Affiliations: [a] Deparment of Neurological, Neuropsychological, Morphological and Motor Sciences, Section of Physiology, University of Verona, Verona, Italy | [b] Department of Comparative Biomedicine and Food Science, University of Padova, Padova, Italy | [c] Phatology Division, General Hospital, Dolo-Venezia, Italy | [d] CNR-Institute for Biomedical Technologies, “Metalloproteins” Unit of Padova, Department of Biology, University of Padova, Padova, Italy
Correspondence:
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Correspondence to: Silvia Bolognin, Departement of Neurological, Neuropsychological, Morphological and Motor Sciences, Section of Physiology, University of Verona, Strada le Grazie 8, 37134 Verona, Italy. Tel.: +39045 8027158; Fax: +39045 8027279; E-mail: silvia.bolognin@gmail.com and Bruno Cozzi, Department of Comparative Biomedicine and Food Science, University of Padova, viale dell'Universitá 16, 35020 Legnaro-Padova, Italy. Tel.: +39049 8272626; Fax: +39049 8272796; E-mail: bruno.cozzi@unipd.it.
Abstract: Metallothioneins (MT) are a family of proteins actively involved in metal detoxification and storage as well as in prevention of free-radical damage. Changes in the levels of MT have been described in a number of neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, prion protein disease, Binswanger type of subcortical vascular dementia, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. This suggests that MT functions might be more complex and vast than what was initially thought. In this review, we summarize the current knowledge on the potential involvement of MT in the mentioned neurodegenerative diseases while also discussing the emerging evidence proposing MT modulation as a feasible therapeutic approach. Enhancing repair mechanisms after neurological damage and/or protection against oxidative stress through a proper modulation of this family of protein might indeed represent an important avenue to cope neurodegeneration.
Keywords: Brain development, metal ions, metallothioneins, neurodegenerative diseases
