Probiotic for parkinsonists

GM bacteria synthesize drugs for Parkinson's disease directly in the patient's body

Sergey Vasiliev, Naked Science

American scientists have obtained a line of genetically modified E. coli bacteria that can live directly in the human intestine and produce levodopa — an effective remedy for Parkinsonism, which patients need continuously. They told about this on April 3 in a report made for the annual meeting of the American Society of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapy (Padhi et al., Emerging Microbiome Genetic Engineering Technology for Stable Levodopa Delivery in Parkinson's Disease).

Parkinsonism is a slowly progressive neurodegenerative disease characteristic of elderly people. It is manifested by pronounced coordination disorders, involuntary movements and tremor, which prevents the performance of even the simplest actions, sometimes including swallowing. The cause of Parkinson's disease is considered to be the mass death of neurons that produce dopamine — an important neurotransmitter that, in particular, regulates motor activity.

It is not yet possible to "resurrect" these cells, and this condition remains incurable. One of the few effective remedies for Parkinsonism is levodopa, a dopamine precursor substance that exhibits a similar effect to it. Patients need it constantly to replace the lack of a "natural" neurotransmitter, and with any interruption in the reception, symptoms quickly return.

Bacteria obtained by the team of Professor Anumantha Kanthasamy from the University of Georgia (USA) can solve this problem. The new E. coli Nissle 1917 (EcN) escherichia coli line can supply the body with levodopa continuously. The effectiveness was confirmed in experiments with laboratory mice serving as a model of Parkinsonism. The microbes provided them with a stable supply of medicine, which was reflected in the improvement of the motor and cognitive functions of the animals.

©Piyush Padhi, University of Georgia

It is required to receive a bacterial preparation daily, and by adjusting its amount, it is possible to control the level of levodopa entering the body. In addition, the activity of the gene responsible for drug synthesis in GM microbes depends on a rare sugar — rhamnose. Therefore, the dosage of levodopa can be changed by supplying bacteria with less or more rhamnose.  According to scientists, such a bacterial system may prove to be an effective means of delivering drugs for other diseases that require constant medication, including depression and Alzheimer's disease.

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