By Stephen Matthews Health Editor For Mailonline
Published: 01:00 BST, 5 June 2019 | Updated: 01:00 BST, 5 June 2019
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Hope of finding a way to halt Parkinson's has been raised as scientists believe they have discovered how to stop it in its tracks.
Giving mice a protein-busting molecule reversed signs of the progressive condition in rodents treated before the disorder took hold.
The molecule, called anle138b, halted the build-up of a toxic protein clumps in the brain - considered a hallmark of Parkinson's.
Parkinson's UK hope the discovery could 'prove crucial' in stopping the inevitable progression of the condition in patients.
Giving mice a protein-busting molecule reversed signs of the progressive condition in rodents treated before the disorder took hold (stock)
Parkinson’s affects one in 500 people, and around 127,000 people in the UK and one million in the US live with the condition.
It causes muscle stiffness, slowness of movement, tremors, sleep disturbance, chronic fatigue, an impaired quality of life and can lead to severe disability.
There is currently no cure and no way of stopping the progression of the disease, but hundreds of scientific trials are underway to try and change that.
Researchers at the University of Cambridge tested the effects of anle138b in mice when they nine months old.
By this time, the rodents had lower levels of dopamine, causing them symptoms similar to those seen in adults.
For instance, the mice had slightly different gait. In humans, this often causes 'shuffling' of feet when