Fatema Currim, Josephine Brown-Leung, Tauqeerunnisa Syeda, Matthew Corson, Sofia Schumann, Wenzhu Qi, Priyanka Baloni, Jonathan H. Shannahan, Jean-Christophe Rochet, Rajesh Singh, Jason R. Cannon
{"title":"Rotenone induced acute miRNA alterations in extracellular vesicles produce mitochondrial dysfunction and cell death","authors":"Fatema Currim, Josephine Brown-Leung, Tauqeerunnisa Syeda, Matthew Corson, Sofia Schumann, Wenzhu Qi, Priyanka Baloni, Jonathan H. Shannahan, Jean-Christophe Rochet, Rajesh Singh, Jason R. Cannon","doi":"10.1038/s41531-025-00917-0","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41531-025-00917-0","url":null,"abstract":"<p>How extracellular vesicles (EVs) may contribute to mechanisms of primary intracellular pathogenesis in Parkinson’s disease (PD) remains unknown. To critically advance our understanding of how EVs influence early-stage PD pathogenesis, we tested the hypothesis that rats acutely exposed to the PD neurotoxin rotenone would produce differential miRNAs in CSF/serum-derived EVs and that such modulation would be responsible for PD-relevant functional alterations in recipient neuronal cells. We discovered that acute rotenone treatment produced significant and specific serum miRNA alterations. Primary midbrain neurons treated with serum EVs from rotenone-exposed rats produced oxidative stress, mitochondrial toxicity, and cell loss in neuronal culture. These mechanisms were dependent on miR-30a-5p and miR-484. Thus, this study has elucidated that differential expression of miRNAs in circulating EVs from serum/CSF of rats is a potential early diagnostic marker for PD, and that the modulation of cellular functions and viability due to extracellular vesicles determines the pathological fate.</p><figure></figure>","PeriodicalId":19706,"journal":{"name":"NPJ Parkinson's Disease","volume":"125 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.7,"publicationDate":"2025-03-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143712735","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":"Innovations and ongoing challenges in digital technologies for Parkinson's disease.","authors":"Ryan T Roemmich, Elena Moro, Peter B Shull","doi":"10.1038/s41531-025-00920-5","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41531-025-00920-5","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":19706,"journal":{"name":"NPJ Parkinson's Disease","volume":"11 1","pages":"60"},"PeriodicalIF":6.7,"publicationDate":"2025-03-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11950292/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143730632","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Lara M. Lange, Kristin Levine, Susan H. Fox, Connie Marras, Nazish Ahmed, Nicole Kuznetsov, Dan Vitale, Hirotaka Iwaki, Katja Lohmann, Luca Marsili, Alberto J. Espay, Peter Bauer, Christian Beetz, Jessica Martin, Stewart A. Factor, Lenora A. Higginbotham, Honglei Chen, Hampton Leonard, Mike A. Nalls, Niccolo E. Mencacci, Huw R. Morris, Andrew B. Singleton, Christine Klein, Cornelis Blauwendraat, Zih-Hua Fang
{"title":"The LRRK2 p.L1795F variant causes Parkinson’s disease in the European population","authors":"Lara M. Lange, Kristin Levine, Susan H. Fox, Connie Marras, Nazish Ahmed, Nicole Kuznetsov, Dan Vitale, Hirotaka Iwaki, Katja Lohmann, Luca Marsili, Alberto J. Espay, Peter Bauer, Christian Beetz, Jessica Martin, Stewart A. Factor, Lenora A. Higginbotham, Honglei Chen, Hampton Leonard, Mike A. Nalls, Niccolo E. Mencacci, Huw R. Morris, Andrew B. Singleton, Christine Klein, Cornelis Blauwendraat, Zih-Hua Fang","doi":"10.1038/s41531-025-00896-2","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41531-025-00896-2","url":null,"abstract":"<p><i>LRRK2</i>-PD represents the most common form of autosomal dominant Parkinson’s disease. We identified the <i>LRRK2</i> p.L1795F variant in three families and six additional unrelated cases using genetic data from over 50,000 individuals. Carriers with available genotyping data shared a common haplotype. The clinical presentation resembles other <i>LRRK2</i>-PD forms. Combined with published functional evidence showing strongly enhanced LRRK2 kinase activity, we provide evidence that <i>LRRK2</i> p.L1795F is pathogenic.</p>","PeriodicalId":19706,"journal":{"name":"NPJ Parkinson's Disease","volume":"9 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.7,"publicationDate":"2025-03-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143695488","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}
