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Stop the Signal
17 December 2015

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

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BPoD stands for Biomedical Picture of the Day. Managed by the MRC Laboratory of Medical Sciences until Jul 2023, it is now run independently by a dedicated team of scientists and writers. The website aims to engage everyone, young and old, in the wonders of biology, and its influence on medicine. The ever-growing archive of more than 4000 research images documents over a decade of progress. Explore the collection and see what you discover. Images are kindly provided for inclusion on this website through the generosity of scientists across the globe.

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