Gut Bacteria Linked to Parkinson's Disease Onset.
Researchers have discovered that specific strains of Desulfovibrio bacteria are likely to cause Parkinson's disease, and that their higher number correlates with the severity of the symptoms of the disease. The study found that these strains in patients with Parkinson's disease cause aggregation of the α-synuclein protein on a statistically significant level in a model organism for Parkinson's disease. The findings make it possible to screen for the carriers of these harmful Desulfovibrio bacteria and target them by measures to remove these strains from the gut, potentially alleviating and slowing the symptoms of patients with Parkinson's disease.