Despite transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) is currently proposed as a symptomatic treatment in Parkinson’s disease, the intracellular and molecular mechanisms elicited by this technique are still unknown, and its disease-modifying potential unexplored. This collaborative study, conducted by researchers from NeuroMI – University of Milano-Bicocca, University of Milan and CNR and published in Scientific Reports on January 26, 2021, demonstrated in a human neuronal model that the direct current stimulation (DCS) interferes with the state of aggregation and degradation of alpha-synuclein, the main protein that accumulates in degenerating neurons in patients with Parkinson’s disease. These results support the view that DCS possesses a neuroprotective potential against the toxicity associated to aggregation of alpha-synuclein and, likely, other aggregation-prone proteins contributing to the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative diseases.

Sala G, Bocci T, Borzì V, Parazzini M, Priori A, Ferrarese C. Direct current stimulation enhances neuronal alpha-synuclein degradation in vitro. Sci Rep. 2021 Jan 26;11(1):2197. doi: 10.1038/s41598-021-81693-8.