Canadian Documentary: The Parkinson's Enigma

[Guest guest]

Note this will only be seen on the CANADIAN Discovery

Channel & CTV network. I will definitely tune in and

let you know what is said.

Hugs,

Pam

------------

CTV, DISCOVERY CHANNEL, HAVE CANADIAN EXCLUSIVE WITH

MICHAEL J. FOX IN " THE PARKINSON'S ENIGMA "

Is Parkinson's caused by a virus?

April 7 on CTV, April 11 on Discovery Channel

When actor J. Fox told the world he was

leaving " Spin City " to campaign for a cure for

Parkinson's Disease, he walked through the door of a

fictional City Hall into the maze of a real life

science mystery. How could a person as young,

energetic and vibrant as he - in the prime of life -

be struck with Parkinson's?

On SUNDAY, APRIL 7 at 7 p.m. ET (check local listings)

CTV presents " THE PARKINSON'S ENIGMA " , a one-hour

documentary that examines startling new evidence that

Parkinson's Disease (PD) may not be a disease at all.

Featuring an exclusive interview with actor J.

Fox and famed neurologist Dr. Oliver Sacks, " The

Parkinson's Enigma " will also be broadcast on

Discovery Channel, CTV's broadcast partner in the Bell

Globemedia family, on THURSDAY, APRIL 11 at 9 p.m. ET.

This customized version of the documentary enters the

heart of the scientific mystery, focussing on the

numerous fascinating clues researchers have compiled

in their quest to solve the Parkinson's enigma.

Fox could play a starring role for researchers who are

searching for the causes of PD. In 1976, the actor

landed his first job in television, working on the

series " Leo & Me " . Since then, four members of the

crew, including Fox, have been diagnosed with

Parkinson's. Curious coincidence or clue? Scientists

are beginning to unravel the mystery with clues that

began to surface thousands of miles away and nearly a

century ago.

In search of a cure, researchers in Canada and the

U.S. have found evidence that PD is more like a brain

injury or wound caused by toxins in the environment.

Or even a virus like the flu. If they're right, could

stem cell therapy stop or even reverse the damage?

" Leading scientists agree that Parkinson's is the one

neurological condition most likely to produce a

breakthrough in the next decade, " noted Bob Culbert,

CTV's Vice President of Documentaries. " Through a

series of cases that are connected in a fascinating

way, this documentary reveals why we are on the road

to solving the mystery of Parkinson's. "

Parkinson's is a silent epidemic that affects more

than one million North Americans, with more than

60,000 new cases diagnosed each year.

" The Parkinson's Enigma " was written, directed and

narrated by Jerry of Raincoast Storylines

Ltd., located in Halfmoon Bay, British Columbia. It

was produced by Bette and Terence McKeown.

Raincoast has earned three Gemini nominations

(Stopping Traffik, 2000; Quake Hunters, 1998; Mystics,

Mechanics & Mindbombs, 1998) and several Canadian

Science Writers' Association awards.

______________________________________________________________________

Find, Connect, Date! http://personals.yahoo.ca

[Guest guest]

I watched this show last night. I'm writing up some of my thoughts on it to

share in a minute. Stay tuned.

Canadian Documentary: " The Parkinson's Enigma "

> Note this will only be seen on the CANADIAN Discovery

> Channel & CTV network. I will definitely tune in and

> let you know what is said.

>

> Hugs,

> Pam

>

> ------------

>

> CTV, DISCOVERY CHANNEL, HAVE CANADIAN EXCLUSIVE WITH

> MICHAEL J. FOX IN " THE PARKINSON'S ENIGMA "

>

>

> Is Parkinson's caused by a virus?

> April 7 on CTV, April 11 on Discovery Channel

>

>

> When actor J. Fox told the world he was

> leaving " Spin City " to campaign for a cure for

> Parkinson's Disease, he walked through the door of a

> fictional City Hall into the maze of a real life

> science mystery. How could a person as young,

> energetic and vibrant as he - in the prime of life -

> be struck with Parkinson's?

>

> On SUNDAY, APRIL 7 at 7 p.m. ET (check local listings)

> CTV presents " THE PARKINSON'S ENIGMA " , a one-hour

> documentary that examines startling new evidence that

> Parkinson's Disease (PD) may not be a disease at all.

> Featuring an exclusive interview with actor J.

> Fox and famed neurologist Dr. Oliver Sacks, " The

> Parkinson's Enigma " will also be broadcast on

> Discovery Channel, CTV's broadcast partner in the Bell

> Globemedia family, on THURSDAY, APRIL 11 at 9 p.m. ET.

