“Non-cell autonomous drivers of dopaminergic neuron death”
Dr. Jeffrey Kim | University of California Irvine
Neurodegenerative diseases are not confined to intrinsic cellular defects but are profoundly influenced by non-cell-autonomous mechanisms. These processes involve complex interactions between neurons and their neighboring cells, including glial cells, immune cells, and the broader extracellular environment. Furthermore, misfolded proteins including tau and alpha-synuclein can amplify the pathology across neural networks. This cellular crosstalk highlights a dynamic and interconnected network where non-neuronal elements actively contribute to neurodegeneration. In this talk, we will present how the utilization of zebrafish can help understand non-autonomous mechanisms of dopamine degeneration through genetic manipulation and real-time imaging of cellular interactions and disease processes in an in vivo vertebrate system, offering new insights into disease progression. Finally, we will explore screening strategies for drug candidates by employing neurodegenerative disease phenotypes in a high throughput setting, enabling the assessment of therapeutic effects in a physiologically relevant, whole-organism context.
