PARKINSON's DISEASE AND GULF WAR 90-91 VETERANS

Parkinson’s Disease and Agent Orange Veterans

Parkinson’s Disease and Gulf War Veterans

AN IDENTIFIED NEED FOR REGISTRIES at the VA for DIAGNOSED ILLNESSES in GULF WAR(90-91) VETERANS and Other Veteran COHORT GROUPS

At the end of July there was the posting of news on Agent Orange and the development of Parkinson’s Disease, Heart Disease,hairy cell leukemia,chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and lymphomas.  As one who actively keeps up with exposures and health effects for Gulf War(90-91) Veterans, I naturally explore connections being made to earlier Veteran brothers and sisters in hopes that the VA will coordinate their work like they did when the Gulf War Veterans led the way in looking at ALS(Lou Gehrig’s Disease) as a connection.

This is why the Gulf War Veterans have repeatedly asked that the Department of Veterans’ Affairs to start active registries of other diagnosed illnesses like they did in response to our efforts on ALS.  These registries should include all Diagnosed illnesses.  These registries would help the veterans, the VA Doctors, and researchers.

This is a difference with the gulf war veterans and past veterans that is spurred on by the use of Computers to network with our fellow veterans that got started early after we came home in 1991.  Support for veterans that we developed ourselves but need the Department of VA to work these ideas and suggestions/recomendations that have come from the veterans community!  DO we veterans have to resort to flooding the hill in DC to get a bill and then a law to make these things happen or can the VA begin to listen to their patients and veterans advocates and colloborate to make changes happen more proactively? 

Support groups are needed for the veterans and their families from the VA Hospitals and Clinics and even to the VBA to help in transformation.  The Gulf War Veterans in Oklahoma in the early 90’s pushed for Task Force Formations at the VA hospital to have a means of having not only support for gulf war veterans, sharing of information, open communication, and resolving problems of the Gulf War Veterans that involved their entry into the system, their care, and their fights in the claims process.  This system needs  A top down but also a bottom up reworking.

Now, back to the issue of the Parkinson’s Disease.  I decided on taking the direction of building on that news release on Agent Orange and Parkinson’s Disease.  I searched out articles on Parkinson’s Disease, some of the research news on Parkinson’s Disease over the last year,  and then including information about what VA has in relationship to Parkinson’s Centers of Excellence.  Alot of veterans are not even aware of what the VA is doing in the area of Parkinson’s Disease and that information needs to be shared with veterans and every medical professional that works at the VA and in the civilian world.

Many veterans don’t have access to VA or don’t chose to go thru the battle ie Claims to get entry into the VA system.  Communication is there but you have to go searching!!!!  There is a gap in information flow from Civilian/VA Health Care Professionals and Veterans.

Wouldn’t it be great that by activating more registries on diagnosed illnesses of gulf war veterans as well as other cohort veteran war groups that this data on  diagnosed illnesses and any increase in veterans populations due to exposures could be actively monitored for early trends for all to see patients, doctors, researchers, policy people, elected representatives, and affliated civilian organizations(ie MS Society, etc).  Then policy and follow on actions would be clear to all!

Communication to Veterans, their family members, VSOs, health care providers, and researchers need to be improved!  For example I am writing and compiling this information on Parkinson’s Disease to provide that starting point.  I have never seen this information in pamphlet form or posters at the VA Hospitals, talking to health care providers also informed me they dont get this material in an ongoing communication process or educational process, and for sure I would bet most veterans don’t have the information.  Gulf War Veterans for years now have found each other and discovered we had a problem with ALS and then MS and also Parkinson’s Disease.  We have had veterans developing computer networks with each other ie Gulf War Veterans who have been diagnosed with MS and Parkinson’s, etc.  This total process could be instrumental in leading change! 

This is why I am sharing the material I found by researching what the VA has on Parkinson’s Disease.  I wonder if other gulf war veterans know their is a focus on Parkinson’s Disease in the VA and if they are do they know who to contact for more information or for referral to these specialists within the VA nationally?  Does the VA Doctor at your VA hospital have an SOP on how to refer you to those specialty centers available for themselves and their patients?

