The Appendix May Play a Role in Parkinson's Disease

Anna Normand

AP Biology

Mr. Ippolito

4 November 2018

Cunningham, Aimee. “The Appendix May Play a Role in Parkinson's Disease.” Science News, 2 Nov. 2018, www.sciencenews.org/article/appendix-implicated-parkinsons-disease?tgt=nr.

The scientific article I read this week described an apparent connection between the appendix and the development of Parkinson’s disease. Parkinson’s disease is a neurodegenerative disease that affects movement, coordination, and balance, and affects more than 10 million people worldwide. Although the exact cause of the disease is unknown, but a marker of the disease is the death of neurons (nerve cells) in the area of the brain which controls movement. The subject of this article is a study done through analysis of nearly 1.7 million Swedish people throughout their lives, sometimes for over 50 years. The lead researcher, Viviane Labrie, a neuroscientist at the Van Andel Research Institution, and her team, discovered a possible connection between the removal of the appendix and the risk of developing Parkinson’s. The finding showed that removing the appendix was associated in a 19% drop in the risk of developing the disease. The researchers also studied the differences in urban areas vs. rural areas, and found that rural residents are more at risk for developing the disease. The researchers attributed this risk to possible pesticide exposure in rural areas. The researchers believe that Lewy bodies, or clumped up bits of a protein, can travel from the gut up the main nerve that connects to the brain. Because Lewy body buildup is associated with Parkinson’s, the researchers believe that the markers of Parkinson’s disease may show themselves first in the gut.

The scientific importance of this new connection should not be underestimated. Parkinson’s disease is mostly a mystery to modern scientists, and its causes have not yet been determined. Because of lack of knowledge on how to prevent the disease, most research is focused on treatment. This new information could be the key to developing early or even preemptive treatments for Parkinson’s. Researchers believe that by preventing buildup of Lewy bodies in the gut, they could possibly prevent the spread of the bodies from the gut to the brain, and thus prevent the disease.

I thought this article presented information in a concise and understandable way. Their research, although very complicated, was presented so that someone without medical education could understand, and I liked the way that the information was given and conclusions drawn. However, I thought that the article did not touch enough on the possible treatments stemming from the connection to the appendix. Personally, I am wondering if appendix removal will be considered as a preemptive treatment for those who may develop Parkinson’s, or if removal of the appendix can slow the spread of the disease once contracted. I would have liked if the author had drawn more conclusions from that discovery. I think that if the author gave more information on how this research would change the care and treatment of those with Parkinson’s, the article would be more complete and more informative.