UNCG undergraduate biology researcher John McCormick — guided by UNCG professor Zhenquan Jia in the molecular toxicology lab  —  determined that people who consume more coffee are less likely to develop Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s.  (We’ll drink to that!)

http://ure.uncg.edu/prod/cweekly/2014/11/26/parkinsons-and-alzheimers/

Previous studies have found that many people with neurodegenerative diseases have high concentrations of a molecule called peroxynitrite — a free radical — in their neural cells.  Those higher levels may cause neural cell damage that characterize Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s.

McCormick recently  demonstrated that caffeine — an antioxidant — specifically scavenges peroxynitrite molecules before they can damage DNA.  Their research results will be published, encouraging novel treatments for Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.