News

A 45-year-old man initially deemed to have depression was later diagnosed with parkinsonian syndrome following a skin biopsy that detected alpha-synuclein, a protein that forms toxic clumps in the brains of people with Parkinson’s disease, according to a case study from researchers in Miami. After receiving a combination of carbidopa…

Having foot pain, particularly of mild intensity or occasional pain, is associated with a higher risk of falls among people with Parkinson’s disease, a study in Spain shows. The study assessed the factors that could contribute to a higher risk of falls with Parkinson’s and found that people with…

A consortium dubbed Center Without Walls is planning to begin human testing of specific positron emission tomography (PET) radiotracers, which its scientists identified, to detect toxic proteins like alpha-synuclein, helping diagnose and monitor Parkinson’s and similar diseases. Funded by a five-year, $30 million grant from the National Institutes of…

A syndication model being explored in a Parkinson’s disease study may help accelerate digital healthcare by speeding the development of digital tools to track disease activity, according to a published paper. “The syndication model combines the speed of single sponsor studies with the advantage of having multi-member expertise and…

The U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) launched a consortium to support clinical studies designed to better understand the link between the gut and brain in Parkinson’s disease. The Gut-Brain Communication in Parkinson’s Disease Consortium is motivated by the fact that there are compelling data indicating that the gastrointestinal…

Researchers in China have identified three genes — GPX2, CR1, and ZNF556 — with increased activity in people with Parkinson’s disease that could play a role in its development. If validated in future studies, these genes could ultimately serve as disease biomarkers to facilitate Parkinson’s diagnoses. “Our study identifies…

A flexible dose of experimental oral treatment tavapadon significantly lessened motor symptoms in adults with early-stage Parkinson’s disease, according to top-line results from a completed Phase 3 clinical trial. Developer Abbvie expects to present full results of the study, TEMPO-2 (NCT04223193), at a future medical meeting and…

Researchers have developed a chemical tag that can detect and measure protein clumping, which is thought to contribute to neurodegenerative diseases like Parkinson’s, in living cells. The potential diagnostic tool, called TME, readily distinguished living white blood cells derived from Parkinson’s patients over those from healthy individuals, outperforming current…

Early data on recruitment and enrollment from Photopharmics’ Phase 3 clinical trial of its light-based, at-home therapy device for Parkinson’s disease — a novel treatment called Celeste — highlight both the interest in, and feasibility of, fully remote studies done in a patient’s home, according to the company. Such home-based, decentralized…

P2B001, Pharma Two B’s investigational combination therapy of pramipexole and rasagiline, safely and effectively lessens symptoms in people with early-stage Parkinson’s disease, according to pooled data from Phase 2b and Phase 3 clinical trials. The combo treatment was also found to be as effective as titrated extended-release pramipexole…