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Trauti, boy is this depressing!! It seems that there is little or no organized focus on our goals. This is why I don't expect a cure in my lifetime. Ray Rayilyn Brown Director AZNPF Arizona Chapter National Parkinson Foundation [log in to unmask] -------------------------------------------------- From: "Trauti Boyd" <[log in to unmask]> Sent: Saturday, June 06, 2009 5:22 AM To: <[log in to unmask]> Subject: Re: Spinal Cord Stimulator Sparks Hope For Parkinson's Disease Treatment > hi paul, sorry to say there seems to be no straight-forward answer. having > read about the initial success with mice i asked my husband's neurologist > who is head of the movement disorder clinic at DUKE what he thought the > time line would be and, low and behold, he had not even heard of this > research going on at his institution. i was dumbfounded. sometimes i > wonder if there ever will be actual progress made. > trauti > ----- Original Message ----- > From: <[log in to unmask]> > To: <[log in to unmask]> > Sent: Friday, June 05, 2009 8:36 PM > Subject: Re: Spinal Cord Stimulator Sparks Hope For Parkinson's Disease > Treatment > > >> And I'll ask more or less the same question I asked a month ago. When is >> the next step to be taken? I guess I just don't understand the world (and >> maybe the rules or mores) of scientific research. Will someone start >> investigating the process with humans only if there is profit on the >> horizon? Sure >> doesn't fit my type A personality! Why doesn't a PD Organization fund >> it. Or >> maybe Ali or Fox if their Foundations can afford it. If I could afford >> it >> I would! It is so stupidly frustrating to keep reading about mice >> without a >> concrete time line reference to humans. And if Apes come first, then GET >> STARTED. If there were to be a call for Clinical Trial volunteers the >> line >> would probably stretch from here to Natal Brazil. >> >> Paul H. Lauer >> >> >> In a message dated 6/4/2009 2:00:24 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time, >> [log in to unmask] writes: >> >> thanks for the video, John. I posted this news about a month ago. >> Ray >> >> Rayilyn Brown >> Director AZNPF >> Arizona Chapter National Parkinson Foundation >> [log in to unmask] >> >> -------------------------------------------------- >> From: "John Cottingham" >> <[log in to unmask]> >> Sent: Wednesday, June 03, 2009 12:07 AM >> To: <[log in to unmask]> >> Subject: Spinal Cord Stimulator Sparks Hope For Parkinson's Disease >> Treatment >> >>> New research of stimulation of the spinal cord instead of the brain >> shows >>> promise of countering movement disorders associated with Parkinson's >>> disease. >>> >>> Video from Duke University shows what has been accomplished. That video >> is >>> on the PIENO maillist page at: >>> >>> http://parkinsons-information-exchange-network-online.com/maillist.html >>> >>> Perhaps annual additions to the "Hole in the Head Gang" won't be >> necessary >>> if this proves to be a viable non-invasive treatment. >>> >>> John Cottingham >>> >>> >>> >>>>Novel Spinal Cord Stimulator Sparks Hope For Parkinson's Disease >> Treatment >>>> >>>>ScienceDaily (Mar. 21, 2009) ­ A novel stimulation method, the >>>>first >>>>potential therapy to target the spinal cord instead of the brain, may >>>>offer an effective and less invasive approach for Parkinson's disease >>>>treatment, according to pre-clinical data published in the journal >> Science >>>>by researchers at Duke University Medical Center. >>>> >>>>Researchers developed a prosthetic device that applies electrical >>>>stimulation to the dorsal column in the spinal cord, which is a main >>>>sensory pathway carrying tactile information from the body to the >>>>brain. >> >>>>The device was attached to the surface of the spinal cord in mice and >> rats >>>>with depleted levels of the chemical dopamine - mimicking the biologic >>>>characteristics of someone with Parkinson's disease along with the >>>>impaired motor skills seen in advanced stages of the disease. >>>> >>>>When the device was turned on, the dopamine-depleted animals' slow, >> stiff >>>>movements were replaced with the active behaviors of healthy mice and >>>>rats. Improved movement was typically observed within 3.35 seconds >>>>after >> >>>>stimulation. >>>> >>>>"We see an almost immediate and dramatic change in the animal's ability >> to >>>>function when the device stimulates the spinal cord," says senior study >>>>investigator Miguel Nicolelis, M.D., Ph.D., the Anne W. Deane Professor >> of >>>>Neuroscience at Duke. "Moreover, it is easy to use, significantly less >>>>invasive than other alternatives to medication, such as deep brain >>>>stimulation, and has the potential for widespread use in conjunction >> with >>>>medications typically used to treat Parkinson's disease." >>>> >>>>Researchers tested mice and rats with