HOUSTONâJustin Friendâs parents have doctoral degrees and have worked as university lecturers and researchers. So Mr. Friend might have been expected to head for a university after graduating from high school in Bryan, Texas, five years ago. Instead, he attended Texas State Technical College in Waco, and received a two-year degree in welding.
A flurry of emergent research has linked mitochondrial dysfunction to the pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease. Mitochondrial dysfunction results in impaired ATP generation, loss of cellular repair mechanisms, and cellular inefficiency.
By studying families with hereditary Parkinson's disease, scientists have identified several genes that are associated with the disorder. Studying these genes helps understand the cause of Parkinson's disease and may lead to new therapies.So far, five genes have been identified that are definitively associated with Parkinson's disease. 1  SNCA (synuclein, alpha non A4 component of amyloid precursor): SNCA makes the protein alpha-synuclein. In brain cells of individuals with Parkinson's disease, this protein aggregates in clumps called Lewy bodies. 2  Mutations in the SNCA gene are found in early-onset Parkinson's disease. 3  PARK2 (Parkinson's disease autosomal recessive, juvenile 2): The PARK2 gene makes the protein parkin.