Parkinson's Disease

Parkinson`s Disease
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Abstract
There are various diseases that do affect the health of an individual. More often than not, these conditions can lead to degeneration of the cells which eventually leads to the inability of a person to function normally. Parkinson`s disease is one of such conditions. The essay below looks at this disease and the effects it has on the people.
Parkinson`s Disease
Introduction
Parkinson`s disease is a generative disorder that leads to the depletion of the cells in the brain section of the body. Due to this, the person becomes physically weak, with symptoms such as difficulty in walking and maintaining a comfortable gait as well as rigidity and shaking. The weakness leads to slow movement (Bergman and Deuschl, 2002). As such, the individual becomes quite inefficient in life`s issues. As such, it is important to understand more about this disease and how it can be prevented, so as to ensure the growth and development of the individual.
Physiology
The disease is mainly caused by the destruction of the Doparmigenic neurons located in the middle section of the brain (Macalester.edu, n.d). The dopamine neurons have the dopamine receptors which are used in transmitting the messages from the brain. There are different forms of dopamine receptors such as D1 to D5. Dopamine is produced in some areas of the brain such as the substantia nigra and ventral tegmental area. The dopamine receptors are responsible for modulating behaviors such as the spatial working memory. They are widely distributed in the brain. The dopamine receptors D1 and D2 are responsible for PD where D1 increases cAMP while D2 decreases it. cAMP is responsible for the progression of the disease.
In the above illustration, there are instances when the methamphetamine blocks the dopamine from taking dopamine into the transmitting neuron, thus causing a mental disorder such as PD.
According to Macalester.edu (n.d), the cortical basal Ganglia loop is responsible for the entry of the dopamine, and the loop is maintained by glutamate and the GABA neurotransmitters. This is where the dopamine is used by the substantia nigra to send inhibitory and excitatory signals to the caudate which in turn innervates in different parts of the putamen. The signal is then relayed to the external globus pallidus. The feedback also occurs along the same pathway. As such, destruction in these cells leads to a disorder resulting to the parkinson`s disease.
Adapted from: Macalester.edu (n.d)
Williams.edu (1998) indicates that the Gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) is responsible for the breaking down of the DAT, MAob and COMT which end up leading to the malfunctioning of the dopaminergic neuron. All these factors work together to the breakdown of the neurons which eventually leads to the death of the cells, ultimately leading to the full-blown Parkinson`s Disease. With this understanding, it is very important to understand these conditions as they have very significant clinical importance.
Pathophysiology
News Medical (2012) indicates that the pathophysiology of the disease is characterized by the presence of the Lewis bodies. Mandir and Vaughan (2000) explain that the Lewy bodies are the substances that come up after the death of the astrocytes, which are star-shaped glial cells as well as the activation of microglia which are also another form of glial cells. As such, the presence of the lewy bodies is one way of detecting the presence of the disease in the body.
As already indicated, the death of brain cells, the dopaminergic neurons, is responsible for the disease. As such, it is quite important to understand what leads to the death of these cells. Yasuda and Mochizuki (2010) indicate that there is accumulation of a protein called alpha-synuclein which is usually bound to the ubiquitin of the damaged cells. Eventually, the bodies lead to the formation of the Lewy Bodies which occur in the medulla oblongata, olfactory bulb and pontine tegmentum, at which stage the disease is asymptomatic. These cells accumulate in the body and they are recognized as foreign bodies by the cells. As such, the lysosomes in the mitochondria produce the digestive juices which are meant to lead to a reduction in the number of unwanted bodies in the cells. The lysosome produced leads to the death of the cells. However, there could be other causes of the death of the cells. However, it is not very clear what exactly causes the death of the cells.
There are various genes that are involved in the above process. One of them is the parkin. According to Yasuda and Mochizuki (2010) indicate that the parkin protein. This is responsible for the encoding of the E3 ubiquitin ligase parkin which is found in the ubiquitin-protease system. As earlier indicated, the ubiquitin is responsible for the formation of the lewy bodies, which is a pathological feature of the disease. The synucleic aci...