by Dennis Thompson Researchers think they’ve figured out why Parkinson’s disease causes a person’s limbs to become so stiff that at times they can feel frozen in place. Using a robotic chair equipped with sensors, a research team has linked the activation of leg muscles in Parkinson’s patients with a region of the brain called...
by Alvin Powell, Harvard University Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain A team led by researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School has taken a step toward solving a central mystery of Parkinson’s disease: What is the normal function of the protein whose misfolding causes the condition’s characteristic clumps in neurons? In an interview,...
The researchers used an artificial intelligence tool to sift through mountains of data from study participants to find patterns that identify the disease and determine severity. “I like to compare our understanding of Parkinson’s to a street lamp in the night; we only get a glimpse of the disease when patients visit clinic. Moreover, the...
Variants of at least 20 different genes have been closely linked to the development of Parkinson’s disease. However, scientists are still investigating how exactly they cause the severe and incurable motor disorder afflicts about 1 million people in the U.S. alone. Image credit: Claudia Love on Unsplash, free license New research by Yale researchers offers essential...
by Queen Mary, University of London Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain Hearing loss and epilepsy are early features of Parkinson’s, according to pioneering new research from Queen Mary University of London—the first UK study of the condition in such a diverse population, published today in JAMA Neurology. Queen Mary researchers funded by Bart’s Charity used electronic primary...
by Naomi Cocks, The Conversation Credit: Shutterstock Imagine not wanting to leave your house because of fear you would drool. That’s the choice many people with Parkinson’s disease confront every day. Parkinson’s disease is the second most common neurodegenerative condition in Australia after dementia. It’s estimated around 70,000 Australians live with it and one of...
A new study finds that a flavonoid-rich diet reduces mortality in people with Parkinson’s disease. Robert Lang/Stocksy People living with Parkinson’s disease have higher mortality risk compared to the general population. Researchers recently showed that a diet rich in flavonoids — compounds present in brightly colored foods such as blueberries, strawberries, red wine, and tea...
(HealthDay)—Two rheumatoid arthritis drugs show potential for lowering the risk of Parkinson’s disease, new research shows. Some previous studies have found that people with rheumatoid arthritis have a lower risk of Parkinson’s, and it was suggested that a class of rheumatoid arthritis drugs called disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) may play a role in that reduced...
by Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain Researchers have solved a decade-long mystery about a critical protein linked to Parkinson’s disease that could help to fast-track treatments for the incurable disease. The research, published in Nature, has for the first time produced a ‘live action’ view of the protein, called PINK1,...
Twice a month, Siva Venkadesh calls his father, who has Parkinson’s disease, on the phone. His father is often incoherent in those conversations. But sometimes, “If he goes out for a walk and then talks to me right after, I can understand him very clearly,” said Venkadesh, a postdoctoral neuroscience researcher at the University of...
