New drug protects neurons in Parkinson's patients September 5, 2012 in Parkinson's & Movement disorders The cognitins consist of two tacrine molecules connected by a flexible chain. Bis-3-cognitin (B3C) can protect neurons from damage in an animal model of Parkinson's. (Medical Xpress)—Scientists at Emory University School of Medicine have identified a compound that boosts levels of a survival factor in neurons threatened by Parkinson's disease. The compound, bis-3-cognitin, could be a starting point for finding drugs that delay Parkinson's disease progression. Bis-3-cognitin appears to protect mitochondria, critical sites of vulnerability for neurons affected by Parkinson's. In a widely used animal model of Parkinson's, bis-3-cognitin could protect neurons from damaging toxins and prevent mice from developing motor problems when it was given together with the toxin. ...

Zixu Mao, professor of pharmacology and neurology at Emory University School of Medicine, and his colleagues had been studying MEF2D, a protein that is vital for the survival of neurons.... Mao's previous research had shown that MEF2D is perturbed in the neurons of people with Parkinson's disease. The MEF2D protein is sensitive to cellular changes, such as oxidative stress, which can lead to neuron damage in Parkinson's. "For years, we had been talking about looking for drugs that enhance MEF2D," Mao says. "The challenge was how to set up a screening system. You can search through a library of small molecules, or you can look through the literature and make a guess." Bis-3-cognitin appears to have been a good guess, even though it was originally developed for a different purpose...

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Very interesting. A little bit pity the article doesn't tell in more detail what happened to the animals.