Search Our Scientific Publications & Authors

J Chem Neuroanat 2021 May 12:101966. Epub 2021 May 12.

Dept. of Tissue Engineering and Applied Cell Sciences, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Iran. Electronic address:

Inappropriate use of pesticides has globally exposed mankind to a number of health hazards. Still their production is rising at the rate of 11 % annually and, has already exceeded more than 5 million tons in 2000 (FAO 2017). Plenty of available data reveals that pesticides exposures through agricultural use and food-preservative residue consumption may lead to neurodegenerative disorders like Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases. Read More

Eur J Neurol 2021 May 15. Epub 2021 May 15.

Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy.

Background: Neuro, and likely systemic inflammation, with abnormal α-synuclein deposition, participate in the development of Parkinson's disease (PD). The P2X7 receptor/NLRP3 inflammasome complex is upregulated in the brain of PD patients. By a prospective approach, we explored the degree of systemic activation of such complex, and its regulatory mechanisms, in treatment-naïve PD individuals. Read More

Mov Disord Clin Pract 2021 May 27;8(4):500-509. Epub 2021 Feb 27.

Edmond J. Safra Program in Parkinson's Disease and Morton and Gloria Shulman Movement Disorders Clinic, Toronto Western Hospital, UHN, Division of Neurology University of Toronto Toronto Ontario Canada.

Background: Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) is an increasingly popular therapy for Parkinson's Disease (PD). Despite the experience gained over time with DBS of either the subthalamus or the globus pallidus pars interna, there is still no consensus regarding the age limit for DBS indication.

Objectives: This narrative review of the literature discusses the issues of age and DBS, emphasizing the critical need for good quality evidence to support the surgical management of elderly patients with PD. Read More

Front Hum Neurosci 2021 31;15:667035. Epub 2021 Mar 31.

Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States.

Introduction: Deep brain stimulation (DBS) has become a standard treatment option for select patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). The selection process and surgical procedures employed have, to date, not been standardized.

Methods: A comprehensive 58-question web-based survey was developed with a focus on DBS referral practices and peri-operative management. Read More

BMC Musculoskelet Disord 2021 Apr 16;22(1):357. Epub 2021 Apr 16.

Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Tokyo Medical and Dental University, 1 Chome-5-45 Yushima, Bunkyo City, Tokyo, 113-8510, Japan.

Background: Parkinson's disease (PD) has been found to increase the risk of postoperative complications in patients with adult spinal deformity (ASD). However, few studies have investigated this by directly comparing patients with PD and those without PD.

Methods: In this multicenter retrospective cohort study, we reviewed all surgically treated ASD patients with at least 2 years of follow-up. Read More

Parkinsonism Relat Disord 2021 Mar 29. Epub 2021 Mar 29.

Department of Neurosciences, Biomedicine and Movement Sciences, University of Verona, Verona, Italy. Electronic address:

The emerging science of fatigue has soundly endorsed the need for its unified definition, shared terminology and increased recognition in neurological illnesses. Nevertheless, the real impact of fatigue remains under-recognized. Fatigue describes a sense of tiredness, lack of energy or need for increased effort often perceived as overwhelming, pervasive, and disabling. Read More

Zh Nevrol Psikhiatr Im S S Korsakova 2021 ;121(3):39-43

Irkutsk State Medical Academy of Postgraduate Education - Branch Campus of Russian Medical Academy of Continuing Professional Education, Irkutsk, Russia.

Objective: To develop and implement the tactics of the differentiated complex (medication in combination with surgery) treatment of the form of Parkinson's disease (PD) associated with dyskinesias, according to the severity of atrophic changes in the brain.

Material And Methods: The study included 40 patients with PD associated with dyskinesias and motor fluctuations. Patients of the main group received medication and surgical treatment, patients of the comparison group received only medication. Read More

Mov Disord Clin Pract 2021 Apr 11;8(3):400-405. Epub 2021 Mar 11.

Division of Neurology University of Toronto Toronto Ontario Canada.

Background: Dopamine Dysregulation Syndrome (DDS) is an adverse non-motor complication of dopamine replacement therapy in Parkinson's disease. The current literature on this syndrome is limited, and it remains underdiagnosed and challenging to manage.

