Inflammation in Parkinson's Disease

Study Rationale:

The contribution of inflammation to Parkinson's disease (PD) is increasingly being recognized. However, the stage of the disease in which inflammation is prevalent and/or important remains unclear. Our recent work suggests that inflammation may be increased early in the course of PD.

Hypothesis:

We aim to replicate our previous findings and demonstrate that a panel of inflammatory markers is increased early in the course of Parkinson's.

Study Design:

We will measure inflammation in samples obtained from an international consortium managed by The Michael J. Fox Foundation. We will study individuals who carry certain mutations (changes in genetic material) that increase their risk of Parkinson's but do not have the disease, and will compare inflammation markers in healthy participants and those that have been diagnosed with PD.

Impact on Diagnosis/Treatment of Parkinson's Disease:

Identifying those at higher risk of Parkinson's or enabling an earlier diagnosis of PD represents fundamental steps toward more effective or personalized therapies.

Next Steps for Development:

We would next define a small panel of inflammatory biomarkers (track disease activity) that could be measured over time in a larger number of participants to demonstrate reproducibility of results over time and to better understand the relationship between inflammation and Parkinson's disease pathogenesis.