acute and chronic dopamine >>>>deficit >>>>using varying levels of electrical stimulation and in combination with >>>>different doses of dopamine replacement therapy, also known as >>>>3,4-dihydroxy-L-phenylalanine or L-DOPA, to determine the most >>>>effective >> >>>>pairing. >>>> >>>>When the device was used without additional medication, Parkinsonian >>>>animals were 26 times more active. When stimulation was coupled with >>>>medication, only two L-DOPA doses were needed to produce movement >> compared >>>>to five doses when the medication was used by itself. >>>> >>>>"This work addresses an important need because people living with >>>>Parkinson's disease face a difficult reality - L-Dopa will eventually >> stop >>>>managing the symptoms," explains Romulo Fuentes, a postdoctoral fellow >> at >>>>Duke University and lead author of the study. "Patients are left with >> few >>>>options for treatment, including electrical stimulation of the brain, >>>>which is appropriate for only a subset of patients." >>>> >>>>While deep brain stimulation (DBS) and other experimental treatments >>>>attack the disease at its origin - in the brain - Nicolelis and team >> took >>>>a different approach. The concept for the device began when researchers >>>>made a surprising connection with another neurological condition. >>>> >>>>"It was a moment of sudden insight," explains Nicolelis. "We were >>>>analyzing the brain activity of mice with Parkinson's disease and >> suddenly >>>>it reminded me of some research I'd done in the epilepsy field a decade >>>>earlier. The ideas began to flow from there." >>>> >>>>The rhythmic brain activity in the animals with Parkinson's disease >>>>resembled the mild, continuous, low-frequency seizures that are seen in >>>>those with epilepsy. One effective therapy for treating epilepsy inv >> olves >>>>stimulating the peripheral nerves, which facilitate communication >> between >>>>the spinal cord and the body. Researchers took that concept and >> developed >>>>a modified approach for a Parkinson's disease model. >>>> >>>>Nicolelis says that the low frequency seizures, or oscillations, seen >>>>in >>>>the animal model of Parkinson's disease have been observed in humans >> with >>>>the condition. Stimulating the dorsal column of the spinal cord reduces >>>>these oscillations, which researchers believe creates the ability to >>>>produce motor function. >>>> >>>>In a healthy body, neurons fire at varying rates as information is >>>>transmitted between the brain and the body to initiate normal movement. >>>>This process breaks down in someone with Parkinson's disease. >>>> >>>>"Our device works as an interface with the brain to produce a neural >> state >>>>permissive for locomotion, facilitating immediate and dramatic recovery >> of >>>>movement," says Per Petersson, co-author of the study. "Following >>>>stimulation, the neurons desynchronize, similar to the firing pattern >> that >>>>you would see when a healthy mouse is continuously moving." >>>> >>>>Nicolelis says that if the device is proven safe and effective through >>>>further research, he imagines it mirroring similar spinal cord >> stimulator >>>>technology currently used to treat chronic pain. Small leads are >> implanted >>>>over the spinal cord and then connected to a portable generator, a >>>>small >>>>device capable of producing mild electrical currents. During the trial >>>>period, the generator is external, while for permanent treatment it >> would >>>>be implanted below the skin. >>>> >>>>"If we can demonstrate that the device is safe and effective over the >> long >>>>term in primates and then humans, virtually every patient could be >>>>eligible for this treatment in the near future," Nicolelis said. >>>> >>>>The Duke team is collaborating with neuroscientists at the Edmond and >> Lily >>>>Safra International Institute of Neuroscience in Natal, Brazil, to test >>>>the new procedure in primate models of Parkinson's disease prior to >>>>initiating clinical studies. Neuroscientists from the Brain and Mind >>>>Institute at the Swiss Institute of Technology (EPFL), in Lausanne, >>>>Switzerland, will also participate in this international research >>>>effort >>>>to translate these new findings into clinical practice. >>>> >>>>Study co-authors include William Siesser and Marc Caron. >>>> >>>>Funding for this research was provided by grants from the National >>>>Institutes of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), International >>>>Neuroscience Network Foundation (INNF) and the Anne W. Deane Endowed >>>>Chair. >>>> >>>>---------- >>>>Adapted from materials provided by Duke University Medical Center. >>>>Email or share this story: >>>>Need to cite this story in your essay, paper, or report? Use one of the >>>>following formats: >>>>APA >>>> >>>>MLA >>>>Duke University Medical Center (2009, March 21). 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