A recent drug trial by the UCSF Memory and Aging Center is the first of its kind for neurodegenerative disorders and represents an exciting new method for evaluating the effectiveness of a single drug on participants with the same underlying biology, but different diagnoses. First used in cancer research, basket trials lump together patients by disease pathology, not by diagnosis or symptoms. The UCSF trial evaluated the effectiveness of a drug, TPI-287, in treating toxic buildup of tau protein in the brains of patients with Alzheimer’s disease (AZ), corticobasal syndrome (CBS), and progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP). While the drug ultimately did not show promise, scientists still drew useful takeaways from the study, and future studies of neurodegenerative disease may benefit
Stanford’s SPRING study of gait in Parkinson’s Disease seeking participants
The Bronte-Stewart Lab at Stanford University is seeking participants for the SPRING (Stanford Parkinson’s Research In Neuromodulation for Gait) Study. The SPRING Study aims to investigate the safety and feasibility of adaptive deep brain stimulation for impaired gait and freezing of gait in Parkinson’s disease with the goal of advancing the development of patient-specific DBS therapy to improve quality of life for people living with Parkinson’s disease.
Scientists find potential diagnostic tool, treatment for Parkinson’s disease
In human cell cultures, countering a defect that appears to be nearly universal among patients with Parkinson’s disease prevents death in the cells whose loss causes the disease.
Parkinson’s Participants and Caregivers Needed for Stanford Study on Your Experiences
Dr. Nancy Dudley, RN, PhD and Dr. Karl Lorenz, MD, MSHS, from Stanford University are seeking volunteers to participate in a study on the experience of patients with Parkinson’s disease, not in hospice and their caregivers and home health care.
Parkinson’s Participants Needed for Stanford Study Investigating Young Plasma as a Potential Treatment
Stanford’s Department of Neurology is looking for people between the ages of 50 and 80 who have Parkinson’s disease to participate in a clinical trial investigating the tolerability, feasibility, and safety of young plasma infusions as a future potential treatment.
Parkinson’s Participants Needed for Stanford Study on Cognition and Movement
Stanford's Department of Neurology is looking for people between the ages of 45 and 75 who have Parkinson’s disease to participate in an observational study to examine the effects of aging and disease progression on the brain.
Healthy Volunteers Needed for Stanford Parkinson’s Disease Study
Stanford's Department of Neurology is seeking healthy volunteers between the ages of 35 and 85. This study will compare behavior and memory between people with Parkinson’s Disease and healthy people without Parkinson’s Disease. We hope to understand why some people with Parkinson’s disease develop memory problems.
FDA approves new formulation of amantadine for dyskinesia
The FDA has approved amantadine in a new formulation for the dyskinesia in Parkinson’s patients based on a Phase 3 randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study reported in JAMA Neurology.
ParkinsonsDisease.net – “Parkinson’s Disease—Going Beyond the Tremor”
The Parkinson’s Disease In America 2017 online survey gathered insights from 1,152 individuals currently suffering from Parkinson’s disease to better understand their symptoms and management of this condition, as well as the impact on their lives. Here are the survey findings.
ScienceDaily: New mechanism behind Parkinson’s disease revealed
Researchers have identified the precise toxic mechanism at work during an overabundance of the protein alpha-synuclein in neurons—the protein is a key causative agent in the development of Parkinson’s disease.