Diabetes drug may protect against Parkinson's

Diabetes drug may protect against Parkinsons
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Highlights

A new type of glitazone anti-diabetic may reduce the risk of developing Parkinson\'s disease, says a study. Diabetes patients on these drugs had a 28 per cent lower incidence of Parkinson\'s disease than people taking other anti-diabetics do.This is the first study to show the relationship between glitazone use and the incidence of Parkinson\'s disease in humans.

A new type of glitazone anti-diabetic may reduce the risk of developing Parkinson's disease, says a study. Diabetes patients on these drugs had a 28 per cent lower incidence of Parkinson's disease than people taking other anti-diabetics do.This is the first study to show the relationship between glitazone use and the incidence of Parkinson's disease in humans.


Researchers used electronic health records to match 44,597 glitazone users with 120,373 people using other anti-diabetic drugs. Glitazones activate the peroxisome proliferation-activated gamma (PPARI) receptor, which is found inside cells in many different body organs. PPARI activation by glitazones leads to reduced insulin resistance. However, the receptor has many other functions that have not been studied as thoroughly in humans.


"Our findings provide unique evidence that we hope will drive further investigation into potential drug treatments for Parkinson's disease. It's thought that around one in 500 people are affected by Parkinson's, and to date no effective treatments have been found to directly tackle the neurodegenerative aspect of the disease," said senior author Ian Douglas from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine.


The study outlined in PLOS Medicine looked at more than 160,000 diabetes patients. Patients were followed up from 1999 (when glitazones were introduced to treat diabetes) until 2013, to determine how many were diagnosed with Parkinson's disease during that period.

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