NEW YORK – The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research has launched an effort, dubbed the LRRK2 Investigative Therapeutics Exchange, to support development of new therapeutics that target the LRRK2 gene.
Mutations in LRRK2 that result in cellular dysfunction are the most common cause of inherited Parkinson's disease. Researchers are investigating new strategies to reduce LRRK2 hyperactivity, which they believe could help Parkinson's patients with these genetic mutations and, potentially, patients without the mutations, as well.
The LRRK2 Investigative Therapeutics Exchange aims to advance basic sciences into industry-led drug development, supporting Parkinson's drugs that target LRRK2 and development of LRRK2-specific biomarkers that could be used to measure the effect of LRRK2-targeted treatments.
The Fox Foundation said that the LRRK2 Investigative Therapeutics Exchange is backed by tens of millions of dollars of grant support, and that more than 30 academic and clinical collaborators have expressed interest in the program, as well as more than a dozen companies.
"We're building a translational research engine that diversifies ways to target LRRK2, improving confidence and clarity in the most promising approaches to targeting the pathway," Shalini Padmanabhan, the Fox Foundation's head of translational research, said in a statement. "This program will make therapeutic development faster and more informed while 'de-risking' industry investment."