Steve Bryson, PhD, science writer —

Mesdopetam (IRL790), an investigational therapy for levodopa-induced dyskinesia in Parkinson’s disease, was found to reduce signs of psychosis in a rat model, a study reported. Psychosis is a common nonmotor symptom in people with Parkinson’s, characterized by hallucinations and/or delusions — hallucinations being things patients see, hear, or feel that…

A new population study has provided evidence of a potential causal link between exposure to an air pollutant called fine particular matter (PM2.5) and the development of Parkinson’s disease in the U.K. Data also showed that exposure to ground-level ozone, a gas that can damage the lungs, was not…

Note: This story was updated March 21, 2024, to correct that NeuroDerm is a subsidiary of Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma Corp. ND0612, a liquid formation of levodopa/carbidopa given without interruption via an under-the-skin pump, continues to outperform standard oral levodopa/carbidopa at controlling motor symptoms in people with advanced…

Four months of daily Nuplazid (pimavanserin), an approved oral therapy for psychosis associated with Parkinson’s disease, was also found to significantly improve cognitive abilities, daily living activities, and health-related quality of life for patients in a Phase 4 study. “These findings suggest that treatment with [Nuplazid] can result…

Olatec Therapeutics will launch a Phase 2 clinical trial in the U.K. to investigate the potential of oral dapansutrile to slow or stop Parkinson’s disease progression by reducing inflammation in the brain. The study, made possible by a grant from the U.K.-based Cure Parkinson’s, will begin in…

The selective loss of dopamine-producing nerve cells in one side of the brain of mice, to mimic Parkinson’s disease, impacted the length of movement sequences on the opposite side of the body, but not the same side, a study shows. The study’s researchers discovered two distinct populations of these…

Mutations in the PRKN gene, a common cause of early-onset Parkinson’s disease, were tied directly to low activity of the gene, a study reports. Because gene activity was measured by standard methods using cells in the bloodstream, the findings may support developing an “easily accessible screening test for PRKN mutations,”…

The easing of dyskinesia — the involuntary movements associated with advanced Parkinson’s disease — seen with use of the approved medication Duopa (levodopa-carbidopa intestinal gel) was tied to reduced pain and improved health-related quality of life among patients following treatment. That’s according to a new analysis of clinical…

In a new approach to drug discovery, seven molecules, or “hits,” that may treat familial Parkinson’s disease were identified in the first open science competition run by the Canadian nonprofit Conscience. Launched with support from the global public-private partnership Structural Genomics Consortium (SGC) and a grant from…

Shingles, an infectious disease marked by a painful skin rash with blisters, wasn’t associated with an increased risk of Parkinson’s disease, according to a study of more than 1 million U.S. veterans. “We showed no evidence of an increased risk of incident [Parkinson’s disease] after [shingles] in a large,…