New project aims to develop novel therapy for Parkinson’s disease
iNANO Professor Daniel Otzen is part of the new DESYNA project, which has received DKK 26.7 million from Innovation Fund Denmark to develop a novel therapy for Parkinson’s disease. The project aims to target and remove toxic alpha-synuclein aggregates that drive disease progression and spread in the brain.
Novel therapy for Parkinson’s disease
Professor Daniel Otzen from the Interdisciplinary Nanoscience Center (iNANO) and the Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics at Aarhus University is part of a new research project developing a novel therapy for Parkinson’s disease. The DESYNA project has received DKK 26.7 million from Innovation Fund Denmark.
DESYNA — Degradation of Extracellular α-SYNuclein Aggregates — focuses on eliminating and preventing the spread of toxic aggregates of the protein alpha-synuclein, which is considered a key driver of Parkinson’s disease progression. Current treatments mainly relieve symptoms and do not stop the disease from developing. The project therefore aims to address an important unmet medical need.
Why a new Parkinson’s disease therapy is needed
Parkinson’s disease affects around 22,500 people in Denmark and more than 10 million people worldwide. Moreover, case numbers are expected to rise substantially in the coming decades. There is therefore a pressing need for therapies that can do more than alleviate symptoms.
“Aggregation of alpha-synuclein is central to the progression of Parkinson’s disease. By finding new ways to target this process, we aim to go beyond managing symptoms and instead change the course of the disease itself,” says Daniel Otzen, Professor at Aarhus University, Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics and iNANO, and project partner in DESYNA.
Collaboration behind the novel therapy for Parkinson’s disease
The project brings together Draupnir Bio and Aarhus University and thus connects research and industry in a shared effort. In addition, it combines Draupnir Bio’s SORTAC protein degradation technology with Aarhus University’s research into neurodegeneration and alpha-synuclein aggregation.
Over the next three years, the partners will work to develop both biologics-based and small molecule-based treatment options. At the same time, the collaboration aims to reach preclinically validated candidates by 2029.
Read the original press release from Innovation Fund Denmark:
Breakthrough Danish research aims to stop Parkinson’s disease
For further information, please contact:
Professor Daniel Otzen
Interdisciplinary Nanoscience Center (iNANO)
Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics
Aarhus University
Email: dao@inano.au.dk