Local researchers have found a new method to curb the progress of Parkinson's disease.

A research team at Severance Hospital's Department of Neurology led by Professor Lee Phil-hyu said Thursday that it injected human mesenchymal stem cells(MSCs) into animals diagnosed with the degenerative disease and found out that MSCs inhibit the propagation of alpha-synuclein within the animals’ brains.

Alpha-synuclein is a toxic protein that causes and worsens Parkinson’s disease.

The team said galectin-1, a substance derived from MSCs, plays an important role in controlling the cell-to-cell transmission of alpha-synuclein.

The findings were posted in the February online edition of Cell Reports.