One Drug, Three Diseases: Computational Drug Repurposing in MS, Parkinson's, and Epilepsy

Overview

Three serious neurological diseases — Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson's disease, and epilepsy — affect hundreds of thousands of Canadians, and none of them have a cure. On the surface, they look very different, but this project asked: what if they share hidden similarities at a genetic level? Using free online tools, I compared the genes associated with each disease and found 30 that all three conditions have in common. I then identified the six most important shared proteins, all involved in how brain cells send signals. Finally, I searched for existing, already-approved medications that target those same genes. Many were found, including one that's already used for Parkinson's. This matters because developing a brand-new drug takes over a decade and costs billions with a 6.7% success rate. Repurposing drugs could help patients much sooner, and this project illustrates how computers can be a powerful tool in medical discoveries.

Awards (1)

• Selected for CWSF 2026

Competition history

• CWSF 2026 Disease & Illness

Related projects

Closest projects by meaning, across every fair and year in the corpus.