CURRENT SCIENCE REVIEWS  By Joe Bruman  May 2001   Page 1 of 4

Piercey M;Clin Neuropharm 2001;21:141-151:
A complete review of the D3 agonist pramipexole (Mirapex), by
a representative of its makers, Pharmacia and Upjohn Inc.
Advocates use alone in early-stage PD, and with levodopa added
only as needed, in later stages.

van der geest R et al;Clin Neuropharm 2001;21:159-268:
Pharmacokinetics, enantiomer (mirror) interconversion, and meta-
bolism of R-apomorphine, studied in 10 PD patients.

Lambon Ralph M et al;J Neur N'surg Psych 2001:70:149-156:
Combining literature review and controlled study of 10 subjects
with Lewy-body dementia (DLB), 10 with dementia of Alzheimer
type (DAT), and 15 healthy controls, they found semantic memory
impaired in both DLB and DAT, but not in the same way.

Zhou G et al;J Neur N'surg Psych 2001;70:229-231:
If, as some think, selegiline (Eldepryl, Deprenyl) slows the
progression of PD, then it's important to know how it works.
Authors compared platelet concentrations of MAO-B and one
precursor in 24 PD patients on levodopa, 6 getting selegiline,
and 20 matched controls. MAO-B was higher in the PD group
generally, but less so in the portion on selegiline.

Haapaniemi T et al;J Neur N'surg Psych 2001:70:305-310:
Monitoring heart pulse rate for 24 hours in 54 ambulatory PD
patients and 47 controls demonstrated disruption of diurnal
cycle in PD, worsening in advanced stages.

Alegret M et al;J Neur N'surg Psych 2001:70:394-396:
A battery of neuropsychological questionairres, applied to non-
demented, non-depressed PD patients, showed obsessive-compulsive
symptoms that worsened as the PD progressed.

Taylor M et al;J Neur N'surg Psych 2001:70:407(letter):
DNA analysis of 307 PD subjects and 105 controls for three newly
found polymorphisms (mutations) of the gene for Zeta-class
glutathione transferase revealed an association, but only in the
20% or so of subjects who reported chronic pesticide exposure.

Ponsford J;J Neur N'surg Psych 2001:70:418(letters):
Criticism, and authors' defense, of prior reports claiming
benefits from ropinerole (Requip) with or without levodopa, as
therapy for early-onset PD.

Turmel H et al;Mov Disord 2001;16:185-189:
Caspase-3 is a natural enzyme thought to mediate apoptosis of
dopamine neurons in PD. Here they show that it does so in
MPTP-treated mice and therefore validates its study in mice as
a model for PD.

CURRENT SCIENCE REVIEWS  By Joe Bruman   May 2001  Page 2 of 4

Lou J-S et al;Mov Disord 2001;16:190-196:
By means of a 5-part questionnaire survey of 39 PD patients and
32 normal controls, they found that PD patients have more than
normal mental and physical fatigue. The two types are not
correlated in PD and should therefore be dealt with separately.

Albanese A et al;Mov Disord 2001;16:197-201:
Acute dopaminergic challenge by means of apomorphine or levodopa
is often used to confirm an uncertain diagnosis of PD, or for
some other purpose, but raises objection because it is hard on
the patient. Authors therefore present a consensus statement of
Movements Disorder Society guidelines for the procedure.

Petzinger G et al;Mov Disord 2001;16:202-207:
For use in non-human primate research, they present their new
Global Primate Dyskinesia Rating Scale (GPDRS) with evidence
of its reliability and validity.

Wu Y et al;Mov Disord 2001;16:208-216:
Pallidotomy relieved levodopa-induced dyskinesia (LID) on one
(contralateral) side, but 18 months later LID appeared on the
other side, so the patient then received a deep-brain-stimulation
(DBS) electrode implant in the side opposite to the pallidotomy.
LID was reduced but evidently still severe enough to break the
implanted lead wires. Observations incidental to replacement of
the DBS implant in the third surgery suggest that stimulation
of the GPi controls dyskinesia by activating large axons that
inhibit neurons of the GPi.

Holmberg B et al;Mov Disord 2001;16:217-225:
Looking for clinical ways to distinguish between PD, progressive
supranuclear palsy (PSP) and multiple system atrophy (MSA), they
compared cardiovascular response to various states of exertion in
34 PD patients, 18 with PSP, 47 with MSA, and 18 healthy
controls. They conclude that such testing may help in diagnosis.

Pierangeli G et al;Mov Disord 2001;16:226-232:
The autonomic nervous sytem that normally causes a slight drop in
body core temperature during the sleep portion of the circadian
cycle was shown by a 48-hour trial with 7 PD patients, 14 with
probable multiple system atrophy (MSA), and 8 healthy controls,
to be spared in PD but not in MSA, thus offering a possible tool
for early diagnosis.

