Age-related neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease affect more than 7 million individuals and their families in the US alone. With an aging population worldwide, these diseases pose a significant economic and societal burden. With limited therapeutic options for Alzheimer’s disease in particular, there is an urgent need to identify new therapeutic opportunities for treating neurodegenerative diseases now.

The biological processes underlying proteostasis offer a new direction for development of innovative therapeutics. Within the last decade, the field of proteostatis biology has advanced considerably, notably with the 2016 Nobel Prize in Medicine awarded for work on autophagy.

Current efforts in academia and industry are now focused on developing the biology of proteostasis into useful medical treatments. Yet, the discourse between the proteostatis and neurodegeneration communities is currently insufficient to expedite translational breakthroughs.

This symposium will bring together experts in proteostasis biology and neurodegenerative disease, along with clinicians, drug developers, and investors to consider how to apply the emerging science of proteostasis to deliver transformational therapies for neurodegenerative disease.