Melanin and Parkinson's: our research moonshot
The Crudo Labs Parkinson's program is an early-stage research effort exploring the role of neuromelanin in Parkinson's disease. It is not an available treatment and makes no claim of a cure. It is a long-horizon scientific moonshot, and it is the reason Crudo Labs exists.
Why neuromelanin
Neuromelanin is a melanin-based pigment found in specific regions of the brain, including the dopaminergic neurons of the substantia nigra. Parkinson's disease is marked by the loss of these neuromelanin-rich dopaminergic neurons, and that loss is closely associated with the disease. Neuromelanin is, in other words, the very kind of pigment Crudo Labs engineers. That connection is the scientific rationale for the program, and the reason we believe melanin science has something to contribute to understanding Parkinson's.
This describes an association studied in research, not causation and not a mechanism Crudo Labs has demonstrated. No efficacy is implied.
An early-stage moonshot
- A long-horizon research program.
- An effort to study neuromelanin's biology using the high-purity bio-melanin Crudo Labs can produce.
- Our most ambitious work.
- A treatment.
- A cure.
- A therapy.
- A product you can buy.
- A clinical claim of any kind.
We are deliberate about the language here. This program is research, not medicine. We do not claim to treat, reverse, or cure Parkinson's disease, and bio-melanin from this program is not available to purchase as a therapy. What we are pursuing is understanding, the kind of foundational research that earns the word "moonshot."
The material at the center of it
Studying neuromelanin requires the ability to produce melanin to a high, consistent purity. That is exactly the platform Crudo Labs has built for its other products. The same capability that powers Crudo's coatings, optics, and skincare products is what makes it possible to ask serious scientific questions about neuromelanin. The platform funds the moonshot, and the moonshot is why the platform matters.
Read the science behind neuromelanin and the broader melanin properties, or see the platform that supports the program.
Parkinson's research program FAQ
- What is the Crudo Labs Parkinson's program?
- The Crudo Labs Parkinson's program is an early-stage research effort exploring the role of neuromelanin in Parkinson's disease. It is not an available treatment and makes no claim of a cure.
- Is bio-melanin a treatment or cure for Parkinson's?
- No. Bio-melanin is not a treatment, therapy, or cure for Parkinson's disease, and it is not available to purchase as one. The program is long-horizon scientific research, not medicine.
- What is neuromelanin and how is it related to Parkinson's?
- Neuromelanin is a melanin-based pigment found in dopaminergic neurons of the brain. Parkinson's disease is associated with the loss of these neuromelanin-rich neurons, which is the scientific rationale Crudo Labs explores. This is an association studied in research, not a demonstrated treatment mechanism.
This moonshot is the reason Crudo Labs exists. Read more about our mission and why Crudo exists.