Researchers have discovered how to block cell death. This finding could lead to new treatments for neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's.
The team at the WEHI in Melbourne, Australia, has identified a small molecule that can selectively block cell death.
The findings, published in Science Advances, provide the foundation for the next generation of neuroprotective drugs for degenerative diseases, for which there are currently no cures or treatments that can halt their progression.
At a glance
- Researchers have discovered how to block cell death – a key first step towards slowing neurodegenerative diseases.
- The study by the WEHI team, which includes researchers from the Parkinson's Disease Research Centre, has provided new insights into the mechanisms of cell death and how to control it.
- The discovery was enabled by the advanced screening technologies of the National Drug Discovery Centre.
A new hope in the fight against degenerative diseases
Every day, millions of cells in our body are programmed to die. However, excessive cell death can cause degenerative diseases such as Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's disease, with the premature death of brain cells being a cause of the symptoms of these diseases.
Professor Grant Dewson, a co-author of the study and head of the WEHI Centre for Parkinson's Disease Research, said: "Currently, there are no treatments that can prevent the death of nerve cells and thus slow the progression of Parkinson's disease. Any drug that could do this would be a crucial step."
The aim of the new study was to find new chemical compounds that block cell death and could be used in the future to treat degenerative diseases.
To identify new small molecules, the team collaborated with researchers at the National Drug Discovery Centre, which is based at WEHI.
Through high-throughput screening of over 100,000 chemical compounds, one was identified that effectively stops cell death by interfering with a well-known cell death protein.
Professor Guillaume Lessene, a co-author of the study, said: "We were excited to find a small molecule that targets a killer protein called BAX and stops it from doing its job."
The study, titled "Differential regulation of BAX and BAK apoptotic activity revealed by small molecules," was published in the journal Science Advances (DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adr8146).
