A new study examining rodent subjects suggest that Parkinson’s disease may develop amid COVID-19 contagion.
The research was publicized in the journal Movement Disorders.
In the study, although COVID-19 did not directly affect dopaminergic neurons in the basal ganglia, low dose of MPTP after recovering from contagion resulted in Parkinson’s disease neuronal changes.
“K18-hACE2 mice were infected with SARS-CoV-2 to induce mild to moderate disease,” according to the study. “After 38 days recovery, mice were administered a non-lesion inducing dose of the parkinsonian toxin MPTP and euthanized 7 days later. Subsequent neuroinflammation and SNpc dopaminergic neuron loss was determined and compared to SARS-CoV-2 or MPTP alone.”
“Our observations have important implications for long-term public health, given the number of people that have survived SARS-CoV-2 infection as well as for future public policy regarding infection mitigation,” the authors determined.
“However, it will be critical to determine if other agents known to increase risk of PD also have synergistic effects with SARS-CoV-2 and are abrogated by vaccination.”
