Marisa Wexler, MS, senior science writer —

Marisa holds a Master of Science in cellular and molecular pathology from the University of Pittsburgh, where she studied novel genetic drivers of ovarian cancer. Her areas of expertise include cancer biology, immunology, and genetics, and she has worked as a science writing and communications intern for the Genetics Society of America.

Articles by Marisa Wexler

Buspirone, for Anxiety, Helps to Prevent Disease in Mouse Model

Mice in a Parkinson’s disease model treated at higher doses with the anti-anxiety medication buspirone had lesser evidence of nerve cell degeneration in the brain and more normalized behaviors than untreated mice, a pair of researchers in Australia reported. “To our knowledge, this is the first study to investigate the ability…

Survey Reveals Risks, Rewards of Cannabis Use

Some people with Parkinson’s disease find that using cannabis products helps to ease certain symptoms, according to results from a survey. The findings notably suggest that cannabis products with high levels of the chemical THC are more likely to induce both positive and negative effects in Parkinson’s patients. “These…

Zhittya Offers Webinar About Upcoming Compassionate Use Trial

Zhittya Genesis Medicine is hosting a webinar next week to provide information about the recently announced “Compassionate Use Clinical Trial” of the company’s lead therapy for Parkinson’s disease. The webinar is taking place on Tuesday, Feb. 1, at 3 p.m. Pacific time (6 p.m. Eastern). Registration is…

Women with Parkinson’s Need Better Care, Researchers Say

An international team of scientists is calling for more research about how to better care for women with Parkinson’s disease (PD). “Given the millions of women affected worldwide with PD, and the known differences in this disease’s manifestations and effects between genders, remarkably very little has been done to…

FDA Allows Yumanity to Test Single Doses of YTX-7739

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a partial clinical hold in response to an application by Yumanity Therapeutics requesting permission to begin clinical testing in the U.S. of YTX-7739 for Parkinson’s disease. With this decision, the FDA is allowing Yumanity to conduct a planned clinical…

MJFF $5.2M Grant to ASU Supports Stem Cell Trial, Neuron Research

The Michael J. Fox Foundation has awarded $5.2 million to scientists at Arizona State University (ASU) to support three research projects exploring new treatment options for Parkinson’s disease. The projects will be led by Jeffrey Kordower, PhD, founding director of the Banner Neurodegenerative Disease Research Center at ASU.

Plant of Indian Medicine Seen to Ease Insomnia, Restless Leg Syndrome

Adding a plant-derived agent called Withania somnifera, used in traditional Ayurvedic medicine and thought to help with disturbed sleep, to the insomnia medicines given a woman with Parkinson’s disease appears to have eased her insomnia and completely alleviated her restless leg syndrome, researchers in India report. The case report, “…