Neurogenic Pathways

There is some evidence that PD could be due to altered neurogenesis or inappropriate axonal connections during development. There is clear evidence that new neurons can be generated in the adult brain, in particular within the dentate gyrus of the hippocampus and subventricular regions of the forebrain. More relevant for Parkinson’s disease, there are reports of ongoing neurogenesis within the substantia nigra (Zhao et al., 2003), although these findings have not been confirmed by others (Frielingsdorf et al., 2004). Therapeutically, inducing endogenous neurogenesis has been proposed as one means by which to effectively repair damaged tissues, including the loss of dopamine neurons in Parkinson’s disease.