Parkinson’s Disease, Biomarkers and Beyond

Abstract

Parkinson’s disease is a common neurodegenerative disorder caused by a loss of specific neurons in the brain which ordinarily release the neurotransmitter dopamine. The main symptoms of Parkinson’s disease are involuntary shaking or tremor of specific parts of the body, slowed movements and stiff and inflexible muscles. A person suffering from this disease can also experience a range of symptoms associated with other mental disorders such as anxiety, sleep loss, depression and memory loss. At the pathophysiological level, Parkinson’s disease is characterized by toxic aggregation of specialized proteins such as α-synuclein in the brain and this occurs in large makeshift organelles known as Lewy bodies. This results in localized inflammation in the brain and all of these signs together can occur several years before the onset of symptoms. Such early changes open up a window of opportunity to identify both biomarkers and novel disease targets for treatment that may moderate or even block disease progression.