Levodopa: The Gold Standard Treatment for Parkinson's Disease

Levodopa (brand name Sinemet) is an amino acid that is directly converted to dopamine in the brain. Dopamine controls motor function and its loss is responsible for the motor symptoms of Parkinson's disease. Levodopa replaces this deficit and remains the most effective pharmacotherapy for the motor features of Parkinson's, including tremor, stiffness, and slowness of movement.

In Parkinson's disease, there is loss of dopamine-producing neurons in a region of the midbrain called the substantia nigra. This loss causes dopamine levels to decrease in areas such as the striatum, disrupting normal movement control and coordination. Levodopa passes the blood–brain barrier and enters dopamine pathways in the brain. There, it is converted to dopamine and can perform dopamine's normal functions, thus counteracting the motor symptoms caused by dopamine deficiency in Parkinson's.

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