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No evidence of substantia nigra telomere shortening in Parkinson's disease

Lookup NU author(s): Professor Gavin Hudson, David Faini, Andrea Stutt, Professor Martin Eccles, Professor Dame Louise Robinson, Professor David Burn, Professor Patrick Chinnery

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Abstract

Telomeres are repetitive tracts of DNA which protect chromosomal integrity. Increased oxidative stress leads to shorter telomeres, which have been associated with several late-onset human diseases. Given independent evidence of oxidative stress and Parkinson's disease (PD), and conflicting reports of the role of telomere length in PD, we measured telomere length in both PD peripheral blood monocytes and in substantia nigra from affected individuals and controls. We confirmed previous findings of a paradoxically longer telomere length in blood from PD patients, but found no difference in telomere length in substantia nigra. Confounding factors provide a likely explanation for the findings in blood, and possibly the reduced frequency of cigarette smoking in PD patients. We conclude that telomere shortening is unlikely to be involved in the pathogenesis of PD. (C) 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Publication metadata

Author(s): Hudson G, Faini D, Stutt A, Eccles M, Robinson L, Burn DJ, Chinnery PF

Publication type: Article

Publication status: Published

Journal: Neurobiology of Aging

Year: 2011

Volume: 32

Issue: 11

Pages: 2107.e3-2107.e5

Print publication date: 27/07/2011

ISSN (print): 0197-4580

ISSN (electronic): 1558-1497

Publisher: Elsevier Inc.

URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2011.05.022

DOI: 10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2011.05.022

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