What are the causes of Parkinson’s disease? 4 risk factors you should know

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Causes of Parkinson’s disease

Parkinson’s disease is caused when the brain cells responsible for producing dopamine, the chemical messenger that coordinates muscle movements and the body’s emotional responses, stop functioning or die. It usually causes motor symptoms such as tremors, stiffness and slowness of movement (called bradykinesia). It can also lead to other symptoms such as anxiety and depression.

But despite a good understanding of the symptoms of this disease, a big question remains: what causes Parkinson’s disease?

Unfortunately, there is no simple answer to this. “We don’t have a cause,” said Lynda Nwabuobi, MD, assistant professor of clinical neurology at Weill Cornell Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorders Institute. Health. “But based on what we’ve studied and learned, we know that Parkinson’s disease is caused by an interaction between the aging brain, your genetics, and your environment.”

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No one knows exactly what causes Parkinson’s disease, but it could be the result of your age, environment, genetics, and other factors.

Here, with the help of doctors, we take a closer look at some of the things that can cause Parkinson’s disease or increase your risk for neurodegenerative disease.

Age

Age does not directly cause Parkinson’s disease, but “being an elderly person” is the greatest risk factor for a neurological disorder, says Dr Nwabuobi. Why? One explanation is that brain cells are more prone to injury over time, just like the rest of the human body. Another is that gene expression – basically the way a person’s genes work – can change over time, triggering changes in cell activity that ultimately lead to Parkinson’s disease.

Usually, people with Parkinson’s disease are diagnosed in their 60s and the likelihood increases with age. But there is always the possibility that someone will develop early Parkinson’s disease, or Parkinson’s disease that occurs before the age of 50. In these cases, which represent about 4% of the diagnosed population, the disease is more likely to be related to genetics.

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Genetic

According to the Parkinson’s Foundation, genetics cause Parkinson’s disease in about 10 to 15% of cases. But genetic research is still in its infancy, so experts don’t yet have a full picture of the role genes play. “Many genetic mutations have been discovered, but we know we’re only touching the surface,” says Dr Nwabuobi.

Researchers at the National Institutes of Health first established genetics and Parkinson’s disease in 1997, finding that mutations in SNCAgene (PARK 1), which makes the protein alpha-synuclein, were linked to the disease. Specifically, they found that in the brain cells of people with Parkinson’s disease, alpha-synuclein collects in clumps called Lewy bodies. (These tufts are also associated with Lewy Body Dementia, the disease Robin Williams was diagnosed with after his death in 2014.)

Then there is the GBA1 mutation, which has recently emerged as the most common genetic defect linked to PD. Normally, the GBA1 gene produces GCase, a protein that essentially removes unwanted cells (think of it as trash). But when GBA1 is out of whack, it allows a buildup of alpha-synuclein, which can potentially be a clue to the cause of Parkinson’s disease.

Another mutation associated with Parkinson’s disease can occur in the LRRK2 gene. In fact, there are at least 20 known LRRK2 mutations, according to the Parkinson’s Foundation, and they can be found in up to 2% of all people with Parkinson’s disease. People of Ashkenazi Jewish and North African Berber descent are particularly prone to this genetic mutation.

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Does this mean that someone whose parent has Parkinson’s disease is definitely going to develop the disease? No. “Even when a person has a genetic mutation associated with Parkinson’s disease, the likelihood of developing the disease is low,” according to the Parkinson Foundation.

But the presence of a genetic mutation could play a huge role in the cause of Parkinson’s disease – and there is a huge effort to advance genetic research to better understand the disease, improve treatment, and hopefully to find a cure.

“What we not knowing is much more than what we to do know, ”says Dr. Nwabuobi. “I encourage everyone to undergo genetic testing, especially patients who have a family history. The more people we test, the more we find out. “

Environment and way of life

The environment you live in can also potentially cause Parkinson’s disease or increase your risk for it.

What is your occupation? Where do you live? Have you been exposed to toxins? Although experts have not established the exact link between these environmental factors and the cause of Parkinson’s disease, the evidence suggests that they may play a role in the development of the disease.

“Certain toxins have been shown to increase the risk of Parkinson’s disease,” says Dr Nwabuobi. “For example, Agent Orange, to which many veterans were exposed in Vietnam.”

RELATED: The Complicated Link Between Depression and Brain Disease

Likewise, certain metals, herbicides or fungicides could also increase your risk of Parkinson’s disease. Paraquat herbicide is of particular concern, according to the Parkinson Foundation, and despite being banned in 32 countries, including the European Union and China, it is still widely used in the United States.

The researchers also investigated whether traumatic brain injuries or concussions can cause Parkinson’s disease. Research shows that having just one concussion can increase the risk of Parkinson’s disease by 57%.

“If you are a soccer player or a boxer and have suffered multiple concussions,” says Dr. Nwabuobi, “it increases your risk.”

Parkinson’s disease medications and symptoms

Taking certain medications, especially those that block the action of dopamine, could cause symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. It’s a condition called drug-induced parkinsonism, and while it’s not Parkinson’s disease itself, it can look a lot like it.

Here are some of the drugs that can cause the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease:

• Antipsychotics (such as fluphenazine, pimozide, haloperidol, and perphenazine)
• Antinausea drugs (including chlorpromazine, droperidol, and promethazine)
• Medicines that treat hyperkinetic movement disorders (such as tetrabenazine, deutetrabenazine, and valbenazine)

Keep in mind that while these drugs (and others) can cause symptoms similar to Parkinson’s disease, they do not cause the disease itself. And most of the time, symptoms go away within hours or days after you stop taking this medication, according to the Parkinson’s Society.

In some cases, the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease do not go away after a person stops taking the drug that led to them, and Parkinson’s disease is eventually diagnosed.

The researchers do not believe that the drug was the cause of Parkinson’s disease in these cases, but that the dopamine levels of these people were already depleted and the side effects of the drugs revealed their underlying Parkinson’s disease. In other words, the drug was the “straw that broke the camel’s back,” according to the American Parkinson Disease Association.

Research into the causes of Parkinson’s disease continues to grow. If you experience symptoms of Parkinson’s disease, such as shaking, slow motion, problems with balance, or changes in your speech or writing, contact a doctor to diagnose the condition.

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