Awatramani
Defining separate rewarding and aversive dopaminergic circuits and their role in Parkinson's disease associated pain
Active
PD Heterogeneity
The PD Heterogeneity theme explores the mechanisms behind different manifestations of PD, unpacking variability in disease onset, symptoms, and progression rates. Sub-areas of investigation target the roles of aging, co-pathologies, environmental risk factors, and cellular clearance mechanisms, as well as exploration of factors influencing alpha-synuclein seeding and the neural circuitry behind symptom presentation. By understanding these diverse drivers of disease, this theme aims to propel the field beyond “one-size-fits-all” treatments toward precision medicine tailored to specific patient subtypes.
Our Teams
Barker
Aging and the Heterogeneity of Parkinson’s disease - The role of heterochromatin erosion
Bronstein
Environmental & Genetic Determinants of Parkinson’s Disease Progression
Doxakis
Decoding co-pathological mechanisms in Parkinson's disease: from molecular interactions to disease progression
Goedert
Seeded aggregation of alpha-synuclein
Greenamyre
Environmental exposures and PD heterogeneity: Mechanisms and therapeutic mitigation.
Halliday
A Global Brainbank to Identify Data-Driven Molecular and Cellular Subtyping Underlying Disease Initiation and Progression in Lewy Body Diseases
Jensen
Investigate the impact of Parkinson’s disease lysosomal risk variants on lysosomal function and alpha-synuclein clearance across CNS cell types
Keller
MOMA-PD: Modulate and Map Molecular Networks of Parkinson’s Disease Across Age, Sex, Brain Cell Types and Organisms
Kirkeby
Connecting the environmental exposome to PD risk and disease pathology
Krichevsky
RNA Mechanisms of Resilience and Vulnerability in Aging and Parkinson’s Disease
Lashuel
Investigating the role of Neuron-Glia crosstalk in regulating alpha-synuclein pathology formation and clearance in a novel triculture model of Lewy Body maturation and neurodegeneration
Mackenzie
Defining functional heterogeneity within the subthalamic area and its relevance for psychiatric and cognitive symptoms of PD
Mann
Deciphering the Aggregatome: Unraveling Alpha-Synuclein Seeding Drivers in Parkinson’s Disease across Human Biomaterials
Muqit
Mitochondrial surface as a neuroprotective signal integrator in PD
Nelson
The Pedunculopontine Nucleus in Sleep and Cognitive Features of Parkinson’s Disease
Parisiadou
Age-related RNA oxidation and ribosomal dysfunction in Parkinson’s disease vulnerable dopamine neurons
Petrucelli
Identifying and Investigating Molecular Modifiers of Co-Pathologies in Parkinson’s Disease
Pfeffer
Convergent Mechanisms of LRRK2 and GBA in PD: vulnerability of lysosomes and neuroprotective ciliary signaling
Root
Ventral tegmental area dopamine neuron subtype-specific roles in Parkinson's disease-related cognitive symptoms
Sharott
Defining the neural mechanisms underlying heterogeneity in sleep and circadian rhythm disturbances in Parkinson’s disease
Soto
Understanding alpha-synuclein seeding: Identification of cellular factors influencing seeding and structural and biological characterization of the SAA products
Strittmatter
CLEAR-PD: Clearance via Lymphatics & Endocytic Alpha-Synuclein Receptors in Parkinson’s Disease
Tansey
Investigating the role of immune cell exhaustion (ICE) and biological immune aging (BIA) in PD risk and PD heterogeneity
West
Decoding Alpha-Synuclein Conformational Diversity to Enable Advanced Predictive Amplification Assays