Parkinson’s disease: finally a promising treatment© Unsplash

A sparkling shot… almost magical, to treat Parkinson’s. American researchers have conducted several clinical trials, rather encouraging.

Gold nanocrystals that could restore molecules affected by neurodegenerative diseases? Really? To understand how they work, let’s take a quick look at “biology”.

The brain, in order to function properly, needs a continuous supply of energy, an energy that comes in the form of adenosine triphosphate (ATP), “a fuel” necessary for a myriad of crucial chemical reactions in living beings,” indicates Korii. It’s the coenzyme “nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD)”, which is at the origin of the production of ATP. It’s present in two forms: “an oxidized form (NAD+) and a reduced form (NADH)”.

As we age, the process that allows NAD to do its job, by switching from one form to another, becomes progressively fragile and weakened. In a person with Parkinson’s disease, for example, the weakening is much more severe and occurs more quickly.

A golden hope

In the United States, several tests have been conducted on patients affected by a neurodegenerative disease. The goal is to “restore a correct ratio of NAD in its two forms, NAD+ and NADH, which are essential for the proper functioning of brain activity”, by administering a treatment based on nanocrystals orally. Researchers at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School are rather optimistic (while remaining cautious) about the ability of the treatment “to prevent or even reverse certain neurological disabilities”.

So far, 13 people with Parkinson’s and 11 with multiple sclerosis have received the treatment, namely 120ml of this golden brew, to be taken every morning for 3 months. “A number of tests followed and these have proven that CNM-Au8 did indeed target the brain, as expected, and that NAD+ and NADH levels increased significantly. From the fourth week of treatment, patients suffering from Parkinson’s disease saw concrete improvements in motor skills.”

All that remains is to extend the test phase and offer the nanocrystals to a larger panel of patients!