[thedoc (OP)]

Kick-starting the programme, I went in search of answers about Parkinson's disease.  First up, I wanted to get some idea of how many people it affects and how.
Read a transcript of the interview by clicking here

or [chapter podcast=1000072 track=13.01.20/Naked_Neuroscience_13.01.20_1000320.mp3] Listen to it now[/chapter] or [download as MP3]

[Lmnre]

Parkinson's is lousy. I know.

Tremors and stiffness are obvious and somewhat troublesome, but they're not the worst symptoms. Eventual dementia and/or paralysis. Sleeping disorders and restless legs are simply miserable. Mood disorders and lack of facial expression, which can effect social interaction. Your experts forgot to mention excessive drooling and not blinking often enough ... so, while one part of your body is producing too much liquid, another part two inches away dries out.

Taking dopamine has a downside in that it increases the decline of the body's natural dopamine production. So, while it does help, it also intensifies the disease.

One novel treatment being tested in Britain is using viruses to help produce dopamine.