An anti-α-synuclein drug, or an α-synuclein inhibitor, is a

drug A drug is any chemical substance other than a nutrient or an essential dietary ingredient, which, when administered to a living organism, produces a biological effect. Consumption of drugs can be via insufflation (medicine), inhalation, drug i ...

which blocks or inhibits

α-synuclein Alpha-synuclein (aSyn) is a protein that in humans is encoded by the ''SNCA'' gene. It is a neuronal protein involved in the regulation of synaptic vesicle trafficking and the release of neurotransmitters. Alpha-synuclein is abundant in the bra ...

. α-Synuclein is a

protein Proteins are large biomolecules and macromolecules that comprise one or more long chains of amino acid residue (biochemistry), residues. Proteins perform a vast array of functions within organisms, including Enzyme catalysis, catalysing metab ...

which is thought to be involved in the development and progression of α-synucleinopathies including

Parkinson's disease Parkinson's disease (PD), or simply Parkinson's, is a neurodegenerative disease primarily of the central nervous system, affecting both motor system, motor and non-motor systems. Symptoms typically develop gradually and non-motor issues become ...

dementia with Lewy bodies Dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) is a type of dementia characterized by changes in sleep, behavior change (individual), behavior, cognition, movement, and dysautonomia, regulation of automatic bodily functions. Unlike some other dementias, mem ...

, and

multiple system atrophy Multiple system atrophy (MSA) is a rare neurodegenerative disorder characterized by tremors, slow movement, muscle rigidity, postural instability (collectively known as parkinsonism), autonomic dysfunction and ataxia. This is caused by progr ...

. Anti-α-synuclein drugs are under development for treatment of Parkinson's disease and other α-synuclein-related diseases. Examples include the

monoclonal antibodies A monoclonal antibody (mAb, more rarely called moAb) is an antibody produced from a Lineage (evolution), cell lineage made by cloning a unique white blood cell. All subsequent antibodies derived this way trace back to a unique parent cell. Mon ...

prasinezumab and cinpanemab, which both failed to show effectiveness in slowing the progression of Parkinson's disease in

phase 2 Michael Lawrence Marrow (August 2, 1955 – December 12, 2019), known as PHASE 2 and Lonny Wood, was an American aerosol paint artist based in New York City. Mostly active in the 1970s, Phase 2 is generally credited with originating the "bubble ...

clinical trial Clinical trials are prospective biomedical or behavioral research studies on human subject research, human participants designed to answer specific questions about biomedical or behavioral interventions, including new treatments (such as novel v ...

s. Other anti-α-synuclein drugs, like the monoclonal antibody exidavnemab, the α-synuclein

vaccine A vaccine is a biological Dosage form, preparation that provides active acquired immunity to a particular infectious disease, infectious or cancer, malignant disease. The safety and effectiveness of vaccines has been widely studied and verifi ...

s PD01A and PD03A, and the

small-molecule In molecular biology and pharmacology, a small molecule or micromolecule is a low molecular weight (≤ 1000 daltons) organic compound that may regulate a biological process, with a size on the order of 1 nm. Many drugs are small molecules; t ...

α-synuclein misfolding and aggregation inhibitors minzasolmin and emrusolmin, are also under development.

Memantine Memantine, sold under the brand name Namenda among others, is a medication used to slow the progression of moderate-to-severe Alzheimer's disease. It is taken by mouth. Common side effects include headache, constipation, sleepiness, and dizz ...

is also being studied as a potential

disease-modifying treatment A disease-modifying treatment, disease-modifying drug, or disease-modifying therapy is a treatment that delays, slows or reverses the progression of a disease by targeting its underlying cause. They are distinguished from symptomatic treatments th ...

for Parkinson's disease by inhibiting cell-to-cell transmission of α-synuclein and is in a phase 3 trial for this purpose.

References

Experimental drugs Experimental monoclonal antibodies Parkinson's disease {{Pharma-stub

See also

References