>

>

> This customized version of the documentary enters the

> heart of the scientific mystery, focussing on the

> numerous fascinating clues researchers have compiled

> in their quest to solve the Parkinson's enigma.

>

> Fox could play a starring role for researchers who are

> searching for the causes of PD. In 1976, the actor

> landed his first job in television, working on the

> series " Leo & Me " . Since then, four members of the

> crew, including Fox, have been diagnosed with

> Parkinson's. Curious coincidence or clue? Scientists

> are beginning to unravel the mystery with clues that

> began to surface thousands of miles away and nearly a

> century ago.

>

> In search of a cure, researchers in Canada and the

> U.S. have found evidence that PD is more like a brain

> injury or wound caused by toxins in the environment.

> Or even a virus like the flu. If they're right, could

> stem cell therapy stop or even reverse the damage?

>

> " Leading scientists agree that Parkinson's is the one

> neurological condition most likely to produce a

> breakthrough in the next decade, " noted Bob Culbert,

> CTV's Vice President of Documentaries. " Through a

> series of cases that are connected in a fascinating

> way, this documentary reveals why we are on the road

> to solving the mystery of Parkinson's. "

>

> Parkinson's is a silent epidemic that affects more

> than one million North Americans, with more than

> 60,000 new cases diagnosed each year.

>

> " The Parkinson's Enigma " was written, directed and

> narrated by Jerry of Raincoast Storylines

> Ltd., located in Halfmoon Bay, British Columbia. It

> was produced by Bette and Terence McKeown.

> Raincoast has earned three Gemini nominations

> (Stopping Traffik, 2000; Quake Hunters, 1998; Mystics,

> Mechanics & Mindbombs, 1998) and several Canadian

> Science Writers' Association awards.

[Guest guest]

I watched this show last night. I'm writing up some of my thoughts on it to

share in a minute. Stay tuned.

Canadian Documentary: " The Parkinson's Enigma "

> Note this will only be seen on the CANADIAN Discovery

> Channel & CTV network. I will definitely tune in and

> let you know what is said.

>

> Hugs,

> Pam

>

> ------------

>

> CTV, DISCOVERY CHANNEL, HAVE CANADIAN EXCLUSIVE WITH

> MICHAEL J. FOX IN " THE PARKINSON'S ENIGMA "

>

>

> Is Parkinson's caused by a virus?

> April 7 on CTV, April 11 on Discovery Channel

>

>

> When actor J. Fox told the world he was

> leaving " Spin City " to campaign for a cure for

> Parkinson's Disease, he walked through the door of a

> fictional City Hall into the maze of a real life

> science mystery. How could a person as young,

> energetic and vibrant as he - in the prime of life -

> be struck with Parkinson's?

>

> On SUNDAY, APRIL 7 at 7 p.m. ET (check local listings)

> CTV presents " THE PARKINSON'S ENIGMA " , a one-hour

> documentary that examines startling new evidence that

> Parkinson's Disease (PD) may not be a disease at all.

> Featuring an exclusive interview with actor J.

> Fox and famed neurologist Dr. Oliver Sacks, " The

> Parkinson's Enigma " will also be broadcast on

> Discovery Channel, CTV's broadcast partner in the Bell

> Globemedia family, on THURSDAY, APRIL 11 at 9 p.m. ET.

>

>

> This customized version of the documentary enters the

> heart of the scientific mystery, focussing on the

> numerous fascinating clues researchers have compiled

> in their quest to solve the Parkinson's enigma.

>

> Fox could play a starring role for researchers who are

> searching for the causes of PD. In 1976, the actor

> landed his first job in television, working on the

> series " Leo & Me " . Since then, four members of the

> crew, including Fox, have been diagnosed with

> Parkinson's. Curious coincidence or clue? Scientists

> are beginning to unravel the mystery with clues that

> began to surface thousands of miles away and nearly a

> century ago.

>

> In search of a cure, researchers in Canada and the

> U.S. have found evidence that PD is more like a brain

> injury or wound caused by toxins in the environment.

> Or even a virus like the flu. If they're right, could

> stem cell therapy stop or even reverse the damage?

>

> " Leading scientists agree that Parkinson's is the one

> neurological condition most likely to produce a

> breakthrough in the next decade, " noted Bob Culbert,

> CTV's Vice President of Documentaries. " Through a

> series of cases that are connected in a fascinating

> way, this documentary reveals why we are on the road

> to solving the mystery of Parkinson's. "

>

> Parkinson's is a silent epidemic that affects more

> than one million North Americans, with more than

> 60,000 new cases diagnosed each year.

