Development of Pharmacological Mechanism of Chinese Medicine Gastrodia Elata in the Treatment of Parkinson’s Disease

Abstract

Parkinson's disease is a neurodegenerative disease with a high prevalence in the elderly population and is characterized by resting tremor, muscle tension, limited movement and postural balance disorders. The cause of Parkinson's disease remains unknown and there are no viable treatment options. Although Western medications can sometimes replace dopamine, there may be serious consequences due to their persistent nature, including diminished therapeutic efficacy and side effects such as the "on-off phenomenon". Chinese medicine has achieved remarkable results in the treatment of Parkinson's disease, in which the efficacy of Gastrodia elata is particularly prominent, it has a variety of pharmacological functions such as quenching the wind and opening the collaterals, calming the liver and suppressing the yang, balancing the yin and yang, and it has a long history of medicinal use, and it can be an effective treatment for Parkinson's disease. Gastrodia elata is one of the herbs used to treat Parkinson's disease. In this article, we outline the mechanism of action of Gastrodia elata in Parkinson's disease through in-depth exploration of relevant information. We focused on alleviating neuroinflammatory responses, anti-oxidative stress and inhibiting apoptosis, and analyzed these signaling pathways in detail, hoping to provide valuable references for the research and treatment of Parkinson's disease.