News

The venom of the emerald cockroach wasp is capable of triggering Parkinson’s-like features, particularly problems controlling movement, a California study reports. Researchers said the findings on the venom’s toxins could lead to a better understanding of the mechanisms underlying Parkinson’s and new therapies. Their study, “Ampulexins: A New Family…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Osmolex ER (amantadine, extended release) to treat both Parkinson’s disease and therapy-induced extrapyramidal reactions in adults, or the movement and muscle-control problems that typify this disease and can be side effects of common medications. Osmodex ER, developed and marketed by Osmotica Pharmaceutical,…

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is effective in improving several neuropsychiatric symptoms of Parkinson’s disease, but can lead to increased apathy in patients, research based on an observational clinical trial in patients suggests. The study, “Subthalamic stimulation and neuropsychiatric symptoms in Parkinson’s disease: results from a long-term follow-up cohort…

Neurocrine Biosciences will ask the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in early 2019 to begin the  regulatory review process that could lead to the approval of its Parkinson’s therapy Ongentys (opicapone). It confirmed the timetable after meeting with FDA officials on its plan to file a New Drug Application for Ongentys,…

Key proteins involved in neuron communication are potential targets that could aid in early diagnosis and prediction of disease progression in patients with different types of dementias, including Parkinson’s disease, a study suggests. The study, “Synaptic markers of cognitive decline in neurodegenerative diseases: a proteomic approach,” was…

An independent review board has found Herantis Pharma’s Parkinson’s therapy safe, paving the way for a Phase 1/2 clinical trial in Sweden to continue. The board based its decision on the safety results seen in the first few patients treated with cerebral dopamine neurotrophic factor, or CDNF, at Karolinska University Hospital in Stockholm.

Medical cannabis is a safe and effective way for older people to alleviate symptoms of Parkinson’s, cancer and other diseases, particularly pain, a study shows. The study in the European Journal of Internal Medicine also reported that after six months more than 18 percent of patients surveyed had either reduced…

Emerald Health Pharmaceuticals investigational EHP-102 (previously known as VCE-003.2), a patented compound derived from the non-psychotrophic cannabinoid called cannabigerol, has shown anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective properties in a mouse model of Parkinson’s disease. The study “Benefits of VCE-003.2, a cannabigerol quinone derivative, against inflammation-driven neuronal deterioration in experimental Parkinson’s…

Parkinson Voice Project, a nonprofit focused on speech therapy, is accepting applications for its National Grant Program that aims to assist nonprofit Parkinson’s groups and patient clinics in bringing its speech therapy approach to patients in their communities. The program will award a total $650,000 in grants to speech therapy clinics…

Scientists at the National Institutes of Health have developed an accurate test for the early diagnosis of neurodegenerative diseases, including Parkinson’s. The new NIH test is a refinement of one that detects protein clumping involved in these disorders. It diagnosed Parkinson’s and dementia with Lewy bodies from 60 cerebral spinal…