Margarida Maia, PhD,  science writer—

A just-launched wellness program is offering a two-week, inpatient rehabilitation experience tailored to the needs of people with Parkinson’s disease. Its goal is to maximize patients’ independence. The program is being offered by the Hackensack Meridian JFK Johnson Rehabilitation Institute, in Edison, New Jersey. “In our new program, patients…

Inhibikase expects to begin a Phase 2a study of IkT-148009, its investigational therapy for Parkinson’s disease, in the second quarter of 2022, with dosing of the first patient being subject to clearance by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Last year, the company began dosing IkT-148009…

Treatment with the low-dose painkiller ketamine eased levodopa-induced dyskinesia (uncontrollable body movements) in patients with Parkinson’s disease, according to results from a Phase 2 study sponsored by PharmaTher. The trial (NCT04912115) evaluated how well a low dose of ketamine that does not induce anesthesia works to reduce levodopa-induced…

SQZ Biotechnologies has received a $2 million grant to work out a way to turn a patient’s own immune cells into nerve cells (neurons) capable of producing dopamine, offering a new approach to treat Parkinson’s disease. Valid for two years, the Phase II grant for Small Business Innovation…

A form of the alpha-synuclein protein that can build up in the skin could help distinguish Parkinson’s disease from other neurodegenerative disorders, a study has found. Skin biopsy samples taken from Parkinson’s disease patients all showed a buildup of phosphorylated alpha-synuclein (p-syn), which is alpha-synuclein with an added phosphate…

Excessive sweating, known as hyperhidrosis, is fairly common among people with Parkinson’s and can worsen as the disease progresses, a three-year study of patients in early disease stages reported. Researchers also observed that hyperhidrosis was associated with motor symptoms like dyskinesia (uncontrollable movements) and often accompanied non-motor symptoms…

Machine learning — a form of artificial intelligence that allows a computer to adapt, analyze, and infer from patterns in data — can distinguish by voice people with Parkinson’s disease from those without it and track disease stages by continued changes in voice quality, a study reported. Using speech recordings,…

A protein modification that disrupts how cells dispose of “worn-out” proteins may promote the spread of the alpha-synuclein toxic clumps known to cause Parkinson’s disease, a study reported. “We think our findings about this apparent disease-driving process are important for developing compounds that can specifically inhibit the process of…

SMARTfit gym equipment, which combines movement with cognitive tasks in a playful way, may lead to better motor and cognitive functions than  conventional physiotherapy, according to a small study in people with Parkinson’s disease. The equipment can be used easily and safely by anyone, researchers say, and the training…

Mutations in the enzyme glucocerebrosidase (GCase) prevent it from entering the lysosome — a cell’s recycling center — where it clears away unwanted materials such as alpha-synuclein toxic clumps that cause Parkinson’s disease and ultimately kill nerve cells, a recent study found. These encouraging findings may help to validate efforts to…