Significance of gene therapy in neurodegenerative diseases

Gene therapy is an approach that employs vectors to deliver genetic material to target cells, aiming to correct genes with pathogenic mutations and modulate one or more genes responsible for disease progression. It holds significant value for clinical applications and offers broad market potential d...

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Main Authors: Lingling Wang, Lin Ma, Zihan Gao, Ying Wang, Jiaoxue Qiu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2025-05-01
Series:Frontiers in Neuroscience
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnins.2025.1515255/full
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author Lingling Wang
Lin Ma
Zihan Gao
Ying Wang
Jiaoxue Qiu
author_facet Lingling Wang
Lin Ma
Zihan Gao
Ying Wang
Jiaoxue Qiu
author_sort Lingling Wang
collection DOAJ
description Gene therapy is an approach that employs vectors to deliver genetic material to target cells, aiming to correct genes with pathogenic mutations and modulate one or more genes responsible for disease progression. It holds significant value for clinical applications and offers broad market potential due to the large patient population affected by various conditions. For instance, in 2023, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved 55 new drugs, including five specifically for gene therapy targeting hematologic and rare diseases. Recently, with advancements in understanding the pathogenesis and development of neurodegenerative diseases (NDDs), gene therapy has emerged as a promising avenue for treating Alzheimer's disease (AD), Parkinson's disease (PD), Huntington's disease (HD), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), and spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), particularly in personalized medicine. Notably, the FDA has approved three clinical applications for combating SMA, utilizing viral vectors delivered via intravenous and intrathecal injections. However, gene therapy for other NDDs remains in clinical trials, necessitating improvements in viral vectors, exploration of new vectors, optimization of delivery routes, and further investigation into pathogenesis to identify novel targets. This review discusses recent advancements in gene therapy for NDDs, offering insights into developing new therapeutic strategies.
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spelling doaj-art-0369292420894cd4b0145a84b0d01a9e2025-08-20T02:27:06ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Neuroscience1662-453X2025-05-011910.3389/fnins.2025.15152551515255Significance of gene therapy in neurodegenerative diseasesLingling Wang0Lin Ma1Zihan Gao2Ying Wang3Jiaoxue Qiu4Department of Neurology, Yantai Shan Hospital, Yantai, ChinaDepartment of Neurology, Qingdao Municipal Hospital, Qingdao, ChinaDepartment of Internal Medicine of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Affiliated Hospital of Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, ChinaDepartment of Neurology, Yantai Shan Hospital, Yantai, ChinaDepartment of Neurology, Yantai Shan Hospital, Yantai, ChinaGene therapy is an approach that employs vectors to deliver genetic material to target cells, aiming to correct genes with pathogenic mutations and modulate one or more genes responsible for disease progression. It holds significant value for clinical applications and offers broad market potential due to the large patient population affected by various conditions. For instance, in 2023, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved 55 new drugs, including five specifically for gene therapy targeting hematologic and rare diseases. Recently, with advancements in understanding the pathogenesis and development of neurodegenerative diseases (NDDs), gene therapy has emerged as a promising avenue for treating Alzheimer's disease (AD), Parkinson's disease (PD), Huntington's disease (HD), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), and spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), particularly in personalized medicine. Notably, the FDA has approved three clinical applications for combating SMA, utilizing viral vectors delivered via intravenous and intrathecal injections. However, gene therapy for other NDDs remains in clinical trials, necessitating improvements in viral vectors, exploration of new vectors, optimization of delivery routes, and further investigation into pathogenesis to identify novel targets. This review discusses recent advancements in gene therapy for NDDs, offering insights into developing new therapeutic strategies.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnins.2025.1515255/fullgene therapyAlzheimer's disease (AD)Parkinson's disease (PD)Huntington disease (HD)amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)spinal muscular atrophy (SMA)
spellingShingle Lingling Wang
Lin Ma
Zihan Gao
Ying Wang
Jiaoxue Qiu
Significance of gene therapy in neurodegenerative diseases
Frontiers in Neuroscience
gene therapy
Alzheimer's disease (AD)
Parkinson's disease (PD)
Huntington disease (HD)
amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)
spinal muscular atrophy (SMA)
title Significance of gene therapy in neurodegenerative diseases
title_full Significance of gene therapy in neurodegenerative diseases
title_fullStr Significance of gene therapy in neurodegenerative diseases
title_full_unstemmed Significance of gene therapy in neurodegenerative diseases
title_short Significance of gene therapy in neurodegenerative diseases
title_sort significance of gene therapy in neurodegenerative diseases
topic gene therapy
Alzheimer's disease (AD)
Parkinson's disease (PD)
Huntington disease (HD)
amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)
spinal muscular atrophy (SMA)
url https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnins.2025.1515255/full
work_keys_str_mv AT linglingwang significanceofgenetherapyinneurodegenerativediseases
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AT yingwang significanceofgenetherapyinneurodegenerativediseases
AT jiaoxueqiu significanceofgenetherapyinneurodegenerativediseases