A gut hormone, ghrelin, is a key regulator of new nerve cells in the adult brain, a Swansea-led research team has discovered. It could help pave the way for new drugs to treat dementia in patients with Parkinson’s Disease.
Blood-borne factors such as hormones regulate the process of brain cell formation — known as neurogenesis — and cognition in adult mammals.
The research team focused on the gut hormone acyl-ghrelin (AG), which is known to promote brain cell formation. A structure change to the hormone results in two distinct forms: AG and unacylated-ghrelin (UAG).
The team, led by Dr Jeff Davies of Swansea University Medical School, studied both AG and UAG to examine their respective influences over brain cell formation.
This research is relevant to Parkinson’s as a large proportion of those with the disease experience dementia, which is linked to a loss of new nerve cells in the…
