Neurogenerative Diseases - 10

Antibodies and Markers
for Neuronal Studies in
Parkinson's Disease
Better tools and models are needed to investigate the
various disease stages and to better characterize the
biochemical factors involved in PD.
Parkinson's disease (PD) is a debilitating, chronic, and
progressive neurological disease that affects around 10
million people worldwide. PD is accompanied by loss of
motor function, and, without a curative treatment, care
remains palliative. Early diagnosis of PD and similar
neurodegenerative diseases remains difficult because of
their common symptoms and pathophysiology and the
lack of understanding of their distinguishing molecular
characteristics. Later stages of neurodegenerative
diseases have historically relied upon the identification
of protein aggregates (e.g., Lewy body formation in
the case of PD). Researchers need better tools and
models to enable investigation of various stages of the
disease and better characterize the biochemical factors
involved in PD.

inclusion bodies, all of which ultimately contribute
to neuronal deterioration.2-5
Neuronal inclusion body formation, defined by
the presence of insoluble protein aggregates,
is responsible for the breakdown of neuronal
microtubules, a causative event of neuronal
diseases.1-5 Two proteins commonly identified in
neurodegenerative diseases-also referred to as
proteinopathies due to protein misfolding-are tau
and synuclein.5 The proteinopathy of PD is primarily
attributed to alpha-synuclein, the main structural
component of Lewy bodies in nerve cells, which
are a defining characteristic of PD, Lewy body
dementia (LBD), and other disorders. Although
tau aggregation and the formation of amyloid
plaques have been more extensively described in
AD, tau has also been linked with alpha-synuclein
as an interdependent partner in the progression
of PD.2-5

In general, the etiology of PD and many other
neurodegenerative disorders including Alzheimer's
disease (AD) are poorly understood. The loss of motor
function associated with PD has led researchers
to investigate the degeneration of dopaminergic
neurons in the substantia nigra.1,2 Key molecular
mechanisms implicated in this neurodegeneration
can be broadly classified into categories that include
mitochondrial dysfunction, genetic mutations, and
defects in protein clearance pathways that lead
to protein aggregation and formation of neuronal

Although the protein-protein interactions that
influence the formation of inclusion bodies and
plaques have been investigated at the molecular
level, knowledge of the underlying causes of the
pathophysiology of degeneration is still lacking.
Identification of Lewy bodies in a PD patient is not
10
Neurogenerative Diseases

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Neurogenerative Diseases
