PNAS interpretation! How do immune cells in the blood affect the brain health of patients during early Parkinson's disease?

March 20, 2021 // --Parkinson's disease has always been considered a brain disease.

Researcher Marina Romero-Ramos explained that we all know that Parkinson's disease is characterized by inflammation in the brain, which is crucial for the progression of the disease.

The immune system of the body's blood has changed very early

In Parkinson’s disease, a protein called α-synuclein accumulates in neurons in the brain and kills neuronal cells.

Image source: Wikipedia

When the researchers analyzed the blood samples of these patients, they found that inflammation in the brain and the loss of related brain cells are directly related to the changes in certain immune cells in need, these immune cells are called monocytes; when When the level of specific proteins in these immune cells increases, the level of inflammation in the brain will also increase, while neuronal activity will decrease.

In this study, researchers found for the first time that during the onset of Parkinson’s disease, the body’s immune system will continue to maintain communication with the brain, and changes in the body’s immune system will affect the condition of neurons in the brain, and also The onset of Parkinson's disease is related, which may provide researchers with new opportunities to study the characteristics of immune cells in the blood and find new therapeutic methods.

At the same time, the research in this article also provides new ideas for scientists to design immunotherapies that can regulate cells in the blood, which may block or delay brain changes.

Rare data from patients

The brain is a special type of tissue.

Now these research data should be evaluated and replicated by more laboratories.

Reference materials:

[1] Kristine Farmen, Sara K.