Parkinson’s disease is a degenerative neurological condition that impacts movement and has the potential to produce tremors, stiffness, as well as problems with balance and coordination. Loss of cells that create dopamine, a neurotransmitter that plays an important role in the movement and reward systems of the body, is the root cause of this condition. The finding may instantly open up new doors for the research and development of novel medicines.
Researchers at Oregon Health & Science University discovered that the neurotransmitter adenosine acts as a brake on the action of dopamine, which is another neurotransmitter involved in the regulation of motor functions. These results, which were released in the journal Nature, indicate that the neurotransmitters adenosine and dopamine are involved in a push-pull dynamic inside the brain.
The finding may instantly point to new directions that may be explored in the development of drugs to treat the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. Parkinson’s disease is a movement condition that is thought to be triggered by the depletion of cells that produce dopamine.
Dopamine is thought to be controlled by an opposite dynamic of neuronal communication in the striatum, which is a vital part of the brain that governs movement in addition to incentive, motivation, and learning. This is something that researchers have suspected for a long time. The loss of dopamine-producing cells is a fundamental symptom of Parkinson’s disease, and this symptom manifests itself most prominently in the striatum.
The new research has provided conclusive evidence that adenosine is the neurotransmitter that functions in a manner that is antagonistic to that of dopamine. This information has been presented for the very first time in this study. In this investigation, mice were employed, and unique genetically modified protein probes were used. These probes were recently created in the laboratories of Zhong and Mao. A paper that was released in the journal Nature Methods the previous month provided an illustration of one use of that technique. Notably, adenosine is also well-known for being the receptor through which caffeine exerts its influence.
