Iron Levels in Brain May Predict Parkinson’s Severity and Cognitive Decline, Study Finds
“Brain iron deposition is linked with cognitive severity in Parkinson’s disease,” published in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry. The work was developed at University College London (UCL).
A link between iron buildup, and both natural aging and neurodegenerative disorders like Parkinson’s, has been established in several studies. Apart from loss of dopamine-producing neurons, Parkinson’s is characterized by pronounced iron accumulation in two brain regions, the globus pallidus and the substantia nigra.
“Iron in the brain is of growing interest to people researching neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s and dementias,” Rimona Weil, the study lead author, said in a press release. “As you get older, iron accumulates in the brain, but it’s also linked to the build-up of harmful brain proteins, so we’re starting to find evidence that it could be useful in monitoring disease progression, and potentially even in diagnostics.”
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