• Question: how do you get parkinson's

    Asked by stevethecamel to Damien, Rachael, Simon, Suzi, Tim on 20 Jun 2011.
    • Photo: Rachael Ward

      Rachael Ward answered on 20 Jun 2011:

      Hi @stevethecamel,

      Parkinson’s disease is caused by the neurons in part of your brain called the substantia nigra (the name means “black substance” in Latin because the brain tissue here is normally quite dark. This area of the brain and the nueortransmitter (called dopamine) that these neurons release is important for control of movement which causes the shakiness and slow movements of someone with Parkinsons disease.

      However, what actually causes the loss of cells in the substantia nigra in the first place is less well understood. Most people with Parkinson’s disease have “idiopathic” Parkinson’s disease (which means it has no specific known cause). A small proportion of cases can be attributed to genetic factors but we need to do a lot more research to help us understand how Parkinsons is caused.

      I hope this helps answer your question

    • Photo: Suzi Gage

      Suzi Gage answered on 20 Jun 2011:

      Hi @stevethecamel
      You can see from mine and Rachael’s answers to this how we do different types of science.

      The causes of Parkinson’s are for the most part not known, it doesn’t seem like a certain environment will make you more likely to get it. However, there is a certain type of Parkinson’s which is known to be inherited via genes. But it’s not only one gene, so if a parent has it that doesn’t mean you’ll definitely get it.

      There are some experiments that have suggested that nicotine (the active drug in tobacco smoke) may actually PROTECT against Parkinson’s, but unfortunately most people who smoke tend to die younger from other problems such as lung cancer, so the evidence is not very clear.

      I hope this answers your question a bit!

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