IGF-1 may be a marker for parkinson's disease!!!!!

[Ravioli]

This was posted by Dr. Scally



Serum IGF 1 as Possible Marker for Risk and Early Diagnosis of Parkinson Disease

With a prevalence of about 2% in the population older than 60 years, Parkinson disease (PD) is one of the most common neurodegenerative disorders. Parkinson disease affects the whole brain; however, the typical symptoms (bradykinesia, rigidity, and resting tremor) are caused by a progressive loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra (SN). In view of a steadily increasing life expectancy, new strategies are warranted to protect neurons from early degeneration. Therefore, much effort is put into determining markers to identify individuals at risk to develop PD before the first clear motor symptoms allow clinical diagnosis.

Insulinlike growth factor 1 (IGF-1) is deeply involved in many processes concerning growth and vitality. It is mainly secreted from the liver after stimulation of the somatotropic axis. Serum IGF-1 levels are reduced with increasing age. Several studies have shown that, in patients with PD, serum IGF-1 levels are higher than those in a healthy control population. In earlier studies, increased serum IGF-1 levels in PD were attributed to dopaminergic medication, which is known to induce IGF-1. However, a recent conceptional study demonstrated that serum IGF-1 levels are also elevated in patients who have never received dopaminergic medication. It may therefore be hypothesized that increased serum IGF-1 in early PD might be related to the disease process.

Based on the results of this previous study, researchers set out to (1) determine whether increased serum IGF-1 level is a potential marker for early PD in an independent cohort, (2) assess the association between serum IGF-1 level and motor function in healthy people, and (3) investigate whether serum IGF-1 level may help in the identification of individuals putatively at increased risk for PD. In addition, IGF-1 binding protein 3 (IGFBP-3) was evaluated.


archneur.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/abstract/68/7/925