Marcia,

I agree with you but I'd tweak it and say we're in the same leaky boat together, but got here different ways. I am only looking at MMT as one major player; all of us, other than the monogenetic PD groups, likely have a mix of genetics and environmental insult. For me, it may have been viral, chronic exposure to air pollution, and I know a fall I took in an ice storm a few years ago pushed me over the edge.

BTW, they are finding that PWP have unique genomic pathways to the disease; with sporadic PD, it's not about having one mutation; we have multiple genetic glitches that have a domino effect when pushed...each one tagging the next one and so on. The pushes come from viral or bacterial infections, and MMT or Rotenone, in utero exposure to lipopolysaccharides, possibly a head injury... Whatever it takes to kindle that inflammation and keep it going.

I am thinking the reason your siblings don't likely have it is you all have different genomes and other unique environmental things going on. So the bad news is there very likely is no one cause to this disease, but the good news is we all end at same place more or less with inflammation and a lot of alpha synuclein infectlng our healthy neurons. So right now a cure means stopping the alpha-synuclein. This means the vaccine being readied for clinical trials may actually work!

Look at this map. Red areas all have high disease prevalence, though I wonder no red near Los Angeles.....hhmmm.

http://www.physorg.com/news183835229.html

So I guess I am wondering what has to happen before the substance is banned? Can we get tested for manganese levels?

Marcia, I hear ya on the no escaping pollution, but in looking at that map I can't help but wonder how a change in environment, while there is still pollution but less of it because fewer people, mighat help.

Laura