United States: Researchers from Queensland have already conducted an international study which is to learn more about Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and also the Parkinson’s disease. ADHD affects about one in every 20 Australians, meaning many kids and adults have it.
Parkinson’s disease is even more widespread, impacting around almost 10 million people around the world. In Australia, about 38 new cases of Parkinson’s are literally treated every day, and it is a serious condition that affects movement and honestly has no cure.
As reported by the Abc.net, This study is important because it helps us understand what causes these conditions, which are becoming more common globally. Both ADHD and Parkinson’s can significantly affect the lives of those who have them, making this research vital for finding better ways to help people.
With genetic and saliva testing, the study is the largest of its kind to figure out how genetic variants affect brain structure.
Associate Professor Miguel Renteria and PhD candidate Luis García-Marín of the Queensland Institute of Medical Research (QIMR) Berghofer led 189 international researchers as they analysed DNA data and MRI scans of the brain from 76,000 participants.
The results are published Tuesday in the journal Nature Genetics.
“We then recruited 75,000 people in 19 countries for the project, who all underwent MRI scans and provided saliva samples for DNA genotyping to identify the genetic variants … that regulate the volume of specific brain structure.”
They looked at key subcortical areas — often called the ‘deep brain’ — that are important for everyday life, said Mr. García-Marín.
Included are memory formation, emotional regulation, motor control and sensory processing.
We saw more than 254 genetic variants that can affect key regions of the brain and increase your risk for the two, he said.
… some of those genetic variants are increasing or decreasing the risk of … They [the flies] have been shown to help in the case of ADHD or Parkinson’s disease,” Mr. García-Marín said.
‘It gives us insight into what we can intervene to be effective,’ said Associate professor Miguel Renteria.
“This research points to strong evidence that ADHD and Parkinson’s likely have a biological basis and that it is an important first step to understand and hopefully treat these conditions more effectively,” he noted.
“Understanding how our genes control the brain structure will enable us to prevent better, diagnose better and treat better these conditions in the future,” he explained.
The findings are significant, but more investigation is needed to establish links between genes and disease, adds Mr. García-Marín.
“I think that because of this study scientists all over the world will be able to leverage what we’ve generated in this study to keep doing research … and specifically genetics research for mental health disorders.”