Study Rationale: Parkinson’s disease (PD) damages brain connections early on, linked to accumulation of a protein called alpha-synuclein. We aim to track this accumulation using a new brain imaging tool targeting SV2C, a protein present on brain connections and tied to PD. With funding support from The Michael J. Fox Foundation, we developed [11C]UCB-1A, a compound that highlights SV2C in brain PET scans. Studies in pre-clinical models showed very promising results. Now, we plan to test it in humans to see if it can help diagnose PD, monitor its progression, and evaluate new treatments—potentially offering a new and more precise way to track the disease.
Hypothesis: The main hypothesis is that the amount of the protein SV2C in brain regions affected by the disease is lower in participants with PD compared to healthy volunteers. This reduction can be measured using [11C]UCB-1A PET.
Study Design: The study will test a new brain imaging tool, [11C]UCB-1A, in people with PD and healthy volunteers. It has three parts: First, a small pilot study with five PD patients and five healthy people to see how well the tool works. Second, the study expands to include up to 15 more PD patients and 15 more healthy volunteers. Third, a test-retest study with 10 PD patients and 10 healthy people will check how consistent the results are over time. This helps confirm the tool’s reliability for tracking brain changes in PD.
Impact on Diagnosis/Treatment of Parkinson’s disease: In PD, early damage happens at the connections between brain cells, called synapses. The new imaging tool, [11C]UCB-1A, will be able to show these changes in people with PD and help doctors to track the damage and test new treatments.
Next Steps for Development: If successful, this study will pave the way to the use of [11C]UCB-1A as tool for early detection of PD, for monitoring how the disease develops and how new treatments can improve the brain connections in people living with PD.