Skip to Content

Disclaimer

Disclaimer
MDS makes every effort to publish accurate information on the website. "Google Translate" is provided as a free tool for visitors to read content in one's native language. Translations are not guaranteed to be 100% accurate. Neither MDS nor its employees assume liability for erroneous translations of website content.

International Parkinson and Movement Disorder Society
Main Content

        VOLUME 26, ISSUE 4 • DECEMBER 2022  Full issue »

David Marsden Lecture Award: 


Challenge to elucidate the pathomechanisms of Parkinson's disease: From the pathogenesis to biomarkers 

I am delighted and honored to receive the prestigious David Marsden Lecture Award. I would also like to thank the many friends and colleagues who supported me in receiving this award. I am the third Japanese person to receive this award since Dr. Yoshikuni Mizuno became the first Japanese person to receive this award in 2002. I am extremely happy to have received the same award as Dr. Yoshikuni Mizuno, my teacher and mentor.  

I was trained in molecular biology at the Department of Biomedical Chemistry of Nagoya University from 1990 to 1993. Since then, I have been interested in mitochondrial functions in Parkinson's disease (PD). I received my MD degree from Juntendo University in 1985.  

Our group has identified the gene parkin, responsible for young-onset PD (Nature, 1998). The parkin gene is the second form of hereditary PD. In addition, we found that the gene product, parkin, is directly linked to the ubiquitin-proteasome pathway as a ubiquitin ligase. This discovery suggested that the protein-degradation system is involved in the pathogenesis of hereditary PD and sporadic PD.  

Since then, I have received numerous awards for discovering the parkin gene. And then, I became Professor and Chairman of the Department of Neurology at Juntendo University in 2006, succeeding Emeritus Professor Yoshikuni Mizuno of Juntendo University School of Medicine. A second causative gene for hereditary PD, CHCHD2, was identified by our group in 2015 (Lancet Neurol, 2015), and a third causative gene, PSAP, was identified in 2020 (Brain, 2020). CHCHD2 was found to be involved in mitochondrial function, while PSAP was found to be involved in the lysosomal system.  

I am continuing our research to identify a fourth causative gene. I have also been interested in biomarkers since 2015. Recently, I have found a biomarker that can be used in blood tests to diagnose PD. In addition, I am interested in artificial intelligence (AI). AI has unlimited potential in medical practice, and I want to establish AI doctors and pharmacists. I have already been able to establish a diagnostic system for PD using only facial expressions (Parkinsonism Relat Disord, 2022), and I would like to develop a system that should further improve the quality of diagnosis. I want to continue my research to establish disease-modifying therapies. This award will give me even more power.  

My motto is serendipity. I wish to acknowledge and thank the many collaborators I have met. I have a team of approximately one hundred scientists and researchers I work with. I would also like to dedicate this award to my colleagues. 

Read more Moving Along:

Full issue  Archives

We use cookies to give you the best possible experience with our website. These cookies are also used to ensure we show you content that is relevant to you. If you continue without changing your settings, you are agreeing to our use of cookies to improve your user experience. You can click the cookie settings link on our website to change your cookie settings at any time. Note: The MDS site uses related multiple domains, including mds.movementdisorders.org and mds.execinc.com. This cookie policy only covers the primary movementdisorders.org and mdscongress.org domain. Please refer to the MDS Privacy Policy for information on how to configure cookies for all other domains on the MDS site.
Cookie PolicyPrivacy Notice