The information and web site links are included at the end of this long stream of information I am posting today.  The other item that veterans should check is for clinical trials throughout the nation at civilian or other institutions that need and want patient recruitment for research on that diagnosed illness.  Just because you are a veteran does not cut you out of that process to help researchers that are working on treatment trials and further research!  That can be assessed at www.clinicaltrials.gov

Another excellent resource for veterans with Parkinson’s Disease or other diseases is a website www.patientslikeme.com and other websites that feature the diagnosed illnesses associations and societies.  We need veterans mixed in to those organizations, we need veterans to be included in every research project on these diagnosed illnesses and for researchers to code participants that are veterans and identify that in their published papers and to specify why veterans or their exposures are important in their research.

So with all that said and in writing I offer up the collection of what I gathered to share with veterans.  Hopefully we can form veteran groups like Gulf war Veterans with Parkinson’s Disease and start networking better to benefit all.  Again it would help if the Department of Veterans Affairs would proactively start these registries for Diagnosed illnesses in each veteran Cohort and share it openly on their website for all to benefit!

Again these registries could be valuable in so many ways!  Networking patients, Doctors, Researchers, and etc!  Providing needed education and Information to all.  Going back to the principles of Military organization and tactics…Use of all tools available and increase C4I  !!!

____________NEWS RELASES AGENT ORANGE AND RISK OF PARKINSON’s DISEASE_____________

Agent Orange Exposure May Increase Risk Of Heart Disease And Parkinson’s Disease

Article Date: 27 Jul 2009

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A new report from the Institute of Medicine finds suggestive but limited evidence that exposure to Agent Orange and other herbicides used during the Vietnam War is associated with an increased chance of developing ischemic heart disease and Parkinson’s disease for Vietnam veterans. The report is the latest in a congressionally mandated series by the IOM that every two years reviews the evidence about the health effects of these herbicides and a type of dioxin — TCDD — that contaminated some of the defoliants.

A finding of "limited or suggestive evidence of an association" means that the evidence indicates there could be a link between exposure to a chemical and increased risk for a particular health effect, though conflicting results from studies, problems with how the studies were conducted, or other confounding factors limit the certainty of the evidence. Until now, the cumulative evidence had been inadequate to draw conclusions about whether these two conditions may be associated with veterans’ exposures to herbicides or TCDD.

Ischemic heart disease — a condition characterized by reduced blood supply to the heart, which can lead to heart attack and stroke — is the foremost cause of death among people in industrialized countries. Major risk factors include buildup of cholesterol in the arteries, age, smoking, high blood pressure, and diabetes. The committee that wrote the report reviewed several studies investigating TCDD exposure and heart disease, many of which showed that higher TCDD exposure correlated with greater incidence of disease. The studies had weaknesses; for instance, it is difficult to adjust entirely for the impact of smoking, age, weight, and other common risk factors. But based on the preponderance of the evidence as well as biologic data beginning to show how TCDD can cause this toxic effect, the committee concluded that the evidence suggests that veterans exposed to defoliants contaminated with TCDD during the war may face a higher risk for developing ischemic heart disease.

The committee’s conclusion that there may be a relationship between Parkinson’s disease and Agent Orange exposure stems from its review of 16 studies that looked at herbicide exposures among people with Parkinson’s disease or Parkinson’s-like symptoms. The finding was bolstered by several studies that have identified exposure to certain compounds similar to those in the herbicides used in the war as potential risk factors for the development of Parkinson’s. The committee’s review was hampered by the lack of studies investigating the occurrence of Parkinson’s disease in Vietnam veterans specifically and the lack of animal studies testing the chemical components of Agent Orange for their potential to cause Parkinson’s-like symptoms. The report strongly recommends that studies examining the relationship between Parkinson’s incidence and exposures in the veteran population be performed. Parkinson’s disease affects approximately 1 percent of people over age 60 — some 5 million people worldwide.

