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The researchers found an unknown interaction in the brain and was able to target it.
In early 2025, a Global Burden of Disease Study found that approx. 11.77 million people suffered from Parkinson’s Disease in 2021.
Fast forward to 2050, and the number of cases is projected to reach more than 25 million, according to a study published in the British Medical Journal in March 2025.
The steady rise of Parkinson’s disease has pushed scientists to look beyond symptom relief and toward the biological processes driving the condition.
While current therapies can ease tremors and stiffness, they often lose effectiveness as the disease advances.
New research from a U.S. university is now pointing to a potential way to intervene earlier in the damage.
A hidden mechanism
Most treatments address the outward effects, but researchers at Case Western Reserve University focused on what is happening inside affected brain cells.
In a study published in the journal Molecular Neurodegeneration, the team described how toxic proteins accumulate and trigger neuron death.
“We’ve uncovered a harmful interaction between proteins that damages the brain’s cellular powerhouses, called mitochondria,” said Xin Qi, the study’s senior author, who teaches at the Case Western Reserve School of Medicine, in an article on the school’s website.
The researchers found that alpha-synuclein, a protein linked to Parkinson’s, binds abnormally to an enzyme known as ClpP, disrupting its normal role in maintaining cell health.
Energy breakdown
When ClpP is impaired, mitochondria begin to fail, cutting off energy supplies needed for brain cells to survive.
Experiments using human brain tissue, patient-derived neurons and mouse models showed that this interaction accelerates neurodegeneration and disease progression.
To counter it, the team developed a compound called CS2, designed to block alpha-synuclein from attaching to ClpP.
Beyond symptoms
In multiple models, CS2 reduced inflammation and improved movement and cognitive performance, according to the researchers.
“This represents a fundamentally new approach to treating Parkinson’s disease,” said Di Hu, a research scientist involved in the work.
The team plans further testing over the next five years to refine the drug and move toward clinical trials.
Sources: Case Western Reserve University, Molecular Neurodegeneration, Parkinson’s Foundation, Global Burden of Disease Study 2021, British Medical Journal
