View Full Text | Abstract |
Article as PDF | Print this Article |
Pubmed | PMC |
PubReader | Export to Citation |
Email Alerts | Open Access |
Exp Neurobiol 2013; 22(2): 77-83
Published online June 30, 2013
https://doi.org/10.5607/en.2013.22.2.77
© The Korean Society for Brain and Neural Sciences
Han-Joon Kim*
Department of Neurology and Movement Disorder Center, College of Medicine,
Seoul National University, Seoul 110-744, Korea
Correspondence to: *To whom correspondence should be addressed.
TEL: 82-2-2072-2278, FAX: 82-2-3672-7553
e-mail: movement@snu.ac.kr
Although physiological function of alpha-synuclein is not yet clearly understood, accumulating evidence strongly suggests it plays a crucial role in the pathogenesis of Parkinson disease. Pathologically, alpha-synuclein is a major component of Lewy bodies, which is the pathological hallmark of Parkinson disease. Alpha-synuclein pathology is observed in the brainstem nuclei, including the dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus nerve, the locus ceruleus, and the substantia nigra in the early phase of Parkinson disease and it may 'spread' to cerebral cortical areas in the advanced Parkinson disease and appears to have a role in the cognitive decline in Parkinson disease. Recently, it is suggested that alpha-synuclein pathology in Parkinson disease starts in the olfactory bulb or enteric nervous system and then spreads to the brainstem. In accordance with this hypothesis, alpha-synuclein pathology has been found in gastric mucosa and colonic mucosa of patients with Parkinson disease. Genetically,
Keywords: Parkinson disease, alpha-synuclein, neuropathology, genetics