In response to a request for clarification by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, the committee also affirmed that hairy cell leukemia is in the same category as chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and lymphomas. Previous reviews in the series found sufficient evidence to state that there is an association between herbicide exposure and increased risk for CLL and lymphomas.

The report presents scientific data only and does not suggest or intend to imply policy decisions that the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs might make. Also, the findings relate to exposures and outcomes in broad populations; researchers’ abilities to pinpoint the health risks faced by any individual veteran are hindered by inadequate information about military personnel’s exposure levels during service in Vietnam.

U.S. forces sprayed Agent Orange and other defoliants over parts of southern Vietnam and surrounding areas from 1962 to 1970. Most large-scale sprayings were conducted from airplanes and helicopters, but herbicides were also dispersed from boats and ground vehicles and by soldiers wearing back-mounted equipment.

The report series is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Established in 1970 under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences, the Institute of Medicine provides independent, objective, evidence-based advice to policymakers, health professionals, the private sector, and the public. The National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, Institute of Medicine, and National Research Council make up the National Academies.

Source:
Christine Stencel
National Academy of Sciences
Limited Data Suggest Possible Association Between Agent Orange Exposure And Ischemic Heart Disease And Parkinson’s Disease In Vietnam Veterans

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A new report from the Institute of Medicine finds suggestive but limited evidence that exposure to Agent Orange and other herbicides used during the Vietnam War is associated with an increased chance of developing ischemic heart disease and Parkinson’s disease for Vietnam veterans. The report is the latest in a congressionally mandated series by the IOM that every two years reviews the evidence about the health effects of these herbicides and a type of dioxin — TCDD — that contaminated some of the defoliants.

A finding of "limited or suggestive evidence of an association" means that the evidence indicates there could be a link between exposure to a chemical and increased risk for a particular health effect, though conflicting results from studies, problems with how the studies were conducted, or other confounding factors limit the certainty of the evidence. Until now, the cumulative evidence had been inadequate to draw conclusions about whether these two conditions may be associated with veterans’ exposures to herbicides or TCDD.

Ischemic heart disease — a condition characterized by reduced blood supply to the heart, which can lead to heart attack and stroke — is the foremost cause of death among people in industrialized countries. Major risk factors include buildup of cholesterol in the arteries, age, smoking, high blood pressure, and diabetes. The committee that wrote the report reviewed several studies investigating TCDD exposure and heart disease, many of which showed that higher TCDD exposure correlated with greater incidence of disease. The studies had weaknesses; for instance, it is difficult to adjust entirely for the impact of smoking, age, weight, and other common risk factors. But based on the preponderance of the evidence as well as biologic data beginning to show how TCDD can cause this toxic effect, the committee concluded that the evidence suggests that veterans exposed to defoliants contaminated with TCDD during the war may face a higher risk for developing ischemic heart disease.

The committee’s conclusion that there may be a relationship between Parkinson’s disease and Agent Orange exposure stems from its review of 16 studies that looked at herbicide exposures among people with Parkinson’s disease or Parkinson’s-like symptoms. The finding was bolstered by several studies that have identified exposure to certain compounds similar to those in the herbicides used in the war as potential risk factors for the development of Parkinson’s. The committee’s review was hampered by the lack of studies investigating the occurrence of Parkinson’s disease in Vietnam veterans specifically and the lack of animal studies testing the chemical components of Agent Orange for their potential to cause Parkinson’s-like symptoms. The report strongly recommends that studies examining the relationship between Parkinson’s incidence and exposures in the veteran population be performed. Parkinson’s disease affects approximately 1 percent of people over age 60 — some 5 million people worldwide.

In response to a request for clarification by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, the committee also affirmed that hairy cell leukemia is in the same category as chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and lymphomas. Previous reviews in the series found sufficient evidence to state that there is an association between herbicide exposure and increased risk for CLL and lymphomas.

