Parkinson's Disease Research Paper

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There is a lot still left to learn about familial and sporadic Parkinson’s disease. This neurodegenerative disease affects nearly 1% of the population over the age of 65 (Hindawi), yet the exact cause of the disease is not yet fully understood. Strides were made towards the answer when researchers were able to locate the site of the mutation. Through careful research, more was learned about the disease’s roots and even though we don’t have the full answer some researchers are on their way to finding a cure. Although the exact cause of familial Parkinson’s isn’t yet conceived, scientific breakthroughs have led us down a road of discovery that has brought us to new findings.
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Of the 1% of the population affected by Parkinson’s, 10% of these cases are of inherited PD (HIndawi). DJ-1 has many functions that allow our bodies to thrive. The main functions that have been identified are its assistance in transcriptional regulation, antioxidative stress reaction, mitochondrial regulation and a slew of other functions (Hindawi). When DJ-1 has been mutated a number of things occur: It becomes unable to regulate antioxidative stress which can lead to neurodegeneration (Hindawi). DJ-1 has been linked to both inherited and sporadic PD (Hindawi). …show more content…

al lead to the discovery of the type and location of gene mutation in PARK7. Through RT-PCR (reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction), which is a test done to amplify RNA, they were able to a deletion in intron 5 of the DJ-1 gene. Through additional research, they were able to determine that the deletion occurred because of unequal crossing over (Bio 2). These mutations lead to the decreased function of DJ-1. DJ-1 functions as a dimer (msl), however, because of the missense mutation, there is an interference with the

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