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Simvastatin Linked to Reduced Incidence of Dementia, Parkinson's Disease
July 24, 2007 — Research links simvastatin to a reduction in the incidence of both dementia and Parkinson's disease (PD) of greater than 50%.
In contrast, atorvastatin is associated with a modest, but insignificant, reduction in the incidence of the 2 diseases, and lovastatin has no impact on incidence.
"This study suggests brain penetrant statins are more effective at preventing neurodegenerative disease than impenetrant statins," principal investigator Benjamin Wolozin, MD, from Boston University School of Medicine in Massachusetts, told Medscape.
"There are many statins out there. Some are very effective for preventing cardiovascular disease but not all of them cross the blood-brain barrier equally and, therefore, may not have the same impact on neurodegenerative disease.
"Simvastatin crosses into the brain very effectively, whereas atorvastatin just doesn't achieve as high a level [in the brain]. Lovastatin crosses the blood-brain barrier nicely but it is a first generation statin and therefore is just not as potent as some of the newer agents," he added.
The study is published in the July 19 issue of BMC Medicine
FuturePundit: Simvastatin Stops Parkinson's Disease In Mice
Simvastatin Stops Parkinson's Disease In Mice
Might a widely available cholesterol-lowering drug slow or stop the progression of Parkinson's?
(CHICAGO) –Simvastatin, a commonly used, cholesterol-lowering drug, may prevent Parkinson's disease from progressing further. Neurological researchers at Rush University Medical Center conducted a study examining the use of the FDA-approved medication in mice with Parkinson's disease and found that the drug successfully reverses the biochemical, cellular and anatomical changes caused by the disease.
If this happens in humans surely some doctors would have noticed by now? Since Simvastatin is sold by Merck as Zocor and since at least some older patients with Parkinson's also have high cholesterol I wonder how difficult it would be to measure Parkinson's progression in patients already taking Zocor. Ditto for the other statin drugs such as lovastatin (Mevacor), rosuvastatin (Crestor), atorvastatin (Lipitor), and other statins.
"Statins are one of the most widely used cholesterol-lowering drugs throughout the world," said study author Kalipada Pahan, PhD, professor of neurological sciences at Rush University Medical Center. "This may be a safer approach to halt the disease progression in Parkinson's patients."
Pahan and colleagues from Rush, along with researchers at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha published these findings in the October 28 issue of the Journal of Neurosciences.
The authors have shown that the activity of one protein called p21Ras is increased very early in the midbrain of mice with Parkinson's pathology. Simvastatin enters into the brain and blocks the activity of the p21Ras protein and other associated toxic molecules, and goes on to protect the neurons, normalize neurotransmitter levels, and improves the motor functions in the mice with Parkinson's.
Stereotactic Radiosurgery As Effective in Eliminating Parkinson's Disease Tremors As Other Treatments, But Less Invasive | Reuters
"CHICAGO, Nov. 2 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) offers a less invasive way to eliminate tremors caused by Parkinson's disease and essential tremor than deep brain stimulation (DBS) and radiofrequency (RF) treatments, and is as effective, according to a long-term study presented November 2, 2009, at the 51st Annual Meeting of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO). "
Drug Therapy in Parkinson’s Disease | Pdring.com - A-Z Parkinsons disease information: Parkinsons disease symptom, treatment, exercise & medication.
Types of Parkinson’s Drugs
Epilepsy Drugs could Treat Alzheimer's and Parkinson's
Researchers in the USA have discovered a potential new function for anti-epileptic drugs in treating neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease.
Novel agent for treatment of Parkinson's disease - Lu 02-750 - enters Lundbeck's development pipeline
Novel agent for treatment of Parkinson's disease - Lu 02-750 - enters Lundbeck's development pipeline
02 Nov 2009 - H. Lundbeck A/S strengthens its pipeline of pharmaceuticals in clinical development by initiating phase I clinical studies with Lu 02-750 in order to investigate safety, tolerability and the pharmacokinetic profile of the drug in humans. The placebo-controlled study is expected to enrol around 100 healthy individuals.
Lu 02-750 is a dopaminergic agent acting on brain areas affected in Parkinson's disease. In animal models, the compound has demonstrated very convincing effects as compared to conventional treatments. Expectations are that the compound can offer Parkinson's patients a new and higher level of disease control.
"Focus at Lundbeck Research is to discover new innovative treatments that address unmet needs and offer clear benefits to the patients and we believe that Lu 02-750 has the potential to improve the treatment and life quality of patients suffering from Parkinson's disease", says Executive Vice President Peter Høngaard Andersen, Head of Research at Lundbeck and continues: "Lundbeck is actively pursuing external technologies and collaborations and Lu 02-750 has been discovered in close collaboration with Professor Håkan Wikström, Groningen University and Axon Biochemicals B.V."
Health Watch Center: Research Brings New Hope For Parkinson’s Sufferers
In about a year, scientists will start testing out the use of dorsal column stimulation on Parkinson’s sufferers after research on rats showed a high level of success.
Dr Miguel Nicolelis is a neuroscientist working at Duke University Medical Centre, he is confident that if the technology works, it opens up a whole new way of treating the disease.
