Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research, Aligining Science Across Parkinson’s

Mechanisms Overwhelming Protein and Organelle Quality Control in Parkinson’s Disease

This study investigates how abnormal protein aggregation and prion-like spreading contribute to cellular damage in Parkinson’s disease (PD), a key feature in both sporadic and familial forms. The central hypothesis is that PD arises from the failure of cellular quality control (QC) mechanisms, and enhancing these systems could offer new therapeutic strategies. Using advanced molecular tools in disease-relevant cells, researchers aim to understand how different PD-related protein aggregates, including those from patients, disrupt cellular pathways and functions. Genetic approaches will help identify proteins that support or hinder the processing of these toxic aggregates. The findings are expected to clarify which cellular functions are most affected by aggregate toxicity and how PD-linked mutations interfere with proteostasis. Ultimately, this research could improve understanding of PD mechanisms and inform new diagnostic and treatment options. In the future, identified QC defects may become targets for drug discovery to restore cellular balance.

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