{"title":"EGFR phosphorylates DNAJB1 to suppress α-synuclein aggregation in Parkinson’s disease","authors":"Yun-Yu Huang, Sue-Jane Lin, Wei-Yu Chiang, Yuan-Teng Chang, Chan-Chih Yang, Chia-Yu Liao, Ya-Lan Chang, Chin-Hsien Lin, Shu-Chun Teng","doi":"10.1038/s41531-025-01006-y","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41531-025-01006-y","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Parkinson’s disease (PD), characterized by α-synuclein accumulation in dopaminergic neurons, is a common neurodegenerative disorder. Recent findings highlight DNAJB1 as a crucial factor in the disaggregation of α-synuclein fibrils in vitro, yet the underlying mechanisms and regulatory processes in neuronal cells remain largely undefined. This study reveals that DNAJB1 facilitates the clearance of α-synuclein via the Hsp70 chaperone system. Phosphorylation of DNAJB1 at tyrosine 5 by the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) is essential for mitigating α-synuclein aggregation, enhancing its interaction with Hsp70. Dysregulation of this pathway disrupts α-synuclein delivery to Hsp70, worsening aggregation in neuronal cells. Analysis of human brain lysates from individuals with PD and unaffected controls showed reduced levels of EGFR and DNAJB1, with an increase in phosphorylated DNAJB1 at Y5. These findings elucidate mechanisms in PD pathology and suggest DNAJB1 as a promising candidate for targeted therapeutic strategies.</p>","PeriodicalId":19706,"journal":{"name":"NPJ Parkinson's Disease","volume":"6 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.7,"publicationDate":"2025-06-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144237422","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Shi Tang, Bei Huang, Yanlin Wang, Yaping Liu, Jing Wang, Li Zhou, Siyi Gong, Yuhua Yang, Joey WY Chan, Steven WH Chau, Winnie CW Chu, Jill Abrigo, Jean-François Gagnon, Yun Kwok Wing
{"title":"Brain-clinical biotyping in patients with idiopathic REM sleep behavior disorder","authors":"Shi Tang, Bei Huang, Yanlin Wang, Yaping Liu, Jing Wang, Li Zhou, Siyi Gong, Yuhua Yang, Joey WY Chan, Steven WH Chau, Winnie CW Chu, Jill Abrigo, Jean-François Gagnon, Yun Kwok Wing","doi":"10.1038/s41531-025-01012-0","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41531-025-01012-0","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Idiopathic REM sleep behavior disorder (iRBD) is a prodromal stage of α-synucleinopathies including Parkinson’s disease (PD), yet its clinical heterogeneity remains underexplored. This study aimed to identify novel brain-clinical biotypes in iRBD by integrating structural MRI and clinical assessments. We included 172 patients with video-polysomnography-confirmed iRBD and 126 controls who underwent multimodal MRI and clinical evaluation. Similarity Network Fusion was used to integrate cortical thickness, surface area, subcortical volume, and clinical data, followed by spectral clustering to identify iRBD biotypes. Two distinct biotypes were identified: Biotype 1 showed widespread cortical-subcortical-cerebellar atrophy, functional hypoconnectivity, more motor and cognitive deficits with higher prodromal PD risk; Biotype 2 demonstrated increased surface area in limbic and parietal regions, cortical-cerebellar hyperconnectivity, and preserved neurocognitive function. These findings underscore the presence of distinct neurobiological subtypes in iRBD, highlighting the need for longitudinal monitoring to clarify their trajectories and implications for disease progression.</p>","PeriodicalId":19706,"journal":{"name":"NPJ Parkinson's Disease","volume":"70 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.7,"publicationDate":"2025-06-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144237421","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Peikun He, Yanyi Li, Zhiheng Huang, Yuyuan Gao, Qingrui Duan, Yihui Qiu, Shujun Feng, Ruiyun Huang, Liangxu Gong, Guixian Ma, Yuhu Zhang, Lin Shi, Lijuan Wang, Kun Nie
