Parkinson’s doesn’t start in the brain? Shocking new study reveals the real origin

Parkinson's disease (PD) is the second-most neurodegenerative disorder in the United States. According to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, as many as 1 million Americans have Parkinson's Disease.

Until now it was believed that Parkinson's disease begins with a gradual loss of nerve cells in the brain, particularly those producing dopamine, a neurotransmitter vital for movement. This leads to a decline in dopamine levels leading to symptoms such as tremors, stiffness and slow movement.

Now, a new study published in Nature Neuroscience, suggests that the disease actually begins from a shocking body part- the kidneys. The team of researchers from Wuhan University in China performed the study primarily focused on the alpha-synuclein (a-Syn) protein, which is closely associated with Parkinson's.

When the production of this protein becomes uneven, it creates clumps of misfolded proteins that interfere with brain function. As per the research, the clumps of this protein can develop in the kidneys as well and thus the researchers are of the belief that these abnormal proteins might actually travel from the kidneys to the brain, triggering the disease.

"We demonstrate that the kidney is a peripheral organ that serves as an origin of pathological α-Syn," wrote the researchers in the published paper.

The shocking study

To carry out the study, the team ran multiple tests to analyse the behaviour of the protein in genetically engineered mice and human tissue that included samples from people with Parkinson's disease and chronic kidney disease.

The team found abnormal a-Syn growth in the kidneys of 10 out of 11 people with Parkinson's and other types of dementia related to Lewy bodies.

In another sample batch, similar protein malfunctions were found in 17 out of 20 patients with chronic kidney disease, even though these people had no signs of neurological disorders.

In animals, mice with healthy kidneys cleared out injected a-Syn clumps, but mice whose kidneys weren't functioning faced protein built-ups that eventually spread to the brain.

The study also analysed the fact that these proteins move through the blood and if they are reduced in the blood, the damage to the brain can be decreased. This point needs to be noted as an inspiration for new strategies of treatment.