The Aligning Science Across Parkinson’s (ASAP) initiative was set up to improve understanding of the biology underlying the onset and progression of Parkinson’s disease. With an emphasis on open science and collaboration, we have assembled a research network led by nearly 100 investigators to explore the pathology of Parkinson’s disease, and this network will soon […]
Point of View: Open science takes on Parkinson’s disease Read More »
Large biomarker development programs are undertaken to identify disease signatures that will improve patient selection and outcome measures in clinical trials. In this review, we summarize PD-related mechanisms that can serve as targets of therapeutic interventions aiming to slow or modify disease progression, as well as previous and ongoing clinical trials in each field, and
Novel targeted therapies for Parkinson’s disease Read More »
We study the effects of these interventions on the human gut microbiome by testing shifts in microbial diversity, changes in individual microbial abundances, and microbial network wiring between groups of matched subjects via randomization-based inference. In the smoking prevention scenario, we identify a small interconnected group of taxa worth further scrutiny, including Christensenellaceae and Ruminococcaceae
Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder, which is characterised by degeneration of distinct neuronal populations, including dopaminergic neurons of the substantia nigra. Here, we use a metabolomics profiling approach to identify changes to lipids in PD observed in sebum, a non-invasively available biofluid. We used liquid chromatographymass spectrometry (LC-MS) to analyse 274 samples
Metabolomics of sebum reveals lipid dysregulation in Parkinson’s disease Read More »
We found abnormal ECN and normal DMN as a possible hallmark of cognitive dysfunctions in early α-synucleinopathies. We replicated abnormalities in BGN and SMN corresponding to subclinical movement disorder of RBD. RsfcMRI may provide an early biomarker of both cognitive and motor network dysfunctions of α-synucleinopathies. CLICK TO REVIEW
Prefrontal network dysfunctions in rapid eye movement sleep behavior disorder Read More »
We found significant alterations in the PD-associated microbiome, which are robust to study-specific technical heterogeneities, although differences in microbiome structure between PD and controls are small. Enrichment of the genera Lactobacillus, Akkermansia, and Bifidobacterium and depletion of bacteria belonging to the Lachnospiraceae family and the Faecalibacterium genus, both important short-chain fatty acids producers, emerged as
This review aims to provide an insight into the current literature concerning salivary biomarkers used in the diagnosis of AD and PD. The most commonly studied salivary biomarkers in AD are β-amyloid1-42/1-40 and TAU protein, as well as α-synuclein and protein deglycase (DJ-1) in PD. Studies continue to be conducted on this subject and researchers
Real-time quaking-induced conversion (RT-QuIC), a test for pathological misfolded protein, detected alpha-synuclein in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of patients with isolated rapid-eye-movement (REM) sleep behavior disorder (IRBD), years before clinical symptoms of Parkinson’s disease or dementia with Lewy bodies emerged. In these patients, RT-QuIC detected misfolded alpha-synuclein in CSF with both sensitivity and specificity of
CSF Biomarker Flags Parkinson’s Pathology Years Before Symptoms Appear Read More »
The researchers have studied a group of patients suffering from REM Sleep Behavior Disorder (RBD), a condition where the patients physically act vivid dreams with vocalizations and movements. If a patient e.g. dreams that they are running, their legs will move as if they were actually running. The sleep disorder is often discovered by a
These results support the idea that RBD is an important marker of rapid progression in PD motor and non-motor symptoms and suggest that the atrophy in the left insula and caudate nucleus might be the underlying neurobiological mechanisms of the poorer prognosis in PD patients with RBD. CLICK TO REVIEW