Existing and emerging mitochondrial-targeting therapies for altering Parkinson's disease severity and progression

A case in support of mitochondrial dysfunction in Parkinson's disease (PD) has received support from animal modeling studies as well as studies performed on biopsied material taken from living and deceased patients. This body of growing evidence for mitochondrial involvement in PD pathogenesis has led to many potential therapeutic endeavors aimed at altering the course of progressive PD, as well as highlighting the biomarker potential to screen for genetic, molecular and metabolic constituents of mitochondria, to identify those most at risk for developing the disease. Here we present the results from a comprehensive treatise of the published studies to date that have attempted to make use of the growing information on mitochondrial function for designing neuroprotective and neurorescuing therapies applied to PD-implicated disease processes. Additionally, studies affirmed that mitochondrial-targeting interventions intended for use as an annex to mainstay pharmacological treatments also show benefits in slowing PD progression. Both drug-related and gene-based therapeutic approaches are discussed, with evidence presented from both animal modeling studies as well as product assessments undergoing various phases of clinical trial progression.