1988
Year 08
Prof. Kevin D. Barron
Professor of Neurology Albany Medical College, Albany, New York, USA
THEME: WHAT HAPPENS TO THE NERVOUS SYSTEM WHEN WE AGE?
What is the specific cause of primary ageing? Is it the decline in the enzymes
(organic catalysts) necessary to synthesise neurotransmitters? Or is it an error in
genetic coding and enzyme production? Or has the genetic system been
programmed to run down after a specific period? The stepping up of the pace
of neurobiological research exploring all these directions heralds hope for the
patient with Alzheimer’s disease. New compounds like THA, with an action
similar to acetylcholine and tropins like nerve growth hormone have proven
beneficial in Alzheimer’s disease. Attempts at transplanting tissue from the
salivary gland (containing nerve growth hormone) and adrenal medulla
transplants in Parkinson’s disease have opened up a whole new vista of
neurological achievement. However, its significance in neurological patient care
can be evaluated and established only over a period of research and trials.
