A natural body chemical produced by the brain and referred to as a nerve cell growth factor, which has been shown in animal trials to stimulate the growth of many types of neurons. With regard to dopamine neurons, it appears to coax dying ones back into production, and thus has come to the forefront as a potential treatment for Parkinson’s disease. To date, however, the outcomes of human clinical trials using this growth factor have not been encouraging.
See Axonal retraction (or pruning), Nerve growth factor (NGF), Neurotrophic growth factor (NtGF), Parkinson’s disease