NIH Directors Blog: "Gut-Dwelling Bacterium Consumes Parkinson’s Drug"

[Andy]

Scientists continue to uncover the many fascinating ways in which the trillions of microbes that inhabit the human body influence our health. Now comes yet another surprising discovery: a medicine-eating bacterium residing in the human gut that may affect how well someone responds to the most commonly prescribed drug for Parkinson’s disease.

There have been previous hints that gut microbes might influence the effectiveness of levodopa (L-dopa), which helps to ease the stiffness, rigidity, and slowness of movement associated with Parkinson’s disease. Now, in findings published in Science, an NIH-funded team has identified a specific, gut-dwelling bacterium that consumes L-dopa [1]. The scientists have also identified the bacterial genes and enzymes involved in the process.

https://directorsblog.nih.gov/2019/06/25/gut-dwelling-bacterium-consumes-parkinsons-drug/

 

[DokaGirl]

Interesting news. These findings may also lead the way to discoveries about how the micrbiome may effect other drug treatments. It is encouraging that the micrbiome has seemed to be gaining more research attention.

 

[chrisb]

Wasn't L dopa used to treat encephalitis lethargica patients? Could this be why the treatment became increasingly ineffective and was ultimately stopped?

 

[DokaGirl]

@chrisb, do you mean with broader use of this drug, it became increasingly ineffective? Rather like some antibiotics then.

Others can provide a more science based answer, but the movie "Awakening" indicates levodopa was used for these patients.

If researchers have wondered since the 70s about gut bug interference with L- dopa, has there been any development of alternative administration of this drug to bypass the gut?

 

[Mithriel]

Wasn't L dopa used to treat encephalitis lethargica patients? Could this be why the treatment became increasingly ineffective and was ultimately stopped?

Yes, the patients made a dramatic improvement but then gradually stopped responding. That matches a few things I have read about. When I first took metformin for diabetes I was better than I had been for 20 years but then back to where I was. very interesting.