News

With the overarching goal of helping scientists develop and test targeted therapies in Parkinson’s (PD), The Michael J. Fox Foundation (MJFF) is awarding $5 million in grants to three teams conducting genetic studies in African, East Asian and Indian populations. The funding seeks to broaden these studies in…

Patients with Parkinson’s are at a greater risk of developing impulse control disorders (ICDs) if they are depressed, according to results from an international study. The findings also revealed that treatment with dopamine agonists increases this susceptibility, and caution is advised when prescribing such therapies to depressed Parkinson’s…

Rescuing the activity of neurons in the subthalamic nucleus — part of a brain region that controls movement — lessens motor dysfunction in a mouse model of Parkinson’s disease (PD), according to a recent study. The “study argues that the loss of this intrinsic activity promotes abnormal synchronization and…

The largest dataset ever compiled on Parkinson’s disease research — equivalent to 47.5 billion single-spaced typed pages — is now available to scientists, and can be used to investigate genetic changes over time in people with the neurodegenerative disorder. Funded by the Michael J. Fox Foundation, the “Parkinson’s…

Leading the first national effort to address long-standing gender disparities in Parkinson’s (PD) research and care, the Parkinson’s Foundation has developed patient-centered recommendations to promote the needs women in the U.S. living with the disease. Drawn from the foundation’s two-year Women and PD…

A mathematical model created to more effectively prevent protein clumping, widely thought to underlie diseases like Parkinson’s, found that different potential treatments work best at different disease stages. As such, this model may help in designing and timing the use of therapies against protein aggregates, and in testing them in…

Mutations in the SNCA and CTSB genes — among the many known to increase the likelihood of Parkinson’s disease — also contribute to the risk associated with mutations in the GBA gene, one of this disease’s most common and significant genetic risk factors, a study shows. Its results further…

Online forums have markedly altered how patients, caregivers, and healthcare professionals communicate and connect. Even when miles apart, individuals can establish supportive relationships, share experiences and information, and sometimes simply vent. Bionews Services, a leading online health, science and research publication company, has been rolling out its…

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) eases tremors and muscle rigidity, and improves cognition and mood in Parkinson’s patients by raising dopamine levels in the brain, a small study from Johns Hopkins Medicine suggests. The research, “Effect of STN DBS on vesicular monoamine transporter 2 and glucose metabolism…

PDGENEration, a new program offered through the Parkinson’s Foundation, will provide free genetic testing for people with Parkinson’s disease. Around 15% of Parkinson’s cases are thought to involve a significant genetic component — but genetic testing for the disease has not been common. “Mutations in several…