Neurotrophic effect of peptide exendin-4 in rodent models of parkinson’s disease

Parkinson’s disease was first described in 1817 by James
Parkinson in his “Essay on the Shaking Palsy”. Currently, PD
is described as the most common neurodegenerative disorder
characterized by a chronic and progressive neurodegeneration,
affecting 3% of the population over the age of 65.
The disease is anatomically associated with a degeneration
and loss of dopaminergic neurons which extend from SN to
caudate putamen via the nigrostriatal pathway. Macroscopic
characterisation of the disease include the presence of Lewy
bodies and the presence of a paler SN associated with the loss
of neuromelanin.