PET Imaging Approach May Restore Motor, Cognitive Function in Parkinson’s Disease

Existing treatments work at increasing and maintaining dopamine levels to remedy these motor impairments. However, these strategies do not address the underlying neuronal death that initiated the disease.

Drs. David Finkelstein, Kevin Barnham, and colleagues from the University of Melbourne (Australia) discovered that the PET imaging agent CuII(atsm) reverses the neurotoxicity that destroys dopamine-secreting neurons.

Improvements in motor skills and memory were seen after treatment in four unique animal models of PD. The authors suggest this compound functions as a scavenger of peroxynitrite, whose accumulation is known to promote neuronal death.

These findings, according to the investigators, lead to a potential approach to restore motor and cognitive function in PD patients by reviving neuronal function instead of only masking symptoms.

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University of Melbourne