Exploring A beta Proteotoxicity and Therapeutic Candidates Using Drosophila melanogaster

Alzheimers disease is a widespread and devastating neurological disorder associated with proteotoxic events caused by the misfolding and aggregation of the amyloid-beta peptide. To find therapeutic strategies to combat this disease, Drosophila melanogaster has proved to be an excellent model organism that is able to uncover anti-proteotoxic candidates due to its outstanding genetic toolbox and resemblance to human disease genes. In this review, we highlight the use of Drosophila melanogaster to both study the proteotoxicity of the amyloid-beta peptide and to screen for drug candidates. Expanding the knowledge of how the etiology of Alzheimers disease is related to proteotoxicity and how drugs can be used to block disease progression will hopefully shed further light on the field in the search for disease-modifying treatments.Funding Agencies|Torsten Soderberg Foundation; Apotekare Hedbergs Foundation; Ahlens Foundation; Swedish Brain Foundation; Gun and Bertil Stohnes foundation; O.E. and Edla Johanssons Scientific Foundation; Alzheimerfonden