The future of Parkinson’s disease

Biochemist Suzanne Pfeffer is an expert on the molecular roots of Parkinson’s disease. Her work focuses on mutated proteins linked to Parkinson’s risk. She’s discovered, for instance, that drugs inhibiting one of the proteins can help neurons regrow primary cilia and stave off cell death, reversing disease progression. Since similar drugs are in clinical trials, her findings bring great hope for people with a subtype of Parkinson’s and hopefully can be linked to earlier detection through warning signs like REM sleep disruptions and loss of smell. “This is precision medicine,” Pfeffer tells host Russ Altman of the future of Parkinson’s disease on this episode of Stanford Engineering’s The Future of Everything podcast. Have a question for Russ? Send it our way in writing or via voice memo, and it might be featured on an upcoming episode. Please introduce yourself, let us know where you're listening from, and share your question. You can send questions to thefutureofeverything@stanford.edu. Episode Reference Links: Stanford Profile: Suzanne Pfeffer Connect With Us: Episode Transcripts >>> The Future of Everything Website Connect with Russ >>> Threads / Bluesky / Mastodon Connect with School of Engineering >>> Twitter/X / Instagram / LinkedIn / Facebook Chapters: (00:00:00) Introduction Russ Altman introduces guest Suzanne Pfeffer, a professor of biochemistry at Stanford University. (00:03:25) Path into Parkinson’s Research How Pfeffer’s protein work led to a life-changing work on Parkinson’s disease. (00:05:28) Parkinson’s Primer The various causes and the effects of the disease on the brain and body. (00:10:26) Lewy Bodies and Dementia How Lewy bodies, synuclein, and dementia relate to Parkinson’s disease. (00:11:56) Molecular Trafficking Pfeffer breaks down the effects of LRRK2 and GBA mutations in the brain. (00:16:10) Early Disease Changes Some of the early changes in the body and how they show up as symptomatically. (00:20:04) Current Treatments The limitations of symptom-focused treatments. (00:21:46) Treating Earlier Opportunities for slowing or reversing disease progression when detected earlier. (00:22:32) Targeting LRRK2 Current research on disease treatment & trial challenges. (00:27:33) The Value of Basic Science Why curiosity-driven research can unexpectedly lead to disease breakthroughs. (00:29:33) Future In a Minute Rapid-fire Q&A: biomarkers, brain donation, and better Parkinson’s treatments. (00:31:52) Conclusion Connect With Us: Episode Transcripts >>> The Future of Everything Website Connect with Russ >>> Threads / Bluesky / Mastodon Connect with School of Engineering >>>Twitter/X / Instagram / LinkedIn / Facebook Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.