Marisa Wexler, MS,  senior science writer—

Alpha-synuclein clumps’ toxic effects — a hallmark of Parkinson’s disease — are independent of the production of the protein by neurons themselves, according to a study in mice. In mice lacking alpha-synuclein, exposure to toxic protein clumping resulted in comparable neurodegeneration, which was found to be related to the…

An open-label extension study has been launched for NOPARK, a placebo-controlled Phase 2 clinical trial that’s assessing the effectiveness of nicotinamide riboside (NR) with Parkinson’s disease. NR is the active ingredient of Niagen, a dietary oral supplement that ChromaDex markets to promote “healthy aging.” Dietary supplements, unlike…

Nearly 90,000 people, 65 or older, are diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease every year in the U.S., representing an increase of about 50% relative to previous estimates of the disease’s incidence, a study showed. “These updated estimates of incidence are necessary for understanding disease risk, planning health care delivery, and…

Clinical Ink is partnering with a “leading biopharmaceutical organization” to monitor symptoms of people with Parkinson’s disease at home and clinical sites in the U.S. and Europe using the company’s technology. This will be part of a late-phase clinical development program, in which symptoms of Parkinson’s patients will…

Top-line results are expected next month from a Phase 2b clinical trial testing whether the investigational oral therapy mesdopetam can ease levodopa-induced dyskinesia, or involuntary movements, in people with Parkinson’s disease. IRLAB Therapeutics, the therapy’s original developer and sponsor of the trial, announced that the final participant…

Nitrase Therapeutics has partnered with HitGen in the search for novel therapies that suppress nitrases, a class of enzymes discovered by Nitrase. Nitrases are responsible for nitration, a type of biochemical modification of proteins that is linked to cellular stress and can change that protein’s structure, function, and…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has put a hold on clinical trials of IkT-148009, an experimental oral therapy that Inhibikase Therapeutics is developing for Parkinson’s disease and other related and non-related conditions. The hold comes just a few months after Inhibikase started dosing Parkinson’s patients…

NeuroOne Medical Technologies announced it has successfully completed a feasibility study of its OneRF ablation system, which uses implanted electrodes to destroy targeted regions of the brain — and may help to control tremor in people with Parkinson’s disease — in animal models. The company is planning…

BioVie’s investigational oral therapy NE3107, taken in combination with standard levodopa, eases motor symptoms more substantially than levodopa alone in people with Parkinson’s disease, according to top-line results of a Phase 2 clinical trial. “NE3107 shows promise, and if the current findings are confirmed, it may represent one…

More than 30% of gut microbial species are found at abnormal numbers in Parkinson’s disease patients, according to a new analysis that assessed the gut microbiome in more detail than most prior studies. “We have shown that there is a widespread imbalance in the Parkinson’s [gut bacteria], creating an environment…