In their study, published in the journal PLoS One on Sept. 14, the researchers identified the same abnormalities in patient neurons and digestive neurons. Furthermore, the severity of the lesions observed in the digestive tract was correlated with the severity of the disease.
While the study of the central nervous system is only possible after the death of people with Parkinson’s disease, the researchers were interested in colon biopsies performed by 39 patients, including 29 affected by the pathology.
Results, scientists have discovered many abnormalities in neurons of the central nervous system identical to those spotted in digestive neurons. The researchers were also able to establish a link between the size of the lesions observed and the severity of Parkinson’s disease.
“The progress of the disease could thus be determined from the analysis of simple colonic biopsies carried out at the hospital during colonoscopies or rectosigmoidoscopies. If our results are confirmed on a large scale, it would be possible to make a diagnosis of the severity of Parkinson’s disease during the patient’s lifetime and to adjust treatment and care”, explains Pascal Derkinderen, lead author of the study.
