Researchers have uncovered how aggregates of the Parkinson’s disease-associated protein alpha-synuclein damages nerve cells. The discovery offers scientists a road map to strategies for developing new treatments for the disease. The study is also a breakthrough in Parkinson’s research. Even though researchers have long known that alpha-synuclein protein…
Mutations of genes responsible for breaking down and recycling cell waste products may promote Parkinson’s disease, a study shows. Scientists have known for some time that deficiencies in these lysosomal storage genes cause Gaucher disease and other disorders. The study, “Excessive burden of lysosomal storage disorder gene…
Psychosis is an important marker for impaired volition (the act of making a conscious choice) in people with Parkinson’s disease who are treated with dopamine replacement therapy, a new study shows. The study, titled “Markers of impaired motor and cognitive volition in…
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved Boston Scientific’s Vercise Deep Brain Stimulation system to help Parkinson’s patients control their movement. Europe and Australia have already approved the system — the first to target specific nerve cells in the brain. It does this by stimulating electrodes that surgeons…
Researchers at China’s Nanjing Medical University have found a link between Parkinson’s patients’ depression and deterioration of white matter in their brains, particularly on the left side. Their work, “Impaired long contact white matter fibers integrity is related to depression in Parkinson’s disease,” was published in the journal…
Patients with rapid eye movement sleep behavior disorder, or RBD, have a form of inflammation in the brain that puts them at risk of developing Parkinson’s disease or dementia, according to researchers at Aarhus University in Denmark. The study, “Assessment of neuroinflammation in patients with idiopathic rapid-eye-movement…
People with Parkinson’s Disease (PD) have impaired emotional recognition and expression compared to healthy people, a new study shows. The study, titled “Altered emotional recognition and expression in patients with Parkinson’s disease,” was published in the journal Neuropsychiatric Disease and…
Using low-frequency electrical pulses to stimulate a deep brain region can improve the cognitive function of people with Parkinson’s and other neurological diseases, a study suggests. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has already approved high-frequency deep brain stimulation as a way to treat Parkinson’s. A team at the University of Iowa’s…
Weight loss in Parkinson’s disease patients increases the risks for dementia and dependency care, and reduces patients’ life expectancy, according to a new study. These findings suggest that monitoring weight and timely dietary interventions to counteract weight loss may significantly improve the outcome of Parkinson’s disease patients. The study, “Early…
Women with Parkinson’s disease are less likely to have caregiver support, and are more frequent users of formal, paid caregiver services than male patients. Researchers at Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, who conducted the study, argue that this might be because women tend to live longer…
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