Using Drosophila exercise for therapeutic discovery in Kennedy’s Disease
Endurance exercise is a potent intervention with widespread benefits proven to reduce
disease incidence across species. While endurance exercise supports neural plasticity,
enhanced memory, and reduced neurodegeneration, less is known about the effect of
chronic exercise on the progression of movement disorders like Kennedy’s Disease (KD).
Initial work has revealed protection of speed and maximal lifespan in exercised KD model
flies. Based on these preliminary observations, there are two specific aims. First, evaluate
the role of endurance exercise on a broad spectrum of KD phenotypes and second,
determine molecular mechanisms of protection from exercise that may be leveraged in the
future toward the development of targeted therapeutics.
