Parkinson’s disease–causing mutations in PINK1 yield mitochondrial defects including inefficient electron transport between complex I and ubiquinone. Vos et al. show that genetic and pharmacological inhibition of fatty acid synthase bypass these complex I defects in fly, mouse, and human Parkinson’s disease models.
Significance
Ceramide accumulates in Parkinson’s disease–related PINK1 deficiency to initiate ceramide-mediated mitophagy as an alternative pathway to overcome defective PINK1-related mitophagy and the concomitant increased requirements for mitochondrial clearance. Increased ceramide levels negatively correlate with β-oxidation and thus decrease efficiency of the electron transport chain, further increasing the need for mitochondrial clearance. Interfering with this vicious cycle can constitute a novel therapeutic strategy as suggested by our data showing that a reduction of ceramide levels or stimulation of β-oxidation improve the
PINK1
-mutant phenotypes.
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