Parkinson’s disease is a debilitating condition that can show subtle signs years before experts make an official diagnosis.
As well as tremors being one of its most known symptoms, recent research has found also found other factors like vivid dreaming can also be a Parkinson’s red flag. Scientists have also found that subtle differences in a person’s voice may be an indicator for the disease that affects the brain
A potential early indicator for Parkinson’s disease is linked to vocal symptoms that could precede the more commonly recognised movement-related issues by years, as previously reported by The Daily Record.
Research, published in journal PLOS ONE in 2022, highlights that a lesser-known sign of Parkinson’s is a soft, monotonous voice, which can manifest long before the condition’s physical symptoms, such as tremors and stiffness, become apparent.
Conducted by neuroscientists in Julie E Miller’s lab at the University of Arizona, the study delved into how the disease affects brain regions responsible for vocal production. Assistant Professor Miller commented at the time: “We have this big gap here – we don’t know how this disease impacts the brain regions for vocal production, and this is really an opportunity to intervene early and come up with better treatments.”
The team used zebra finches, songbirds from Australia, to explore the connection between vocal changes and a gene associated with Parkinson’s called alpha-synuclein.
Lead author César A. Medina explained that birds are an excellent model for studying human speech and voice pathways because young finches learn their songs from older males in a similar fashion to human babies learning language from their parents, and the relevant part of a finch’s brain is organised much like ours.
Medina explained: “These similarities across behaviour, anatomy and genetics allow us to use the zebra finches as a model for human speech and voice.”
Researchers began by recording the birds’ songs to establish a baseline before introducing a copy of the gene associated with Parkinson’s into some of the birds, while others did not receive it. This allowed for a comparison of the effects on their vocalisations.
Recordings were taken immediately after the gene was introduced, and then at one, two, and three months intervals. Using computer software, the team analysed changes in pitch, amplitude, and duration of the songs.
Early results indicated that the gene linked to Parkinson’s did impact the birds’ song production. Birds with the gene sang less frequently after two months and started singing sessions more quietly and briefly three months post-introduction.
These vocal changes mirrored those observed in Parkinson’s disease patients. To confirm the connection between these vocal changes and brain alterations, the focus was directed towards Area X in the brain, where increased levels of alpha-synuclein protein were detected, confirming that the gene indeed caused changes in the brain that affected vocal production, according to Medina.
He explained that this link had been anticipated by earlier Parkinson’s studies, but evidence was not definitive. Miller emphasised the importance of translating these discoveries to human data, which could lead to improved Parkinson’s diagnoses and treatments that are identified well before motor symptoms prompt a patient to see a neurologist.
The ultimate aim of the Miller Lab, she mentioned, is to collaborate with other scientists and companies to create medications targeting alpha-synuclein and other genes linked to Parkinson’s. Medina highlighted that achieving this would mean “we could stop the progression of Parkinson’s disease before it becomes a detrimental impediment to the quality of life for the patient.”
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