Traditional Chinese Medicine Prevents and Treats Parkinson's Disease Through Mitochondrial Autophagy： A Review
10.13422/j.cnki.syfjx.20251227
- VernacularTitle:中医药通过线粒体自噬防治帕金森病的研究进展
- Author:
Bo PANG
1
;
Yuanhua WU
1
Author Information
1. The First Affiliated Hospital of Guizhou University of Chinese Medicine， Guiyang 550002，China
- Publication Type:Journal Article
- Keywords:
mitochondrial autophagy;
Parkinson's disease;
traditional Chinese medicine;
regulatory mechanism;
review
- From:
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae
2026;32(5):331-339
- CountryChina
- Language:Chinese
-
Abstract:
Parkinson's disease （PD） is a neurological degenerative disease with a high clinical incidence， unclear etiology， and incurability. The main pathological features of PD are the loss of dopaminergic neurons in the midbrain substantia nigra and the formation of Lewy bodies. At present， the anti-parkinsonism drugs used in clinical practice have problems， such as decreasing efficacy and severe toxic side effects in the late stage of the disease. Mitochondrial autophagy is a self-regulation mode in which cells automatically remove damaged and aging mitochondria to maintain mitochondrial homeostasis. It is generally believed that the degree of mitochondrial autophagy is weakened in PD state， and this process mainly progresses through the ubiquitin-dependent pathway， non-ubiquitin-dependent pathway， and α-Synuclein-mediated mitochondrial autophagy pathway. Abnormal accumulation of damaged mitochondria will cause further damage to nerve cells and accelerate PD process. Therefore， restoring the mitochondrial autophagy balance， reducing the excessive accumulation of abnormal mitochondria， and reducing the damage of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra are particularly important for the treatment of PD. Traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） has definite effect in the clinical prevention and treatment of PD， and studies have been carried out targeting the intervention of mitochondrial autophagy. A large number of studies have confirmed that single herbs and compound prescriptions of TCM can relieve nerve function defects and delay degenerative changes of nerve cells by restoring the balance of mitochondrial autophagy， thus playing a role in the treatment of PD. This paper systematically summarized the regulatory mechanisms of mitochondrial autophagy in the pathogenesis of PD and the influences of active ingredients from single herbs and compound prescriptions of TCM on mitochondrial autophagy. Furthermore， this paper explored the pathogenesis of PD and the basis of the therapeutic role of TCM through the intervention of mitochondrial autophagy， providing references for promoting the application of TCM in the prevention and treatment of PD.
