Re: 'Free Radical' Molecules May Help Drive Brain Illnesses

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Joanne

Thanks for sharing. It is very interesting.

laurie

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> Title of Article: 'Free Radical' Molecules May Help Drive Brain

> Illnesses

>

> Article:

> Researchers believe they've found a link between the cellular stress

> caused by free radical molecules and the accumulation of misfolded

> proteins that may cause neurodegenerative conditions such as Alzheimer's

> and

> Parkinson's disease.

>

> A team at the Burnham Institute for Medical Research in La Jolla,

> Calif., found that overproduction of oxidizing free radicals, specifically

> nitric oxide (NO), causes inhibition of Protein Disulphide Isomerase

> (PDI) -- a " chaperone " protein that's necessary for proper protein folding

> in times of cellular stress.

>

> Inhibition of PDI reduces its neuroprotective benefits for nerve cells,

> the researchers explained in the May 25 issue of Nature.

>

> The researchers said this is the first study documenting a direct link

> between NO free radicals and protein misfolding, which is believed to

> be a common pathway in the development of nearly all neurodegenerative

> diseases. The finding may help lead to the development of new treatments

> for these diseases.

>

> " Our data demonstrate a previously unrecognized relationship between NO

> and protein misfolding in degenerative disorders, showing that PDI can

> be a target of NO in cellular models of Parkinson's disease and human

> neurodegenerative disease, " senior author Dr. Stuart A. Lipton, director

> of the Del E. Webb Center for Neurosciences and Aging at the Burnham

> Institute, said in a prepared statement.

>

> More information

>

> The U.S. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke has

> more about Parkinson's disease.

>

>

> Joanne Kocourek (mom to , lies, and )

> visit us at: http://www.caringbridge.org/il/annakris

>

>