Newswise — A trio of studies released this week at the Society for 
Neuroscience Annual Meeting marks an important step toward treating the 
millions of people worldwide who suffer from Parkinson’s disease, ALS (Lou 
Gehrig’s disease) and the devastating effects of stroke.
The studies show how a naturally occurring protein called KDI tri-peptide 
(KDI) can serve as a defense mechanism to prevent brain damage normally 
caused by Parkinson’s disease. They also demonstrate KDI’s potential to treat 
ALS as well as stroke, according to lead researcher Päivi Liesi, M.D., Ph.D., 
of the Brain Laboratory at the University of Helsinki in Finland.
“There is now no question that KDI can be therapeutic and help prevent and 
even reverse some of the outcomes of these devastating neurological 
disorders,” said Dr. Liesi, a former visiting scientist at the National 
Institutes of Health (NIH).
PARKINSON'S DISEASE MAY BE PREVENTABLE
In the Parkinson’s study, live rats were first injected with KDI and then with 
a drug known as 6-hydroxy-dopamine, which is widely used to mimic Parkinson’s 
disease in the laboratory. The results showed that a single injection of KDI 
prevented Parkinson’s-like brain cell death and that KDI protected the rats’ 
brain tissue from the massive destruction occurring in rats not injected with 
KDI. These findings show for the first time the tremendous potential for the 
development of a new biological treatment that can prevent damage from 
Parkinson’s before symptoms even begin to show.
“This is a groundbreaking approach to treating Parkinson’s disease,” said 
George Martin, Ph.D., former scientific director for the National Institute 
on Aging. “Rather than focusing on treating the symptoms of Parkinson’s after 
they have already affected people’s lives, these results show that symptoms 
may be treatable from the start.”
NEW INSIGHT INTO ALS ALSO POINTS TO KDI AS POTENTIAL THERAPY
The second study looked at humans and mice with ALS, a devastating 
neurological disease that causes neurons in the brain and spinal cord to die. 
It showed that in ALS, the spinal cord cells attempt to produce increased 
amounts of KDI, and that in humans this increased production of KDI even 
correlates with the severity of the disease. “It appears that the body tries 
to protect itself by producing KDI,” Dr. Liesi said, “but in most cases it is 
not able to produce enough KDI on its own to stop the damage.” Providing 
additional KDI may provide further benefit, she believes. 
This discovery reveals for the first time that KDI is involved in ALS, and 
further underscores the emerging prospect that KDI may be used as a treatment 
for ALS. In particular, as previous research has already shown, KDI inhibits 
certain receptors known to be particularly relevant in the death of neurons 
in ALS. 
EFFECTS OF STROKE MAY BE SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCED 
The third study showed that KDI may also be able to protect against and treat 
the debilitating effects of stroke, which in America alone affects 700,000 
people every year. Scientists again used rats to mimic the impact that stroke 
has on humans. They found that the brain reacts to stroke damage by naturally 
producing KDI in the healthy tissue surrounding the seriously damaged brain 
areas. “We are currently testing KDI’s ability to prevent stroke damage, and 
based on our results so far I feel very optimistic,” says Dr. Liesi.
LATEST RESULTS VERIFY THE PREDICTED POTENTIAL OF KDI
All three studies build on, strengthen and further expand research that was 
published in July in the Journal of Neuroscience Research – see 
http://www.brainlab.fi – where Dr. Liesi demonstrated one of the ways KDI 
protects and repairs the central nervous system. In previous research, 
paralyzed rats injected with KDI were able to bear weight and even walk after 
only three months. The latest studies underline the potential of KDI in the 
treatment of a variety of central nervous system diseases and trauma. 
Furthermore, as KDI occurs naturally in the human body, no toxic side effects 
are expected and have not been seen in studies so far. Human clinical trials 
with KDI are currently planned to begin within the coming year.
Details of Dr. Liesi’s research and further information can also be found at 
http://www.brainlab.fi, a site affiliated with the University of Helsinki. 
The University is one of the centers of excellence among universities in 
Europe, concentrating on high-level scientific research and researcher 
education. The results produced through the research and teaching carried out 
at the University have been widely acclaimed worldwide.

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