Phamacology of Movement

Question 1

What is there loss of in Parkinson’s disease?

Answer 1

Loss of dopaminergic cells in the substantia nigra pars compacta

Question 2

What are Lewy bodies and in which condition would you find them?

Answer 2

They are intracellular formations enriched in the protein a-synuclein
They are seen in Parkinson’s disease

Question 3

Features of Parkinson’s disease

Answer 3

• Resting tremor
• Bradykinesia
• Rigidity
• “frozen” facial expression
• Flexed posture
• Altered gait and postural changes
• Difficulty in initiating and stopping movement
• Micrographia

Question 4

Non-motor features of Parkinson’s disease

Answer 4

• Olfactory dysfunction
• Depression
• Psychotic symptoms
• Cognitive dysfunction
• Dementia
• Sleep disturbance
• Autonomic dysfunction

Question 5

What type of imaging can be used to monitor the progression of Parkinson’s disease?

Answer 5

• DaT imagine (dopamine transporter)
• Can be used to monitor gradual dopaminergic nigral cell loss in the striatum
• The transporter is a marker of dopaminergic projections and can be labelled with SPECT ligands

Question 6

What happens to oxidative stress in Parkinson’s disease?

Answer 6

• The compound MPTP can be transformed into the metabolite MPP+ which is neurotoxic for dopaminergic neurons
• INCREASE in oxidative stress in Parkinson’s
• Dopamine is highly oxidisable
• MAO is critically involved in the oxidation processes

Question 7

Biosynthesis of dopamine

Answer 7

L-tyrosine -> L-dopa -> Dopamine