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Participants are now being recruited for several clinical trials testing investigational treatments for Parkinson’s disease, The Michael J. Fox Foundation (MJFF) announced. Clinical trials are well-designed experiments conducted on human participants. Since such trials actually test a treatment in people, these studies are essential for understanding whether a given…

Delivering an alpha-synuclein-targeting molecule, called ASO4, in tiny fatty vesicles reduced toxic alpha-synuclein clumps and dopaminergic neuron loss — two main hallmarks of Parkinson’s disease — and lessened motor impairments in a mouse model of the disease. Results of the study add to previous findings suggesting that these…

Visual hallucinations in people with Parkinson’s disease are associated with a thinning of the inner layers of the eye’s retina, an exploratory study reported.  Published in the journal Nature Scientific Reports, the study was titled “…

Sleep disturbances caused by home confinement during the COVID-19 pandemic are linked to worsening Parkinson’s symptoms and poorer quality of life, according to a recent study. Physical activity and adopting new hobbies, the research found, correlated with better sleep. Titled “Impact of home confinement during…

Production of the protein TOM20 rescued nerve cells that are damaged in people with Parkinson’s disease due to the toxic buildup of alpha-synuclein protein, a study in rats revealed. According to researchers, the interaction between TOM20 and alpha-synuclein represents a potential…

The Michael J. Fox Foundation (MJFF) has received the Advocacy/Policy Award from the Reagan-Udall Foundation for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, in recognition of its role in Parkinson’s disease research and in shaping public health policy. The MJFF is only the second organization to receive this award. “This…

A multiyear McCamish Foundation funding commitment is expected to enhance the scope and reach of Parkinson’s disease research at Georgia Institute of Technology and Emory University. It also could help make the state of Georgia a hub for collaborative research on neurological diseases. The McCamish pledge — an unspecified amount…

Scientists have created a tomato enriched in levodopa, or L-DOPA, a standard therapy for people with Parkinson’s disease.  These tomatoes could represent a scalable, low-cost alternative L-DOPA source for Parkinson’s patients, particularly those in developing nations where treatment cost is prohibitive.

Using non-invasive, dry-electroencephalography (EEG) and machine-learning computer algorithms, researchers were able to distinguish between Parkinson’s disease patients with and without mild cognitive impairments with 80% accuracy, early results of a study found.  Follow-up assessments will be…

Teva has discontinued Spiroco (ropinirole) 4mg XL prolonged-release tablets due to factors out of the company’s control, according to an announcement from Parkinson’s UK. The company — which outside the U.S. manufactures ropinirole XL as a generic formulation in three concentrations — is still marketing Spiroco…