Currently stimulation deep in the brain is seen as the last resort for patients, although it is a very aggressive way of dealing with parkinson’s disease.
The new spinal cord stimulation when performed on rodents resulted in infected specimens being able to move and walk normally again. They needed 80 % less medicine once a device was implanted into its spinal cord. Scientist will now carry out tests on primates and then hopefully continue on to humans.
A spokesperson from the National Parkinson Foundation found the conclusions interesting, whilst insisting it was very early days. Adding that with the current difficulty in helping sufferers with gait disorders it was an intriguing development.
The secret to why this particular stimulation could lie in axons, these are the neutral wires that are connected to the relevant part of the brain, in regard to the improvement for symptoms of Parkinson’s.
This technique was discovered by Stanford researchers who named it optogenetics.
Less invasive treatments could result because these axons lie very close to the brain’s surface. Any alternative to the existing need for deep brain stimulation to conquer Parkinson’s is a very positive step.
Marijuana's Potential Exciting Researchers ; Might Treat ALS, Parkinson's Disease, Obesity - Health News - redOrbit
"Researchers here presented tantalizing evidence that cannabinoid drugs can help treat amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, known as ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease, Parkinson's disease and obesity. Other researchers are studying whether the compounds can help victims of stroke and multiple sclerosis.
Although the chemicals work on the same area of the nervous system, the new drugs are much more refined and targeted than marijuana, with few of its side effects.
"Cannabinoids have a lot of pharmaceutical potential," said Piomelli, a neuroscientist at the University of California at Irvine. "A lot of people are very excited."
Although the federal government opposes the use of medical marijuana, it generally doesn't restrict cannabinoid research, most of which doesn't involve the cannabis plant itself. Scientists who use Marinol, a legal but tightly regulated marijuana-like drug, do need government permission.
Because the cannabinoid system wasn't discovered until the late 1980s - decades after serotonin, dopamine and other neurotransmitters -researchers still know relatively little about how it works. "
Future Treatments for Depression, Anxiety, Sleep Disorders, Psychosis, and ADHD -- Neurotransmitter.net
This list is regulary updated by Neurotransmitter.net's Drug Pipeline Expert, JR Becker (jrbecker76@hotmail.com). Shawn Thomas (shawn@neurotransmitter.net) is responsible for additions, editing, and fact-checking. Dr. Louis Sanfilippo, Professor of Clinical Psychiatry at Yale, is also a valued contributor to this groundbreaking and widely appreciated list.
Cannabinoids (via CB1) raise cortisol, lower prolactin - sci.med.cannabis | Google Groups
"This establishes yet another means of efficacy for LDN (low dose naltrexone). It may even be
the case that some of these chronic pain/inflammation syndromes are due
more to the loss dopaminergic tone, which regulates immunity and
neurotransmission. It even suggests LDN might work in Parkinson's or
that CB1 might be deficient in Parkinson's. I'll have more to say when
my articles are finished. "
***********************
Levodopa is the most commonly prescribed drug for Parkinson's disease
(PD). Although levodopa improves PD symptoms in the initial stages of
the disease, its long-term use is limited by the development of side
effects, including abnormal involuntary movements (dyskinesias) and
psychiatric complications. The endocannabinoid system is emerging as an
important modulator of basal ganglia functions and its pharmacologic
manipulation represents a promising therapy to alleviate
levodopa-induced dyskinesias. Rats with 6-OHDA lesions that are
chronically treated with levodopa develop increasingly severe axial,
limb, locomotor and oro-facial abnormal involuntary movements (AIMs).
Administration of the cannabinoid agonist WIN 55,212-2 attenuated
levodopa-induced axial, limb and oral AIMs dose-dependently via a
CB(1)-mediated mechanism, whereas it had no effect on locomotive AIMs.
By contrast, systemic administration of URB597, a potent FAAH inhibitor,
did not affect AIMs scoring despite its ability to increase anandamide
concentration throughout the basal ganglia. Unlike WIN, anandamide can
also bind and activate transient receptor potential vanilloid type-1
(TRPV1) receptors, which have been implicated in the modulation of
dopamine transmission in the basal ganglia. Interestingly, URB597
significantly decreased all AIMs subtypes only if co-administered with
the TRPV1 antagonist capsazepine. Our data indicate that pharmacological
blockade of TRPV1 receptors unmasks the anti-dyskinetic effects of FAAH
inhibitors and that CB(1) and TRPV1 receptors play opposite roles in
levodopa-induced dyskinesias.
