Parkinson's Disease News and Research

Latest Parkinson's Disease News and Research

Parkinson's disease can also affect changes in thought, behavior and judgment

Parkinson's disease affects 6.3 million people worldwide. While the disease is recognized for its profound effects on movement, up to 40 percent of Parkinson's disease patients also develop changes in thought, behavior and judgment.

14 Dec 2008

Losing sense of smell may indicate Parkinson's

Many individuals with Parkinson's disease are able to recall losing their sense of smell well before the onset of more commonly recognized symptoms such as tremors, impaired dexterity, speech problems, memory loss and decreased cognitive ability.

12 Dec 2008

New research points to possible treatment for Lou Gehrig's disease

There are many ways to die, but amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig's disease must be one of the worst.

10 Dec 2008

New experimental treatment for Tourette's syndrome

The University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC) is leading a multi-center clinical research study of a new experimental treatment for Tourette's syndrome.The study will examine whether or not a drug that alters the chemical activity in the brain can alleviate the symptoms of the disease.

2 Dec 2008

Ceregene announces data from phase 2 clinical trial of CERE-120 for Parkinson's

Ceregene, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company, today reported clinical data from a double-blind, controlled Phase 2 trial of CERE-120 in 58 patients with advanced Parkinson's disease.

26 Nov 2008

New voice care center

UT Southwestern Medical Center has gathered a team of specially trained physicians and therapists to launch a new center for voice care dedicated to disorders of the voice and larynx.

24 Nov 2008

Researchers shed new light on genetics of Parkinson's

A new study by Narendra et al. suggests that Parkin, the product of the Parkinson's disease-related gene Park2, prompts neuronal survival by clearing the cell of its damaged mitochondria.

24 Nov 2008

Researchers identify best time for stem cell collection for Parkinson's therapy

Researchers have identified a stage during dopamine neuron differentiation that may be an ideal time to collect human embryonic stem cells for transplantation to treat Parkinson's disease, according to data presented at Neuroscience 2008, the 38th annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience.

19 Nov 2008

Scientists gain new insights into regulation of calpains

Scientists at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital have gained new insights into regulation of one of the body's enzyme workhorses called calpains.

19 Nov 2008

Researchers define ideal time for stem cell collection for Parkinson's disease therapy

19 Nov 2008

Researchers reduce production of alpha-synuclein in the brain - offers hope for Parkinson's disease

Mayo Clinic researchers have developed a method to reduce the production of alpha-synuclein in the brain.

17 Nov 2008

New research reveals key steps in HIV's assault on the brain

Scientists have unraveled in unprecedented detail the cascade of events that go wrong in brain cells affected by HIV, a virus whose assault on the nervous system continues unabated despite antiviral medications that can keep the virus at bay for years in the rest of the body.

16 Nov 2008

Breakthrough in cellular analysis

Like skilled assassins, many diseases seem to know exactly what types of cells to attack.

16 Nov 2008

Hope for treating relapse to methamphetamine abuse

"Reinstatement of drug-seeking behavior after an extended period of abstinence is the number-one cause of drug-addiction relapse," said Brookhaven neuroanatomist Stephen Dewey, who led the research team. "This animal study suggests that vigabatrin could potentially prevent human methamphetamine addicts from relapsing."

13 Nov 2008

Breakthrough in cell-type analysis offers new ways to study development and disease

Like skilled assassins, many diseases seem to know exactly what types of cells to attack. While decimating one cadre of cells, diseases will inexplicably spare a seemingly identical group of neighbors. What makes cells vulnerable or not depends largely on the kinds and amounts of proteins they produce - their 'translational profile,' in the lingo of molecular biology. For this reason, scientists have struggled to parse the subtle molecular differences among the hundreds of specialized cell types that are tangled together in tissues like the brain.

13 Nov 2008