Researchers have discovered a new genetic link between platelets in the bloodstream and Parkinson’s disease, according to a large-scale genetic study that investigated associations between blood measures and neurological and psychiatric diseases. Variation in platelet size, called platelet distribution width (PDW), was found to be broader in Parkinson’s patients…
Levels of nerve cell pentraxin proteins found in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) surrounding the brain and spinal cord are associated with motor and cognitive decline in people with Parkinson’s disease and related conditions, a study suggests. As such, these nerve pentraxins may serve as predictive biomarkers for both…
The world-first Phase 3 clinical trial testing the ability of ambroxol, a medicine used for decades to treat lung conditions, to slow Parkinson’s disease progression is expected to start in the next few months. Called ASPro-PD, the end-stage trial is supported by results from the previous Phase 2…
A clinical trial testing the impact of low doses of psilocybin, a naturally occurring psychedelic compound, on inflammatory activity in people with Parkinson’s disease is on track to be completed by the end of February. Sponsored by Silo Pharma and conducted at the Clinical & Translational Science Institute (CTSI)…
Centogene is expanding enrollment in the Rockstock International Parkinson’s Disease (ROPAD) gene study — the world’s largest research effort to characterize the genetic profile of people with Parkinson’s disease. The global study now will recruit participants at 48 sites across 10 countries: the U.S., Argentina, Brazil, the…
Deferiprone, an iron chelator (binder) therapy, does not slow the progression of Parkinson’s disease in newly diagnosed patients who have never received treatment, according to data from a Phase 2 clinical trial. Instead, after about nine months of treatment in these patients, deferiprone was associated with a worsening of…
Blood levels of small vesicles originating in neurons and containing proteins related to Parkinson’s disease or Alzheimer’s disease — alpha-synuclein, phosphorylated tau, or insulin receptor substrate 1 (IRS-1) — can be biomarkers of cognitive impairment in Parkinson’s patients, a study reported. Changes in the levels of vesicles carrying these…
Levels of neurofilament light chain (NfL) protein in the bloodstream of people with Parkinson’s disease can independently predict cognitive decline, a recent study suggests. Although p-tau181 concentration, a biomarker in Alzheimer’s disease, which is the most common cause of dementia, was higher in Parkinson’s patients, links to cognitive performance…
Difficulty in swallowing medications, either tablets or capsules, was common among people with Parkinson’s disease, a study reports. This impairment in swallowing, called dysphagia, also predicted worse motor complications, and data suggest capsules tended to be easier to swallow than tablets. Evidence of swallowing difficulties for food is a…
Toxic clumps of the alpha-synuclein protein, the underlying cause of neurodegeneration in Parkinson’s disease, may originate in the digestive tract before migrating to the brain, a study in mice reported, supporting previous work into a gut-brain axis in disease development. Changes to microbes in the digestive tract, known…
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