Unveiling the Early Onset of a Surprising Parkinson's Trigger
A new study has revealed that Parkinson's disease may be triggered earlier than previously thought, with dysfunction in synapses between neurons being identified as a potential culprit. The malfunction in these synapses leads to a toxic buildup of dopamine, causing damage to dopaminergic neurons characteristic of Parkinson's. This discovery sheds light on the role of the Parkin gene in controlling dopamine release through synapses, in addition to its known function in neuron recycling. The findings suggest that targeting dysfunctional synapses before neuronal degeneration occurs could be a promising therapeutic strategy for Parkinson's disease.