Parkinson’s-on-Chip Model

Parkinson’s-on-Chip is an ongoing project which was also supported by Academy of Finland between 2020-2023, for developing an in vitro model for Parkinson’s Disease (PD).
PD is the second most common neurodegenerative disease without absolute cure. Disease has progressive effects on patient’s nervous system, which gradually influence the life quality negatively. One of the most known pathological features of PD is the accumulation of misfolded assemblies of specific protein, α–synuclein (α–s). Normally, α–s is mainly located in the synapses participating in synaptic transmission by binding to synaptic vesicles. In pathological case α–s start misfolding and accumulating. Accumulation of pathologic α–s leads to reduction of synaptic proteins, progressive impairments in neuronal excitability, synaptic activity and network connectivity, and eventually, neuronal death. For this reason, it is very important to reveal the early disease markers both for diagnostics and novel therapeutics during pathological α–s accumulation and propagation.
On-chip model ensures the micro-physiological and -anatomical accuracy.