@asapresearch.parkinsonsroadmap.org
Global initiative rooted in Collaboration and Open Science to accelerate Parkinson's disease research. Programs include GP2 and CRN. https://parkinsonsroadmap.org/#
GP2’s Andrew Singleton, PhD, spoke with ABC Radio Sydney while in Australia for Shake It Up Foundation’s Parkinson’s Research Forum, discussing how genetics and environment influence #Parkinson’sDisease risk and GP2’s work with Shake It Up to generate Parkinson’s disease data 🧪
bit.ly/4ljoJh0
📣 Don’t miss our upcoming @mito911.bsky.social #webinar featuring Elena Ziviani, PhD, from the Università di Padova.
👇 Reserve your spot using the link below.
📅 March 17
⏰ 12:00 PM ET
RSVP: bit.ly/3MsrW0W
GPi-LHb neurons make monosynaptic connections in the basal ganglia and co-transmit glutamate and GABA.
New #preprint from CRN Team Cragg identifies an Sst+ neuron subtype that projects from GPi to LHb, forming a broad feedback network across the basal ganglia and supporting goal-directed behavioral flexibility 🧠
🔗 Read their findings: bit.ly/4rHdlxR
A white background with a colorful frame. In the center of the graphic, dark blue text reads, “New publication from Team Voet.” The ASAP logo is in the bottom right corner.
CRN Team Voet uses single-cell long-read genome sequencing to reveal unexpected genetic variation in human brain cells 🧬
Their findings highlight brain-specific transposable element activity.
🔗 Read the latest #publication: https://bit.ly/46mIvSE
Rearrangement of amphipathic helices enables lipid uptake at ATG2A N-terminus.
📢 New #preprint from CRN Team Hurley!
The team uncovers the mechanism of ATG2A-mediated lipid transport 🧪
Structural modeling and simulations show that N-terminal helices gate lipid transfer, and a designed mutant transfers lipids three times faster in vitro.
🔗 bit.ly/3ZVAxw6
A white background with a colorful frame. In the center of the graphic, dark blue text reads, “New preprint from GP2.”
New #preprint from GP2 🧬
A large genetic study of #Parkinsons in Taiwan identified key risk signals at SNCA and MCCC1 and uncovered a novel gene dosage effect of Asian LRRK2 variants.
Check out the full preprint: bit.ly/3P1evWm
Local diffusion directionality is determined by ECS geometry.
🧠 CRN Team Vila’s new #preprint introduces DifFlux, a computational diffusion model that simulates molecule movement within true brain extracellular space geometries.
Their work reveals how the ECS structure shapes local diffusion and modulates extrasynaptic signaling.
🔗 bit.ly/4b2gKBo
Enhanced oxidative stress and ferroptosis vulnerability in SNCA A53T i3neurons.
CRN Team Wood identifies ferroptosis as a key cell death pathway in #Parkinsons 🧠
Using a CRISPR-engineered SNCA A53T neuronal model, they show that inhibiting 15-LO rescues synucleinopathy pathology and prevents pathological α-synuclein buildup.
Read the full #preprint: bit.ly/3MKH2Pp
Single nuclei multi-omic sequencing revealed the diversity of cellular composition during mDA neuron differentiation in vitro.
CRN Team Vila develops a scalable platform to generate SOX6⁺ midbrain dopamine neurons and restore motor function in a #ParkinsonsDisease model.
Read full #preprint: bit.ly/4tDm6ul
Promotional graphic for CRN Team Wichmann with the title “Circuitry and Brain–Body Interactions.” The image shows a stylized brain inside a circle, designed with circuit-like lines and multicolored connection points. An “Open Science Champion” badge appears at the bottom left, and the ASAP logo is in the bottom right.
🔬 February’s #OpenScience Champion is CRN Team Wichmann!
Across seven publications, the team has shared all associated preprints, datasets, code, and protocols in full alignment with ASAP’s Open Science Policy, making their science open and accessible to the entire research community.
BLAAC PD has reached 1,339 enrollments, becoming the largest study of Black and African American people with #ParkinsonsDisease and helping close critical research gaps 🧪
As participant Toney Matthews shares: “The BLAAC PD study gave me courage to embrace PD.”
