Margarida Maia, PhD,  science writer—

It may be possible to spot telltale signs of Parkinson’s disease on positron emission tomography (PET) scans as early as 20 to 30 years before symptoms become evident and a definite clinical diagnosis can be made, a study suggests. PET scans that track a protein called vesicular…

Cure Parkinson’s is funding preclinical research that intends to provide the evidence needed to determine whether three existing compounds are ready to move forward into clinical trials in people with Parkinson’s disease, the U.K. charity announced. The funding comes as part of the recently launched Pipeline Research…

A once-daily 200 mg dose of Inhibikase Therapeutics’ risvodetinib — an oral medication previously called IkT-148009, now undergoing Phase 2 clinical testing — is safe, and can improve motor function and ease activities of daily living in people with previously untreated Parkinson’s disease. That’s according to now…

IRLAB Therapeutics is taking steps in preparation for a Phase 3 clinical program of mesdopetam, an experimental medicine for the treatment of levodopa-induced dyskinesia in Parkinson’s disease. The Swedish company is consulting with two advisors, Clintrex and ProPharma Group, to gather the documentation needed to request…

Loneliness raises a person’s risk of developing Parkinson’s disease within 15 years, a long-term study of nearly half a million U.K. residents found, supporting calls into the therapeutic benefits of personally significant social bonds. This work adds to evidence “that loneliness is a substantial psychosocial determinant of health,” the…

Vincere Biosciences has been given $700,000 in seed funding by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to advance in testing USP30 small molecule inhibitors, its candidate therapy aiming to slow or stop progression in Parkinson’s disease. Valid for two years, the Phase I Small Business…

Interfering with the circadian clock, or the body’s internal clock, may make dopaminergic neurons — the nerve cells that become progressively lost in Parkinson’s disease — more prone to damage at night, according to a study in fruit flies. “Our results further suggest that genetic variations in circadian clock…

Patients who are on long-term levodopa to treat Parkinson’s disease are more likely to experience self-reported freezing of gait, or FOG, than levodopa-naïve (untreated) patients, a study has found. These findings suggest that FOG should be taken into account when studying Parkinson’s, with “the ultimate aim to develop…

While it appears that people with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are more likely to develop Parkinson’s disease later in life than are individuals without the neurodevelopmental disorder, further proof is needed to establish a link, according to a new systematic review. “Our review provides preliminary results that a…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted breakthrough device designation to Inbrain Neuroelectronics’ neural platform for its potential to provide more effective deep brain stimulation (DBS) as an add-on Parkinson’s treatment. The platform — called Intelligent Network Modulation System — combines skin-like graphene material and artificial…