The Michael J. Fox Foundation understands that it can be challenging to gain clarity and perspective on breaking Parkinson's news. Q&As in this section are conducted with leading experts in the PD field to quickly provide an informed, impartial opinion on new findings — and get to the bottom of their implications for people with Parkinson's and for researchers.
MJFF spoke to Ole Isacson, MD (Dr Med Sci), of Harvard Medical School, about the news that two teams of researchers working with human adult skin cells had generated cells with many of the physical, growth and genetic features typically found in embryonic stem cells.
06/22/2007 Novel Gene Therapy Approach to PD Reported Safe and Tolerable: What Does It Mean for Patients?
The Michael J. Fox Foundation spoke to Thomas Wichmann, MD, associate professor of neurology at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, about how people with Parkinson’s should interpret the news that a new gene therapy approach to PD was reported safe and tolerable following a Phase 1 clinical trial.
06/21/2007 Interpreting Reports of a 'Genomic Pathway' to Predict Parkinson’s
The Foundation spoke with SAB members Mark Cookson, PhD, and Andy Singleton, PhD, both of the National Institute on Aging, about new findings that certain genetic changes in the brain could be linked to as much as a 90-fold increase in the risk of Parkinson’s disease for some people.
05/17/2007 Coenzyme Q10 -- Effective or Not for PD?
The Foundation spoke with Brian Fiske, PhD, associate director of research programs, on recent reports that Coenzyme Q10 does not exert a beneficial effect on Parkinson's disease symptoms -- potentially confusing results in light of an earlier Phase II clinical trial suggesting that CoQ10 slowed functional decline in PD.
03/30/2007 PD Drug Pergolide Pulled from U.S. Market: Implications for Patients and Their Families
The Michael J. Fox Foundation spoke to SAB member Irene Hegeman Richard, MD, associate professor of neurology and psychiatry at the University of Rochester, about the FDA's decision to pull the Parkinson's drug pergolide off the market, and the best course of action for those who have taken it as part of a PD treatment regimen.
