The Evolving Landscape of Parkinson's Disease Research: Current Challenges and Future Outlook

Abstract

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder that primarily affects movement. It occurs due to gradual loss of dopamine-producing brain cells, particularly in substantia nigra. The exact cause of Parkinson's disease is not fully understood, but it is believed to involve a combination of genetic and environmental factors. Currently available treatments provide symptomatic relief but do not halt disease progression. Research efforts are focused on developing disease-modifying therapies that target the underlying pathological mechanisms of PD. Advances in identification and validation of reliable biomarkers for PD hold promise for enhancing early diagnosis, monitoring disease progression, and assessing treatment response in clinical practice, in effort to alleviate the burden of this devastating disease. Research into PD is an active and evolving field, with ongoing efforts focused on understanding disease mechanisms, identifying biomarkers, developing new treatments, and improving patient care. In this paper, we analyze data from the CAS Content Collection to summarize the research progress in PD. We examine publication landscape in effort to provide insights into current knowledge advances and developments. We also review the most discussed and emerging concepts and assess the strategies to combat the disease. We explore genetic risk factors, pharmacological targets, and comorbid diseases. We inspect clinical applications of products against PD with their development pipelines and efforts for drug repurposing. The objective of this review is to provide a broad overview of the evolving landscape of current knowledge regarding PD, to outline challenges, and evaluate growth opportunities to further efforts in combating the disease.