{"title":"Peripheral inflammation’s variable impact on cognitive and symptomatic outcomes in Parkinson’s disease: a longitudinal and cross-sectional analysis","authors":"Peikun He, Yanyi Li, Zhiheng Huang, Yuyuan Gao, Qingrui Duan, Yihui Qiu, Shujun Feng, Ruiyun Huang, Liangxu Gong, Guixian Ma, Yuhu Zhang, Lin Shi, Lijuan Wang, Kun Nie","doi":"10.1038/s41531-025-01019-7","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41531-025-01019-7","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Increasing evidence supported a link between peripheral inflammation and Parkinson’s disease (PD). However, the role of peripheral inflammation in the progression of PD clinical symptoms remained unclear. This study evaluates peripheral inflammation using serum differential leukocyte counts and their derived ratios. A total of 170 PD patients were retrospectively enrolled from Guangdong Provincial People’s Hospital (GDPH) and 68 from PPMI. Partial correlation analysis showed that neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) negatively correlated with MoCA in GDPH but not in PPMI. Moreover, peripheral inflammation was shown to correlate with white matter integrity. The result of the longitudinal analysis showed that higher baseline NLR predicted worsening in letter number sequencing (LNS) score. Path analysis indicated that white matter integrity significantly mediated the relationship between NLR and cognitive change in the LNS score from Year 5 to baseline. Peripheral inflammation is associated with global cognition and white matter integrity in PD and predicts cognitive decline.</p>","PeriodicalId":19706,"journal":{"name":"NPJ Parkinson's Disease","volume":"6 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.7,"publicationDate":"2025-06-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144237135","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Marjan J. Meinders, Laura Heathers, King Chung Ho, Laura Russell, Chris Li, Bastiaan R. Bloem, William J. Marks Jr, Ritu Kapur
{"title":"Optimizing wrist-worn wearable compliance with insights from two Parkinson’s disease cohort studies","authors":"Marjan J. Meinders, Laura Heathers, King Chung Ho, Laura Russell, Chris Li, Bastiaan R. Bloem, William J. Marks Jr, Ritu Kapur","doi":"10.1038/s41531-025-01016-w","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41531-025-01016-w","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Wearable technologies enable real-time, continuous, noninvasive data collection, where long-term compliance is essential. The Personalized Parkinson Project (PPP) and the Parkinson’s Progression Markers Initiative (PPMI) utilized the Verily Study Watch. Participants, including people diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease (PD), prodromal PD, and healthy controls, were instructed to wear the watch for up to 23 h daily without data displaying or reporting data back to the participant. Compliance measures and user experiences were evaluated. A centralized support model identified barriers to data collection and enabled proactive outreach. Median daily wear time was 21.9 h for PPP and 21.1–22.2 h per day for PPMI over 2 years. Participants were highly motivated contributing to PD research. These results highlight strategies for achieving strong engagement without providing individual data. This approach offers valuable insights for study designs where returning data to participants could introduce bias or affect the data integrity.</p>","PeriodicalId":19706,"journal":{"name":"NPJ Parkinson's Disease","volume":"9 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.7,"publicationDate":"2025-06-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144228975","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Louis Kälble, Tereza Tykalova, David Zogala, Petr Dusek, Jan Rusz, Michal Novotny
{"title":"Automatic analysis of eyelid movement in de-novo Parkinson’s disease","authors":"Louis Kälble, Tereza Tykalova, David Zogala, Petr Dusek, Jan Rusz, Michal Novotny","doi":"10.1038/s41531-025-01021-z","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41531-025-01021-z","url":null,"abstract":"<p>This study presents an automated, objective method for eyelid movement assessment in de-novo Parkinson’s disease(PD) using a one-dimensional camera setup during monologue. These measurements were related to Dopamine Transporter Single Photon Emission Tomography and clinical scores. State-of-the-art computer-vision technologies and deep-learning neural networks were utilized to measure fourteen eyelid movement markers describing blinking and eyelid kinematics. Video-recordings were collected from a total of 120 de-novo patients with PD and 55 healthy controls. Abnormal blinking was present in 38% of PD, indicated by a reduced blink rate (<i>p</i> < 0.001), an increased inter-blink interval (<i>p</i> < 0.001), and an increased rigidity of the palpebral aperture (<i>p</i> < 0.001). The classification experiment reached an area under the curve of 0.81 on a blinded test set. The blink rate correlated with the loss of nigral dopaminergic neurons (r = 0.35, <i>p</i> < 0.001). These findings suggest eyelid movement markers as strong reflections of striatal dopaminergic activity levels, underscoring the method’s potential as a reliable early PD biomarker.