Category Archives: Parkinson’s Treatment

THIS IS THE NEWS I never wanted to write, but last year feared Id have to all too soon. Richard Thompson, widely acclaimed among his peers as the best all-around comic-strip creator working today, wont still be wearing that crown in six weeks. Thats because Thompson has decided to stop working as a comic-strip creator: He will end his beloved strip Cul de Sac on Sept. 23. Thompson and his syndicate, Universal Uclick, are making the announcement Friday at 10 a.m. ET. View Photo Gallery:The award-winning cartoonist has decided to end his celebrated strip amid his battle with Parkinsons disease. The Kansas City-based syndicate is informing newspaper editors in a letter that reads: The last year has been a struggle for Richard. Parkinson's disease, first diagnosed in 2009, has so weakened him that he is unable to meet the demands of a comic strip. For a time, he worked with another artist, but the deadlines became too much of a task. Of the Parkinsons, Thompson, 54, says in a comment released by his syndicate: At first it didnt affect my drawing, but thats gradually changed. Last winter, I got an excellent cartoonist, Stacy Curtis, to ink my roughs, which was … Continue reading →

The NIH Is Investigating a Possible Connection Courtesy of Ted Meyer Richard Meyer: The New York folk singer had Gaucher; he died in June of Parkinsons disease. His brother Ted Meyer undergoes brain imaging and other tests as part of the NIH study. Ted Meyer was six years old the first time he got involved in medical research, by donating a sample of bone marrow. He had just been diagnosed with Gaucher disease, and his parents hoped their sons participation might help him and others with the potentially fatal inherited metabolic disorder. Meyer, 54, is still actively participating in Gaucher research though it has taken an unexpected turn in the past few years. The Los Angeles-based artist is part of a federally funded study at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) aimed at understanding a genetic link between Gaucher, a rare disease that disproportionately affects Jews of Ashkenazi descent, and Parkinsons disease, a progressive movement disorder that affects more than 1.5 million older Americans. Meyers brother Richard, who was likewise diagnosed with Gaucher as a child, went on to develop Parkinsons in his late 40s. Richard Meyer, a New York City-based folk singer, died in June at the age of … Continue reading →

A Chinese researcher is testing a new way to treat Parkinsons disease by transplanting neural cells from pigs into the brains of Parkinsons-affected monkeys. Experimental results showed that Parkinsons disease in the participating monkeys was well controlled after they received the neural transplants. Reuters pic Wang Wei, a medical professor at the Third Xiangya Hospital affiliated with Central South University in central Chinas Hunan province, said his method of transplanting neural cells from pigs into the brains of Parkinsons-affected monkeys aroused interest among scientists at the International Congress of the Transplantation Society held in Berlin, Germany in July. Xenotransplantation, according to Wang, refers to the transplantation of living cells, tissue or organs from one species to another. Experimental results showed that Parkinsons disease in the participating monkeys was well controlled after they received the neural transplants, Wang said. This indicates that the treatment of Parkinsons disease through xenotransplantation has seen initial success, Wang said in a statement posted on the website of Central South University. The neural cells of pigs are covered in a semi-permeable membrane, enabling transplanted cells to function properly while avoiding immune system rejection by recipients, Wang added. Our next step is to solve safety problems regarding … Continue reading →

While its long-awaited novel drug to treat Parkinson's disease inches closer to the finish line,Impax Laboratories ( IPXL ) has found other ways to keep its growth engine humming. Products treating migraine headache and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD, have recently led the way. Revenue from the two treatments powered Impax's second-quarter results, which in turn lifted shares more than 8% July 31, the day of the report, to over 22. They've since climbed a bit higher. Hayward, Calif.-based Impax is a specialty drug company that has built a reputation on controlled-release oral delivery techniques. It focuses on both generic and branded drugs, especially for disorders of the central nervous system. But it's Rytary, Impax's first internally developed branded drug for Parkinson's disease, that could be the big game-changer. The drug is also known by its filing name, IPX066. Parkinson's is a neurodegenerative movement disorder afflicting more than 3 million people in the U.S., Europe and Japan alone. Impax will have a lock on the big U.S. market.GlaxoSmithKline ( GSK ) is licensed to sell Rytary outside the U.S. and Taiwan. Better Efficacy Rytary is an extended release capsule reformulation of an immediate release version containing the treatment standard … Continue reading →

An estimated 500,000 to one million people are living with Parkinson's diseases in the United States, and while there is treatment there is no cure for the disorder. One area lab recently received a special grant for research. Shazia Khan filed the following report. To view our videos, you need to enable JavaScript. Learn how. install Adobe Flash 9 or above. Install now. Then come back here and refresh the page. A team of scientists in Jamaica, Queens are working on what they hope will be a breakthrough in the earlier diagnosis and care of Parkinson's disease. If you catch it early, you have a much better chance of dealing with it, said Dr. Simon Moller of St. Johns University. The research is made possible through a $900,000 grant. The Research Council of Norway awarded the prize to Moller, a professor of biological sciences. Currently there is no cure for Parkinson's, a degenerative neurological disorder. Symptoms include tremors, muscle stiffness and dementia. Though there is an increased awareness, Moller says very little advancement has been made since the 1970s. I think the reason for that is that it is a complex disease. It's hard to tackle and of course it's … Continue reading →

