News

Two enzymes that play an important role in the pathogenesis of neurodegeneration, and whose inhibition was seen to improve disease symptoms in fruit fly models, have been identified. Moreover, inhibition of one of these enzymes with a drug-like compound was found to reverse movement defects in the flies characteristic of diseases like…

Scientists at the Buck Institute for Research on Aging have derived 10 induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) lines from Parkinson’s disease (PD) patients that carry the most common mutations associated with the disease. These cell lines and related genomic information will be made available to the larger scientific community, and PD models created…

Lund University researchers followed a Parkinson’s disease patient who had undergone neuronal transplantation, and reported the patient experienced long-term “major clinical benefits,” including the restoration of normal dopamine function. Importantly, transplant-derived cell reinnervation was evident for almost 25 years, although the disease again began to progress some 14 years after transplantation. The study, “…

The Michael J. Fox Foundation (MJFF) has announced the start of the Tour de Fox 2016 Series. The summer cycling events in Canada and the U.S., invite cyclists of all ages and abilities to check bike tires, grab helmets, and take on the challenge of helping find a…

An article from Nature Communications detailed validation for a new gut model called HuMiX, allowing the study of interactions between nutrients, human intestinal cells and bacteria. The close mimicking of intestinal conditions will allow further exploration of the impact of gut microbiome on the onset of Parkinson’s disease…

Chronic activation of the innate immune system, the body’s first line of defense, is the main cause of a range of symptoms common to neurodegenerative diseases including dementia, an impairment often found in Parkinson’s disease patients, researchers from the University of Adelaide reported. The possibly important study, “The Enemy within: Innate…

Senior Helpers has launched its Parkinson’s Care Program, developed together with specialists from the National Parkinson Foundation’s Center of Excellence, to provide caregivers the specialized training and certification needed to create individualized care plans for people with Parkinson’s disease. “Parkinson’s disease is a chronic and progressive movement disorder that affects nearly one million…

A specific mutation commonly found in Parkinson’s patients has been shown to enhance the expression of α-synuclein (SNCA), a key gene involved in the pathogenesis of Parkinson’s disease. These findings were published in Nature, in the study “Parkinson-associated risk variant in distal enhancer of α-synuclein modulates target gene expression.” Genome-wide association studies…

Trequant, Inc., a wearable device startup, is launching a Kickstarter campaign to raise money to market and further develop its tremor quantifying device. The Trequant wearable is designed to appear and feel like a normal analog watch, but contains advanced sensors that monitor the extremity tremors common to movement disorders like Parkinson’s disease…

Inhibitors of the JAK/STAT pathway may provide potential for treating patients with neurodegenerative diseases, particularly Parkinson’s, by reducing the degenerative inflammation in the brain according to the study “Inhibition of the JAK/STAT pathway protects against α-synuclein-induced neuroinflammation and dopaminergic neurodegeneration“, published May 4 in The…