Marisa Wexler, MS, senior science writer —

Multiple cognitive difficulties, especially problems with memory, are quite common among people in the later stages of Parkinson’s disease, a study in these patients reported. Its researchers found evidence of difficulties that ranged verbal learning to comprehension, with memory most severely affected in 64% of the patients evaluated, and…

Short-term treatment with levodopa does not significantly ease speech difficulties in people with early Parkinson’s disease, a new study indicates. Results suggest that monitoring changes in speech could be useful for tracking the progression of Parkinson’s in patients on treatment. The study, “Short-term effect of dopaminergic…

An extract from the plant Tabebuia impetiginosa, which has been used for centuries in traditional medicines of South America, eased Parkinson’s disease symptoms in rat models, a study reported. Treatment aided the animals’ locomotion, eased evident stiffness, and raised dopamine levels in brain tissue, its researchers wrote. The study, “…

Activating a particular subpopulation of nerve cells in a specific region of the brain — caudal glutamatergic neurons in the pedunculopontine nucleus — can normalize movements in mouse models of Parkinson’s disease, a study reports. Its results suggest that finding ways to specifically stimulate these neurons could ease motor…

A particular region of the brain responsible for sensing and processing speech and speech-like sounds is overly active in people with Parkinson’s disease, according to a new study. These findings may help provide a biological explanation for why Parkinson’s patients tend to speak more quietly than a given situation…

Reports of anxiety and other mental health issues are fewer in people with Parkinson’s who make greater use of a coping mechanism known as self-compassion, a U.K. study based on patients’ views found. These results further suggest that self-compassion can help to negate the negative affects of “internalized stigma,” or fear…

Diagnosing Parkinson’s disease might be a matter of using artificial intelligence to “smell” patients’ skin, scientists in China reported. The artificial intelligence smell system they developed is detailed in study, “Artificial Intelligent Olfactory System for the Diagnosis of Parkinson’s Disease,” published in ACS Omega. No single test can…

Treatment with an herbal preparation called Tongtian oral liquid, long used in traditional Chinese medicine, helped to prevent nervous system damage and normalize movement in a zebrafish model of Parkinson’s. Scientists in China reported these findings in the study, “Neuroprotective effects of Tongtian oral liquid, a…

A new carbidopa/levodopa oral therapy for Parkinson’s disease, called Dhivy, is now available in the U.S., its manufacturer Avion Pharmaceuticals announced. According to Avion, Dhivy is the first and only such therapy available as a tablet with four snappable segments, allowing for more precise dosing of carbidopa/levodopa. “The…

Metabolomics — global analyses of the many small, biologically relevant molecules in blood — may help to identify males with Parkinson’s disease who carry a mutation in the LRRK2 gene, allowing for earlier diagnosis, a study reported. The study, “Plasma Metabolite Signature Classifies Male LRRK2 Parkinson’s Disease…