Fangyuan Cao, Adam P. Vogel, Puya Gharahkhani, Miguel E. Renteria
{"title":"Speech and language biomarkers for Parkinson’s disease prediction, early diagnosis and progression","authors":"Fangyuan Cao, Adam P. Vogel, Puya Gharahkhani, Miguel E. Renteria","doi":"10.1038/s41531-025-00913-4","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41531-025-00913-4","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Parkinson’s disease (PD), a multifaceted neurodegenerative disorder, can manifest as an array of motor and non-motor symptoms. Among these, speech and language impairments are particularly prevalent, often preceding motor dysfunctions. Emerging research indicates that these impairments may serve as early disease indicators. In this narrative review, we synthesised current findings on the potential of speech and language symptoms in PD identification and progression monitoring. Our review highlights convergent, albeit preliminary, lines of evidence supporting the value of speech-related features in detecting early or prodromal PD, even across language groups, especially with sophisticated analytical techniques. Distinct speech patterns in PD subtypes and other neurological disorders may assist in differential diagnosis and inform targeted management efforts. These features also evolve over the disease course and could effectively be utilised for disease tracking and guide management plan modifications. Advances in digital voice processing allow cost-effective, remote and scalable monitoring for larger populations.</p>","PeriodicalId":19706,"journal":{"name":"NPJ Parkinson's Disease","volume":"35 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.7,"publicationDate":"2025-03-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143677706","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":"Voluntary exercise alleviates neural functional deficits in Parkinson’s disease mice by inhibiting microglial ferroptosis via SLC7A11/ALOX12 axis","authors":"Jinghui Xu, Xiaofei He, Lili Li, Liying Zhang, Mingyue Li, Yating Mu, Xiaofeng Yang, Shiyin Li, Yifeng Feng, Zejie Zuo, Yunqi Xu, Xiquan Hu, Haiqing Zheng","doi":"10.1038/s41531-025-00912-5","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41531-025-00912-5","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Microglia are more susceptible to ferroptosis compared to neurons and astrocytes, which may compromise their phagocytic and clearance capabilities of α-synuclein (α-syn) in Parkinson’s disease (PD). While the beneficial effects of physical exercise (PE) on reducing α-syn deposition in PD have been highlighted, the role of PE in modulating microglial ferroptosis remains unclear. This study focuses on the impact of exercise on inhibiting microglial ferroptosis and mitigating α-syn accumulation. We demonstrate that voluntary exercise effectively inhibits microglial ferroptosis. Mechanistically, PE-induced upregulation of SLC7A11 inhibits microglial ferroptosis by suppressing ALOX12, thereby enhancing microglial phagocytosis and clearance of α-syn, which is paralleled by improvements in neurological function in PD mice. Collectively, these findings not only underscore the critical role of microglial ferroptosis in the pathological progression of PD but also elucidate the molecular mechanism by which PE attenuates microglial ferroptosis via the SLC7A11/ALOX12 axis.</p>","PeriodicalId":19706,"journal":{"name":"NPJ Parkinson's Disease","volume":"27 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.7,"publicationDate":"2025-03-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143675219","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}
Tom Eek, Thomas A. W. Bolton, Nil Dizdar, Maria Larsson, Fredrik Lundin, Charalampos Georgiopoulos
