• Special Issue Topic

    Parkinson's Disease: Principal Targets and Interventional Mechanisms

    Submission Deadline: March 15, 2023

    Guest Editor

    Prof. Mahesh Narayan E-Mail

    Professor, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, The University of Texas at El Paso, El Paso, TX 996 USA

    Research Keywords: Parkinson’s; α-synuclein; dopamine; risk-factors; protein misfolding; cellular homeostasis; cellular dyshomeostasis; neurodegeneration; substantia nigra pars compacta; small-molecules; natural products; carbon quantum dots; carbon nano materials


    About the Special Issue

    Parkinson’s disease (PD) is the second most common neurodegenerative disorder after Alzheimer’s disease. While age is a primary risk factor, environmental agents such as pesticides, weedicides, insecticides, cigarette smoke, industrial pollutants and drugs of abuse remain associated with the loss of dopaminergic neuronal homeostasis, neuronal injury, neuronal demise and disease onset. While α-synuclein is a central player in the pathogenesis of PD, other risk factors and targets include molecular chaperones, neuroinflammation, mitochondrial dysfunction, neuromelanin, Ubiquitin-proteasome system, protein Abelson, Synaptic vesicle glycoprotein 2C, and Cocaine-amphetamine-regulated transcript. The need for intervention novel mechanisms has never been greater given the lack of suitable clinical regimens that satisfactorily address PD. Of late, the use of carbon nano materials have found some success in preclinical trials.   

    The proposed issue invites papers across, but not limited to, the following themes:

    (1) Novel targets in PD

    (2) Targeting α-synuclein in PD

    (3) Novel small-molecules in the treatment of PD

    (4) The role of carbon nano materials in PD intervention

    Keywords: Parkinson’s; α-synuclein; dopamine; neuronal cells; dopaminergic cells; amyloid cross-talk; risk-factors; protein misfolding

    Call for Papers

    Published Articles

    Open Access
    Review
    Carbon nanotubes as neuroprotective agents
    Carbon nanotubes, an emerging class of carbon nanomaterials, possess tremendous potential for application in biotechnology and biomedicine particularly in neurological disorders. Carbon nanotubes ow [...] Read more.
    Daisy L. Wilson ... Mahesh Narayan
    Published: February 27, 2024 Explor Neuroprot Ther. 2024;4:72–81
    DOI: https://doi.org/10.37349/ent.2024.00071
    View:1282
    Download:38
    Times Cited: 0
    Open Access
    Review
    The effects of post-translational modifications on alpha-synuclein aggregation and immune cell activation in Parkinson’s disease
    Post-translational modifications (PTMs) of alpha-synuclein (α-syn) can alter protein aggregation propensity to affect α-syn oligomer and fibril formation. The inflammatory response in Parkinson’ [...] Read more.
    Zaina Khan, Yoo Jin Jung
    Published: October 26, 2023 Explor Neuroprot Ther. 2023;3:281–298
    DOI: https://doi.org/10.37349/ent.2023.00052
    View:1820
    Download:48
    Open Access
    Review
    Targeting α-synuclein aggregation with immunotherapy: a promising therapeutic approach for Parkinson’s disease
    Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a prevalent neurodegenerative disease (NDD) affecting millions of individuals. The pathogenesis of PD centers around α-synuclein (α-Syn), a pivotal protein whose aggr [...] Read more.
    Gabriela Henriquez, Mahesh Narayan
    Published: August 25, 2023 Explor Neuroprot Ther. 2023;3:207–234
    DOI: https://doi.org/10.37349/ent.2023.00048
    View:3191
    Download:110
    Open Access
    Review
    Pathophysiology of non-motor signs in Parkinson’s disease: some recent updating with brief presentation
    Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder affecting 1% of the population above sixty years. It is caused by an interaction between genetic and envi [...] Read more.
    Khaled Radad ... Wolf-Dieter Rausch
    Published: February 27, 2023 Explor Neuroprot Ther. 2023;3:24–46
    DOI: https://doi.org/10.37349/ent.2023.00036
    View:3898
    Download:148