Blocking bad memories – stored in a critical area of your brain can significantly upgrade and refine treatment for Parkinson's, a new study has revealed. Researchers from the University of Alabama at Birmingham who conducted the study on mice, found brain cells respond to medication in a way that resembles processes in memory formation.

According to scientists, L-DOPA or Levodopa aims to replace the deficit of the chemical dopamine in the brains of those affected by Parkinson's - it's not a cure, but it can ease the severity of the disease. Unfortunately, after prolonged use for several years, it triggers dyskinesia - a movement disorder that causes involuntary muscle movements. It can affect one or many parts of the body and can be chronic or short-lived.

"Instead of looking for a completely alternative treatment, we wanted to see if there was a way to prevent dyskinesia from developing in the first place," said Dr. David Figge, a pathologist from the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

In tests conducted on mice, Dr. Figge and his team tried to identify why L-DOPA was leading to dyskinesia, finding evidence of activity in a part of the brain where motor control is handled, known as striatum. Dr. Figge said further analysis deduced a few mechanisms that looked similar to the process of memory formation.

The team said neurons – called D1-MSNs were responsible for most of the activity, expressing genes that suggested they were being activated by L-DOPA and forming connections with other neurons – a key process in making memories. However, one of the genes expressed by D1-MSNs cells produces a protein called Activin A, which when blocked in further experiments on mice, the onset of dyskinesia also stopped.

"It seemed like the brain was forming a motor memory, and each time a patient received L-DOPA treatment, this memory then recalled upon every subsequent L-DOPA exposure," said Dr. Karen Jaunarajs, a neurologist from UAB. "In essence, by prohibiting [Activin A] from functioning, we were able to halt the development of dyskinesia symptoms in the mouse models, effectively erasing the brain's memory of the motor response to L-DOPA," she added.

Even when patients pause L-DOPA treatment, as soon as it restarts, the dyskinesia comes back.

According to scientists, human studies are needed to validate the happenings in mouse experiments, despite the mouse models having strong similarities to humans, and often used in scientific research. The hope is that if dyskinesia can be stopped, L-DOPA can continue its work in reducing the stiffness, rigidity, slow movement, and tremors that come along with Parkinson's.

Dyskinesia is a condition that can affect Parkinson's patients by causing involuntary, uncontrollable movements. Doctors say these movements can be mild and non-bothersome, or they can be severe enough to interfere with daily life.

Dyskinesia involves one body part or the entire body and includes: