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03-07-2009, 06:51 PM | #1 | |||
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In Remembrance
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1: Rev Neurosci. 2008;19(4-5):245-316.
Parkinson's disease as a neuroendocrine disorder of circadian function: dopamine-melatonin imbalance and the visual system in the genesis and progression of the degenerative process. Willis GL. The Bronowski Institute of Behavioural Neuroscience, Neurosciences Section, Coliban Medical Centre, Kyneton, Victoria, Australia. gwillbro@bigpond.com For more than 50 years, Parkinson's disease (PD) has been conceptualized as a product of nigro-striatal dopamine (NSD) system degeneration. In spite of a growing body of evidence depicting the mammalian brain as an interrelated complexity of circuitous systems, dopamine (DA) deficiency of the NSD is still regarded as the main problem, with DA replacement being the purpose of therapeutic intervention. For at least 191 years circadian involvement in various aspects of PD, including depression and insomnia, has been recognized as an integral part of the symptom matrix of PD and yet attempts to elucidate the involvement of this system is uncharted territory. The present review attempts a major reorganization of mammalian brain into a coordinated complex involving the NSD and the retinal hypothalamic tract (RHT) as the primary systems involved in the retino-diencephalic/mesencephalic-pineal (RDMP) axis. Secondary systems including the lateral hypothalamus (LH), the area postraema (AP) and the subthalamic nucleus (STN) also form an integral part of this system as they have been shown to be either intimately related to the primary systems of the RDMP axis or have been shown to be significantly involved in the expression and treatment of PD. A large volume of evidence suggests that the RDMP axis is activated during the course of PD and during therapeutic intervention. Four types of neurotoxicity associated with melatonin are identified and the susceptibility of various parts of the RDMP axis to undergo neuropathological change, the tendency for melatonin to induce PD-like behavioural toxicity, and the relationship of this to PD symptomotology are described. This includes adverse effects of melatonin on motor function, hypotension, the adjuvant use of benzodiazepines, depression, insomnia, body weight regulation and various biochemical effects of melatonin administration: all problems currently facing the proposal to introduce melatonin as an adjuvant. It is suggested further that traditional DA replacement may well work by exerting its effect upon the circadian system, rather than simply replacing deficient DA. Activation of the circadian function by antagonizing melatonin with bright light not only has therapeutic value in treating the primary symptoms of PD but it shares a common mechanism with L-dopa in reducing the occurrence of seborrheic dermatitis. Concepts at the centre of understanding pineal function in PD, including pineal calcification, melatonin deficiency, symptomatic versus protective features of melatonin and antioxidative effects, are explained in a counterintuitive context. Intriguing propositions including the role of the retina in the aetiology of PD and that the nigra functions as a retina in this disorder are presented with the intention to provide a new understanding of the underlying compromised function in PD and to provide new treatment strategies. For the first time, abundant evidence is presented describing PD as an endocrine disorder of melatonin hyperplasia. The role of circadian interventive therapies and internal desynchrony in the aetiology and progression of PD provides a new direction for understanding the underlying physiology of a disease which is currently in a state of impasse and provides new hope for those who suffer from its debilitating effects. PMID: 19145986 [PubMed - in process]
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Born in 1953, 1st symptoms and misdiagnosed as essential tremor in 1992. Dx with PD in 2000. Currently (2011) taking 200/50 Sinemet CR 8 times a day + 10/100 Sinemet 3 times a day. Functional 90% of waking day but fragile. Failure at exercise but still trying. Constantly experimenting. Beta blocker and ACE inhibitor at present. Currently (01/2013) taking ldopa/carbadopa 200/50 CR six times a day + 10/100 form 3 times daily. Functional 90% of day. Update 04/2013: L/C 200/50 8x; Beta Blocker; ACE Inhib; Ginger; Turmeric; Creatine; Magnesium; Potassium. Doing well. |
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"Thanks for this!" says: |
03-07-2009, 07:21 PM | #2 | |||
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Senior Member
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Rick - this makes a lot of sense to me. It is much closer to my own experience with PD.
Thanks!
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Carey “Cautious, careful people, always casting about to preserve their reputation and social standing, never can bring about a reform. Those who are really in earnest must be willing to be anything or nothing in the world’s estimation, and publicly and privately, in season and out, avow their sympathy with despised and persecuted ideas and their advocates, and bear the consequences.” — Susan B. Anthony |
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03-07-2009, 07:40 PM | #3 | ||
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Juan told me - several times - of a study done in Mexico - maybe a couple of decades ago? - in which massive amounts of melatonin were given to PD patients who then showed remarkable improvements in symptoms.
Maybe you can locate that information? I, for one, am more than ready for a new line of therapeutic intervention. |
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"Thanks for this!" says: | gardengrl (03-08-2009) |
03-07-2009, 08:16 PM | #4 | ||
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In Remembrance
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rick, What exactly is melatonin and what is it's function in lay terms....thank u so much sir..
paula
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paula "Time is not neutral for those who have pd or for those who will get it." |
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03-07-2009, 08:27 PM | #5 | |||
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In Remembrance
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But it is heartening to see neuroendocrinology having some bold input.
