{"id":35767,"date":"2019-01-10T13:15:58","date_gmt":"2019-01-10T18:15:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/pharmacy-draft\/?p=35767"},"modified":"2019-01-24T12:01:26","modified_gmt":"2019-01-24T17:01:26","slug":"fruit-flies-help-uri-researchers-seek-natural-parkinsons-treatments","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/pharmacy\/2019\/01\/10\/fruit-flies-help-uri-researchers-seek-natural-parkinsons-treatments\/","title":{"rendered":"Fruit flies help URI researchers seek natural Parkinson’s treatments"},"content":{"rendered":"

Bioactive Botanical Research Lab in the College of Pharmacy is leader in plant-based medicinal research<\/em><\/p>\n

By Ross Balding<\/strong><\/p>\n

There has been considerable buzz around the Bioactive Botanical Research Laboratory in the University of Rhode Island\u2019s College of Pharmacy lately. That\u2019s partly because researchers there have a new ally in their quest to find a new treatment for Parkinson\u2019s disease \u2014 the fruit fly.<\/p>\n

Researchers \u2014 led by pharmacy Professor Navindra Seeram and interdisciplinary neuroscience Ph.D. candidate Shelby Johnson and \u2014 are working with the insects to test the effectiveness of natural compounds as treatments for the neurodegenerative disease. They have been administering multiple compounds to the flies \u2014 which have Parkinson\u2019s through either genetic modification or exposure to toxins \u2014 including Equol, a gut microbial metabolite of certain isoflavones found in soybeans, which are known to act as plant-based estrogens.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn Parkinson\u2019s, males have a higher incidence rate than females, and women have a higher chance of being diagnosed after menopause,\u201d Johnson said. \u201cSo, there\u2019s this hypothesis of estrogen being protective, which drove us to look into plant-based estrogens.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"beaker<\/p>\n

Other compounds that could become treatments include a maple syrup extract, which Seeram has researched extensively to treat a host of ailments; and an extract from the seeds of the Mucuna pruriens, <\/em>a tropical legume, which is a natural source of L-dopa and has been used for thousands of years in Ayurveda, a form of traditional medicine originating from the Indian subcontinent.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have also looked at certain key inflammatory biomarkers in the fly brains,\u201d Johnson said. \u201cwhile the transgenic and toxin-induced models had increased inflammation, treating with the natural products reduced these biomarkers.\u201d<\/p>\n

One method of testing a compound\u2019s effectiveness in treating Parkinson’s is called negative geotaxis, a common technique used in fruit fly research. It involves tapping a tube containing the flies so they fall to the bottom, and then counting how many of the flies have climbed up past the halfway line on the tube at different time intervals. This is especially relevant to Parkinson’s testing because it measures the flies\u2019 mobility after being given a natural compound.<\/p>\n

There is still much to learn from the on-going study, but preliminary results of the tests have been promising. Flies with toxin-induced Parkinson\u2019s given the Mucuna pruriens seed extract have demonstrated increased climbing ability. Johnson published these results over the summer in the journal, Nutrients<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"student<\/p>\n

The next step in the study is to further analyze the effects of single compounds isolated from the extract on both toxin-induced and transgenic Parkinson\u2019s models in the flies.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the future, we also plan to do a more in-depth analysis of proteins involved in these protective mechanisms,\u201d said Johnson, noting she has a personal motivation to study Parkinson\u2019s and help find better treatments, the subject of her dissertation. \u201cMy initial reasoning for getting into it was because I have two family members with Parkinson\u2019s and I know about four or five family friends that have it as well.\u201d<\/p>\n

Founded by Seeram, who is also an affiliate faculty member of URI\u2019s George & Anne Ryan Institute for Neuroscience<\/a>, the Bioactive Botanical Research Laboratory<\/a> at URI is among the foremost labs involved in plant-based medicinal research in the United States. Seeram, who has extensively researched the medicinal properties of plants, has notably discovered the potential for maple leaf extract to be used as natural treatments for such ailments as diabetes and Alzheimer\u2019s, as well as natural skin health and beauty applications. The lab\u2019s work aims to boost the local maple market<\/a>, increasing sales by as much as $20 million a year.<\/p>\n

The College of Pharmacy<\/a> is part of the URI Academic Health Collaborative<\/a>, which also includes the Colleges of Health Sciences<\/a> and Nursing<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Ross Balding is a senior journalism major and intern with the URI Academic Health Collaborative.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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