Michael J. Fox Foundation and JAX Collaborate to Distribute Parkinson's Disease Models
JAX® NOTES Issue 514, Summer 2009
More hope is on the way to the millions of people worldwide who suffer from Parkinson's disease (PD). The Michael J. Fox Foundation (MJFF) is providing funding to JAX to distribute new Parkinson's mouse models. Actor Michael J. Fox, known for his roles in television sitcoms such as Spin City and Family Ties, became a spokesperson and advocate for Parkinson's research when he was struck with the disease at the height of his acting career. Thanks to these new funds, JAX's Parkinson's Disease Mouse Model Resource will be used to enable high-impact collaborations in Parkinson's research.
Dr. Mike Sasner, Director of the Parkinson's
Disease Mouse Models Resource at JAX
What is Parkinson's disease?
Parkinson's is a degenerative disease caused by the death of neurons that produce dopamine, a neurotransmitter essential for proper muscle coordination, movement, and balance. Parkinson's symptoms vary from person to person. The most evident symptoms include resting tremors, slow movement, instability, stiffness, problems walking, and reduced facial expression. Other symptoms include mild to severe cognitive dysfunction and mood disorders such as depression and apathy, difficulty sleeping, loss of the sense of smell, constipation, difficulty speaking and swallowing, low blood pressure, and drooling.
Dopamine replacement therapy is available, but alleviates only some of these symptoms. Additionally, dopamine replacement brings severe side effects, and its effectiveness diminishes over time. Electrical stimulation of certain brain structures is effective for some patients, but such surgery is highly invasive. At least one million Americans and six million people worldwide are believed to have PD (estimates vary due to the absence of biomarkers that would allow for objective diagnosis prior to autopsy), though some patients are diagnosed as early as age 30.
Mouse models are essential in preclinical trials for developing improved Parkinson's therapies. Researchers use models to better understand the basic mechanisms of PD, as well as the genetic and environmental factors that may precipitate or contribute to the disease.
Various Parkinson's mouse models have been genetically modified to express the mutations similar to those found in people with the disease. Many of these models have been created with partial or full funding from The Michael J. Fox Foundation.
With the ultimate goal of speeding improved treatments and a cure for PD, MJFF employs various strategies to increase collaboration and resource sharing in the PD research community. For this reason, scientists funded by MJFF to create mouse models of PD are required to share successful models with other Parkinson's researchers. In working with JAX, MJFF seeks to make this sharing as efficient and feasible as possible by leveraging JAX's existing Parkinson's Disease Mouse Model Resource, directed by Dr. Michael Sasner, Associate Director of Genetic Resource Science for Bioinformatics and Model Development at JAX.
JAX's Parkinson's Resource already distributes numerous models, including special strains in which researchers can inactivate certain genes or label certain neurons with fluorescent protein markers to monitor their viability. The collaboration with MJFF will greatly improve the diversity and utility of JAX's PD models.
