Fig. 1From: Genetic variation in neurodegenerative diseases and its accessibility in the model organism Caenorhabditis elegans Schematic diagram of the pathological mechanisms associated with neurodegeneration in neurons. Eight main events exist in the cellular biological processes related to neurodegeneration: 1 The protein-misfolding process inhibits ER to Golgi trafficking and alters ER-associated degradation, inducing the ER stress [55]; 2 Damaged lysosomes disrupt processes that maintains lysosomal homeostasis [78]; 3 Accumulation of misfolded proteins generates positive feedback exacerbating other effects [15]; 4 Dysfunctional mitochondrial maintenance directly affects mitochondrial biogenesis and induction of autophagy [75], e.g., the production of ROS and ATP in the cell; 5 Altered homeostasis generates excessive influx of calcium, copper, and zinc, due to ER and mitochondrial stresses [78]; 6 Plaques and neurofibrillary tangles, due to tau phosphorylation and aggregates, reduce neurotransmitter release, which also 7 weaken synaptic strength [15]; 8 Signaling pathways in the stressed organelle or the cytoplasm induce the transductions of the signals to the nucleus, which provoke DNA damage [10, 80]Back to article page