Parkinson’s patients carrying two types of genetic polymorphisms — a gene that has more than one variant in a given population — in the dopamine transporter gene are less likely to suffer from involuntary muscle movements associated with levodopa therapy, a study shows. The study, “DAT gene polymorphisms (rs28363170, rs393795)…
Levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) — a protein important in promoting the survival of dopaminergic neurons — are abnormally low in patients with Parkinson’s disease, regardless of whether these patients also have depression, a common non-motor symptom associated with the disease, a systematic review study reveals. The…
In 2017, the United Kingdom’s National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) published its latest guidelines on how adult patients and their caregivers should manage Parkinson’s disease (PD). In a new commentary, four experts discuss the implications of some of these recommendations for both patients and healthcare professionals,…
Men who lack physical activity have a higher risk of developing Parkinson’s disease at some point in their lives, a systematic review has found. Importantly, findings revealed that even moderate exercise can be enough to counteract this effect. The review, “Association of Levels of Physical Activity With Risk…
Researchers from the Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School found more than 70,000 genetic sequences that do not encode proteins — called transcribed noncoding elements (TNEs) — active in dopamine neurons that are gradually lost over the course of Parkinsons’ disease. Their findings indicate there may be…
A Parkinson’s disease genetic risk variant, called rs1109303, might have a direct impact on the expression of nearby genes INPP5K and CRK, influencing disease risk and progression, a study suggests. The study, “Parkinson’s Disease Risk Variant rs1109303 Regulates the Expression of INPP5K and CRK in Human Brain,”…
Subthalamic deep brain stimulation (STN-DBS) seems to be a long-term, effective, and safe therapeutic option for patients with advanced Parkinson’s disease, new studies report. STN-DBS is a non-destructive surgical treatment for Parkinson’s, in which a battery-operated device that generates electrical impulses is implanted to specific regions of the…
Loss or inactivation of a single gene copy of LRRK1 or LRRK2 — LRRK mutations being a common genetic cause of Parkinson’s disease — neither increases the risk nor protects against the disease, a new study showed. These findings also support the use of kinase inhibitors targeting mutant LRRK2 as a…
Physical exercise given in addition to standard treatment can improve overall quality of life in Parkinson’s patients, helping to ease physical limitations and allowing for greater engagement in daily activities, a review study suggests. The review, “The Effect of Physical Activity in Parkinson’s Disease: A Mini-Review,” was published in…
The LRRK2 gene may play an important role in nonhereditary Parkinson’s disease, not just the familial form as previously thought, researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine​ have discovered. “This discovery is extremely consequential for Parkinson’s disease because it suggests that therapies currently being developed for a small…
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