Learn more: bit.ly/4kKC2qH
Proteome atlas of lysosomal Storage Disorder neuronal cell models.
CRN Team Harper's new #preprint introduces a human stem cell–based Lysosomal Storage Disorders mutant toolkit & proteomic resource, which reveals lysosomal, synaptic, & mitochondrial disruptions in dopaminergic neurons linked to #Parkinsons risk 🧪
🔗: bit.ly/3NYGwxo
The gut microbiome regulates motor function and mitochondrial respiratory genes are altered in the striatum of Thy1-ASO mice.
CRN Teams Sulzer and Gradinaru reveal a microbiome–mitochondria pathway linking oxidative stress to motor deficits in α-synuclein–overexpressing (Thy1-ASO) mice.
🔗 Check out the full #publication: bit.ly/4rpnM9i
A framework for efficient CRISPRi-mediated silencing of retrotransposons in human pluripotent stem cells.
CRN Team Jakobsson presents a CRISPRi-based protocol to silence transposable elements in human iPSCs, outlining gRNA design and multiome validation across RNA, epigenetic, and proteomic layers, a practical framework for functional TE studies 🧪
🔗 Read the latest #preprint: https://bit.ly/4aCLgAr
We are excited to welcome Ji Sun, PhD, from St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, as the February LRRK2 Central #webinar speaker.
👇 Reserve your spot using the link below.
📅 February 26, 2026
⏰ 1:00 PM ET
RSVP: bit.ly/3LQtpxF
This month’s Discover ASAP features Armin Bayati, PhD, of CRN Team Chen 🧫
He introduces AutomorphoTrack, an open platform for quantitative analysis of organelle morphology, dynamics, and interactions, helping researchers extract insight from cell imaging in #Parkinsons.
📺 Watch: bit.ly/3OnkhkW
Exogenous SNCA PFF injected into brain is rapidly cleared by glial cells but accumulate in neurons.
New #publication from CRN Team Lee shows neurons poorly clear α-synuclein aggregates, leading to buildup of truncated, insoluble species linked to lysosomal dysfunction, while microglia and astrocytes clear them rapidly 🧪
Read more: bit.ly/4rAFAhm
Side-by-side headshots of Andrew Singleton, PhD (left) and Ignacio Mata, PhD (right). Andrew Singleton is wearing a light blue collared shirt outdoors. Ignacio Mata is wearing a white lab coat, dress shirt, and tie against a neutral background.
What does it take to build a global #Parkinsons genetics dataset?
On Mendelspod, GP2’s Andrew Singleton, PhD, and Ignacio Mata, PhD, share how reaching 100,000+ samples is unlocking population-specific insights and accelerating discovery, and discuss their vision for GP2’s future.
🎧 bit.ly/4an1XQk
T61I point mutation increases accumulation of CHCHD2 and CHCHD10 in mitochondria preferentially in SN DA neurons.
A new #publication from CRN Team Edwards shows how a Parkinson's-linked CHCHD2 mutation disrupts mitochondria in dopaminergic neurons, increasing reactive oxygen species and driving α-synuclein aggregation, mapping a pathogenic cascade 🧪
🔗 Read the full publication: bit.ly/4bCsN9w
Alpha-synuclein inclusions reduced by PIKfyve inhibition in Parkinson disease cell models.
In their latest #publication, CRN Team Schapira links PIKfyve inhibition to reduced α-synuclein pathology and increased lysosomal activity, suggesting a new therapeutic angle for #ParkinsonsDisease 🧪
Explore the findings: bit.ly/3MoQTKs
Association of LRRK2 p.A419V with Parkinson’s Disease in East Asians and analysis of age at onset.
GP2’s new #publication showcases how rare and common variants in LRRK2 shape #ParkinsonsDisease risk across populations. New findings identify the rare p.A419V variant as a significant PD risk factor in East Asian populations 🧬
Read the full study: bit.ly/4kbUM1Q
MAPL promotes release of mtDNA in mitochondrial-derived vesicles.