Public release date: 13-Aug-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: Mount Sinai Press Office newsmedia@mssm.edu 212-241-9200 The Mount Sinai Hospital / Mount Sinai School of Medicine The second of two studies on latrepirdine, recently published in Molecular Psychiatry, demonstrates new potential for the compound in the treatment of Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, sleep disorders, and other neurodegenerative conditions. An international team led by Mount Sinai School of Medicine scientists found that latrepiridine, known commercially as Dimebon, reduced the level of at least two neurodegeneration-related proteins in mice. Latrepirdine was initially sold as an antihistamine in Russia, following its approval for use there in 1983. In the 1990s, the compound appeared effective in treating some of the earliest animal models of Alzheimer's disease. In a high profile Phase II clinical trial in Russia, overseen by a panel of top U.S. clinical trial experts, including Mount Sinai's Mary Sano, PhD, Professor of Psychiatry and Director of the Mount Sinai Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, latrepirdine showed significant and sustained improvement in cognitive behavior in Alzheimer's patients with minimal side effects. However, when the drug was tested in the U.S. in a Phase III trial, it did not demonstrate any improvement in people … Continue reading →

WORCESTER Paul Green of Saugatuck Rowing Club, the oldest rower in this year's USRowing Masters Nationals, is not your typical 88-year-old. The sprightly Boston native, who has called Westport, Conn., his home for the past four decades, was a charter member at Saugatuck, which is among the largest teams participating in this weekend's regatta at Lake Quinsigamond. Green also competed in the national championships in 2005, the last time they were held in Worcester, and is assured of bringing home a medal as one of three rowers in today's 1:31 p.m. lightweight singles final for those over age 80. I'm not a great rower, that's for sure, Green said with a chuckle. I'm hoping I can do the 1,000 meters. I'll just take my time, but the big thing is to do it. Oh, and one more important detail about Green he has Parkinson's disease. Diagnosed nearly 20 years ago, he was years ahead of the experts in prescribing himself a treatment of vigorous exercise to engage his muscles and joints. The whole thing with Parkinson's is use it or lose it, Green said. I think people are surprised that I'm still rowing, and I think for people with Parkinson's, … Continue reading →

DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/r5jrks/randd_trends_park) has announced the addition of the "R&D Trends: Parkinson's Disease - Pipeline swells but a paradigm shift is unlikely in the mid-term" report to their offering. Review of key trends in the development of new Parkinson's disease drugs across the seven major markets. Includes detailed analyses of the composition of the pipeline, clinical trial design, target product profile, and future treatment developments. Since early 2011, R&D efforts in Parkinson's disease have been met with mixed success. In Q1 2012, the US FDA re-approved UCB's Neupro (rotigotine patch), and accepted the New Drug Application filing for Impax/GSK's IPX066 for idiopathic Parkinson's disease. Meanwhile, the development of eight late-stage pipeline candidates has been discontinued due to lacklustre efficacy. Scope Highlights Key Topics Covered: OVERVIEW EXECUTIVE SUMMARY CLINICAL PIPELINE OVERVIEW Originally posted here: Research and Markets: R&D Trends: Parkinson's Disease - Pipeline swells but a paradigm shift is unlikely in the mid-term … Continue reading →

ATLANTA Scientists at Georgia Health Sciences University in Augusta have identified a drug that could one day be a potent treatment for Parkinsons disease. The research used a new kind of antioxidant to prevent the diseases development. Neuroscientist Bobby Thomas and his colleagues targeted a substance in the body called Nrf2 that fights oxidative stress and inflammation. They used powerful new antioxidants to keep Nrf2 from degrading so it can trigger genes that control that inflammatory response. Basically, it can prevent the induction of oxidative stress and also exacerbated inflammation, which we clearly see in Parkinsons, Thomas said. Thomas says patients with Parkinsons have an overload of this oxidative stress and the bodys response inflammation which can lead to the death of brain cells that produce dopamine. So by regulating that response with the new drugs, they were able to prevent development of the disease in animal models. The researchers tested the drugs on cells that developed Parkinsons-like damage within days in the lab. Now theyre testing them on animal models that are genetically programmed to develop the disease more slowly, like humans do. Thomas says its the first time this new class of antioxidants has been tested on Parkinsons-like … Continue reading →

TORONTO--(Marketwire -08/08/12)- Cynapsus Therapeutics Inc. (CTH:TSX-V) today announced that it has been awarded a grant of USD$947,925 from The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research (MJFF) to support clinical studies to develop APL-130277, a sublingual (oral) thin film strip reformulation of apomorphine. Apomorphine is an approved drug in the US, Europe and several other countries as a subcutaneous injection or infusion for Parkinson's patients experiencing daily "OFF" or motor fluctuation episodes. APL-130277 is potentially the only oral formulation of Apomorphine, and as such will provide patients with a convenient and more tolerable alternative to multiple daily injections. The grant was awarded under the Foundation's The Edmond J. Safra Core Programs for Parkinson's Research, Clinical Intervention Award, aimed at supporting human clinical trials testing promising Parkinson's therapies that may significantly and fundamentally improve treatment for people with Parkinson's. "Improved methods of delivery for apomorphine, which has been shown to effectively treat 'off-episodes' in motor fluctuation, have been a goal of pharmaceutical research for at least a decade," says Maurizio Facheris, MD, MSc, Associate Director of Research Programs at MJFF. "Preliminary data around Cynapsus' novel formulation (APL-130277) show promise for a more frequent and effective use of this dopaminergic drug. We … Continue reading →