Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2020 Mar;152(5):515-522.
doi: 10.1111/jnc.14902. Epub 2019 Dec 8.

Are genetic and idiopathic forms of Parkinson's disease the same disease?

Leonor Correia Guedes  1   2 , Tiago Mestre  3 , Tiago F Outeiro  4   5   6 , Joaquim J Ferreira  2   7   8
Affiliations
Free article
Review

Are genetic and idiopathic forms of Parkinson's disease the same disease?

Leonor Correia Guedes et al. J Neurochem. 2020 Mar.
Free article

Abstract

Genetic forms represent a small fraction of Parkinson's disease (PD) but their discovery has revolutionized research in the field, putting α-synuclein in the spotlight, and uncovering other key neuropathological mechanisms of the disease. The question of whether genetic and idiopathic PD (iPD) correspond to a same disease entity is not simply philosophical, has implications for the discovery of the biological background of PD and for the development of novel therapeutic strategies that may also be applicable to the larger iPD group. Here, we review the current landscape of what has been labeled genetic PD and critically discuss the rational for merging or separating genetic and idiopathic forms of PD as the same or different disease entities. We conclude by addressing the potential implications for future research.

Keywords: Parkinson's disease; genetic; idiopathic; monogenic; α-synuclein.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Aasly J. O., Vilariño-Güell C., Dachsel J. C., Webber P. J., West A. B., Haugarvoll K., Farrer M. J. (2010) Novel pathogenic LRRK2 p.Asn1437His substitution in familial Parkinson's disease. Mov. Dis. 25, 2156-2163.
    1. Abul Khair S. B., Dhanushkodi N. R., Ardah M. T., Chen W., Yang Y. and Haque M. E. (2018) Silencing of glucocerebrosidase gene in drosophila enhances the aggregation of Parkinson's disease associated α-synuclein mutant A53T and affects locomotor activity. Front. Neurosci. 12, 81.
    1. Alcalay R. N., Levy O. A., Waters C. H., Fahn S., Ford B., Kuo S.-H., Zhang X. (2015) Glucocerebrosidase activity in Parkinson's disease with and without GBA mutations. Brain 138, 2648-2658.
    1. Alves G., Forsaa E. B., Pedersen K. F., Dreetz Gjerstad M. and Larsen J. P. (2008) Epidemiology of Parkinson's disease. J. Neurol. 255, 18-32.
    1. Asselta R., Rimoldi V., Siri C., Cilia R., Guella I., Tesei S., Goldwurm S. (2014a) Glucocerebrosidase mutations in primary parkinsonism. Parkinsonism Relat. Disord. 20, 1215-1220.

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources