Marta Figueiredo, PhD, managing science editor —

The one-item Fatigue Visual Analog Scale (VAFS) is a highly consistent and reliable tool to assess fatigue in patients with Parkinson’s disease, and is associated with their quality of life, according to researchers. Their study, “The dimensionality of fatigue in Parkinson’s disease,” was published in the…

A panel of United Kingdom-based experts has defined a set of practical considerations to manage motor fluctuations and wearing-off in Parkinson’s disease patients. Based on practical clinical experience, the guidelines were outlined in “Noninvasive options for ‘wearing-off’ in Parkinson’s disease: a clinical consensus from a panel of…

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) may increase the levels of hepcidin — a hormone associated with iron accumulation and inflammation in the brain — in Parkinson’s disease patients, according to a small Polish study. The study, “Higher serum levels of pro-hepcidin in patients with Parkinson’s disease treated with…

Type 2 diabetes increases the risk of developing Parkinson’s disease by nearly a third, according to a large retrospective U.K. study. The presence of complications and younger age at becoming a diabetic further strengthens this association. The study, “Association between diabetes and subsequent Parkinson disease –…

Mutations in the LRP10 gene are associated with the development of neurodegenerative diseases with Lewy bodies formation, such as Parkinson’s disease, Parkinson’s dementia and dementia with Lewy bodies, according to a recent study. The study, “LRP10 genetic variants in familial Parkinson’s disease and dementia with…

Pharmacologic compounds that can act on two target molecules show promise as potential therapies for Parkinson’s disease, according to a study that details a new way of finding such compounds. The study, “Docking screens for dual inhibitors of disparate drug targets for Parkinson’s disease,” was published in…

Early sleep-related and autonomic symptoms — related to automatic or involuntary body functions — are associated with an increased risk of future psychotic symptoms in Parkinson’s disease patients, according to a recent study. These symptoms are also associated with a reduction of specific nerve cells in a region of the brain…

Affiris’ experimental Parkinson’s vaccine, Affitope PD01A, is safe and effectively triggers an immune response against the alpha-synuclein (aSyn) protein, data from a series of four consecutive clinical trials show. Results from the so-called AFF008 study program were recently presented at the Advances in Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s Therapies Focus Meeting (AAT-AD/PD) in…

Scientists are closer to understanding how toxic alpha-synuclein (α-syn) aggregates affect the nerve cells involved in memory, which may point to new therapeutic strategies to prevent the development of cognitive dysfunction in Parkinson’s and Lewy body dementias. The study, “α-Synuclein fibril-induced paradoxical structural and functional defects in…

Alnylam’s small RNA interference (RNAi) therapies were delivered successfully to the brain and spinal cord of a rat model, bringing promise to the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases, including Parkinson’s. The company says it now plans to advance its pipeline of RNAi therapeutics into clinical development. The initial results of the preclinical study…