. The four compounds found, did help decrease the symptoms in the cells. They were then tested on worms and rats and found to be successful as well. This research is a potential break through for Parkinson’s disease. I took an interest in this because of a family background with the disease. I enjoyed reading about how these four compounds could potentially slow down or end the progression of Parkinson’s disease. The article was well written and explained in detail the advances being made.
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In this review I think that Bryana did many things well. Including she gave us a clear understanding of what Parkinson's disease actually is and how it is thought to be gotten. She worded the article very well and made it easier to read than the article probably was. Also she included how the author of this article recreated Parkinson's in yeast. Over all I really enjoyed this review because she made it simple and very interesting.
ReplyDeleteAlthough Bryana did many things well she left out a few thing that I think would have been crucial to the full understanding of the reader. She did not tell us what exactly alpha-synuclein is. She did not tell us how these four molecules went about preventing the alpha-synuclein and if they could possibly be used on a human to prevent this disease.
Before reading this article I did not know the cause of Parkinson's and was excited when I learned that there is hope for a cure, seeing that my family has a background with this disease.