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11-15-2006, 10:26 AM
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#11 | |||
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ex-Member
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"Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that stimulates motor neurons (nerve cells), and is necessary for organized, coordinated movement and maintenance of normal muscle tone. Parkinson's is caused by degeneration of nerve cells in the substantia nigra ("black substance") and the locus ceruleus ("blue location") where dopamine is produced and stored. Loss of dopamine causes neurons (cells in the brain) to fire out of control, leaving people unable to direct or control movement normally."
All that is correct, if the meaning of "degeneration of nerve cells" means the reduced function of the nerve cells. Despite what is commonly assumed, medical graduates study virtually no biochemistry. In the more than eighty books published on Parkinson's Disease only a few even mention the formation of dopamine. Even then they get it wrong. Medical graduates are taught anatomy well. Consequently, the medical profession usually tries to interpret PD in terms of what they know, by claiming that there is an anatomical fault (a loss of cells, even though there is no evidence of this), rather than in biochemical terms (a reduced function, of which there is clear cut evidence) which is what they should be doing. Simple observations should readily make the claim of massive cell loss in PD redundant. Firstly, L-dopa can readily rid PD symptoms. It can only do this by forming dopamine in the dopaminergic neurons, those cells that are supposedly not even there, but clearly must be because sufficient L-dopa can enable enough dopamine to be produced in order to enable a ridding of symptoms. Secondly, many people with PD either rid or greatly reduce their symptoms at night. They certainly aren't getting any more dopaminergic neurons when they sleep, yet dopaminergic function is improved. This is entirely consistent with there being a biochemical fault rather than a lossof cells, because biochemical function fluctuates throughout the day and night. Although all cell types can die, virtualy all cell types can reproduce in adults. There are only four that don't. The cells involved in Parkinson's Disease (the dopaminergic neurons) are one of those four. So they are correct that there is irreversible cell loss in Parkinson's Disease. However, what has never been shown is that this cell loss is so great that Parkinson's Disease is not only due to it, but also irreversible unless those cells are replaced. So although stem cell therapy may have considerable benefits in some medical disorders, idiopathic Parkinson's Disease isn't one of them, because the cells are not missing to being with. It is also true that there is cell damage in Parkinson's Disease. However, rather than this cell damage causing Parkinson's Disease, Parkinson's Disease causes the cell damage. This is because when L-dopa is not formed properly as occurrs in Parkinson's Disease, hydrogen peroxide is formed. Hydrogen peroxide is highly damaging. Somebody could argue that the damage hydrogen peroxide causes makes PD even worse, and maybe it does. Although there are various enzymes that can produce the dopamine needed to relieve Parkinson's Disease, only two are relevant in Parkinson's Disease because other enzymes that can do the job are in the wrong cells. For example, L-dopa is produced via another enzyme in the skin. However, the L-dopa that is produced in the skin goes on to produce melanin, which causes people to suntan, rather than produces the dopamine needed to relieve Parkinson's Disease. Unless genes are severely damaged (or weren't there to begin with) as occurs in genetic Parkinson's Disease they are able to produce the enzymes needed to produce enough dopamine. Their activity is constantly regulated according to need, as long as somebody has all the cofactors, coenzymes and precursors that the enzymes need. |
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