{"title":"Impaired odor recognition memory in Parkinson’s disease linked to absent functional hippocampal asymmetry","authors":"Tom Eek, Thomas A. W. Bolton, Nil Dizdar, Maria Larsson, Fredrik Lundin, Charalampos Georgiopoulos","doi":"10.1038/s41531-025-00906-3","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41531-025-00906-3","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Odor recognition memory (ORM) combines olfaction and episodic memory, both linked to dementia and impaired in Parkinson’s Disease (PD). Measuring ORM may indicate early PD dementia and aid in selecting device-aided Parkinson therapy. This study investigates ORM capacity and hippocampal dynamic functional connectivity in PD. Thirty-one PD participants and 31 healthy controls (HC) underwent functional MRI during an ORM task. Co-activation pattern analysis identified active hippocampal networks. The PD group showed impaired ORM and a sequence of four activated hippocampal networks. The fourth network, involving the dorsal Attention Network (dAN), had fewer and shorter expressions during correct ORM responses in PD compared with HC. Hippocampal functional asymmetry was observed in HC but not in PD. These findings suggest that impaired ORM in PD is linked to reduced hippocampal functional asymmetry. Future research should explore differences in functional dynamics of odor memory-related brain regions in PD patients with and without cognitive decline.</p>","PeriodicalId":19706,"journal":{"name":"NPJ Parkinson's Disease","volume":"94 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.7,"publicationDate":"2025-03-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143677708","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":"Plasma GFAP and NfL associate with cerebral glucose metabolism in putative brain-first and body-first Parkinson’s disease subtypes","authors":"Shiyu Li, Fangyang Jiao, Xiuyuan Li, Zhiheng Xu, Tianyu Hu, Xiaoniu Liang, Jianjun Wu, Jian Wang, Chuantao Zuo, Yilin Tang","doi":"10.1038/s41531-025-00898-0","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41531-025-00898-0","url":null,"abstract":"<p>The recently proposed body-first and brain-first subtypes are classified based on the initial localization of α-synuclein inclusions. This study investigated plasma biomarkers and cerebral glucose metabolism characteristics in putative brain-first and body-first subtypes in PD subjects. PD patients without possible RBD (PD<sup>pRBD–</sup>) (<i>n</i> = 58) and with possible RBD symptoms discovered before motor symptoms (PD<sup>pRBD+</sup>) (<i>n</i> = 43) were recruited. Single-molecule array (SimoA) was used for measuring plasma biomarkers, including glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), neurofilament light chain (NfL), Tau and phosphorylated-tau 181 (pTau-181). All participants underwent <sup>18</sup>F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) PET scans. Compared to PD<sup>pRBD–</sup> patients, PD<sup>pRBD+</sup> patients exhibited significantly increased plasma GFAP levels and reduced <sup>18</sup>F-FDG uptake in cortical regions. Notably, plasma GFAP and NfL levels correlated with cerebral glucose metabolism in PD<sup>pRBD–</sup> patients. Our study identified the association between plasma GFAP and NfL levels and cerebral glucose metabolism in PD<sup>pRBD–</sup> patients. Further large-scale longitudinal studies are required.</p>","PeriodicalId":19706,"journal":{"name":"NPJ Parkinson's Disease","volume":"143 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.7,"publicationDate":"2025-03-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143672740","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}
Martina Mancini, Mitra Afshari, Quincy Almeida, Sommer Amundsen-Huffmaster, Katherine Balfany, Richard Camicioli, Cory Christiansen, Marian L. Dale, Leland E. Dibble, Gammon M. Earhart, Terry D. Ellis, Garett J. Griffith, Madeleine E. Hackney, Jammie Hopkins, Fay B. Horak, Kelvin E. Jones, Leah Ling, Joan A. O’Keefe, Kimberly Kwei, Genevieve Olivier, Ashwini K. Rao, Anjali Sivaramakrishnan, Daniel M. Corcos
{"title":"Digital gait biomarkers in Parkinson’s disease: susceptibility/risk, progression, response to exercise, and prognosis","authors":"Martina Mancini, Mitra Afshari, Quincy Almeida, Sommer Amundsen-Huffmaster, Katherine Balfany, Richard Camicioli, Cory Christiansen, Marian L. Dale, Leland E. Dibble, Gammon M. Earhart, Terry D. Ellis, Garett J. Griffith, Madeleine E. Hackney, Jammie Hopkins, Fay B. Horak, Kelvin E. Jones, Leah Ling, Joan A. O’Keefe, Kimberly Kwei, Genevieve Olivier, Ashwini K. Rao, Anjali Sivaramakrishnan, Daniel M. Corcos","doi":"10.1038/s41531-025-00897-1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41531-025-00897-1","url":null,"abstract":"<p>This narrative review examines the utility of gait digital biomarkers in Parkinson’s disease (PD) research and clinical trials across four contexts: disease