"This is exactly
the sort of opportunity we must explore"
Dr Kieran
Breen, Director of Research and Development
The discovery that started it all
In an exciting research project, Professor
Peter Jenner and his team at King's College London have discovered
a naturally occuring protective protein in dopamine-producing nerve
cells in the brain. Osteopontin can interfere with the destruction
of nerve cells that occurs in Parkinson's disease.
This finding may mean that we can one day treat the causes of
Parkinson's rather than just the symptoms.
A natural way to fight Parkinson's
Professor Jenner's exciting research may be
able to move us closer to an understanding of Parkinson's, but we
don't yet know whether a deficiency of osteopontin plays a major
role in Parkinson's and other neurodegenerative
conditions.
The great thing about osteopontin is that
it empowers the brain to heal itself, avoiding the debilitating
side effects that come from synthetic drugs.
Ultimately with a better understanding of osteopontin, we may be
able to intervene at an earlier stage of nerve cell death and stop
people developing Parkinson's.
This is just one of the many
long-term research projects currently funded by the Parkinson's
Disease Society. And that's why we launched the next
step - an initiative to support our ongoing research
programme.
By taking
the next step
with us, you can help us to be prepared for the
exciting opportunities ahead.
Your commitment to a monthly gift of £5 or an annual donation of
£60 will give us the financial security to channel even more funds
into research, and help make a vital difference to the lives of
people with Parkinson's.
Please help us
take the next step by completing
the Direct Debit
form or by calling
01753 688687
 For 40 years we have been driving
research forward
In 2003 we were investing £1.7million in
top class research, and by 2009, the Parkinson's Disease Society's 40th
Anniversary year, this has grown to £4.2million. With your
help we want to increase this even further to ensure that we take
advantage of every opportunity.
Find out more about our
current research
Read more about our research
achievements
The Parkinson's Disease Society is a membership organisation but
supports all people with Parkinson's.
You can find out more about our membership scheme and
benefits in our Join Us
pages
|
