UCLA receives award for research

By David King

Daily Bruin Contributor

“Hope” was the buzz-word at Thursday’s
Inauguration of the Morris K. Udall Center of Excellence for
Parkinson’s Disease Research.

Awarded to UCLA by the National Institute for Neurological
Disease and Stroke ““ along with a $3 million grant ““
the center is one of a handful nationwide, and the only one west of
the Mississippi River.

The center is a multidisciplinary effort in which UCLA
scientists, clinicians and neurosurgeons work together to research
and find treatments for Parkinson’s, a degenerative disease
believed to be caused by the death of specific neurons in the
brain.

Held at the Fowler Museum of Cultural History, the
ceremony’s location was significant due to the museum’s
current exhibit on former boxer Muhammad Ali, who has
Parkinson’s.

Allan Tobin, Brain Research Institute director, said the
ceremony was really for the patients who willingly trust doctors
and undergo experimental research.

“Trust is just one part of the equation,” said
Robins. “The other side is hope ““ hope that we will
find the cure to this disease.”

Although the Udall Center started at UCLA nine months ago,
Provost of the Medical Sciences, Dr. Gerald Levey, said UCLA has
been dedicated to investigating the disease since the 1960s.

“All of us know that UCLA has been a leader in
Parkinson’s Disease research for the past 30 years,”
Levey said. “(With the Udall Center) we now have quite a
national and international profile.”

Levey added that the center is a tribute to the teamwork that
takes place at the UCLA School of Medicine.

“We have always tried to encourage collaboration and close
working relationships between schools,” he said, referring to
projects between fields such as genetics, neuroscience and
engineering, among others.

The ceremony also served as an update on current research on the
disease being done at UCLA.

Although the exact cause of Parkinson’s remains unknown,
Udall Center Director Marie-Francoise Chesselet suggests
researchers are on the right track to finding the cure.

The disease is caused by the death of dopaminergic neurons which
control different reactions in the brain, Chesselet said.

She compared the neurons to a “very sophisticated traffic
light,” that decides whether information can pass or not
depending on the amount of traffic flow in the brain.

The death of these neurons cause the overactivity of subthalamic
neurons, and such overactivity is the direct cause of most symptoms
of Parkinson’s, she said.

Despite the amount of research she presented, Chesselet reminded
the audience that science has a long way to go for the answers.

“The brain is very complex, and it is extremely difficult
to comprehend the consequences of the loss of specific cells like
dopaminergic neurons,” Chesselet said.

Colleague Jeff Bronstein, Movement Disorders Program director,
said rescuing neurons is the center’s main goal.

“There’s a large number of medications, but really,
what we’d like to do is interfere in the death of these
cells,” Bronstein said.

“If we can intervene at only one point in the brain, we
will be able to improve the lives of people who have the
disease,” he added.

Causes of the disease also remain a mystery, although Bronstein
said scientists believe it is a combination of gene mutation and
environmental toxins, like pesticides.

According to Bronstein, the San Joaquin Valley uses an estimated
250 million pounds of pesticides a year, and also has a high
Parkinson’s disease mortality rate.

These findings were supported by audience member Sharin Klisser,
director of the American Parkinson Disease Association.

Klisser said her office receives 1,500 of its 2,000 calls per
month from San Joaquin Valley residents.

Although they could not shed new light on the exact causes of
Parkinson’s, the presenters remained positive.

“This is a time for hope for everyone concerned with
Parkinson’s disease,” Robins said. “The
improvement in technology has given us new

optimism.”

Klisser, who said she attends many similar research update
sessions throughout the year, found Thursday’s inauguration
to be particularly encouraging.

“(Today) was about hope, incredible hope,” Klisser
said, referring to the information session. “Everything about
it has been positive and optimistic ““ it’s so
exciting.”