[imark3000]

Many members on this forum have said it many times before : It is not only Dopamin, stupid!. This new research confirms what PDers knew all along through their suffering.

"
ScienceDaily (Oct. 24, 2012) — Scientists may have discovered why the standard treatment for Parkinson's disease is often effective for only a limited period of time. Their research could lead to a better understanding of many brain disorders, from drug addiction to depression, that share certain signaling molecules involved in modulating brain activity."

"A team led by Bernardo Sabatini, Takeda Professor of Neurobiology at Harvard Medical School, used mouse models to study dopamine neurons in the striatum, a region of the brain involved in both movement and learning. In people, these neurons release dopamine, a neurotransmitter that allows us to walk, speak and even type on a keyboard. When those cells die, as they do in Parkinson's patients, so does the ability to easily initiate movement. Current Parkinson's drugs are precursors of dopamine that are then converted into dopamine by cells in the brain.
The flip side of dopamine dearth is dopamine hyperactivity. Heroin, cocaine and amphetamines rev up or mimic dopamine neurons, ultimately reinforcing the learned reward of drug-taking. Other conditions such as obsessive-compulsive disorder, Tourette syndrome and even schizophrenia may also be related to the misregulation of dopamine.
In the October 11 issue of Nature, Sabatini and co-authors Nicolas Tritsch and Jun Ding reported that midbrain dopamine neurons release not only dopamine but also another neurotransmitter called GABA, which lowers neuronal activity. The previously unsuspected presence of GABA could explain why restoring only dopamine could cause initial improvements in Parkinson's patients to eventually wane. And if GABA is made by the same cells that produce other neurotransmitters, such as depression-linked serotonin, similar single-focus treatments could be less successful for the same reason."

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases...rkinson%27s%29

[imark3000]

http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/ar...p/t-62190.html
reverett123 posted on 11-29-2008 :
"GABA seems a strong possibility for the tool box. My wife (non-PD) has been taking it daily for six months or more for anxiety and it works wonders for her. Anything that counters anxiety is worth a look."

Rick: In this old thread you seemed to be puzzled by the fact that your wife benefited from taking Gaba supplement because Gaba is known to be not able to cross BBB.
At any rate, the following article discusses this topic and provide possible answer to your puzzle, as it suggests (as you and Ron had speculated) that under certain conditions Gaba crosses the BBB. Additionally it suggests that there a back door which enable GABA to enter the brain through the pituitary gland. Finally the article discusses Supplemental GABA Derivitives:
"Though nature may limit GABA from crossing the barrier, chemists have found a way to create GABA-like supplements or analogues that can cross the barrier and function like GABA in the brain. Phenibut, or beta-phenyl-gamma-aminobutyric acid Hcl, is a designer GABA analogue. Chemists added a 6-carbon ring to GABA that enables it to cross the barrier and act on GABA receptors. Another GABA analogue supplement is picamilon, or nicotinoyl-GABA. Picamilon is made by adding niacin to the GABA molecule. Once picamilion crosses the barrier, the niacin molecule is cleaved off, leaving pure GABA."
I checked that the supplement picamilion is sold on line in US.
I am hesitant to try picamilion. What do white rats of this forum think ?

http://www.livestrong.com/article/492571-gaba-supplements-that-pass-the-blood-brain-barrier/#ixzz2AY7fmc69

[lindylanka]

Imad,
Paula was talking about the interaction between neurotransmitters way back when. GABA included. They are still behind the curve!

Lindy