Macquarie University new study could hold the key to developing therapies for devastating age-related diseases such as motor neuron disease (MND), Alzheimer’s disease, and Parkinson’s disease.
The research at Macquarie University conducted by neurobiologist, Dr. Sina Shadfar and colleagues in the Motor Neuron Disease Research Centre, reveals a protein called protein disulphide isomerase (PDI) helps repair serious deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) damage. This breakthrough opens new possibilities for therapies aimed at boosting the body’s ability to fix its own DNA, a process that becomes less efficient as we age.
Dr. Shadfar, Associate, Macquarie Medical School stated “Brain cells are very vulnerable. Unlike skin or blood cells, they don’t divide or renew so any damage that builds up in them stays and if the damage isn’t repaired, it can eventually lead to the death of these critical cells.”