- Kim, Gha-Hyun J;
- Mo, Han;
- Liu, Harrison;
- Wu, Zhihao;
- Chen, Steven;
- Zheng, Jiashun;
- Zhao, Xiang;
- Nucum, Daryl;
- Shortland, James;
- Peng, Longping;
- Elepano, Mannuel;
- Tang, Benjamin;
- Olson, Steven;
- Paras, Nick;
- Li, Hao;
- Renslo, Adam R;
- Arkin, Michelle R;
- Huang, Bo;
- Lu, Bingwei;
- Sirota, Marina;
- Guo, Su
Parkinson's disease (PD) is a common neurodegenerative disorder without effective disease-modifying therapeutics. Here, we establish a chemogenetic dopamine (DA) neuron ablation model in larval zebrafish with mitochondrial dysfunction and robustness suitable for high-content screening. We use this system to conduct an in vivo DA neuron imaging-based chemical screen and identify the Renin-Angiotensin-Aldosterone System (RAAS) inhibitors as significantly neuroprotective. Knockdown of the angiotensin receptor 1 (agtr1) in DA neurons reveals a cell-autonomous mechanism of neuroprotection. DA neuron-specific RNA-seq identifies mitochondrial pathway gene expression that is significantly restored by RAAS inhibitor treatment. The neuroprotective effect of RAAS inhibitors is further observed in a zebrafish Gaucher disease model and Drosophila pink1-deficient PD model. Finally, examination of clinical data reveals a significant effect of RAAS inhibitors in delaying PD progression. Our findings reveal the therapeutic potential and mechanisms of targeting the RAAS pathway for neuroprotection and demonstrate a salient approach that bridges basic science to translational medicine.