Parkinson’s is a neurodegenerative disease that affects more than 10 million people worldwide. It is known that men are almost twice as likely as women to develop this disease, but the reasons for this disparity remain unclear. The study published at the end of 2024 in Journal of Clinical Investigation provides the beginnings of an answer: the cause is the male immune system, which reacts more aggressively to a key brain protein, PINK1.
Parkinson’s: what if our immune system played a key role?
Researchers at the Institute of Immunology in La Jolla, California, have found that in men with Parkinson’s disease, T cells, cells of the immune system, attack a key brain protein called PINK1. This protein, normally harmless, plays an essential role in the energy regulation of our brain cells. However, in certain cases, the immune system seems to confuse it with an agent pathogenic and trigger a reaction which could lead to the progressive destruction of neurones.
The results of the study are clear: in men with Parkinson’s, immune cells attacking PINK1 are six times more numerous than in healthy subjects. In sick women, this multiplication is much lower (0.7 times). If this immune difference alone is not enough to explain why men are more affected by the disease, it could be one key factor among others in the progression of Parkinson’s disease.
A simple blood test could help diagnose Parkinson’s at an earlier stage. © BillionPhotos.com, Adobe Stock
Towards innovative screening and treatments?
This hypothesis opens new perspectives. First, the possibility of developing a blood test that would make it possible to identify these specific immune cells well before the appearance of the first symptoms. Currently, the diagnostic Parkinson’s often occurs late, when the neurons are already massively destroyed. A screening Early treatment could make it possible to act upstream and slow down the progression of the disease.
This discovery could also pave the way for new treatments directly targeting the immune response. “ We could potentially develop therapies to block these cells Tnow that we know why these cells target the brain “, explains immunologist Cecilia Lindestam Arlehamn. An approach which, ultimately, could transform the management of the disease by attacking one of its underlying mechanisms, and no longer just its symptoms.