The report presents scientific data only and does not suggest or intend to imply policy decisions that the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs might make. Also, the findings relate to exposures and outcomes in broad populations; researchers’ abilities to pinpoint the health risks faced by any individual veteran are hindered by inadequate information about military personnel’s exposure levels during service in Vietnam.

U.S. forces sprayed Agent Orange and other defoliants over parts of southern Vietnam and surrounding areas from 1962 to 1970. Most large-scale sprayings were conducted from airplanes and helicopters, but herbicides were also dispersed from boats and ground vehicles and by soldiers wearing back-mounted equipment.

The report series is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Established in 1970 under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences, the Institute of Medicine provides independent, objective, evidence-based advice to policymakers, health professionals, the private sector, and the public. The National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, Institute of Medicine, and National Research Council make up the National Academies.

_________________________________________________ 

Source
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs From Molecular Physiology To Therapeutic Applications Of Stem Cells
Main Category: Stem Cell Research
Also Included In: Neurology / Neuroscience;  Parkinson’s Disease;  Diabetes
Article Date: 30 Jul 2009 – 4:00 PDT

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Stem cell research promises remedies to many devastating diseases that are currently incurable, ranging from diabetes and Parkinson’s disease to paralysis. Totipotent embryonic stem cells have great potential for generating a wide range of different human cells that can be used to restore malfunctioning or damaged cells and tissues in patients. Recent studies have shown that pluripotent stem cells derived from adult bone marrow, the umbilical cord and the placenta could also be induced to differentiate into a variety of different tissues. In this issue, we have invited several scientists in China to summarize their pioneering works in the stem cell research field.

Since 2001, Dr. Alex Yu Zhang has been a professor at Capital Medical University in Beijing and is Director of Cell Therapy Center at Xuanwu Hospital. His current research interest focuses on the understanding of basic biological properties of stem cells and developing nonhuman primate models for stem cell-based therapy of degenerative diseases. He has developed a stem cell mediated expression system for treating Parkinson’s disease and his research using pancreatic progenitor cells for treating diabetes has demonstrated efficacy in monkey models. Professor Zhang has written an overview of cell replacement therapy of Parkinson’s disease, which has been studied in both animal models and human patients for more than 20 years. Recent progress in stem cell biology has indicated that it is possible to avoid immunorejection of either nuclear transfer embryonic stem cells or induced pluripotent stem cells. On the other hand, recent post mortem analysis of patients who received fetal brain cell transplantation revealed that implanted cells are prone to degeneration just like endogenous neurons. Thus it appears that future cell replacement studies will have to focus on ameliorating disease symptoms as well as on slowing the progression of the disease[1].

Professor Robert Chunhua Zhao from the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences is Executive Director of the National Center for Stem Cell Research. His group has taken stem cell therapy into phase II clinical trials in China, and is the leading runner in stem cell therapeutics. They have identified a mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) population from human fetal bone marrow and found that these cells could differentiate not only into osteogenic, adipogenic and endothelial lineages, but also hepatocyte-like cells, and neural and erythroid cells. They remained in some tissues and organs during gestation and could give rise to different kinds of pluripotent stem cells and thus could potentially contribute to self-repair and self-renewal of tissues and organs. They generated cells not only for the damaged tissues in which they reside, but also for damaged tissues at other locations in the body via migration triggered by proinflammatory cytokines and growth factors. The potential use of MSCs in tissue regeneration has been shown in several models, including skin, muscle, lung, heart and the small intestine. MSCs have emerged as a promising therapeutic modality for tissue regeneration and autoimmune disease, although the mechanisms underlying the immune-modulatory effects of MSCs have not yet been clearly defined. In this review, Professor Robert Zhao summarizes the current literature on the complex mechanism of MSCs’ immune modulation and clinical studies, and discusses future directions for utilizing MSCs for clinical treatments[2].

Professor Hongkui Deng from Peking University is working on the differentiation of human embryonic stem cells into pancreatic beta cells to treat diabetes. He is one of the two winners in China of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation’s "Grand Challenges in Global Health". He obtained $1.9 million for his proposal to use stem cells to create mouse models for testing HIV and hepatitis C vaccines. Professor Deng has written a summary of recent progress in human embryonic and inducible pluripotent stem cell differentiation into functional pancreatic islet cells and discusses the challenges for future work[3].

