News

Scientists found a species of bacteria living in the small intestine, called Clostridium sporogenes, that is able to convert a fraction of unabsorbed levodopa — a medication commonly used to treat Parkinson’s disease — into a chemical that lowers gastrointestinal mobility. According to authors, this process may…

The association between dopamine levels and electric brain signals called beta waves — thought to be of an opposite nature based on data from people with Parkinson’s disease — is more complex than previously thought, a study in non-human primates shows. The data, collected through a new chemo-electric platform,…

People with early-onset Parkinson’s disease caused by mutations in the PRKN or PINK1 genes have high levels of the pro-inflammatory immune signaling protein interleukin-6 and mitochondrial DNA in the blood, which may…

Buspirone can effectively ease anxiety among people with Parkinson’s disease, but the medication is not well tolerated, according to data from a recent Phase 2 trial. Patients using this anti-anxiety medication and able to tolerate it well should continue its use, but a large-scale study is not advised, its…

Pharmather has entered into an exclusive licensing agreement with the University of Arizona, allowing the company to further develop ketamine as a potential treatment of dyskinesia — involuntary, jerky movements — associated with levodopa use in people with Parkinson’s disease. The company plans…

Anavex 2-73 (blarcamesine), a potential oral therapy to slow cognitive decline due to Alzheimer’s and other neurological disorders, was found to be safe and to lead to clinically meaningful, dose-dependent improvements in cognition in people with Parkinson’s disease dementia (PDD) treated in a Phase 2 trial. Anavex…

Rodent neurons (nerve cells) in cell cultures form complex interaction networks that seem designed to maximize information processing, but are distinct from many well-understood mathematical models, new research suggests. Understanding how these networks form and interact within the brain could have applications in understanding neurological diseases like Parkinson’s and…

Dopamine and serotonin — two brain chemicals involved in reward processing and whose pathways are treatment targets for diseases such as Parkinson’s — also play a key role in controlling the way people perceive the world and make decisions based on those perceptions, a study reported. According to its…

Certain types of anti-diabetic medications may lower the risk of Parkinson’s disease in people with type 2 diabetes, a population-based study suggests. In particular, the risk of Parkinson’s was found to be 36–60% lower in diabetic patients who were being treated with GLP-1 agonists or DPP4…

The interplay between different genetic and environmental factors, from a family history of disease to smoking habits, contributes to Parkinson’s risk and can help in designing tests that better allow for its early detection, a study suggests. The study, “Parkinson’s disease determinants, prediction and gene–environment interactions in the UK…