Researchers at the MassGeneral Institute for Neurodegenerative Disease (MGH-MIND) have identified a potential new drug target for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease and possibly for other degenerative neurological disorders.

In an upcoming issue of the journal Science, the investigators describe finding, in cellular and animal models, that blocking the action of an enzyme called SIRT2 can protect the neurons damaged in Parkinson’s disease from the toxic effects of alpha-synuclein, a protein that accumulates in the brains of Parkinson’s patients. The study, which also suggests that inhibiting this pathway could help in the treatment of other conditions in which abnormal proteins accumulate in the brain, is receiving early online release on the Science Express website at http://www.sciencexpress.org.

The researchers plan to study the effect of the new inhibitor AGK2 in models of HD.

The full press release, along with editorial comments, can be found on the HD Lighthouse website.

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