Parkinson s research in UCC: Lifestyle factors and improving therapies

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1 Parkinson s research in UCC: Lifestyle factors and improving therapies Professor Aideen Sullivan University College Cork

2 What happens in the brain in Parkinson s? MIDBRAIN STRIATUM Movement Healthy brain Parkinson s brain Motor symptoms RIGIDITY RESTING TREMOR POSTURAL INSTABILITY BRADYKINESIA

3 What happens in the brain in Parkinson s? What are we trying to prevent /slow down? 1. Gradual loss of dopamine neurons that control movement 2. A protein called alpha-synuclein builds up (aggregates) and spreads through the nervous system 3. As the disease progresses, many areas of the nervous system are affected and this causes a multitude of different symptoms Lewy body

4 But it s not just dopamine neurons that are affected Gastrointestinal issues Mood disorders Loss of smell Sleep disturbances Swallowing & speech problems Bladder issues Cognitive impairment Non-motor symptoms have a huge impact on patients

5 Why does Parkinson s happen? For most patients, the cause of Parkinson s is unknown Risk factors: Age Genetics Environment (Pesticides) Genetic causes e.g. alpha-synuclein, LRKK2, parkin, PINK1, DJ-1

6 Researching to improve therapies and earlier diagnostics for Parkinson s A Centre of Excellence in Neurodegeneration OUR GOAL Apply our knowledge to develop better therapies, and improve quality of life for people living with major brain diseases 40 Research teams

7 Researching to improve therapies for Parkinson s: How are we doing this? People body / tissue / cell / molecular changes lifestyle / environment Models laboratory models for testing disease mechanisms People Therapies Diagnostics new therapies for clinical trials life-style interventions new diagnostic approaches Ultimate aim: to understand causes of Parkinson s and translate findings to better therapies that prevent or slow down the disease

8 Researching to improve therapies for Parkinson s: How are we doing this? Metabolism Longevity Nurturing factors Neurotransmission Cell survival Gut-brain axis Microbiome Protein Metabolic health Cell /longevity waste disposal control Insulin/IGF1 Lifestyle factors Environment Inflammation Vascular

9 Researching to improve therapies for Parkinson s: Why are we doing this? MIDBRAIN Parkinson s brain STRIATUM Movement Add dopamine or mimic its actions Effective in the short-term Do not stop disease progression Disabling side-effects with longterm use

10 Researching to improve therapies for Parkinson s: How are we doing this? 1. Neurotrophic factors natural proteins that nurture dopamine neurons in the developing brain

11 Researching to improve therapies for Parkinson s Non-motor symptoms greatly affect patients quality of life 2. Focus on non-motor symptoms - new laboratory models (cognitive symptoms, gastrointestinal symptoms) - study on sleep, diet and mood (collaboration with Cork Parkinson s Support Group)

12 Preventing Parkinson s by understanding lifestyle factors for healthy ageing

13 Parkinson s will be best prevented both by understanding lifestyle factors that may slow down its progress and by developing new therapies that target the cell and molecular systems that cause the disease

14 Management Team Cora O Neill Aideen Sullivan Suzanne Timmons Yvonne Nolan Gerard O Keeffe Aisling Ryan John Cryan Team Barry Boland Geraldine Boylan Jason Chan Danny Costello Tom Cotter Simon Cronin Ruslan Dmitriev Ted Dinan Tony Foley Collette Hand Niall Hyland John McCarthy Justin McCarthy Will Molloy Deirdre Murray Nicole Muller Ken O Halloran Olivia O Leary Dervla O Malley Denis O Mahony Siobhain O Mahony Sean O Sullivan Colm O Tuathaigh Orna O Toole Dmitri Papkovsky Mark Rae Annalisa Setti George Shorten Brian Sweeney Andre Toulouse Christian Waeber Paul Young Affiliated PIs Stephen Byrne Kellie Dean Susan Joyce Eric Moore Tom Moore Mary McCaffrey Caitriona O Driscoll Rosemary O Connor

15 Cork neuroscience centre Funding and support The Netherlands Brain Bank Translational Research Access Programme (TRAP) UCC

16 So hope for a great sea-change On the far side of revenge. Believe that further shore Is reachable from here. Believe in miracle And cures and healing wells