Chen R et al;Neur 2001;56:713-723:
Response of the motor cortex to external stimuli is represented
by several factors such as motor threshold, motor-evoked
potential, and silent or delay period (SP). Authors compared the
motor cortex excitability of 7 deep-brain stimulation (DBS)
implant recipients (with GPi stimulator electrode ON or OFF)
against that of 7 healthy controls, on application of magnetic
stimulus to the cortex. PD patients had longer SP, reduced
somewhat when DBS was ON, but other factors were unaffected.


CURRENT SCIENCE REVIEWS  By Joe Bruman   May 2001   Page 3 of 4

Barrett A et al;Neur 2001;56;724-729:
The field of visual attention may vary in size, according to the
nature of the task. To see if PD alters the wide-narrow balance
of the patient's attention area, authors presented charts of
large letters composed of smaller letters, which in turn were
composed of still smaller letters, to 11 PD patients and 11
controls. The PD group were comparably attentive to detail, but
much less so in tasks requiring a wide area of attention.
Pallidotomy recipients did better than the other PD patients.

Aarsland D et al;Neur 2001;56:730-736:
They surveyed a local cohort of PD patients using standard
criteria for dementia, and 171 of those not demented were
re-examined 4.2 years later. After careful allowance for other
factors, authors assessed the 43 out of 171 who became demented
equivalent to incidence of 95.3 per 1000 person-years, nearly 6
times the incidence in 3062 local elderly people who didn't have
PD, and were taken as the control group.

Counihan T et al;Neur 2001;56:799-802:
One-year followup of 14 advanced-PD patients who received staged
bilateral pallidotomy showed generally improved motor function.

Casali C it al;Neur 2001;56:802-805:
Hereditary parkinsonism is usually associated with mutations of
nuclear, rather than mitochondrial, DNA; but this time they found
association with multiple deletions in mitochondrial DNA, in a
family cluster.

Kondziolka et al;Neur 2001;56:821-822(letters):
Debate over prior report about transplantation of cultured human
neuronal cells for patients with stroke.

Blandini F et al;Ann Neur 2001;49:525-529:
They tested  antagonists of two kinds of glutamate for benefit
against induced PD, by infusion into the thalamus of rats. The N-
methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) antagonist worked, the other didn't.

Dickson D et al;Neur 2001;56:981-092(letters):
Studies of twins in PD are very important in establishing the
role of heredity vs that of environoment as trigger for onset of
motor symptoms. Here they discuss an identical pair with a 20-year
difference in ages at onset.

Deleu D et al;Neur 2001;56:982-985(letters):
Polite but strained debate over influence of coffee and/or
tobacco on incidence of PD.

Fischer A, Reh T;Nature Neuroscience 2001;4:247ff:
Upsetting long-held belief that retinal cells of warm-blooded
vertebrates cannot regenerate, in experiments with young chickens
they found that cells called Mulller glia appear at a site of
acute damage and promote new growth. Some of that differentiates
into retinal neurons and some into additional glia.

CURRENT SCIENCE REVIEWS  By Joe Bruman   May 2001   Page 4 of 4

Paladini C et al;Nature Neuroscience 2001;4:275ff:
Amphetamine is a powerful stimulant that promotes release of the
catecholamines dopamine and norepinephrine. In the midbrain it
activates D2 receptors to inhibit dopamine neurons, but may also
excite those neurons by blocking the neurotransmitter glutamate.

Kohara K et al;Science, 23 March 2001, 2419ff:
In its rapid postnatal growth, how does the brain "learn" and
form the interneural pathways that will sustain its adult
functions? In remarkable lab technique, authors observed the
activity-dependent transfer of tagged brain-derived neurotrophic
factor (BDNF) along the axons of individual neurons and across
the various synapses to receptors of other neurons.

Preston R et al;JAMA, 18 April 2001, 1978-1986:
This randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, 8-week trial
with 200 subjects, at 11 different academic medical centers in
the USA, led authors to conclude, contrary to several previous
studies, that St John's Wort is not effective treatment for major
depression. Related to PD, in that the human factor in clinical
trial research can be very important.

Lancet, 7 April 2001:1099(news review):
Encouraging progress in stem cell research (in rodents with
induced cardiovascular damage), that eventually might pay off
in the form of new treatment for PD.

Netting J;Science News,7 April 2001:223-224(reportage)
Neurons aren't the only brain cells that relay messages. Certain
glia called astrocytes also communicate with neurons and with
each other using glutamate, not dopamine, as neurotransmitter.

Sandrick K;Bull Am.College Of Surgeons 2001;86:42ff(report):
Complex invasive surgery [such as cell transplants or DBS
electrode implants in treatment of PD-JRB] is safer and more
often possible, thanks to sophisticated visualization aids for
the surgeon.
--
J. R. Bruman (818) 789-3694
3527 Cody Road
Sherman Oaks, CA 91403-5013

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