Scientists from the University of Rochester Medical Center and Columbia University identified a protein that may be the key to processes associated with Parkinson’s disease. The said protein “could also play a role in muting the high from methamphetamine and other addictive drugs.” The findings of the said study were published online in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

The discovery of the action of organic cation transporter 3 (oct3) has answered several questions on the occurrence of brain damage that brings about symptoms such as stiffness, slow movement, tremor and postural instability. These symptoms are typically manifested in patients suffering from Parkinson’s disease but there are lots of other possible causes for this group of symptoms otherwise known as ‘parkinsonism.’

The researchers found that oct3 is critical to the distribution of toxic chemicals into the dying brain cells as manifested in Parkinson’s. Oct3 is a kind of protein that essentially works to shepherd molecules into and out of cells and was also found to be associated in how the brain responds to addictive drugs such as methamphetamine.

The exact cause of Parkinson’s is still a medical mystery as there are cases that appear to have a genetic basis while in others, the disease is brought by a combination of genetic vulnerabilities and environmental factors. All that has been established so far is that the disease is a result of the death of the dopamine neurons. These brain cells are responsible for producing chemicals that enable another part of the brain to function.

For years, scientists have been trying to find out what makes cells die. This new study supports the idea that astrocytes may play a role in this phenomenon. “Astrocytes are definitely much more than support cells in the brain,” says Kim Tieu, Ph.D, from the University of Rochester Medical Center’s Department of Environmental Medicine and the study’s corresponding author. “Scientists are discovering their involvement in many diseases. The latest results point to their role in Parkinson’s disease.”

The researchers studied how the brain reacts to a chemical called MPTP. This chemical works to inflict damage on the same cells that are affected in Parkinson’s. The scientists found that it is oct3 that leads the toxic chemical out of the astrocytes and shepherds it around the dopamine neurons. At this point, the dopamine transporter picks up the chemical and gets it inside the neuron.

Blocking the action of oct3 in mice prevented cell death even when MPTP is still present in the brain. “The neurons affected in Parkinson’s disease don’t live in isolation in the brain,” says Serge Psedborski, MD, neurology professor at the Columbia University. “You must understand the brain environment as a whole to understand disease. For many years, people had a neuron-centric view of neurodegenerative diseases. But more and more scientists are realizing that if you wish to understand the process of neurodegeneration, you must take into account the astrocytes, the microglia, as well as the neurons. Astrocyte maintain an intimate relationship with neurons and to understand one, you have to understand the other.”

The study also looked into the role of oct3 in the brain’s response to addictive drugs. In this case, the protein works to get astrocytes to soak up the excess dopamine from around the neurons. People feel euphoria when dopamine isn’t removed from the space as quickly as it should. This can also result in brain damage. The findings suggest that those who have reduced oct3 levels in the brain are more susceptible to developing addiction.

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