Category Archives: Parkinson’s Treatment

SANTA CLARA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- XenoPort, Inc. (XNPT) announced today that it has been awarded a grant from The Michael J. Fox Foundation (MJFF) for Parkinsons Research to support preclinical studies to explore XP23829 for its ability to protect against neurodegeneration in experimental preclinical models of Parkinsons disease. The grant of $347,075 was awarded under the Foundation's Therapeutics Development Initiative Program aimed at supporting preclinical development of Parkinson's disease therapies that have the potential for fundamentally altering disease course and improving treatment of symptoms. Evaluating drugs that could potentially slow the progression of Parkinsons disease is a high-priority research area for The Michael J. Fox Foundation, said Kuldip Dave, PhD, associate director of research programs at MJFF. We are encouraged by research that suggests that fumaric acid esters could slow the progression of the neurodegenerative process. We are hopeful that XenoPorts efforts to this end could help to speed progress toward a breakthrough treatment for patients with Parkinsons disease. XenoPort is evaluating XP23829, a fumaric acid ester compound and a prodrug of monomethyl fumarate (MMF). Fumaric acid ester compounds have shown immuno-modulatory and neuroprotective effects in cell-based systems and preclinical models of disease. Dimethyl fumarate (DMF), also a fumaric acid ester … Continue reading →

New research developed by The University of Queensland is set to change the future treatment of speech problems associated with stroke and Parkinson's disease. The new treatment is promising news for people with speech and language disorders that result from diseases within the nervous system. Professor Bruce Murdoch of the Centre for Neurogenic Communication Disorders Research within UQ's School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences said preliminary trials of the new treatment were positive in the effective treatment of these speech and language disorders. The research has found a new technology, transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), can be used to stimulate the brain with a series of magnetic pulses delivered by a stimulating coil held over selected areas of the head. Professor Murdoch said TMS featured a coil, shaped like a figure eight, that was held over the patient's head to switch on part of the brain in Parkinson's sufferers and switch off a different part in stroke victims. The non-invasive technology is proving very effective in treating long-term sufferers of stroke and Parkinson's disease, where traditional therapy approaches have proven ineffective, he said. The brain can heal itself much better than we thought it could. Based on these findings, TMS would … Continue reading →

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Fifty-four-year-old Brent Peterson is living with Parkinson's disease, but the former assistant coach to the Nashville Predators isn't letting it slow him down. "I still golf. I travel. I do everything pretty much except I can't get back on the ice," Peterson told Nashville's News 2. Prior to having surgery six months ago, Peterson shuffled his feet, he needed help getting dressed and was taking 20 to 30 pills a day just to function. That all changed after Deep Brain Stimulation, a procedure in which surgeons implanted electrodes in Peterson's brain. "It saved my life for now," said Peterson, who now takes just five pills a day and was diagnosed with the disease nine years ago. "I'm able to do the things I want to do." The surgery isn't a cure for Parkinson's and not everyone is a candidate for the procedure. Peterson says he is lucky DBS is working for him and that it has greatly improved his quality of life. He previously told Nashville's News 2 he decided to undergo the radical treatment to help restore some of what Parkinson's had taken away from him. "It has given me probably 10 to 15 years that … Continue reading →

SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Inc. (ACAD), a biopharmaceutical company focused on innovative treatments that address unmet medical needs in neurological and related central nervous system disorders, today announced results of preclinical studies, which suggest that pimavanserin, ACADIAs proprietary product candidate currently in Phase III development for Parkinsons disease psychosis, also may have therapeutic benefits in the treatment of Alzheimers disease psychosis (ADP). Results of these studies were published in the scientific journal, Behavioural Pharmacology (Price et al., Pimavanserin, a 5-HT2A Receptor Inverse Agonist, Reverses Psychosis-like Behaviors in a Rodent Model of Alzheimers Disease, July 2012 e-pub). ACADIA scientists reported results of experiments using mice that had received intracerebroventricular (ICV) infusion of an amyloid peptide fragment and developed Alzheimers disease-like pathology. These animals developed psychosis-like behaviors with enhanced responses to the psychostimulants DOI and amphetamine as well as disrupted prepulse inhibition. Treatment with pimavanserin prevented DOI-induced responses, reversed the augmented responses to amphetamine, and normalized prepulse inhibition in animals with amyloid pathology. These findings suggest that 5-HT2A antagonists/inverse agonists, such as pimavanserin, may be effective in the treatment of patients with ADP. ADP represents a major unmet medical need with no proven safe and effective therapy, said Uli Hacksell, Ph.D., … Continue reading →

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, CA--(Marketwire -07/09/12)- Titan Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (TTNP) today announced that it has successfully completed investigation into the feasibility of a long-term, round-the-clock, non-fluctuating dopamine agonist treatment for Parkinson's disease. The preclinical study was primarily funded by a $495,000 grant awarded to Titan by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) under the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program, and administered by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS). Parkinson's disease (PD) is a progressive disorder associated with a loss of dopamine producing neurons in the brain. There are more than 1.5 million PD patients in the U.S., with about 50,000 new patients diagnosed each year. The cornerstone of symptomatic treatment for PD is dopamine replacement therapy, and dopamine agonists (DA) such as ropinirole, pramipexole, apomorphine, and lisuride play a key part in the treatment of early as well as advanced stages of the disease. There is increasing evidence that maintaining continuous and stable blood levels of the dopamine agonists may minimize the motor fluctuations and dyskinesias (involuntary movements) that are a debilitating side effect of the frequent oral administration of current dopamine replacement therapies. This preclinical study included in-vitro characterization of implant formulations of two dopamine agonists … Continue reading →

