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Parkinson’s experts available for interviews during PD Awareness Month

CHICAGO --- With Parkinson’s Awareness Month upon us, leading scientists at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine are available to speak with media on current advances in Parkinson's disease research, treatment and neurodegenerative science. PD is the second most common neurodegenerative disease and it currently has no cure.

The experts can provide valuable insights on topics including the underlying mechanisms of PD, the role of dopamine and cellular stress, and the latest approaches to motor symptom rehabilitation. They also can offer their outside expert opinion on a study recently published in Science about the PINK1 protein, which could play a role in treating PD.

Contact Kristin Samuelson at to schedule an interview.

Meet the Experts:

  • Daniel Corcos, professor of physical therapy and human movement sciences at Feinberg, studies the motor control deficits caused by PD and how targeted physical activity and resistance training can improve motor symptoms and quality of life for patients. His work bridges neuroscience and rehabilitation with practical applications for patients. Read more about his studypublished in npi Parkinson’s Disease in March and his work published in the Journal of Parkinson’s Disease in January.
  • Dimitri Krainc, chair of the department of neurology and professor of neurology (movement disorders), neuroscience and neurological surgery at Feinberg. He has dedicated his scientific career to studying molecular pathways in the pathogenesis of neurodegeneration. Informed by genetic causes of disease, his work has uncovered key mechanisms across different neurodegenerative disorders that have led to pioneering design and development of targeted therapies.
  • Joseph Mazzulli, associate professor of neurology at Feinberg, is particularly interested in the interplay between genetics and neurodegeneration. His lab uses PD patient-derived dopamine neurons to investigate how lysosomal dysfunction and the accumulation of alpha-synuclein contribute to disease progression. Two of his recently published studies in Neuron and Nature Communications uncovered previously unknown cellular mechanisms driving the disease.
  • Tanya Simuni is the director of the Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorders Center at Feinberg where she also is a professor of neurology (movement disorders). She can speak about her work developing therapeutics to slow the progression of early PD and the future of treatment of movement disorders, as well as how symptoms present in patients.
        • Watch her discuss her area of research and patient care in this video.
  • D. James Surmeier, is the Nathan Smith Davis Professor and chair of the department of neuroscience at Feinberg. Surmeier directs a research program focusing on molecular, cellular and network mechanisms governing PD. His work on causes of PD has led to Phase II and NIH-sponsored Phase III clinical trials aimed at slowing PD progression. These studies are continuing with the goal of developing an orally deliverable drug that slows or stops the disease. In addition, his group is developing gene therapy strategies to improve the efficacy of current symptomatic treatments and to diminish their dyskinetic side-effects. Read more about his recent research published in Molecular Neurodegeneration and Nature.

What is the potential role of the PINK1 protein in treating PD?

“It’s remarkable the authors were able to obtain such accurate structural detail of an essential mitochondrial complex — that is likely involved in many diseases beyond Parkinson’s — by purification from human cells,” Mazzulli said. “Such studies are mostly done in bacteria, making it impossible to study endogenous complexes and mechanistic details. The structures presented here provide the community with unprecedented new ways to design small molecules to enhance PINK1 and clear damaged mitochondria, which may be beneficial for Parkinson’s disease and related mitochondrial disorders.”