News

FGF-1 improves blood flow, motor function in Parkinson’s patient

Six months of treatment with intranasal FGF-1, a naturally occurring molecule that promotes blood vessel growth, improved blood flow in a brain region profoundly affected by Parkinson’s disease, along with motor function, in the first patient to undergo both assessments. That’s according to a press release by…

Sleep, relationship quality tied to women’s sexual health: Study

Sexual health among women with Parkinson’s disease is associated with sleep quality and the quality of the relationships they have with their partners, a study in Brazil found. The study analyzed the short- and long-term sexual health of 100 women with mild to moderate disease who were sexually active…

Study offers insight into how sex differences affect Parkinson’s

Male and female mice show different responses to toxic alpha-synuclein clumps, a hallmark of Parkinson’s disease, with males experiencing faster and more aggressive neurodegeneration and females showing earlier brain damage before motor symptoms appear, a study has found. Understanding these sex differences could help develop better, more personalized…

Estrogen enhances neuroprotective effects of cytisine in female mice

Estrogen, a female sex hormone, was found to enhance the neuroprotective effects of cytisine, a smoking cessation drug, in a female mouse model of Parkinson’s disease. That’s according to a study conducted by researchers at Texas A&M University, which analyzed the effects of cytisine in female mice that had…

MJFF grant to fund preclinical study of paxalisib for Parkinson’s

A grant from The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research (MJFF) will allow Australia-based Kazia Therapeutics to explore the potential of paxalisib — an investigational anticancer drug now being tested in clinical trials — as a repurposed treatment for Parkinson’s disease. The research grant will fund…