Adaptive deep brain stimulation (DBS) outperformed traditional DBS in alleviating motor symptoms and enhancing the quality of life for people with Parkinson’s disease, a pilot study shows. In adaptive DBS, nerve signals associated with motor fluctuations are detected in real time and stimulation is automatically adjusted to ease…
A complex of proteins involved in cellular trafficking, called the BBSome, plays a role in regulating the transport of dopamine, the nerve cell signaling molecule that’s deficient in Parkinson’s disease, a study reveals. “Given the significant medical impact of altered dopamine signaling in multiple neurobehavioral disorders, further studies of…
A buildup of fat-like lipid molecules may help to promote the inability of dopaminergic neurons, the nerve cells that are lost in people with Parkinson’s disease, to divide and grow as they should, researchers suggest. Further understanding of the role of lipids in neurodegeneration “has the potential to open…
About 15% of Parkinson’s disease cases are tied to genetic variants and nearly all are associated with the LRRK2 and GBA1 genes, initial data from the Rostock International Parkinson’s Disease (ROPAD) study indicates. Launched by Centogene in collaboration with Denali Therapeutics in 2018, ROPAD (NCT03866603) is…
Cognitive function in adults with Parkinson’s disease either remains stable or progressively declines over time, according to a four-year follow-up study that also found that early problems with several tasks related to visual processing and spatial reasoning were among predictors of eventual cognitive impairments. Among Parkinson’s patients with cognitive…
A protein called STAT3 protected nerve cells from degeneration and improved behavioral and motor outcomes in a rat model of Parkinson’s disease, a study reveals. STAT3 potentially offers “a new avenue for treatment against Parkinson’s,” researchers wrote in the study “STAT3 protects dopaminergic neurons against…
A study reports that the proteins NAP1 and SINTBAD play a role in regulating mitophagy, a process wherein damaged mitochondria are removed from cells, which is essential for helping them stay healthy. Mitophagy is impaired in Parkinson’s disease. “Targeting these proteins in [nerve cells] could be a potential avenue…
A new visual diagnostic technique called Cap-QuIC has the potential to advance the early detection of neurodegenerative diseases, such as Parkinson’s disease. “The simplicity and efficiency of Cap-QuIC could lower the barriers to routine screening for neurodegenerative diseases, ultimately leading to earlier intervention and better patient outcomes,” Hye Yoon…
Depletion of the neurotransmitter dopamine, which occurs in people with Parkinson’s disease, disrupts the balance of motor pathways in the basal ganglia, a group of interconnected structures in the brain that facilitate movement, a study found. “We found that the relative strength of the two motor pathways switches in…
Clumps of RNA-binding proteins have been discovered in the nucleus of nerve cells derived from people with Parkinson’s disease, according to a new study. Generated by a “self-propagating” cycle, these clumps were different and separate from those made from the protein alpha-synuclein, a well-known feature of Parkinson’s. A second…
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