title: Molecular pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease.
abstract: Parkinson's disease (PD) is a common and incurable neurodegenerative disease, affecting 1% of the population over the age of 65. Despite a well-described clinical and pathological phenotype, the molecular mechanisms which lead to neurodegeneration remain elusive. However, there is a wealth of evidence from both toxin based models and genetic based models, which suggest a major etiologic role for mitochondrial dysfunction, protein aggregation, the ubiquitin-proteasome system and kinase signalling pathways in the pathogenesis of PD. Ultimately, an understanding of the molecular events which precipitate neurodegeneration in idiopathic PD will enable the development of targeted and effective therapeutic strategies. We review the latest evidence for the proposed molecular processes and discuss their relevance to the pathogenesis of sporadic PD.
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular Neuroscience, Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London, UK.
authors.forename: Sonia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Gandhi
authors.forename: Nicholas W
authors.initials: NW
authors.lastname: Wood
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D008928:Mitochondria / Q000473:pathology*; D008954:Models, Biological; D018384:Oxidative Stress / Q000502:physiology*; D010300:Parkinson Disease / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D010770:Phosphotransferases / Q000378:metabolism; D046988:Proteasome Endopeptidase Complex / Q000378:metabolism; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000502:physiology*; D014452:Ubiquitins / Q000378:metabolism; D051844:alpha-Synuclein / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D014452:Ubiquitins; D051844:alpha-Synuclein; D010770:Phosphotransferases; D046988:Proteasome Endopeptidase Complex