Mitochondria-targeted antioxidants for treatment of Parkinson's disease: Preclinical and clinical outcomes

• MTAs are a novel class of antioxidant molecules targeted to the mitochondria.
• MTAs attenuate oxidative damage underlying mitochondrial dysfunction.
• MTAs show promise for treatment of many neurodegenerative diseases including PD.
• Recent advances and alternative strategies of MTA therapy in PD are discussed.

Parkinson's disease is a progressive neurodegenerative disease in the elderly, and no cure or disease-modifying therapies exist. Several lines of evidence suggest that mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress have a central role in the dopaminergic neurodegeneration of Parkinson's disease. In this context, mitochondria-targeted therapies that improve mitochondrial function may have great promise in the prevention and treatment of Parkinson's disease. In this review, we discuss the recent developments in mitochondria-targeted antioxidants and their potential beneficial effects as a therapy for ameliorating mitochondrial dysfunction in Parkinson's disease. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Misfolded Proteins, Mitochondrial Dysfunction, and Neurodegenerative Diseases.