Scientists at Florida International University have developed a promising new compound that could slow the progression of Parkinson's disease and protect against life-threatening lung injury by targeting a key process inside cells.
The research centers on dynamin-related protein 1 (DRP1), which helps control how mitochondria – often described as the powerhouses of cells – divide and function. When DRP1 becomes overactive, it can lead to impaired mitochondrial function, inflammation and cell damage linked to disease.
In preclinical tests, the compound, CTS2444-32, reduced DRP1 activity by up to 45%, helping limit damage in both brain and lung disease models.
Kim Tieu, a professor of environmental health sciences at FIU Robert Stempel College of Public Health & Social Work, has spent years studying DRP1's role in Parkinson's, a disease marked by tremors, stiffness and the loss of brain cells. He collaborated on the discovery with Stephen Black, director of the FIU Center for Translational Science and associate dean for research at the Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine (FIU Medicine), who is an expert in acute lung injury, and Adel Nefzi, a medicinal chemist at FIU Medicine.
"DRP1 plays an important role in mitochondrial division," Tieu said. "But when it gets too active, it causes the mitochondria to split more than they should, which can lead to mitochondrial dysfunction, inflammation and cell death – key factors in how Parkinson's disease progresses."
In Parkinson's models, CTS2444-32 reduced inflammation in the brain and lowered levels of toxic proteins such as alpha-synuclein, which are closely linked to the disease.