Professor Qi Zhou is assistant Director of the Institute of Zoology at the Chinese Academy of Sciences. He has been studying the mechanism of differentiation and de-differentiation, cellular plasticity and totipotency of pluripotent cells, as well as that of somatic cells. He intends to build various cellular and animal models for human diseases, to uncover mechanisms underlying these different cellular processes and to discover new ways to improve cloning efficiency, which will provide a powerful tool for the study of mammalian reprogramming and ultimately offer important opportunities for regenerative medicine. Professor Zhou has helped to build the National Stem Cell Bank in Beijing, where clinical grade stem cell lines and patient specific cell lines have been created for future drug target candidate screening and therapeutic applications. Professor Qi Zhou has written a summary on human parthenogenetic embryonic stem cells as one potential resource for stem cell therapy[4].

Professor Lin Liu from Nankai University has been working on creating versatile patient-specific pluripotent stem cell lines that can be reliably used to fulfill the promise of stem cell therapy in regenerative medicine. Dr. Lin Liu’s group found that pES cells generated from immature oocytes in mice exhibit pluripotency resembling fES cells, as evidenced by similarly high chimera production and germline transmission. Thus, immature eggs may provide an efficient source of autologous stem cells for regenerative medicine. This group also tested whether pESCs can be generated from older females. Drs. Lingyi Chen works on mechanisms of early embryonic differentiation. In their review of current special topics on stem cells, Drs. Lingyi Chen and Lin Liu analyze the current state of iPS research, particularly on limitations and advancements in this field, and propose possible future directions to meet the challenges of iPS cells for clinical applications[5].

Stem cell research has made significant progress in the past decade. Some therapeutic applications are coming closer to being on the market, but it is still hard to predict if and when stem cell therapy will replace largely traditional therapeutics. Given the early indications for success, we hope to see promising remedies for the many current uncurable diseases being made available in the clinic over the coming years.

Notes:
Ren Z, Zhang Y. Cell therapy for Parkinson’s disease – So close and so far away. Sci China C-Life Sci, 2009, 52: 610-614

Wang L, Zhao R C. Mesenchymal stem cells targeting the GVHD. Sci China C-Life Sci, 2009, 52: 603-609

Zhang D, Jiang W, Shi Y, et al. Generation of Pancreatic islet cell from human embryonic stem cell. Sci China C-Life Sci, 2009, 52: 615-621

Hao J, Zhu W, Sheng C, et al. Human parthenogenetic embryonic stem cells: One potential resource for cell therapy. Sci China C-Life Sci, 2009, 52: 622-636

Chen L, Liu L. Current progress and prospect of induced pluripotent stem cell. Sci China C-Life Sci, 2009, 52: 622-636
Source:
Li Jiyuan
Science in China Press

——— NANOTECHNOLOGY AND PARKINSON’s Disease—————–

Researchers Pinpoint Neural Nanoblockers In Carbon Nanotubes

Article Date: 29 Aug 2009

Carbon nanotubes hold many exciting possibilities, some of them in the realm of the human nervous system. Recent research has shown that carbon nanotubes may help regrow nerve tissue or ferry drugs used to repair damaged neurons associated with disorders such as epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease and perhaps even paralysis.

Yet some studies have shown that carbon nanotubes appear to interfere with a critical signaling transaction in neurons, throwing doubt on the tubes’ value in treating neurological disorders. No one knew why the tubes were causing a problem.

Now a team of Brown University researchers has found that it’s not the tubes that are to blame. Writing in the journal Biomaterials, the scientists report that the metal catalysts used to form the tubes are the culprits, and that minute amounts of one metal – yttrium – could impede neuronal activity. The findings mean that carbon nanotubes without metal catalysts may be able to treat human neurological disorders, although other possible biological effects still need to be studied.

