Parkinson's disease: cocaine causes changes in brain that increase vulnerability to environmental toxins
Results of laboratory studies, performed by investigators at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, have demonstrated that adults who abuse cocaine might increase their risk of developing Parkinson's disease, and pregnant women who abuse cocaine could increase the risk of their children developing Parkinson's disease later in life.
The study's findings are important because there are currently more than 2 million cocaine abusers in the US today, the researchers said.
Many individuals who abused the drug during the height of the cocaine abuse epidemic of the 1970s and 1980s are now entering their older years, when symptoms of Parkinson's disease are likely to emerge.
A report is published in the journal Neuroscience.
The St. Jude team showed in laboratory models of both the adult and fetal brains that exposure to cocaine alters the nerve bodies in the region of the brain called the substantia nigra.
This damage made the neurons more susceptible to MPTP, a toxin known to cause symptoms of Parkinson's disease.
Results of laboratory studies, performed by investigators at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, have demonstrated that adults who abuse cocaine might increase their risk of developing Parkinson's disease, and pregnant women who abuse cocaine could increase the risk of their children developing Parkinson's disease later in life.
The study's findings are important because there are currently more than 2 million cocaine abusers in the US today, the researchers said.
Many individuals who abused the drug during the height of the cocaine abuse epidemic of the 1970s and 1980s are now entering their older years, when symptoms of Parkinson's disease are likely to emerge.
A report is published in the journal Neuroscience.
The St. Jude team showed in laboratory models of both the adult and fetal brains that exposure to cocaine alters the nerve bodies in the region of the brain called the substantia nigra.
This damage made the neurons more susceptible to MPTP, a toxin known to cause symptoms of Parkinson's disease.
