Institute on Aging

Rethinking Neurodegenerative Disease Treatment: Target Multiple Pathological Proteins, Not Just One

Nearly all major neurodegenerative diseases – from Alzheimer’s to Parkinson’s – are defined and diagnosed by the presence of one of four proteins that have gone rogue: tau, amyloid-beta (Aβ), alpha-synuclein (α-syn), or TDP-43. As such, investigational drugs and studies aimed at preventing or slowing the disease often hone in on just one of these respective proteins. However, targeting multiple proteins—known as “proteinopathies”—at once may be the real key, according to a recent study published in Brain by Penn Medicine researchers. 

Full Penn Medicine News Release

Full Brain Publication

• Encouraging results from experimental Alzheimer's drug
  07/27/18
  Finding a cure for Alzheimer’s disease has proved elusive. The drugs currently on the market only manage the symptoms of…
• Targeting Multiple Pathological Proteins May Be Key to Treating Neurodegenerative Diseases
  07/06/18
  Proteinopathies, the misfolded proteins responsible for neuron deaths, have a claim to fame when it comes to rare neurodegenerative…
• An Epigenetic Link Between Aging and Alzheimer's Disease
  03/06/18
  The epigenomic landscape of Alzheimer’s disease brains is profiled in a new study from from the Perelman School of Medicine.

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