Dr. Blagovesta Popova
Project Lead Yeast-Parkinson Group
Yeast as a Model for Neurodegenerative Diseases
We investigate the molecular mechanisms underlying the pathogenesis of Parkinson’s disease. A hallmark of the disease is the misfolding and aggregation of the protein α-synuclein. To study these processes, we use the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae as a simple yet powerful model system for cellular aging and proteostasis, as many of the underlying molecular pathways are highly conserved between yeast and humans.Overexpression of α-synuclein in yeast cells leads to protein aggregation and impaired cellular growth. Our research focuses on the mechanisms that govern α-synuclein clearance and on the role of post-translational modifications in regulating α-synuclein aggregation and cytotoxicity. A major focus of our work is the interplay between α-synuclein and the ubiquitin–proteasome system and how this relationship affects cellular protein homeostasis during aging. Ultimately, our goal is to uncover the molecular mechanisms that drive proteostasis failure in neurodegenerative disease.