</p>","PeriodicalId":19706,"journal":{"name":"NPJ Parkinson's Disease","volume":"75 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.7,"publicationDate":"2025-06-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144237140","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"New diagnostic and staging framework applied to established PD in the BioFIND cohort","authors":"Marco J. Russo, Un Jung Kang","doi":"10.1038/s41531-025-00992-3","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41531-025-00992-3","url":null,"abstract":"<p>The proposed Neuronal α-Synuclein Disease Integrated Staging System (NSD-ISS) was recently applied to early Parkinson’s disease (PD) cohorts. We applied this research framework to the BioFIND study cohort, which includes more moderately advanced PD participants with clinically established PD. Disease durations within each ISS stage were highly variable. Cognitive and non-motor anchors had little weight in determining staging. The analysis highlights strengths and limitations of NSD-ISS to guide further refinement of an integrated staging system.</p>","PeriodicalId":19706,"journal":{"name":"NPJ Parkinson's Disease","volume":"32 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.7,"publicationDate":"2025-06-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144218876","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Lactobacillus reuteri-derived γ-amino butyric acid alleviates MPTP-induced Parkinson’s disease through inhibiting ferroptosis via the AKT-GSK3β-GPX4 axis","authors":"Xuechao Dong, Teng Yang, Zheng Jin","doi":"10.1038/s41531-025-01022-y","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41531-025-01022-y","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a debilitating neurological disorder characterized by motor dysfunction, which has been associated with alterations in the gut microbiota. <i>Lactobacillus reuteri</i> (<i>L. reuteri</i>), a safe and versatile probiotic, exhibits potent immunomodulatory functions and neuroprotective effects. However, the extent and mechanisms by which <i>L. reuteri</i> mitigates PD remain unclear. Here, we demonstrated that <i>L. reuteri</i> significantly alleviated MPTP-induced PD in mice. Importantly, we found that the protective effects of <i>L. reuteri</i> are mediated by its bioactive metabolites rather than the bacteria themselves. Specifically, <i>L. reuteri</i> elevated the levels of γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA). Administration of GABA to mice mitigated MPTP-induced PD. Mechanistically, GABA inhibited MPTP-induced ferroptosis in neuronal cells through activation of the AKT-GSK3β-GPX4 pathway via the GABA receptor. Collectively, our research elucidates that <i>L. reuteri</i>-derived GABA attenuates MPTP-induced PD by inhibiting ferroptosis via the AKT-GSK3β-GPX4 axis, providing a potential therapeutic approach for the prevention and treatment of PD.</p>","PeriodicalId":19706,"journal":{"name":"NPJ Parkinson's Disease","volume":"331 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.7,"publicationDate":"2025-06-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144218878","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Lei Ma, Bar Yosef, Ipek Talu, Daniel Batista, Emi Jenkens-Drake, Nanthia Suthana, Katy A Cross
{"title":"Effects of virtual reality on spatiotemporal gait parameters and freezing of gait in Parkinson’s disease","authors":"Lei Ma, Bar Yosef, Ipek Talu, Daniel Batista, Emi Jenkens-Drake, Nanthia Suthana, Katy A Cross","doi":"10.1038/s41531-025-01017-9","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41531-025-01017-9","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Virtual reality (VR) is increasingly used to study freezing of gait (FOG) in Parkinson’s disease (PD). However, overground gait in VR typically exhibits shorter, wider, and slower steps than real-world gait in both healthy and PD populations. This altered gait behavior raises the question of whether VR also alters the FOG phenomenon. We investigate the effects of naturalistic VR on gait and FOG characteristics in PD patients. Patients walked in a real-world environment and its VR replica under conditions that provoke FOG. Spatiotemporal gait parameters and FOG episodes were compared between environments. Results revealed that a detailed VR replica and large walking area reduced the effect of VR on gait parameters compared to previous reports. Additionally, FOG was provoked by similar triggers with comparable frequency, suggesting VR effectively replicates FOG heterogeneity. This work demonstrates the feasibility of VR to study gait and FOG in PD and informs future VR applications.