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http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/s...3-2682,00.html

NADINE WILLIAMS, BOOMER CHIEF REPORTER
April 16, 2007 02:00am
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A FLINDERS University research team is "cautiously optimistic" that a discovery about how Parkinson's disease progresses may slow down the death of brain cells.

Dr John Power, senior lecturer in the university's school of medicine, said an antioxidant enzyme in the brain cells naturally attempted to stop the damage. "We have never known this before, what the brain is already doing," Dr Power said.
It had already been established that a conglomerate of damaged proteins, called Lewy bodies, caused Parkinson's disease and brain cell death, debilitating victims. But recent work by the Parkinson's and Alzheimer's group in the School of Medicine's department of human physiology has shown that several natural antioxidant enzymes attempt to dissolve the Lewy bodies.

"The development of new drugs can stimulate these processes - it offers another avenue to approach this disease to try and stop brain cells dying," Dr Power said. "This project is my baby here in my laboratory.

"It has yet to be published. I want to give hope but not false hope."

Parkinson's disease slows movement, causes muscle stiffness, problems with voice projection, sweating and loss of balance.

By the time symptoms are recognised, the brain has been badly damaged. Parkinson's treatment is complex. Because it is progressive, the medications and doses that work well initially can fail later.

The most effective drugs have long-term side effects and while there are many treatment options, finding the right combination can be time consuming