PMID: 17
NIDA - Director's Report - May, 2006
"The Dopamine D3 Receptor: A Therapeutic Target for the Treatment of Neuropsychiatric Disorders The role of the D(3) receptor has remained largely elusive before the development of selective research tools, such as selective radioligands, antibodies, various highly specific pharmacological agents and knock-out mice. The data collected so far with these tools have removed some of the uncertainties regarding the functions mediated by the D(3) receptor. The D(3) receptor is an autoreceptor that controls the phasic, but not tonic activity of dopamine neurons. The D(3) receptor, via regulation of its expression by the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), mediates sensitization to dopamine indirect agonists. This process seems responsible for side-effects of levodopa (dyskinesia) in the treatment of Parkinson's disease (PD), as well as for some aspects of conditioning to drugs of abuse. The D(3) receptor mediates behavioral abnormalities elicited by glutamate/NMDA receptor blockade, which suggests D(3) receptor-selective antagonists as novel antipsychotic drugs. These data allow us to propose novel treatment options in PD, schizophrenia and drug addiction, which are awaiting evaluation in clinical trials. Sokoloff, P., Diaz, J., Le Foll, B., Guillin, O., Leriche, L., Bezard, E. and Gross, C. CNS Neurological Disorders Drug Targets, 5, pp. 25-43, 2006."
Direct and indirect cannabinoid agonists reduce L-dopa-induced-dyskinesias via CB1- and TRPV1-mediated mechanisms -- Giuffrida and Morgese 21 (6): A787 -- The FASEB Journal
"Interestingly, subchronic co-administration of URB597 and capsazepine (10mg/kg), a selective TRPV1 antagonist, significantly decreased all L-dopa-induced AIMs subtypes, whereas capsazepine had no effect when administered alone. Our data suggest that CB1 and TRPV1 receptors play opposite roles in levodopa-induced dyskinesias."
Parkinsons' Helped By Marijuana-Lke Chemicals In Brain
"Marijuana-like chemicals in the brain may point to a treatment for the debilitating condition of Parkinson's disease. In a study published in Nature, researchers from the Stanford University School of Medicine report that endocannabinoids, naturally occurring chemicals found in the brain that are similar to the active compounds in marijuana and hashish, helped trigger a dramatic improvement in mice with a condition similar to Parkinson's. "
Teva: Azilect slows Parkinson's - Haaretz - Israel News
Teva Pharmaceutical Industries last week revealed positive results for the drug it developed in-house to treat Parkinson's disease.
Teva, the world's biggest maker of generic drugs, stated that a daily 1-milligram dose of Azilect slowed the progression of Parkinson's disease in a Phase III clinical trial. Parkinson's has until now been characterized by inevitable progression of nervous system degeneration.
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The Israeli company is promoting the drug together with the Danish company Lundbeck in Britain, Germany and France.
Massage Therapy’s Benefits for Parkinson’s Patients | Health News
When dealing with a progressive disease like Parkinson’s it’s good to explore all options of treatments as medicines such as dopamine agonists and Levodopa gradually wear off and symptoms become more pronounced and debilitating. One form of treatment that can supplement the treatment of Parkinson’s disease is massage therapy. Recent research has shown that regular massage therapy can help patients suffering from Parkinson’s disease improve in their daily functions, sleeping abilities, self-confidence, walking, and well-being, as well as decrease their overall stress levels.
Finnish Scientists Discover Nerve Growth Factor With Therapeutic Potential In Parkinson's Disease
ScienceDaily (Aug. 30, 2009) — Scientists in the Academy of Finland's Neuroscience Research Programme have reported promising new results with potential implications for the treatment of Parkinson's disease. They have been studying the impacts of nerve growth factors in the treatment of PD, and their latest results show that a certain growth factor can be used to halt the progress of damage brought on by a nerve poison and possibly even restore the function of damaged cells.
Scientists Construct 'Off Switch' For Parkinson Therapy
ScienceDaily (Aug. 29, 2009) — A common antibiotic can function as an "off switch" for a gene therapy being developed for Parkinson's disease, according to University of Florida researchers writing online in advance of September's Molecular Therapy.
New Technology Helps Parkinson's Patients Speak Louder
Researchers have developed a new technology that helps Parkinson's patients overcome the tendency to speak too quietly by playing a recording of ambient sound, which resembles the noisy chatter of a restaurant full of patrons.
Novel stimulation method sparks hope for Parkinson’s disease sufferers at Prldef normally
A novel stimulation method, the in the beginning latent therapy to target the spinal rope instead of the brain, may offer an effective and less invasive approach for Parkinson’s disease treatment, according to pre-clinical data published in the journal Proficiency by researchers at Duke University Medical Center.
Bird Flu Virus a Possible Trigger for Parkinson's -- Miller 2009 (810): 2 -- ScienceNOW
Decades after the 1918 influenza pandemic, epidemiologists noted an uptick in the number of people with diminished mobility and other neurological symptoms reminiscent of Parkinson's disease. But despite this and other hints, the idea that viruses can trigger neurodegenerative disease has remained controversial. Now researchers report new evidence for such a link: Mice infected with the H5N1 avian influenza virus lose the same dopamine-releasing neurons that are destroyed by Parkinson's disease.
The new study was inspired in part by video footage of chickens, geese, and ducks collected in Laos by researchers working with the World Health Organization's surveillance program, says senior author Richard Smeyne, a developmental neurobiologist at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee. "The birds looked like they had Parkinson's disease," Smeyne says. "They were tremoring, falling side to side, and having difficulty with movements." So far there have been no reports of Parkinson's disease in human survivors of the H5N1 flu, Smeyne says, but because only a few years have passed since the first cases were reported, it's too early to know whether those infected are at increased risk.
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