Marisa Wexler, MS,  senior science writer—

Blocking the activity of the synuclein nitrase enzyme reduced the levels of toxic clumps of the alpha-synuclein protein and lessened paralysis in mouse models of Parkinson’s disease, according to new data from Nitrase Therapeutics. Formation of toxic aggregates of alpha-synuclein is a hallmark of Parkinson’s and “has been…

PharmaTher Holdings has received guidance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on the late-stage clinical development of ketamine for levodopa-induced dyskinesia, or uncontrolled movements, in people with Parkinson’s disease. “We are satisfied with the feedback we received from the Type C meeting with the FDA, which lays…

A science team at Merck (known as MSD outside North America) is the winner of an $8.5 million competition to develop an imaging technology capable of visualizing alpha-synuclein protein in the brains of people living with Parkinson’s disease, the contest’s organizer, The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s…

A Phase 2 clinical trial of Neuraly’s NLY01 failed to show the experimental therapy was superior to a placebo at significantly slowing motor symptom progression in adults with early and untreated Parkinson’s disease. Some promising trends among patients younger than 60 were seen following analyses of the trial’s…

Most types of physical exercise can help to ease motor symptoms in adults with Parkinson’s disease and improve their quality of life, according to a review study. “Our review highlights the importance of physical exercise in general, while the exact exercise type may be secondary,” Elke Kalbe, PhD,…

Scientists are calling for a ban on trichloroethylene (TCE), a common and widely used chemical that’s increasingly linked to multiple health problems, including cancer and Parkinson’s disease. “Through a literature review and seven illustrative cases, we postulate that this ubiquitous chemical is contributing to the global rise of PD…

The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research (MJFF) is calling on adults 60 and older in the U.S. and Canada who do not have Parkinson’s disease to participate in the Smell Test Challenge, which aims to better understand the connection between loss of smell and neurological disease.

Newron Pharmaceuticals and Zambon Pharma have ended their plans to run a clinical trial to test Xadago (safinamide) for uncontrolled movements induced by levodopa in people with Parkinson’s disease. Xadago is widely approved as an add-on treatment to help manage Parkinson’s off episodes, or periods when symptoms…

Overproduction of toxic forms of the alpha-synuclein protein — a Parkinson’s disease hallmark — in the vagus nerve, the longest nerve connecting the brain to the intestines and other key organs, disrupts the autonomic nervous system prior to motor symptom onset, a study in a new rat model reported. The…

The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research (MJFF) has awarded a $2.5 million grant to Selonterra to support new therapeutic approaches targeting genetic causes of Parkinson’s disease. “The contribution of genetics to Parkinson’s disease is undisputed,” Anne Urfer-Buchwalder, PhD, co-founder and president of Selonterra, said in…