Steve Bryson, PhD, science writer —

Altered levels of proteins in the amygdala, the brain region involved in memory, decision-making, and emotional responses, were discovered in Parkinson’s disease patients, a study reports. These changes in the amygdala were associated with synapses, the minute gaps between nerve cells through which impulses pass, allowing the cells to…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has accepted Supernus Pharmaceuticals‘ new application seeking approval of its apomorphine infusion pump — known as SPN-830 — to treat motor fluctuations in people with Parkinson’s disease. A decision on the company’s request, resubmitted last month in the form…

EvokAI Creative Labs’ Movement Disorder Monitor (MDM) Flex Sensor — which uses artificial intelligence (AI) in monitoring abnormal body movements — has received CE Mark approval in Europe for the management of Parkinson’s disease and other movement disorders. CE Mark approval indicates that the sensor has been assessed…

Exposure to an air pollutant called fine particular matter (PM2.5) is significantly associated with an increased risk of developing Parkinson’s disease, according to a U.S. population study. “Using state-of-the-art geospatial analytical techniques, we were, for the first time, able to confirm a strong nationwide association between incident Parkinson’s disease…

Opal, Clario’s wearable sensor device, was shown to detect early motor progression in people with Parkinson’s disease more rapidly than did standard clinical rating scales. These findings suggest that this new wearable technology may work better than conventional tests to identify patients with worsening motor symptoms. Such a…

Levels of the protein prosaposin, known as PSAP, are altered in the brains of people with Parkinson’s disease, and these changes are linked to worse motor symptoms, a study discovered. Mice lacking PSAP were more susceptible to the loss of nerve cells seen in Parkinson’s patients. Treatment with the…

Adults with Parkinson’s disease are willing to take additional medicine to manage daily off times — when the benefits of standard levodopa therapy wear off — as long as it does not increase the risk of their bodily fluids becoming discolored, according to a patient survey. Survey respondents also…

Newer glucose-lowering drugs used to treat type 2 diabetes, compared with a placebo, appear to lower a person’s risk of Parkinson’s disease, according to a meta-analysis of controlled clinical trials. Findings suggest a potential association between recent classes of anti-diabetic medications and the risk of developing Parkinson’s, and they…

Pupil light reflex (PLR), the automatic contraction or dilation of the eye’s pupil in response to light levels, was found to be impaired in people with Parkinson’s disease in a small study. Impaired PLR is believed to contribute to the vision problems experienced by some Parkinson’s patients. New data…

Significant alterations in the structure and function of the eye’s retina — the layer at the very back of the eyeball that’s key in transmitting information to the brain — were revealed in adults with Parkinson’s disease in a new study. Data demonstrated a significant impact of disease duration…