Results of a recent study have shown that a modified version of the antibiotic tetracycline was able to prevent the death of dopamine-producing brain cell in mice with a Parkinson’s-like disease. Such findings suggest that similar drugs may be able to prevent the progression of the neurodegenerative disease in humans. The researchers behind the study speculate that the modified drug, called minocycline, exerts its neuroprotective effect on the cells by blocking the action of nitric oxide (NO) in the brain. Previous studies have found evidence suggesting that NO released from a type of brain cell called glial cells may play a role in the death of neurons that occurs with Parkinson’s. Another study recently found that the same drug delayed the death of mice made to show the characteristics of Huntington’s disease, another neurodegenerative disorder.
SOURCE/REFERENCE: Reported by www.reutershealth.com on the 26th November 2001