🧬 CRN Team Desjardins’ new #publication uncovers a mitochondria–lysosome pathway linking MAPL-induced pyroptosis to cGAS activation and Parkinson’s-related genes, including LRRK2 and VPS35.
Explore their findings: bit.ly/45AcqGC
Identification of a WIPI3 interacting region in ATG13.
📣 Check out CRN Team Hurley’s new preprint revealing how PI3P signaling recruits and stabilizes the ULK1 complex on membranes to initiate autophagy, via a key interaction between ATG13–ATG101 and WIPI proteins.
Read the full #preprint: bit.ly/49K7nG8
Programmable self-assembling system to model intracellular protein aggregation and decode neurodegenerative diseases.
CRN Team Gradinaru introduces a genetically-encoded, self-assembling protein platform that recreates key hallmarks of #Parkinson’s, #Alzheimer’s, and #ALS in vivo 🧬
Check out the full #preprint: http://bit.ly/49FW9SS?utm_source=bluesky&utm_medium=bluesky&utm_campaign&utm_content=ap_3bsrlpfbhq
A group of approximately 14 professionals stands in a line inside a bright facility, posing for a group photo beneath a circular institutional seal mounted on the wall. The group includes Ekemini Riley, PhD, all there to support the opening of the GP2–CMUL Molecular Laboratory.
The GP2–CMUL Molecular Laboratory at the College of Medicine, University of Lagos opened last week, supporting genetics research and hands-on training.
👉 Learn more about the new lab from local Nigerian news organizations:
🔗 bit.ly/4qUuTX6
🎥 bit.ly/4qGI3GQ
Don’t miss our upcoming #webinar featuring Timothy Ryan, PhD, from Weill Cornell Medicine, who will present “Metabolic Vulnerabilities in Neurodegeneration”.
Reserve your spot using the link below 👇
📅 February 9
⏰ 11:00 AM EST
RSVP: bit.ly/4aanRqZ
a, ASA-PD is an imaging and analysis method for detecting protein aggregates in tissue down to nanoscale aggregates. b, The five main steps for imaging and analysis. Background suppression and enhanced imaging improve the signal-to-noise ratio such that aggregates can be detected and quantified in the analysis pipeline, including the spatial distributions relative to cell-specific markers. BG, background. Panels a and b created with BioRender.com.
CRN Team Wood developed an imaging platform to map nanoscale α-synuclein aggregates in human postmortem brain tissue, revealing early disease-specific shifts linked to #Parkinsons 🧪
🔗 Read the full #publication: bit.ly/3ZnQ5bA
Experimental approach. (A) Extraction of small tissue punches from selected regions of interest of standard paraffin blocks. These punches were then subjected to x-ray phase-contrast tomography at two different beamlines. (B) Illustration of selected intra- and extracellular neurodegenerative pathologies and biomarkers. 3D, three-dimensional; GvD, granulovacuolar degeneration; LB, Lewy bodies; XPCT, x-ray phase-contrast tomography.
CRN Team Schlossmacher showed that x-ray phase-contrast tomography (XPCT) enables high-resolution, 3D analysis of neurodegenerative pathology in human brain tissue, revealing new structural insights into neuronal inclusions 🧪
🔗 Read the full #publication: bit.ly/3NSyFkO
A headshot of Eddy Albarran, PhD on a light blue background with dark blue text reading “Eddy Albarran, PhD, Team Surmeier.” The "Open Science Champion" badge and ASAP logo are also present.
🔬 January’s #OpenScience Champion is Eddy Albarran, PhD (CRN Team Surmeier)!
Eddy leads data sharing for his team, publishing data and code once ready and depositing outputs in DANDI, Brain Image Library, & Zenodo, extending open science beyond ASAP!
🔗 Read his recent #publication: bit.ly/3LQXXzj
Proteostatic stress triggers cristae remodeling and aggregate formation within mitochondria.
CRN Teams Harper & Alessi used cryo-electron tomography to show how PINK1-activating stress disrupts mitochondrial structure, revealing protein aggregation, cristae loss, and key changes linked to #Parkinsons 🧬
🔗 Read the full #preprint: bit.ly/49N4mmW
✏️ @denkenny.bsky.social
