News

British pharmaceutical firm Mission Therapeutics will test its potent, selective USP30-targeted inhibitors in stem cell-derived Parkinson’s disease models, as part of research funded by the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research (MJFF). Cells maintain healthy mitochondria — the cell’s power generators — by degrading damaged mitochondria in a process known as mitophagy. Defective…

Researchers have found that selective mutations in the protein alpha-synuclein affect its binding to cell membranes with potential implications in Parkinson’s disease (PD) and therapeutic strategies. The study, “Alpha-Synuclein Disease Mutations Are Structurally Defective and Locally Affect Membrane Binding,” was published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society.

Researchers have discovered a way to transform certain brain cells into the neurons that produce dopamine, a neurotransmitter whose loss is a hallmark of Parkinson’s disease. The findings could pave the way for a therapy that stops the disease’s progression by replacing lost or damaged dopamine-producing, or dopaminergic, neurons. The study, “…

Anavex Life Sciences therapies reversed Alzheimer’s-related cognitive deficits in mice and improved processes connected with the disease, according to presentations at an international conference on Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. The presentations at the 13th International Conference on Alzheimer’s & Parkinson’s Diseases dealt with the experimental treatments Anavex 2-73, Anavex 3-71, and Anavex…

Italian pharmaceutical conglomerate Zambon has partnered with Montreal-based Valeo Pharma to bring Xadago (safinamide) to Canada, where 100,000 patients living with Parkinson’s disease (PD) will now have access to this recently approved drug. Xadago was developed by Italy’s Newron Pharmaceuticals and approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)…

Bial, a Portugal-based pharmaceutical company, launched an international campaign for World Parkinson’s Day — recognized today, April 11 — to raise awareness and help people living with Parkinson’s disease. The campaign, called “Me At My Best,” aims to show that it is possible for many who have Parkinson’s to live a…

23andMe Inc. has become the first company to receive U.S. approval to market genetic tests that can flag patients on their risk of developing an inherited disease. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorization means 23andMe can offer a personal genome service that can detect markers of several genetic diseases, including Parkinson’s.

International Stem Cell Corp. (ISCO) says two of its biggest achievements in the last quarter of 2016 was demonstrating that ISC-hpNSC can improve cognitive performance and motor coordination in rodents with traumatic brain injury, and successfully transplanting 30 million ISC-hpNSC cells into a second patient in a clinical trial for…

Herantis Pharma will conduct a Phase 1-2 clinical trial in Sweden to investigate whether its experimental drug CDNF can help Parkinson’s disease patients. The announcement came after the Medicines Agency of Sweden authorized the trial. Recruitment of the 18 patients for the trial will begin in the first half…

Prothena recently presented results from a Phase 1b clinical trial investigating a new antibody therapy for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease at the 13th​ International Conference on Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s Diseases (AD/PD) in Vienna, Austria. The trial was an ascending dose study of a novel antibody known as PRX002/RG7935.