Developing medical treatments today for the most part depends on identifying a problem, whether it is physical, metabolic, behavioral or psychological and then targeting a treatment for that problem. Knowing what process causes a disease or symptom helps direct discovery of its potential treatments. In the case of Parkinson’s disease, modern techniques such as brain imaging, biochemical tests, and laboratory studies can reveal likely targets for designing new treatments. In this podcast, Michael Okun, National Medical Director of the Parkinson’s Foundation and Co-director of the University of Florida Movement Disorders Center, a Parkinson’s Foundation Center of Excellence, discusses Parkinson’s disease mechanisms as possible targets for drug development, where certain drugs stand now, and how the process of bringing a drug to market for PD may be sped up.