>

> " The Parkinson's Enigma " was written, directed and

> narrated by Jerry of Raincoast Storylines

> Ltd., located in Halfmoon Bay, British Columbia. It

> was produced by Bette and Terence McKeown.

> Raincoast has earned three Gemini nominations

> (Stopping Traffik, 2000; Quake Hunters, 1998; Mystics,

> Mechanics & Mindbombs, 1998) and several Canadian

> Science Writers' Association awards.

[Guest guest]

I watched the Canadian Documentary: "The Parkinson's Enigma" last night. For those in Canada who missed it, it will be shown again on the Canadian Discovery channel on:

Thu, Apr 11, 2002 at 9:00 PM Fri, Apr 12, 2002 at 2:00 AM Fri, Apr 12, 2002 at 3:00 PM

I don't know if it will be shown in future on American channels. Maybe people should write to the American Discovery Channel and PBS and see if they can get it.

Here is a link to the Canadian Discovery channel website with more information.

http://www.discovery.ca/stories/2002/04/05/51.asp

I would imagine the reason the show was produced in Canada was because there is a distinct Canadian angle to it. It started out discussing the strange coincidence of 4 people coming down with Parkinson Disease who all worked on the set of a Canadian TV series "Leo & Me" in the late 1970's. The most famous of these 4 people is J. Fox. Four researchers were interviewed throughout the show as well as J. Fox and Sally Gardner, one of the other 3 people from the tv series with Parkinson's.

The researchers interviewed were:

Dr. Calne, neurologist and director of the Neurodegenerative Disorders Centre at Vancouver Hospital and Health Sciences Centre, University of British Columbia.

Dr. Calne's research on the single event hypothesis for the cause of Parkinson Disease was the main focus of the show. Read his research paper at http://www.bcma.org/BCMJ/April2001/PDSyndrome.asp and you'll see the main points discussed in the later half of the article.

Dr. Jon Stoessl, professor of neurology, University of British Columbia

Dr. Oliver Sacks, clinical professor of neurology at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, New York. Dr. Sacks is best known for his book and subsequent movie called "Awakenings" which starred De Niro and Robin . See: http://www.oliversacks.com/awakenings.html

Dr. Langston, President of the Parkinson's Institute, Sunnyvalle, California

Dr. Langston is also the co-author of "The Case of the Frozen Addicts", a book which describes the discovery of MPTP. The toxic effects of MPTP were also discussed in the documentary. You can read some background on MPTP toxicity causing parkinsonism at

http://www.the-scientist.com/yr1988/dec/research5_881212.html

The show discussed past cases of parkinsonism caused by a virus or exposure to toxins. In the movie "Awakenings", patients had contracted viral encephalitis which left them bed-ridden in a sleep-like state. When they were given L-Dopa (the parkinson's medication) they miraculously recovered movement.

Researchers have also injected the influenza virus directly into the brains of mice and the dopamine producing neurons were killed off. This research seemed to show that for some reason the substantia nigra region of the brain is a target for viruses.

There were cases of severe parkinsonism occurring overnight in California in the early 80's. Six cases were reported where people had taken a dose of what they thought was pure heroin. It turned out to be an overcooked batch of synthetic heroin which formed a simple molecule called MPTP which is severely toxic to dopamine producing neurons in the substantia nigra region of the brain. These people became bedridden overnight, unable to move. L-Dopa did not help them significantly but one of the patients later received fetal cell transplant surgery and recovered enough to be able to ride a bicycle... he was shown on the program on his bike. This case proved to scientists that neural cell transplants could work. Stem cell research was also mentioned on the program as having great hope for the future.

Dr. Calne's theory is that parkinsons may be caused by a single event... either an exposure to a virus that attacks brain cells or to a neurotoxin. At the time of the exposure many neurons die immediately and others get sick but maintain some function. Then in future there may be no futher exposure to toxins and apparent recovery from the virus. Nerve cells that were damaged though continue to slowly die off. Eventually enough dopamine producing cells die off that symptoms begin to appear.. in many people it starts off with a strange twitch or a tremor. Dr. Calne thinks that this slow dying off of cells gives the appearance that Parkinson's is an ongoing disease process when it could actually be the result of this past single exposure to a toxin or virus. He also believes that certain occupations are more prone to developing Parkinson's. Teachers, medical workers, loggers and miners were all mentioned with the theory being that there might be a respiratory virus that could make these groups of people more susceptible. Parkinson's is known to be less common in people who do not work outside the home.

