Researchers from the Yale School of Medicine claim that Ghrelin is protective of dopamine neurons (nerve cells).
According to them, insufficient formation and loss of dopamine in the brain negatively affects the nerves and muscles controlling movement and coordination, the major characteristic features of Parkinson's disease.
Lead researcher Tamas Horvath, chair and professor of comparative medicine and professor of Neurobiology and Obstetrics and Gynecology at Yale School of Medicine stated, "We also found that, in addition to its influence on appetite, ghrelin is responsible for direct activation of the brain's dopamine cells."
He added, "Because this hormone originates from the stomach, it is circulating normally in the body, so it could easily be used to boost resistance to Parkinson's or it could be used to slow the development of the disease.”
Details of the study
Horvath and his team carried out an experiment on rodents who were injected with extra ghrelin and then compared them with those who were lacking the hormone.
They found that mice engineered to fall short of the ghrelin hormone exhibited a greater loss of dopamine as opposed to the controls.
According to the scientists, ghrelin is responsible for directly activating the brain's dopamine cells and a loss or depletion of dopamine-producing neurons in the midbrain can lead to the development of Parkinson’s disease.
The scientists felt if ghrelin works the same way in humans, it could help stave off the chronic, progressive neurodegenerative disorder.
The study was supported by the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research and was published in the Journal of Neuroscience.
About Parkinson’s disease
Parkinson's disease (PD) is a degenerative disorder of the central nervous system that often impairs the sufferer’s motor skills and speech. It also affects movement, muscle control, and balance.
In the later stages the condition can include cognitive and behavioral disturbances, sleep disorders, lack of appetite, difficulty eating, periods of remaining motionless (known as “freezing”) and head and limb tremors.
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