Objective: To assess the role of advanced therapies in the management of DDS. Read More

Expert Rev Neurother 2021 May 6:1-13. Epub 2021 May 6.

HM CINAC (Centro Integral De Neurociencias Abarca Campal), Hospital Universitario HM Puerta Del Sur, Madrid, Spain.

The subthalamic nucleus (STN) is known to be involved in the pathophysiology of Parkinson´s disease and by reducing its abnormal activity, normal output of basal ganglia can be restored along with improvement in PD cardinal motor features. Deep brain stimulation of the STN is currently the main surgical procedure for PD with motor complications, but lesioning can be an alternative. Here, the authors systematically review the current evidence regarding subthalamotomy both with radiofrequency and, more recently, with focused ultrasound (FUS) for the treatment of PD. Read More

MEDICC Rev 2021 Jan 30;23(1):49-54. Epub 2021 Jan 30.

Cuba-China Joint Lab for Neurotechnology.

Introduction: No neuroprotective treatment has been able to successfully halt the progression of Parkinson disease or prevent development of associated complications. Recombinant erythropoetin (EPO), an erythropoiesis-stimulating agent originally indicated in anemia, produced and manufactured in Cuba (iorEPOCIM, CIMAB S.A, Havana, Cuba) has neuroprotective properties. Read More

Expert Rev Med Devices 2021 Apr 5;18(4):319-332. Epub 2021 Apr 5.

Movement Disorders Neuromodulation & Brain Circuit Therapeutics, Neurology and Neurosurgery, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, USA.

Introduction: Several software and hardware advances in the field of deep brain stimulation (DBS) have been realized in recent years and devices from three manufacturers are available. The Percept™ PC platform (Medtronic, Inc.) enables brain sensing, the latest innovation. Read More

Neurology 2021 03;96(12):592

(Nashville, TN).

Neurology 2021 03;96(12):591-592

(East Lansing, MI).

Neurology 2021 03;96(12):591

(Morgantown, WV).

Neurology 2021 03;96(12):590-591

(Toronto).

Front Neurol 2021 4;12:605959. Epub 2021 Mar 4.

Department of Neurosurgery, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA, United States.

Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) is an underutilized surgical therapy for Parkinson's Disease (PD). Both physician and patient hesitancies have been described as potential barriers to DBS, but the specifics of patient perceptions of DBS have not been well-characterized in the general PD population. To characterize the understanding and impressions of surgical therapy in PD patients prior to formal surgical evaluation. Read More

Neurol Sci 2021 Mar 20. Epub 2021 Mar 20.

Rita Levi-Montalcini Department of Neuroscience, University of Turin Medical School, corso Raffaello 30, 10125, Turin, Italy.

Background: Physical therapies have been recommended as crucial components in Parkinson's disease (PD) rehabilitation.

Objective: The study aims to examine the effectiveness of a new dance-physiotherapy combined intervention, called DArT method, in mild PD patients.

Methods: A prospective, randomized, single-blind, controlled pilot trial was conducted on 38 mild PD patients under dopaminergic therapy. Read More

Lab Anim (NY) 2021 04;50(4):87

Lab Animal, .

Brain 2021 03;144(2):357-359

Department of Neurology, University of California, San Francisco, California, USA.

Curr Stem Cell Res Ther 2021 Mar 9. Epub 2021 Mar 9.

College of Life Sciences, Huzhou University, Huzhou 313000. China.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a common neurodegenerative disease and is a major culprit that harms the health of elderly people. The main pathological feature is the progressive loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta of the midbrain. The current mainstream therapeutic strategies include surgical treatment and medicine substitute therapy. Read More

J Vis Exp 2021 02 18(168). Epub 2021 Feb 18.

Cell Biology and Gene Expression Section, National Institute on Aging, National Institutes of Health.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a progressive disorder traditionally defined by resting tremor and akinesia, primarily due to loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra. Affected brain areas display intraneuronal fibrillar inclusions consisting mainly of alpha-synuclein (asyn) proteins. No animal model thus far has recapitulated all characteristics of this disease. Read More

Acta Neurochir (Wien) 2021 May 2;163(5):1327-1333. Epub 2021 Mar 2.

