Untangling proteins in PD - DIY
 

Jumping here from the "Yeast" thread. There are a few things on the shelf at the local health food store that seem to do it. At least two are old friends here - curcumin and green tea.

First, I found this an interesting tie to metals and PD and a possible explanation of what might be going on-

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1...ubmed_RVDocSum
"The presence of metals induced partial folding of both oxidized and non-oxidized alpha-synucleins, which are intrinsically unstructured under conditions of neutral pH. Although the fibrillation of alpha-synuclein was completely inhibited by methionine oxidation, the presence of certain metals (Ti3+, Zn2+, Al3+, and Pb2+) overcame this inhibition. These findings indicate that a combination of oxidative stress and environmental metal pollution could play an important role in triggering the fibrillation of alpha-synuclein and thus possibly Parkinson's disease."


So there is, possibly, an explanation. And here are, possibly, some solutions-

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1...ubmed_RVDocSum
Magnesium inhibits spontaneous and iron-induced aggregation of alpha-synuclein.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1...ubmed_RVDocSum
The flavonoid baicalein inhibits fibrillation of alpha-synuclein and disaggregates existing fibrils.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1...ubmed_RVDocSum
Curcumin inhibits aggregation of alpha-synuclein.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1...ubmed_RVDocSum
EGCG redirects amyloidogenic polypeptides into unstructured, off-pathway oligomers. <EGCG = Green tea>

Wow! Thanks!
 

hi Rick, and everyone, I continue to be amazed at the level of contributions on this forum. This last, from Rick, is no different. Thanks a million! And I love the "DIY" headline!