Drosophila as a Model System for the Identification of Pharmacological Therapies in Neurodegenerative Diseases

Neurodegenerative diseases (NDs) constitute a very important problem in our current society, as they are usually associated with the aging process. NDs are devastating disorders that lead to severe disabilities and ultimately to death and have a considerable impact on human health. Although intense efforts are being made to shed light on the pathophysiology underlying these diseases, an important concern is that NDs are incurable and existing therapies are only directed to relieve their symptoms or delay the progression of the disease. Therefore, the development of new therapeutic approaches against NDs is urgent and challenging. In such a scenario, Drosophila is a very valuable model organism to study the pathophysiology underlying a wide range of NDs. Besides, Drosophila models of NDs have also become a very important tool for therapeutic discovery to treat these diseases. Here, we review the different experimental approaches used for the identification of therapeutic compounds in fly models of NDs, including the methods used for drug administration and the assays carried out to evaluate the efficacy of the candidate compounds. We also provide information about a number of studies performed in different Drosophila models of human NDs aimed to discover new potential therapies for these disorders.