Washington, D.C. - infoZine - Researchers have taken a step toward personalized medicine for Parkinson's disease, by investigating signs of the disease in patient-derived cells and testing how the cells respond to drug treatments. The study was funded by the National Institutes of Health. The researchers collected skin cells from patients with genetically inherited forms of Parkinson's and reprogrammed those cells into neurons. They found that neurons derived from individuals with distinct types of Parkinson's showed common signs of distress and vulnerability -- in particular, abnormalities in the cellular energy factories known as mitochondria. At the same time, the cells' responses to different treatments depended on the type of Parkinson's each patient had. The results were published in Science Translational Medicine. "These findings suggest new opportunities for clinical trials of Parkinson's disease, in which cell reprogramming technology could be used to identify the patients most likely to respond to a particular intervention," said Margaret Sutherland, Ph.D., a program director at NIH's National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS). A consortium of researchers conducted the study with primary funding from NINDS. The consortium is led by Ole Isacson, M.D., Ph.D., a professor of neurology at McLean Hospital and Harvard Medical … Continue reading →

TURKU, FINLAND--(Marketwire -07/05/12)- Biotie today announced that enrollment is complete in its Phase 2b trial evaluating the safety and efficacy of tozadenant in Parkinson's disease ("PD"). Biotie now expects the top-line data from this study to be available at around the end of 2012, previous guidance was H1 2013. The 12 week, double-blind, placebo-controlled, dose-finding study, being conducted in the US, Canada, Chile, Argentina, Ukraine and Romania, enrolled 420 PD patients experiencing levodopa related end of dose wearing off. In these patients, treatment with levodopa is insufficient to control PD symptoms until their next dose, resulting in an 'off' period when symptoms reappear. The primary goal of the Phase 2b study is to determine the efficacy of tozadenant in reducing the mean number of hours per day spent in the 'off' state. The trial will also assess the safety of tozadenant and its impact on various measures of motor symptom severity, dyskinesia and non-motor symptoms. "Thanks to the dedication of our investigators and staff, recruitment in this large study has been completed earlier than anticipated." said Timo Veromaa, President and CEO of Biotie. "We look forward to finalizing the study and evaluating the potential of tozadenant as a treatment for … Continue reading →

Public release date: 4-Jul-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: Daniel Stimson, NINDS nindspressteam@ninds.nih.gov 301-496-5751 NIH/National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke Researchers have taken a step toward personalized medicine for Parkinson's disease, by investigating signs of the disease in patient-derived cells and testing how the cells respond to drug treatments. The study was funded by the National Institutes of Health. The researchers collected skin cells from patients with genetically inherited forms of Parkinson's and reprogrammed those cells into neurons. They found that neurons derived from individuals with distinct types of Parkinson's showed common signs of distress and vulnerability in particular, abnormalities in the cellular energy factories known as mitochondria. At the same time, the cells' responses to different treatments depended on the type of Parkinson's each patient had. The results were published in Science Translational Medicine. "These findings suggest new opportunities for clinical trials of Parkinson's disease, in which cell reprogramming technology could be used to identify the patients most likely to respond to a particular intervention," said Margaret Sutherland, Ph.D., a program director at NIH's National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS). A consortium of researchers conducted the study with primary funding from NINDS. The consortium … Continue reading →

NEW YORK (WABC) -- About 1 million people are living with Parkinson's disease in the U.S. and 69-year-old Bob Van Housen is one of them. He's always been active and has never been one to slow down, but Parkinson's has forced him to. Now, Bob is part of a new study, trying a unique treatment for Parkinson's and he's taken to it - hook, line and sinker. Twelve years ago, Bob was diagnosed with the disease and as it progressed his symptoms did too. Bob and his wife Carole even stopped traveling because of the disease. To relieve symptoms Bob would take a pill called Levadopa every few hours just to be able walk and talk. "Very suddenly, the medicine would stop handling the symptoms," Carole Van Housen said. About a year ago Bob enrolled in a trial at Cleveland Clinic to test a new, more consistent way to deliver a gel form of the same medication he was already using. "A tube is inserted in the stomach, but the tube ends in the small intestines where the medications, and also our food, nutrients are absorbed, anyways so the Levadopa liquid gel is pumped continuously from an outside source," Dr. … Continue reading →

PHOENIX, July 2, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- The Muhammad Ali Parkinson Center at St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center in Phoenix has received a $3 million donation from Celebrity Fight Night that will be used to help dramatically expand the renowned facility and its programs. Dozens of doctors, patients and staff applauded as Abraham Lieberman, MD, the center's director, personally received the donation recently from Jimmy Walker, founder of Celebrity Fight Night. Since the annual charity event began 18 years ago, it has contributed more than $22 million to the Center. Today's gift was the single largest ever received by the Ali center. Dr. Lieberman said the funds would be used to more than double the current size of the facility. The expansion will include new clinical areas, physical and speech therapy areas and community education meeting rooms. The current Ali center was opened in December 2010 on the campus of Barrow Neurological Institute at St. Joseph's Hospital. It is one of the most comprehensive Parkinson's treatment centers in the world, coordinating patient care, physical therapy, pharmaceutical and surgical care, research, and patient education and outreach. The Center has been designated a Center of Excellence by the National Parkinson Foundation. At … Continue reading →