"We can purify the nanotubes by removing the metals," said Lorin Jakubek, a Ph.D. candidate in biomedical engineering and lead author of the paper, "so, it’s a problem we can fix."

Jakubek took single-walled carbon nanotubes to the laboratory of Diane Lipscombe, a Brown neuroscientist. The researchers zeroed in on ion channels located at the end of neurons’ axons. These channels are gateways of sorts, driven by changes in the voltage across neurons’ membranes. When an electrical signal, known as an action potential, is triggered in neurons, these ion channels "open," each designed to take in a certain ion. One such ion channel passes only calcium, a protein that is critical for transmitter release and thus for neurons to communicate with each other.

In experiments using cloned calcium ion channels in embryonic kidney cells, the scientists discovered that nickel and yttrium, two metal catalysts used to form the single-walled carbon nanotubes, were interfering with the ion channel’s ability to absorb the calcium.

Because its ionic radius is nearly identical to calcium’s, yttrium in particular "gets stuck and prevents calcium from entering and passing through. It’s an ion pore blocker," said Lipscombe, who specializes in neuronal ion channels and is a corresponding author on the paper.

The experiments showed that yttrium in trace amounts – less than 1 microgram per milliliter of water – may disrupt normal calcium signaling in neurons and other electrically active cells, an amount far lower than what had been thought to be safe levels. With nickel, the amount needed to impede calcium signaling was 300 times higher.

"Yttrium is so potent that … a very low nanotube dose" would be needed to affect neuronal activity, said Robert Hurt, professor of engineering and a corresponding author on the paper.

Jakubek said she was surprised that the metals turned out to be the cause. "Based on the literature, I thought it would be the nanotubes themselves," she said.

Spiro Marangoudakis, Jessica Raingo and Xinyuan Liu contributed to the paper. The National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency funded the research.

Source:
Richard Lewis
Brown University Nerve Growth Factor With Therapeutic Potential In Parkinson’s Disease Discovered By Finnish Scientists

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 SCIENTIST INTERNATIONALLY WORKING ON PARKINSON’S DISEASE TREATMENTS

Scientists in the Academy of Finland’s Neuroscience Research Programme have reported promising new results with potential implications for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease. They have been studying the impacts of nerve growth factors in the treatment of PD, and their latest results show that a certain growth factor can be used to halt the progress of damage brought on by a nerve poison and possibly even restore the function of damaged cells.

The studies on nerve growth factors used an experimental PD model in rats. Administration of the growth factor reduced motor disturbances in rats.

The severe motor disturbances that are seen in PD are caused by the slow degeneration of dopamine nerves in the brain. There are treatments that alleviate the symptoms of the disease, such as hand tremor, but they do not prevent or halt the degeneration of nerve cells. The nerve growth factors studied to date have slowed nerve cell degeneration to some extent, but they have had only limited therapeutic effect. Several known nerve growth factors, such as GDNF, also attach to extracellular tissue, possibly deterring their movement to nerve cells that require treatment.

Working under the supervision of Academy Professor Mart Saarma, scientists at the University of Helsinki Institute of Biotechnology have now been investigating two new nerve growth factors. MANF (mesencephalic astrocyte-derived neurotrophic factor) is released from glial cells in the midbrain and is a member of the same growth factor family as CDNF, another growth factor that Saarma’s team have investigated. A University of Helsinki team led by Professor Raimo K. Tuominen discovered that in the experimental PD model, MANF and CDNF injections into the brain prevented dopamine nerve destruction caused by nerve poison and to some extent even restored the function of damaged cells in rats.

The latest results suggest that MANF spreads more readily in brain tissue than other known growth factors. This may be a highly significant finding in respect to the development of growth factor therapy for PD.

The results are published in the 29 July issue of the Journal of Neuroscience.

Source:
Professor Mart Saarma
Academy of Finland
Occupational Chemical Exposure Associated With Parkinson’s Disease
 Editor’s Choice

Article Date: 15 Sep 2009

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 New Parkinson’s Research and relationship to PESTICIDES AND OCCUPATIONS

A report in the September issue of Archives of Neurology (one of the JAMA/Archives journals) shows that individuals whose occupation involves contact with pesticides appear to have an increased risk of having Parkinson’s disease.