</p>","PeriodicalId":19706,"journal":{"name":"NPJ Parkinson's Disease","volume":"15 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.7,"publicationDate":"2025-06-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144211265","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Yixiang Lin, Haoling Xu, Jiayi Zheng, Tianxin Lin, Minhui Wang, Tingting Huang, Fabin Lin, Qinyong Ye, Guoen Cai
{"title":"Association between functional gastrointestinal disorders and Parkinson’s disease in a prospective cohort study","authors":"Yixiang Lin, Haoling Xu, Jiayi Zheng, Tianxin Lin, Minhui Wang, Tingting Huang, Fabin Lin, Qinyong Ye, Guoen Cai","doi":"10.1038/s41531-025-01000-4","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41531-025-01000-4","url":null,"abstract":"<p>The influence of functional gastrointestinal disorders (FGIDs) on the onset of Parkinson’s disease (PD) remains unclear. Therefore, in this study, we examined the effect of FGIDs and their subtypes on the PD onset. In Cox proportional hazards model, FGIDs significantly increased the risk of PD incidence [hazard ratio (HR) = 1.74, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.30–2.33]. Similar results were also observed for functional dyspepsia (HR = 1.71, 95% CI = 1.17–2.52) and other functional intestinal disorders (other FIDs) (HR = 1.67, 95% CI = 1.00–2.78). Mediation analyses revealed that mental health scores mediated 10.00% and 8.32% of the association between FGIDs and functional dyspepsia and PD development. This cohort study discovered that FGIDs increase the risk of developing PD. Similar effects can also be observed in functional dyspepsia and other FIDs and mental health mediates part of the effect of FGIDs and functional dyspepsia on PD.</p>","PeriodicalId":19706,"journal":{"name":"NPJ Parkinson's Disease","volume":"16 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.7,"publicationDate":"2025-06-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144218877","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Hila Avisar, Uri Greenbaum, Ruth Djaldetti, Boaz Lerner
{"title":"Lower prevalence of metabolic syndrome and its components in the prediagnostic phase of Parkinson’s disease","authors":"Hila Avisar, Uri Greenbaum, Ruth Djaldetti, Boaz Lerner","doi":"10.1038/s41531-025-01003-1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41531-025-01003-1","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Investigating the association between metabolic syndrome (MetS) and all its components with prediagnostic Parkinson’s disease (PD) may clarify PD pathogenesis and identify candidates for prevention strategies and neuroprotective trials. We conducted a retrospective study of 890 PD patients diagnosed during 2000-2020 and 8,100 matched controls, analyzing electronic health records up to 15 years before PD diagnosis. Prevalence was assessed annually to track changes in association strength over time. PD patients consistently showed lower MetS prevalence (OR = 0.57–0.8). Compared to controls, PD patients had lower triglycerides (OR = 0.44–0.75), BMI (OR = 0.54–0.65), and hyperglycemia (OR = 0.81–0.86) rates, and females showed higher high-density lipoprotein (HDL) (OR = 1.48–1.82), lower low-density lipoprotein/HDL ratio (OR = 0.46–0.64), and reduced hypertension (OR = 0.79–0.85). These findings suggest an inverse association between MetS and PD years before diagnosis. We propose a lipid–blood pressure index incorporating triglycerides, HDL, and hypertension as a potential clinical tool for PD risk stratification.</p>","PeriodicalId":19706,"journal":{"name":"NPJ Parkinson's Disease","volume":"51 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.7,"publicationDate":"2025-06-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144211264","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}