Congratulations are in order for CNET faculty Talene Yacoubian (left) and CNET Director David Standaert (right) for acceptance of their application for patent on "Use of 14-3-3 proteins in treatment and prevention of neurodegeneration" ! This monumental discovery made in the CNET laboratories offers hope to patients suffering from Parkinson's disease and related disorders. Dr. Yacoubian is the Parkinson Association of Alabama, Inc., Research Scholar and her laboratory is supported by the Parkinson's Association of Alabama, Inc.
Neurodegenerative disorders, such as Parkinson disease and Alzheimer's disease, are marked by the gradual loss of neurons in the brain that results in devastating disability. The symptoms of some of these neurodegenerative disorders can be ameliorated with medications, but there are currently no treatments that slow or halt the neurodegenerative process. Research from Dr. Yacoubian's laboratory has identified a class of proteins, called 14-3-3s, that may serve as new treatments for neurodegenerative disorders that actually slow the degenerative process. This research has lead to the accepted patent on the "Use of 14-3-3-proteins in treatment and prevention of neurodegeneration."
14-3-3 proteins are highly abundant proteins found in the brain that have been linked to many biological functions. One important role is that these proteins promote cell survival by inhibiting pro-death factors in cells. Research from Dr. Yacoubian and others have lead to the hypothesis that disruption of 14-3-3 proteins may partially account for the neurodegeneration seen in Parkinson disease and other disorders. Therefore, augmentation of 14-3-3s' function or expression could serve as a means to slow the degenerative process. Dr. Yacoubian and colleagues have recently demonstrated that increasing 14-3-3 protein levels can reduce cell death in both cellular and animal models for Parkinson disease. These findings support the pursuit of methods that modulate 14-3-3 function as potential therapies for Parkinson disease and other neurodegenerative disorders. Research to discover small molecules to induce the expression of 14-3-3 proteins is critical to this goal. Another alternative is direct intervention with gene therapy strategies to augment 14-3-3 expression. The accepted patent describes the novel use of these 14-3-3 proteins in developing treatments for neurodegeneration.
Full patent description can be viewed at: www.freshpatents.com (patent pending)