susceptibility/risk, disease progression, response to exercise, and fall prediction. The review of the literature to date suggests that upper body characteristics of gait (e.g., arm swing, trunk motion) may indicate susceptibility/risk of PD, while pace aspects (e.g., gait speed, stride length) are informative for tracking disease progression, exercise response, and fall likelihood. Dynamic stability aspects (e.g., trunk regularity, double-support time) worsen with disease progression but can improve with exercise. Gait variability emerges as a sensitive biomarker across all 4 contexts but with low specificity. The lack of standardized gait testing protocols and the lack of a minimum set of quantified digital gait biomarkers limit data harmonization across studies. Future studies, using a commonly agreed upon protocol, could be used to demonstrate the utility of specific gait biomarkers for clinical practice.</p>","PeriodicalId":19706,"journal":{"name":"NPJ Parkinson's Disease","volume":"114 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.7,"publicationDate":"2025-03-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143666072","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}
Anas Filali Razzouki, Laetitia Jeancolas, Sara Sambin, Graziella Mangone, Alizé Chalançon, Manon Gomes, Stéphane Lehéricy, Marie Vidailhet, Isabelle Arnulf, Jean-Christophe Corvol, Dijana Petrovska-Delacrétaz, Mounim A. El-Yacoubi
{"title":"Explaining facial action units' correlation with hypomimia and clinical scores in Parkinson’s disease","authors":"Anas Filali Razzouki, Laetitia Jeancolas, Sara Sambin, Graziella Mangone, Alizé Chalançon, Manon Gomes, Stéphane Lehéricy, Marie Vidailhet, Isabelle Arnulf, Jean-Christophe Corvol, Dijana Petrovska-Delacrétaz, Mounim A. El-Yacoubi","doi":"10.1038/s41531-025-00895-3","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41531-025-00895-3","url":null,"abstract":"<p>This study aimed to identify facial regions characterizing hypomimia through facial action units (AU). It included video recordings from 109 early-stage Parkinson’s disease (PD) and 45 healthy control (HC) subjects, performing rapid syllable repetitions. We identified the features contributing most to hypomimia by interpreting an XGBoost model classifying PD vs. HC. We evaluated the impact of biological sex and time on features and classification, and the correlation between model’s predictions, AUs, and PD clinical scores over different times. The most discriminant AUs of hypomimia were found on the face lower part, independent of sex, and stable over time. Significant correlations were observed between AU17 (chin raiser) and rigidity of the upper left limb (<i>r</i> = − 0.4), as well as between AU9 (nose wrinkle) and neck rigidity (<i>r</i> = − 0.36). Correlations between XGBoost predictions and MDS-UPDRS3 and neck rigidity scores were also significant (<i>r</i> = 0.3). We obtained for PD detection an AUC of 79.8% and a balanced accuracy of 71.5%.</p>","PeriodicalId":19706,"journal":{"name":"NPJ Parkinson's Disease","volume":"19 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.7,"publicationDate":"2025-03-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143666073","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":"Identification of Ser71Arg mutation in RAB32 gene in familial Parkinson’s disease from Southern Italy","authors":"Monica Gagliardi, Radha Procopio, Grazia Annesi, Jolanda Buonocore, Mariagrazia Talarico, Aldo Quattrone, Andrea Quattrone","doi":"10.1038/s41531-025-00915-2","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41531-025-00915-2","url":null,"abstract":"<p>We identified the <i>RAB32</i> c.213 C > G variant in 7/300 unrelated familial PD patients (not found in 300 controls) from Southern Italy, screened by Sanger sequencing. We found a prevalence of 2.33%, higher than that observed in recent international studies (0.0–0.7%), supporting <i>RAB32</i> gene as a notable cause of familial PD in the Mediterranean area. We first report prodromal PD signs in unaffected mutated family members, suggesting long-term follow-up in <i>RAB32</i> carriers.</p>","PeriodicalId":19706,"journal":{"name":"NPJ Parkinson's Disease","volume":"183 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.7,"publicationDate":"2025-03-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143666071","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}