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Molecular Mechanisms of Parkinson’s Disease
Group Head: Vincenzo Bonifati, MD, PhD

We are searching for genes involved in Parkinson’s disease (PD) as the starting point for molecular and cell biology studies aimed at illuminating the disease mechanisms, with the ultimate goal of providing novel targets for the development of therapies to stop and prevent this disease.

PD is a common degenerative disease of the brain characterized by the progressive loss of dopaminergic neurons and the formation of neuronal inclusions (Lewy bodies) in the surviving neurons. The pathogenesis of PD remains mostly unknown, but a growing list of gene defects identified in the past few years in some inherited forms of this disease offers unprecedented, exciting opportunities to disentangle the complex biological pathways leading to PD.

In our research efforts, we collaborate with many neurologists from Italy, Spain, Portugal, Brazil, Taiwan, and The Netherlands, for the characterization of families and patients of special interest for our research, and with several other laboratories worldwide.

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