“Parkinson’s is a rare disease that affects 2 per cent of the population above 55 years, so the increase in risk is not necessarily a cause for panic,” said Richard Smeyne, Director from the Thomas Jefferson University, US
SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for the Covid-19 pandemic, could increase the risk of brain degeneration as seen in Parkinson’s disease, finds a study conducted on mice.
The new research, published in the journal Movement Disorders, finds that the novel Coronavirus can make the mouse brain more susceptible to a toxin that induces nerve-cell loss seen in Parkinson’s.
“Parkinson’s is a rare disease that affects 2 per cent of the population above 55 years, so the increase in risk is not necessarily a cause for panic,” said Richard Smeyne, Director from the Thomas Jefferson University, US.
“But understanding how Coronavirus impacts the brain can help us prepare for the long-term consequences of this pandemic,” he added.
The new findings are built on previous evidence which shows that viruses can make brain cells or neurons more susceptible to damage or death.
In a previous study, the researchers found that mice infected with the H1N1 strain of influenza responsible for the 2009 flu pandemic, were more susceptible to MPTP – a toxin that is known to induce some of the characteristic features of Parkinson’s: primarily the loss of neurons expressing the chemical dopamine and increased inflammation in the basal ganglia, a brain region that is critical for movement.
Later studies in humans showed that influenza nearly doubled the risk of developing Parkinson’s disease within 10 years after initial infection.