The theory is very interesting and was backed up by the other researchers interviewed who all said studying these coincidental clusters of Parkinson's was greatly adding to their knowledge of the disease.

Multiple System Atrophy was not mentioned in the show.

Regards,

Pam

Please join the Multiple System Atrophy/Shy-Drager mailing list at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/shydrager

[Guest guest]

I watched the Canadian Documentary: "The Parkinson's Enigma" last night. For those in Canada who missed it, it will be shown again on the Canadian Discovery channel on:

Thu, Apr 11, 2002 at 9:00 PM Fri, Apr 12, 2002 at 2:00 AM Fri, Apr 12, 2002 at 3:00 PM

I don't know if it will be shown in future on American channels. Maybe people should write to the American Discovery Channel and PBS and see if they can get it.

Here is a link to the Canadian Discovery channel website with more information.

http://www.discovery.ca/stories/2002/04/05/51.asp

I would imagine the reason the show was produced in Canada was because there is a distinct Canadian angle to it. It started out discussing the strange coincidence of 4 people coming down with Parkinson Disease who all worked on the set of a Canadian TV series "Leo & Me" in the late 1970's. The most famous of these 4 people is J. Fox. Four researchers were interviewed throughout the show as well as J. Fox and Sally Gardner, one of the other 3 people from the tv series with Parkinson's.

The researchers interviewed were:

Dr. Calne, neurologist and director of the Neurodegenerative Disorders Centre at Vancouver Hospital and Health Sciences Centre, University of British Columbia.

Dr. Calne's research on the single event hypothesis for the cause of Parkinson Disease was the main focus of the show. Read his research paper at http://www.bcma.org/BCMJ/April2001/PDSyndrome.asp and you'll see the main points discussed in the later half of the article.

Dr. Jon Stoessl, professor of neurology, University of British Columbia

Dr. Oliver Sacks, clinical professor of neurology at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, New York. Dr. Sacks is best known for his book and subsequent movie called "Awakenings" which starred De Niro and Robin . See: http://www.oliversacks.com/awakenings.html

Dr. Langston, President of the Parkinson's Institute, Sunnyvalle, California

Dr. Langston is also the co-author of "The Case of the Frozen Addicts", a book which describes the discovery of MPTP. The toxic effects of MPTP were also discussed in the documentary. You can read some background on MPTP toxicity causing parkinsonism at

http://www.the-scientist.com/yr1988/dec/research5_881212.html

The show discussed past cases of parkinsonism caused by a virus or exposure to toxins. In the movie "Awakenings", patients had contracted viral encephalitis which left them bed-ridden in a sleep-like state. When they were given L-Dopa (the parkinson's medication) they miraculously recovered movement.

Researchers have also injected the influenza virus directly into the brains of mice and the dopamine producing neurons were killed off. This research seemed to show that for some reason the substantia nigra region of the brain is a target for viruses.

There were cases of severe parkinsonism occurring overnight in California in the early 80's. Six cases were reported where people had taken a dose of what they thought was pure heroin. It turned out to be an overcooked batch of synthetic heroin which formed a simple molecule called MPTP which is severely toxic to dopamine producing neurons in the substantia nigra region of the brain. These people became bedridden overnight, unable to move. L-Dopa did not help them significantly but one of the patients later received fetal cell transplant surgery and recovered enough to be able to ride a bicycle... he was shown on the program on his bike. This case proved to scientists that neural cell transplants could work. Stem cell research was also mentioned on the program as having great hope for the future.

Dr. Calne's theory is that parkinsons may be caused by a single event... either an exposure to a virus that attacks brain cells or to a neurotoxin. At the time of the exposure many neurons die immediately and others get sick but maintain some function. Then in future there may be no futher exposure to toxins and apparent recovery from the virus. Nerve cells that were damaged though continue to slowly die off. Eventually enough dopamine producing cells die off that symptoms begin to appear.. in many people it starts off with a strange twitch or a tremor. Dr. Calne thinks that this slow dying off of cells gives the appearance that Parkinson's is an ongoing disease process when it could actually be the result of this past single exposure to a toxin or virus. He also believes that certain occupations are more prone to developing Parkinson's. Teachers, medical workers, loggers and miners were all mentioned with the theory being that there might be a respiratory virus that could make these groups of people more susceptible. Parkinson's is known to be less common in people who do not work outside the home.

The theory is very interesting and was backed up by the other researchers interviewed who all said studying these coincidental clusters of Parkinson's was greatly adding to their knowledge of the disease.

