Significant research and several clinical trials have been done
regarding the efficacy of gene therapy in Parkinson’s disease
(PD). While many claims have been made involving numerous wonder
cures for PD, gene therapy may hold the exciting possibility of
not only delaying disease progression but also halting it
completely. Parkinson’s disease is progressive a
neurodegenerative disorder where there is steady loss of brain
cells of the substantia nigra involved in the production of the
chemical neurotransmitter dopamine. Refer to Parkinson’s Disease
Brain Chemistry for more information. Medication with levodopa
and other related drugs are the mainstay of treatment which can
only offer temporary relief but no lasting cure. Research
focused on developing other methods, such as gene therapy, which
can help to treat or modify the disease process more effectively
is continuously being done. What is gene therapy? Simply, gene
therapy involves the introduction of healthy genes into a person
with defective genes which