Stop the Signal

Affecting around seven to 10 million people worldwide, Parkinson’s disease is a debilitating condition characterised by progressive neurodegeneration, leading to loss of motor control and cognitive difficulties. The causes of Parkinson’s are still poorly understood, but defects in mitochondria, the powerhouses that fuel our cells, are strongly associated with the disease. A recent study of a trusty model organism, the fruit fly, provides some clues as to how they are linked. Researchers induced mitochondrial damage in some nerves, highlighted in green in this fly larva, and found that these defective mitochondria were sending signals to the nerve cells, impeding their function. Furthermore, this communication could be blocked by interfering with a single gene, HIFα; in flies with Parkinson’s, this treatment alleviated symptoms of the disease, restoring their motor capacity. As HIFα is also found in humans, this mechanism could potentially be exploited to design new treatments for Parkinson’s.

Written by Emmanuelle Briolat

Emmanuelle Briolat

Writer

A researcher specialising in visual signals in Lepidoptera, camouflage and the effects of light pollution, Emmanuelle’s writing covers a range of topics, from biomedical research to children’s books about moth defences.

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• Image courtesy of King's College London, UK
• King's College London, UK
• Image copyright held by original authors
• Research published in PNAS, November 2015