News

Human stem cells can repair Parkinson’s disease-damaged neural circuits and restore motor function in mice, a recent study found. The study, “Human Stem Cell-Derived Neurons Repair Circuits and Restore Neural Function,” was published in the journal Cell Stem Cell. Stem cells are able to continuously divide…

Although Parkinson’s disease (PD) is largely known for tremor and other motor symptoms, the vast majority of patients in an informal survey said they noticed non-motor issues, such as cognitive changes, first. The one-question Facebook survey, conducted by the medical device company PhotoPharmics, was reported to draw more…

Orthostatic hypotension, a sudden drop in blood pressure when changing positions, can significantly affect both function and quality of life for people with Parkinson’s disease. However, this non-motor symptom — typically attributed to later disease stages — is not associated with an increased risk of Parkinson’s and…

The International Linked Clinical Trials (iLCT) program, a collaborative effort from The Cure Parkinson’s Trust (CPT), the Van Andel Institute (VAI), and now the John Black Charitable Foundation (JBCF), has pledged $6.75 million over three years to support clinical trials of potential Parkinson’s disease treatments.

Scientists have developed a new system that can provide a controlled and sustained release of parkinsonian medications, thus enabling better management of Parkinson’s disease. The mechanisms behind this delivery system were described in the study, “Multi-Drug-Loaded Microcapsules with Controlled Release for Management of Parkinson’s Disease,” published in the…

Simvastatin, a widely-used cholesterol-lowering medication, failed to slow the progression of Parkinson’s disease, according to data from a Phase 2 trial. Based on these findings, it was decided that a future Phase 3 study assessing the safety and efficacy of simvastatin in these patients would not be…

The Aligning Science Across Parkinson’s (ASAP) initiative has awarded a $7.2 million grant to a research team working to unravel the structure and biology of leucine-rich repeat kinase 2 (LRRK2), a protein linked to familial Parkinson’s disease. The three-year grant, issued by the Michael J. Fox Foundation (MJFF), was…