Inhibitors of protein aggregates as novel drugs in neurodegenerative diseases

Abstract

Neurodegenerative diseases commonly present misfolding and aggregation of one or more proteins, including primarily β-Amyloid, α-synuclein and tau. Over the last decades, several efforts have been made to understand the molecular processes at the basis of such pathological aggregation, as well as in the development of therapeutic strategies targeting these diseases. Among these, the inhibition of protein aggregation with natural compounds, peptides or small molecules has been considered a promising pharmacological approach. Here in, the most promising molecules developed to reduce protein aggregation will be summarised and discussed on the light of their effects in pre-clinical and clinical studies.