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Print Edition StoriesWednesday, November 25, 2009
Yale: hunger hormone protects against Parkinson’s
By Julie M. Donnelly
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Ghrelin, a hormone produced in the stomach that stimulates hunger, may be used to boost resistance to, or slow the development of, Parkinson’s disease, Yale School of Medicine researchers are reporting. The study was published in a recent issue of the journal Neuroscience.
Parkinson’s disease is caused by reduced production of dopamine which, in the later stages of the disease, can cause symptoms such as severe difficulty in walking, restricted movements, delays in moving, lack of appetite, difficulty eating, periods of remaining motionless (known as “freezing”) and head and limb tremors.
Yale researcher Tamas Horvath and colleagues found that ghrelin is protective of the dopamine neurons. “We also found that, in addition to its influence on appetite, ghrelin is responsible for direct activation of the brain’s dopamine cells,” said Horvath in a prepared statement.
Researchers found that mice who were deficient in ghrelin had more loss of dopamine. Horvath said the results could be easily translated to human use because the ghrelin system is preserved through various species.
In future work, Horvath and his team will try to determine ghrelin levels in both healthy individuals and Parkinson’s patients. He will also determine whether altered ghrelin levels might be a biomarker of disease development and vulnerability.
The study was supported by the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research.
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