Service de Neurologie C, Centre Expert Parkinson, Hôpital Neurologique et Neurochirurgical Pierre Wertheimer, Hospices Civils de Lyon, 69003, Lyon, France.

Background: Several surgical methods are used for deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the subthalamic nucleus (STN) in Parkinson's disease (PD). This study aimed to compare clinical outcomes and electrode placement accuracy after robot-assisted (RAS) versus frame-based stereotactic (FSS) STN DBS in Parkinson's disease.

Methods: In this single-center open-label study, we prospectively collected data from 48 consecutive PD patients who underwent RAS (Neuromate®; n = 20) or FSS (n = 28) STN DBS with the same MRI-based STN targeting between October 2016 and December 2018 in the university neurological hospital of Lyon, France. Read More

Nat Med 2021 04 1;27(4):632-639. Epub 2021 Mar 1.

Waisman Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA.

Degeneration of dopamine (DA) neurons in the midbrain underlies the pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease (PD). Supplement of DA via L-DOPA alleviates motor symptoms but does not prevent the progressive loss of DA neurons. A large body of experimental studies, including those in nonhuman primates, demonstrates that transplantation of fetal mesencephalic tissues improves motor symptoms in animals, which culminated in open-label and double-blinded clinical trials of fetal tissue transplantation for PD. Read More

Autophagy 2021 Jan 8;17(1):1-382. Epub 2021 Feb 8.

University of Crete, School of Medicine, Laboratory of Clinical Microbiology and Microbial Pathogenesis, Voutes, Heraklion, Crete, Greece; Foundation for Research and Technology, Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology (IMBB), Heraklion, Crete, Greece.

In 2008, we published the first set of guidelines for standardizing research in autophagy. Since then, this topic has received increasing attention, and many scientists have entered the field. Our knowledge base and relevant new technologies have also been expanding. Read More

Neuroscience 2021 04 23;460:88-106. Epub 2021 Feb 23.

Department of Neuroscience & Experimental Therapeutics, Albany Medical College, Albany, NY, USA; Department of Neurology, Albany Medical Center, Albany, NY, USA. Electronic address:

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) in Parkinson's disease (PD) alters neuronal function and network communication to improve motor symptoms. The subthalamic nucleus (STN) is the most common DBS target for PD, but some patients experience adverse effects on memory and cognition. Previously, we reported that DBS of the ventral anterior (VA) and ventrolateral (VL) nuclei of the thalamus and at the interface between the two (VA|VL), collectively VA-VL, relieved forelimb akinesia in the hemiparkinsonian 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) rat model. Read More

Lancet Neurol 2021 03;20(3):203-212

National CJD Research & Surveillance Unit, Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK. Electronic address:

Background: Isolated rapid-eye-movement (REM) sleep behaviour disorder (IRBD) can be part of the prodromal stage of the α-synucleinopathies Parkinson's disease and dementia with Lewy bodies. Real-time quaking-induced conversion (RT-QuIC) analysis of CSF has high sensitivity and specificity for the detection of misfolded α-synuclein in patients with Parkinson's disease and dementia with Lewy bodies. We investigated whether RT-QuIC could detect α-synuclein in the CSF of patients with IRBD and be used as a biomarker of prodromal α-synucleinopathy. Read More

J Clin Neurosci 2021 Mar 18;85:92-100. Epub 2021 Jan 18.

MedStar Georgetown University Hospital, Department of Neurosurgery, 3800 Reservoir Road NW, 7PHC, Washington, DC 20007, USA.

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) has traditionally been used to target the subthalamic nucleus (STN) or globus pallidus internus (GPi) to treat Parkinson's disease (PD) and the ventral intermediate thalamic nucleus (VIM) to treat essential tremor (ET). Recent case reports have described targeting both the STN and VIM with a single trajectory and electrode to treat patients with tremor-dominant PD, yet outcome data for this procedure remains sparse. Our objective is to determine the safety and efficacy of combination STN-VIM DBS. Read More