Finnish researchers have found that a specific bacterium causes the disease in most cases.
The strains of Desulfovibrio bacteria are suspected by researchers at the University of Helsinki to be linked to the onset of Parkinson disease.
Already in 2021, they had observed that patients had all the more of it in their microbiota as the disease was at a serious stage.
Promoted aggregation of a protein
What we know about the disease is that it is linked to the aggregation of a protein, called neuronal alpha-synuclein. By proliferating in the brain, it causes the symptoms.
And the Finnish scientists were able to observe that the Desulfovibrio bacteria favored this protein aggregation.
A reduced genetic role
In a statement, Professor Per Saris who is one of the authors of the study published in Frontier in Cellular and Infection Microbiologyindicates that the role of genes in inherited forms of Parkinson’s is minor.
In fact, he states:
The disease is mainly caused by environmental factors, that is, environmental exposure to Desulfovibrio bacterial strains that cause Parkinson’s disease. Only a small part, about 10%, of Parkinson’s disease is caused by individual genes.
eight million patients
For Professor Saris, “Our findings are important because the cause of Parkinson’s disease remains unknown despite attempts to identify it over the past two centuries.” And the WHO estimates that no less than 8 million people suffer from it worldwide.
The good news is that this bacteria can be detected. By eliminating them from the intestine, this could perhaps lessen the effects of the disease. This progressive degeneration of the brain, which leads to motor and cognitive disorders, pain and an early deterioration of the intellect, leads to very significant disability and to significant medical care.