Fruit flies may hold key to Parkinson's dementia
10 August 2009
Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St
Louis, USA have created fruit flies that mimic the symptoms of
Parkinson's-associated dementia, to help scientists understand how
dementia develops and identify new treatments.
Preventing dementia-like symptoms
The study, published this month in the journal 'Sleep', shows that
depriving these fruit flies of just one night of sleep was enough
to cause thinking and memory problems similar to those seen in
Parkinson's-associated dementia.
The researchers were later able to prevent the dementia-like
symptoms by feeding the flies on large doses of the spice curcumin,
which is found in the spice turmeric.
Parkinson's-associated dementia
Animal models, such as these fruit flies, are going to be absolutely vital for finding and testing drugs that can stop dementia in its tracks.
Dr Kieran Breen, Director of Research
Parkinson's-associated dementia is a massive problem, with
around 1 in 3 people with Parkinson's developing dementia within 12
years of diagnosis.
Unfortunately, there are very few effective drugs available to
treat Parkinson's dementia, and none of them can slow or stop the
progression of dementia.
Top research priority
Dr Kieran Breen, Director of Research and Development at the
Parkinson's Disease Society, said:
"Tackling Parkinson's-associated dementia is one of our top
priorities. So, animal models, such as these fruit flies, are going
to be absolutely vital for finding and testing drugs that can
actually stop dementia in its tracks.
"In addition to this American study, the Parkinson's Disease
Society has recently awarded £1.2million to fund new research at
Newcastle University into Parkinson's dementia.
"This major project, led by Professor David Burn, aims to find
ways of identifying people with Parkinson's who are at greater risk
of developing dementia early.
"Early preventative treatment that targets the root cause of
dementia would be the ultimate breakthrough."
Find out more about dementia and related research
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