Gut connection
Abnormal proteins tied to Parkinson’s disease may form in the gut before traveling through the body’s nervous system to the brain, Laura Beilreported in “A gut-brain link for Parkinson’s gets a closer look” (SN: 12/8/18, p. 22).
The vagus nerve offers a connection between nerves in the gut and those in the brain. Beil reported on one study that showed that people who had their vagus nerve cut above the stomach had a lower Parkinson’s incidence starting five years postsurgery than people who did not have the surgery.
Reader Terrence Kerwin wondered why there was a delay between the surgery, known as a vagotomy, and the drop in Parkinson’s disease risk.
“It’s possible that by the time of the vagotomy, abnormal proteins may have already reached the peripheral nervous system,” Beil says. From there, the proteins can continue to the brain. So rates might not diverge immediately.
Reader Alecia Flores wanted to know more about fecal transplants as a potential treatment for Parkinson’s.
While growing evidence suggests a gut connection to the disease, the role of the microbiome remains unclear. At this point, fecal transplants are used only for treating infections caused by antibiotic resistant Clostridium difficile bacteria.
But researchers hope that the transplants or some other gut intervention could someday be a viable treatment option for Parkinson’s, Beil says.
https://www.sciencenews.org/article/readers-have-questions-about-parkinson’s-disease-moth-wings-and-more
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