Multiple System Atrophy was not mentioned in the show.

Regards,

Pam

Please join the Multiple System Atrophy/Shy-Drager mailing list at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/shydrager

[Guest guest]

I watched the Canadian Documentary: "The Parkinson's Enigma" last night. For those in Canada who missed it, it will be shown again on the Canadian Discovery channel on:

Thu, Apr 11, 2002 at 9:00 PM Fri, Apr 12, 2002 at 2:00 AM Fri, Apr 12, 2002 at 3:00 PM

I don't know if it will be shown in future on American channels. Maybe people should write to the American Discovery Channel and PBS and see if they can get it.

Here is a link to the Canadian Discovery channel website with more information.

http://www.discovery.ca/stories/2002/04/05/51.asp

I would imagine the reason the show was produced in Canada was because there is a distinct Canadian angle to it. It started out discussing the strange coincidence of 4 people coming down with Parkinson Disease who all worked on the set of a Canadian TV series "Leo & Me" in the late 1970's. The most famous of these 4 people is J. Fox. Four researchers were interviewed throughout the show as well as J. Fox and Sally Gardner, one of the other 3 people from the tv series with Parkinson's.

The researchers interviewed were:

Dr. Calne, neurologist and director of the Neurodegenerative Disorders Centre at Vancouver Hospital and Health Sciences Centre, University of British Columbia.

Dr. Calne's research on the single event hypothesis for the cause of Parkinson Disease was the main focus of the show. Read his research paper at http://www.bcma.org/BCMJ/April2001/PDSyndrome.asp and you'll see the main points discussed in the later half of the article.

Dr. Jon Stoessl, professor of neurology, University of British Columbia

Dr. Oliver Sacks, clinical professor of neurology at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, New York. Dr. Sacks is best known for his book and subsequent movie called "Awakenings" which starred De Niro and Robin . See: http://www.oliversacks.com/awakenings.html

Dr. Langston, President of the Parkinson's Institute, Sunnyvalle, California

Dr. Langston is also the co-author of "The Case of the Frozen Addicts", a book which describes the discovery of MPTP. The toxic effects of MPTP were also discussed in the documentary. You can read some background on MPTP toxicity causing parkinsonism at

http://www.the-scientist.com/yr1988/dec/research5_881212.html

The show discussed past cases of parkinsonism caused by a virus or exposure to toxins. In the movie "Awakenings", patients had contracted viral encephalitis which left them bed-ridden in a sleep-like state. When they were given L-Dopa (the parkinson's medication) they miraculously recovered movement.

Researchers have also injected the influenza virus directly into the brains of mice and the dopamine producing neurons were killed off. This research seemed to show that for some reason the substantia nigra region of the brain is a target for viruses.

There were cases of severe parkinsonism occurring overnight in California in the early 80's. Six cases were reported where people had taken a dose of what they thought was pure heroin. It turned out to be an overcooked batch of synthetic heroin which formed a simple molecule called MPTP which is severely toxic to dopamine producing neurons in the substantia nigra region of the brain. These people became bedridden overnight, unable to move. L-Dopa did not help them significantly but one of the patients later received fetal cell transplant surgery and recovered enough to be able to ride a bicycle... he was shown on the program on his bike. This case proved to scientists that neural cell transplants could work. Stem cell research was also mentioned on the program as having great hope for the future.

Dr. Calne's theory is that parkinsons may be caused by a single event... either an exposure to a virus that attacks brain cells or to a neurotoxin. At the time of the exposure many neurons die immediately and others get sick but maintain some function. Then in future there may be no futher exposure to toxins and apparent recovery from the virus. Nerve cells that were damaged though continue to slowly die off. Eventually enough dopamine producing cells die off that symptoms begin to appear.. in many people it starts off with a strange twitch or a tremor. Dr. Calne thinks that this slow dying off of cells gives the appearance that Parkinson's is an ongoing disease process when it could actually be the result of this past single exposure to a toxin or virus. He also believes that certain occupations are more prone to developing Parkinson's. Teachers, medical workers, loggers and miners were all mentioned with the theory being that there might be a respiratory virus that could make these groups of people more susceptible. Parkinson's is known to be less common in people who do not work outside the home.

The theory is very interesting and was backed up by the other researchers interviewed who all said studying these coincidental clusters of Parkinson's was greatly adding to their knowledge of the disease.

Multiple System Atrophy was not mentioned in the show.

Regards,

Pam

Please join the Multiple System Atrophy/Shy-Drager mailing list at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/shydrager