According to background information in the article, the development of Parkinson’s disease related to chemical exposure was identified in the late 20th century. Occupations such as farming, teaching and welding have all since then been proposed to increase the risk of Parkinson’s disease. However, associations have been contradictory. Only a small number of earlier studies have investigated the direct relationship between occupational chemical exposure and disease risk.

The study was the work of Caroline M. Tanner, M.D., Ph.D., of the Parkinson’s Institute, Sunnyvale, Calif., and colleagues. It included 519 individuals with Parkinson’s disease and 511 controls. All participants were the same age and sex and lived in the same location. Their occupational history and exposure to toxins, including solvents and pesticides was surveyed.

Findings showed that working in agriculture, education, health care or welding was not associated with Parkinson’s disease. There was no association with any other specific occupation studied after adjustment for other factors.

Among the patients with Parkinson’s disease, 8.5 percent (44 individuals) reported pesticide exposure compared with 5.3 percent (27 individuals) in the control group. Occupational pesticide exposure was associated with an increased risk of the disease. "Growing evidence suggests a causal association between pesticide use and parkinsonism. However, the term ‘pesticide’ is broad and includes chemicals with varied mechanisms," the authors explain, "Because few investigations have identified specific pesticides, we studied eight pesticides with high neurotoxic plausibility based on laboratory findings. Use of these pesticides was associated with higher risk of parkinsonism, more than double that in those not exposed."

Three individual compounds were associated with a more than three-fold increased risk of Parkinson’s disease:

• an organochloride (2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid)
• an herbicide (paraquat)
• an insecticide (permethrin)

In the laboratory, all three have been shown to have effects on dopaminergic neurons which are affected by Parkinson’s disease.

"This convergence of epidemiologic and laboratory data from experimental models of Parkinson’s disease lends credence to a causative role of certain pesticides in the neurodegenerative process," the authors write in conclusion. "Other pesticide exposures such as hobby gardening, residential exposure, wearing treated garments or dietary intake were not assessed. Because these exposures may affect many more subjects, future attention is warranted."

