Steve Bryson, PhD, science writer —

Steve holds a PhD in biochemistry from the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Toronto, Canada. As a medical scientist for 18 years, he worked in both academia and industry, where his research focused on the discovery of new vaccines and medicines to treat inflammatory disorders and infectious diseases. Steve is a published author in multiple peer-reviewed scientific journals and a patented inventor.

Articles by Steve Bryson

Genetic variants tied to mortality, motor progression in Parkinson’s

Six genetic variants associated with mortality and motor progression have been discovered in people with Parkinson’s disease. These newly detected genetic factors that influenced disease progression were largely different from those that increased Parkinson’s risk, researchers found. “This work will help us to better understand the biology of [Parkinson’s]…

IRL757, potential 1st apathy treatment, begins Phase 1 testing

Dosing has begun in a Phase 1 clinical trial evaluating the safety and efficacy of IRL757, an oral candidate for apathy treatment in people with Parkinson’s disease and other neurological conditions. Irlab Therapeutics, the therapy’s developer, recently announced the trial’s launch following approval by the Swedish Medical…

Emotional processing tied to facial recognition in Parkinson’s: Study

Deficits in emotional processing, rather than impaired ability to simulate facial expressions, likely explain problems Parkinson’s disease patients encounter when trying to recognize emotions on human faces, a study suggests. Researchers asked patients and healthy individuals to recognize different, non-emotional facial expressions on avatars, either static or moving. No…

Alterations in epigenetic marks found in Parkinson’s patients: Study

Potential environmentally-driven alterations in certain epigenetic marks — DNA modifications that control gene activity — were detected in the blood of people with newly diagnosed, treatment-naïve, sporadic Parkinson’s disease, a study revealed. These epigenetic marks were linked with cellular processes driving ongoing neurodegeneration that underlies Parkinson’s, and changed over…

VPS13C defects disrupt lysosomes in dopamine neurons

Defects in the VPS13C protein, which have been linked to early-onset Parkinson’s disease, disrupt the function of lysosomes, the cell’s recycling compartments, in dopamine-producing nerve cells that are lost in the neurodegenerative condition. Without functional VPS13C, the Rab10 protein can’t respond properly to lysosomal stress, causing dysfunction in the…

Neuroinflammation tied to mood disturbance in early Parkinson’s

New study findings strengthen scientists’ belief that neuroinflammation — an inflammatory response in the central nervous system — is linked to mood disturbance in people with early Parkinson’s disease. Specifically, elevated levels of pro-inflammatory signaling molecules in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) were found to be significantly correlated with worse…

Hydrogel can boost survival of precursor nerve cells to brain

Encapsulating precursor nerve cells in a collagen hydrogel can enhance the efficacy of stem cell transplantation to the brain, a potential treatment to replace dopamine-producing nerve cells that are lost in people with Parkinson’s disease, according to a preclinical study. “Our hydrogel nurtures, supports and protects the cells after…