Figure 1.

Therapeutic approaches to Parkinson’s disease. Typical treatment modalities for Parkinson’s disease, such as DBS and pharmaceuticals (L-DOPA and Carbidopa), may amplify the pro-inflammatory environment of PD by preferentially stimulating M1 microglial differentiation and inflammatory cytokine release. These cytokines can also increase hepcidin, an acute phase protein, from the liver. Stem cells may act via the bystander effect to minimize this neuroinflammation by shifting microglial differentiation to M2 and increasing anti-inflammatory cytokines.