The way that I read it, melatonin is actually a problem in PD and should be avoided. There had been hints of this for years. An early therapy for PD was sleep deprivation which lowered melatonin production. I become more and more convinced that the endocrine system is the Big Dog here and not the nervous. The latter has a very limited number of factors to account for a large number of symptoms. "OK, ya got dopamine. What else?" The endocrine system, however, has hormone squirting out of everything but the ears. Cortisol, epinephrine, insulin, estrogen, testosterone, and a half-dozen more. And every one of them has receptors in the brain. You can explain a lot of non-motor symptoms with that kind of toolkit. The heartening thing to me is that with a rich, complex collection of causes there are a rich, complex set of opportunities to intervene.
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Born in 1953, 1st symptoms and misdiagnosed as essential tremor in 1992. Dx with PD in 2000. Currently (2011) taking 200/50 Sinemet CR 8 times a day + 10/100 Sinemet 3 times a day. Functional 90% of waking day but fragile. Failure at exercise but still trying. Constantly experimenting. Beta blocker and ACE inhibitor at present. Currently (01/2013) taking ldopa/carbadopa 200/50 CR six times a day + 10/100 form 3 times daily. Functional 90% of day. Update 04/2013: L/C 200/50 8x; Beta Blocker; ACE Inhib; Ginger; Turmeric; Creatine; Magnesium; Potassium. Doing well. |
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"Thanks for this!" says: | lindylanka (03-08-2009), paula_w (03-07-2009) |
03-07-2009, 08:59 PM | #6 | |||
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"The heartening thing to me is that with a rich, complex collection of causes there are a rich, complex set of opportunities to intervene. " ~ reverett123
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Carey “Cautious, careful people, always casting about to preserve their reputation and social standing, never can bring about a reform. Those who are really in earnest must be willing to be anything or nothing in the world’s estimation, and publicly and privately, in season and out, avow their sympathy with despised and persecuted ideas and their advocates, and bear the consequences.” — Susan B. Anthony |
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03-08-2009, 02:24 AM | #7 | ||
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Thanks Rick.
"The heartening thing to me is that with a rich, complex collection of causes there are a rich, complex set of opportunities to intervene. " its true, but it is also a problem when you dont know what you are looking for. Current description of PD seems similar to ten blind men describing an elephant they are touching, each has a part of the elephant but no one has a complete picture (this is an Indian story, there must be an equivalent one here!). girija |
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03-08-2009, 04:55 AM | #8 | ||
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Quote:
The article he presented is technically beyond me but on google I found a lot of articles which say that melatonin is good fo PD . Example : Jefferson Researchers Show Melatonin’s Potential Benefits In Preventing Parkinson's Damage ScienceDaily (Oct. 25, 1999) — Melatonin could be a key to someday understanding how to treat Parkinson’s disease. Scientists at Jefferson Medical College have shown in the laboratory and in test animals that melatonin is effective in preventing a particular type of brain cell damage similar to that found in Parkinson’s.
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Imad Born in 1943. Diagnosed with PD in 2006. |
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03-08-2009, 05:47 AM | #9 | |||
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In Remembrance
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Quote:
the cicadian rythmn is highly important because of R.E.M. sleep this deep sleep repairs the brain ---this my own wording from all 16 years of research - from my natural approach to regain health *no link to my brain" however; an article found here: Cherries Found to Be a Natural Sleep Aid by Jo Hartley, citizen journalist See all articles by this author Email this author (NaturalNews) There is a tart cherry called Montmorency that contains a significant level of melatonin and hence is helpful as a natural sleep aid. The University Of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio recently discovered these properties in the tart cherry. Melatonin was discovered in 1958 by a dermatologist named Aaron Lerner at Yale University. Melatonin is a natural hormone that is produced in the pineal gland located at the base of the brain. It triggers sleepiness during night hours. Melatonin production can be disrupted because of staying up at night utilizing artificial light. Melatonin has been found to decrease with age. This is why elderly people often have trouble sleeping or staying asleep at night. Stress can also cause melatonin levels to drop thus causing poor sleep and insomnia. What Foods Contain Melatonin? Melatonin is most plentiful in tart cherries, especially the Montmorency variety. http://www.naturalnews.com/025210.html
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with much love, lou_lou . . by . , on Flickr pd documentary - part 2 and 3 . . Resolve to be tender with the young, compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving, and tolerant with the weak and the wrong. Sometime in your life you will have been all of these. |
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"Thanks for this!" says: | gardengrl (03-08-2009) |
03-08-2009, 07:23 AM | #10 | |||
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I recently started taking Melatonin as well but it is contraindicated for PD?
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_________________________________________________ http://calipso-pd.org ...bringing a new wave of Parkinson’s support to central Illinois |
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