Arch Neurol 2009; 66[9]:1106-1113.
Archives of Neurology

___________VA AND PARKINSON"S DISEASE RESOURCES________

Found 316 documents out of 75629    Advanced Search • Help  
 
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www1.va.gov/netsix-padrecc/docs/Summer07NewsFINAL.pdf  
Summary: The Newsletter of the Veterans Health Administration?s SOUTHEAST PADRECC (Parkinson?s Disease Research Education & Clinical Center) at McGuire VAMC Summer 2007 Volume 5, Issue 2 the local James River bus lines. Expiratory Muscle Strength Training for Parkinson?s Disease Michelle Troche, MA., and Christine Sapienza, PhD Department of Communicative Disorders Brain Rehabilitation Research Center, Malcom Randall VAMC The Parkinson’s Disease Research, Education and Clinical Center (PADRECC) 
Page Info: www1.va.gov/netsix-padrecc/docs/Summer07NewsFINAL.pdf | 1267k | August 16, 2007
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www1.va.gov/netsix-padrecc/docs/Summer08NewsFinal.pdf  
Summary: Although the nickname for our clinic (PADRECC) is built from the words Parkinson?s Disease (PD), a more accurate description of our clinic would be ?Movement Disorder Research, Education, and Clinical Center?. National VA Parkinson?s Disease Consortium Center Network The National VA Parkinson?s Disease Consortium was established in 2003 as a means to broaden the impact of the Parkinson?s Disease Research Education and Clinical Centers (PADRECCs) and encourage modern Parkinson?s disease care 
Page Info: www1.va.gov/netsix-padrecc/docs/Summer08NewsFinal.pdf | 1795k | June 27, 2008
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VA Research Advances: Parkinson’s Disease  
Subject: VA Research Advances: Parkinson’s Disease 
Page Info: www.research.va.gov/resources/pubs/docs/Parkinsons.pdf | 144k | April 27, 2009
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Summer09News_Final.pub  
Summary: The Newsletter of the Veterans Health Administration?s SOUTHEAST PADRECC (Parkinson?s Disease Research Education & Clinical Center) at McGuire VAMC Summer 2009 Volume 7 Number 1 Inside this issue: _ Henrico County TV helps Battle PD 1, 5 Southeast PADRECC Research Highlights 7 In the Clinic at PADRECC 8 Dr. Bennett, Director, VCU Parkinson?s Center 9 Eligibility/Enrollment for VA Healthcare 10 National VA PD Consortium Network 11 Virginia Support Group Highlights 12 SE 
Page Info: www1.va.gov/netsix-padrecc/docs/Summer09News_Final.pdf | 2016k | July 14, 2009
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www.parkinsons.va.gov/Philadelphia/Images/PadreccPostWinter08.pdf  
Summary: THE PHILADELPHIA VA PARKINSON?S DISEASE RESEARCH, EDUCATION AND CLINICAL CENTER VOLUME 3 ISSUE 2 ?Tip of the Iceberg?Jayne Wilkinson, MD Winter 2008 Parkinson?s disease is a diagnosis that is familiar to most of the general public. April 11th, 2008: the PADRECC, in collaboration with Pennsylvania Ho-s pital?s Parkinson?s Disease and Mov-e ment Disorder Center, will hold a -Pa tient Education Program titled: Love, Intimacy and Parkinson?s Disease. THE POST Philadelphia VA Medical Center 
Page Info: www.parkinsons.va.gov/Philadelphia/Images/PadreccPostWinter08.pdf | 287k | October 21, 2008
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National Newsletter-Winter 08.pub  
Summary: 2, Winter 2008 Increasing awareness of the inadequacies in end-of-life care for Parkinson?s disease (PD) patients has led the Philadelphia PADRECC team to collaborate with our Palliative Care Service to gain skills to assist patients and families with end-of-life issues. March 7, 2008 Last day for abstract submission to the MDS 12th International Congress of Parkinson?s Disease and Movement Disorders The VA Parkinson Report, Vol 6, No 2 Page 3 Neurologist-health services researchers at the 
Page Info: www.parkinsons.va.gov/Consortium/cfiles/NationalNewsletterWinter08.pdf | 210k | April 08, 2008
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Philadelphia PADRECC Directory – PADRECC  
Subject: Philadelphia PADRECC Biographies 
Description: Biographies on clinicians in the Philadelphia PADRECC 
Page Info: www.parkinsons.va.gov/Philadelphia/Bios.asp | 43k | September 05, 2009
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Achievements – PADRECC  
Subject: PADRECC Awards, features and achievements 
Description: Listing of awards, features and achievements given to clinicians in the Philadelphia PADRECC 
Page Info: www.parkinsons.va.gov/Philadelphia/Achievements.asp | 21k | September 05, 2009
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National VA Parkinson’s Disease Consortium – PADRECC  
Subject: Parkinson’s Disease Consortium 
Description: National VA Parkinson’s Disease Consortium 
Page Info: www.parkinsons.va.gov/Consortium/index.asp | 17k | September 07, 2009
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Summary: 1 In This Issue? From the Editor – 2 How to Enroll/VA News – 3 Support Groups – 4 World Parkinson Congress – 5 Exercise Resources ? 7 Physical Activity Pyramid – 8 PD Community Education Day Oct 7, 2006 – 9 PADRECC SE News ? 10 Summer 2006 Issue The Newsletter of the Veterans Health Administration?s Parkinson?s Disease Research Education & Clinical Center (PADRECC) SOUTHEAST Exercise Class for Vets with PD Underway at McGuire VAMC! McGuire VAMC?s PADRECC has recently begun a group exercise 
Page Info: www1.va.gov/netsix-padrecc/docs/Summer06all.pdf | 878k | July 21, 2006
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