New Parkinson’s Treatment Shows Promise
Dopamine producing implant cells show promise in treating an immobilizing illness.

18.10.2003

Clinics in Germany, the United States and Spain are testing a promising new cell treatment for Parkinson’s that has
eradicated major symptoms of the disease in eight patients.

Georg Schuler used to tremble terribly. The shakes would come and go uncontrollably, as if his brain had lost contact
with his body.

"During the ‘on’ times, I was totally normal, I could move freely, like normal," Schuler said. "But in the ‘off’ times,
I became so stiff that I couldn’t move any more. This shift from ‘on’ to ‘off’ could happen literally within a minute
or a half-minute. The ‘off’ times kept lasting longer and happening more often and the ‘on’ times were getting shorter
and less frequent."

That all changed recently, after Schuler underwent an experimental new treatment that has shown great promise for
patients with Parkinson’s Disease. Now, many of the disease’s effects have subsided, and Schuler has been given a new
lease on life.

New promise

Schuler is one of eight patients around the world who participated in a test of the new treatment, which involved the
replacement of the stabilizing dopamine hormone in the brain and which reversed the most serious side-effects of
Parkinson’s in many who participated.

"With this new procedure, we attempt to implant dopamine-producing cells directly into the brain – in other words, they
are being deployed so that dopamine can again be produced by cells where they are needed," said Dr. Gerhard Fuss of the
neurological clinic at the University of Homburg in Germany, one of the institutions taking part in the trials.

The procedure involves extracting the healthy cells from the retina of an organ donor. Since the cells are neither
genetically modified nor taken from embryos, they aren’t subject to the ethical controversies of many cell therapies.
In trials, the cells have also shown that they don’t grow uncontrollably and, so far, there haven’t been problems with
patients’ bodies rejecting them.

It’s a promising procedure that could turn the world of Parkinson’s treatment upside-down if early trials are
replicated in wider tests. So far, the procedure has only been tested on eight patients world wide, but the limited
results have been extremely promising.

"We’ve seen a marked improvement in a patient affected by Parkinson’s disease during the first two years after the
operation," Fuss said. "In other words, the patients have considerably more movement and shake less." He also said the
regiment of medications required by patients who had undergone the treatment became starkly reduced after the
procedure.

Previously, patients had the option of taking dopamine pills, which don’t affect the brain immediately and can result
in undesired side effects. Otherwise, they had the option of another implant: the so-called "deep brain stimulator,"
which fights the effects of Parkinson’s but can also come with unpleasant side effects including vision loss or sensory
abnormalities.

A haywire CNS

Experts are hoping that the new treatment will provide a better option for patients than previous measures and lead to
an ultimate victory over one of the most destructive and debilitating of diseases.

The main effect of Parkinson's is that patients lose control of their bodies because of a serious reduction of the
dopamine levels in their brains. The neurotransmitter regulates the functioning of the central nervous system, and
without it, nerves begin to fire out of control, causing a patient’s control of bodily movements to go haywire.

"If this neurotransmitter is lacking, it can often lead to a slowing of movement," said Fuss. The clinical term is
medical akinesia, or impaired muscle movement, he said. It can also cause a patient to shake or tremble. As the disease
progresses, motor function in patients deteriorates.

Six clinics in Germany, four in the United States and two in Spain are participating in an expanded study and are
currently seeking patients.

But patients face a difficult choice. They can go for the proven treatments, which make day-to-day life more liveable
but do not stop the progression of the disease, or they can opt for the new, but unproven therapy that has shown
promise in Parkinson’s sufferers but whose effects have not been studied over a longer period of time.

For some, like Georg Schuler, the decision was easy. Schuler said he began to improve dramatically within two weeks of
undergoing the new procedure.

"Now I’m very calm," he said. "My body doesn’t go into spasms any more. I used to have a lot of spasms, but now my body
can hear every command I give it. I can get up any time. I can go. I can stop. I can do whatever I want."

SOURCE: Deutsche Welle, Germany
http://www.dw-world.de/english/0,3367,1446_A_1002492_1_A,00.html

Reference: (GOOGLE Translation from German - murray)

16. October 2003

Day of the groups of park in on self-helps Saarland and Rhineland-Palatinate

The neurological university clinic of the Saarland loads Saarland and Rhineland-Palatinate for the day of the groups of
park in on self-helps to Homburg in.

Place: Lecture-room of the neuro center, building 90, ground floor
Date: Thursday, the 16.10. 2003, at 16.00 o'clock

(note: Press conference already starting from 15.15 o'clock in the library of the neuro center, 1.OG, building 90)

A goal of the meeting is the intensification of the contact between patients and physicians. The following points of
program are planned:
1. Newest information concerning causes and therapy of the Parkinson' illness
2. Conception of a new outpatient clinic concept - "the Parkinsonschwester"
3. Patient gymnastic - an important therapy component
4. Questions of patients at physicians and Krankengymnasten

The supervisors will report in the press conference and the following information meeting for patients and their member
on innovations in the diagnostics and therapy of the Parkinson' illness.

Like that special early recognition possibilities of the illness with ultrasonic and nuclear spin tomography, which are
advanced in the Homburger neuro center, are not yet well-known that public. An early diagnosis or even an
identification of risk patients, who could possibly get a Parkinson' illness, is for the treatment of the patients of
crucial importance.
So-called "neuroprotektive", the nerves protecting, medicines could prevent then the outbreak or a progressing of the
illness.

Beside the usual therapy procedures (medicines and patient gymnastic) new working methods are accomplished such as
Tiefenhirnstimulationsoperationen. By means of a "brain pacesetter" so the symptoms Rigor (rigidity) know, Tremor
(tremble) and Akinese (immobility) to be partly dramatically improved.

The university clinics of the Saarland in Homburg participate as one of four centers in Europe to the
Spheramintherapiestudie. Here Parkinsonpatienten become small balls with Dopamine - producing cells into the brain
implantiert. Dopamine is the messenger material, which is missing to this patient and for whose lack the classical
symptoms of the illness causes. The medical profession and scientist expect that by this procedure a causal therapy can
be accomplished possibly for the first time. Also by the establishment of a "Parkinsonschwester" with a new care
concept, which does not give it in this kind Germany far so far yet, the Homburger neuro center converts new impulses
for Parkinsonpatienten.

Partner:
Neurological university clinic of the Saarland:
PD Dr. Stefan young, nesjung@uniklinik saarland.de ,
PD Dr. Ulrich Dillmann [log in to unmask] saarland.de ,
 Dr. Gerhard foot negfuss@uniklinik saarland.de

telephone: 06841-162 4104,
Mrs. Manderscheid,
Sekretariat of the neurological university clinic of the Saarland

Groups of self-helps:
Saarland, Mr. Kurt Reinhardt, telephone: 06821-57469
Rhineland-Palatinate, Mr. Helmut Schmidt, Telefon: 06721 46650

SOURCE: Neurologische Universitätsklinik des Saarlandes
http://www.uni-saarland.de/de/medien/2003/10/1065431459

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