Longitudinal Study of Molecular Pathology and Neuronal Networks in Leucine-rich Repeat Kinase 2 Carriers and Idiopathic Parkinson's Disease Patients and Healthy Controls Using PET, MR Imaging, and Other Markers of in Vivo Pathology
Overview
- Phase
- Not Applicable
- Intervention
- Not specified
- Conditions
- Parkinson Disease, PARK8
- Sponsor
- King's College London
- Enrollment
- 59
- Locations
- 1
- Primary Endpoint
- Changes in serotonergic transmission in the ventral and dorsal raphe nuclei, and in raphe projection areas, in LRRK2-PD compared to idiopathic PD.
- Status
- Completed
- Last Updated
- 2 years ago
Overview
Brief Summary
Parkinson's Disease (PD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease characterized clinically by bradykinesia, resting tremor, rigidity, and postural instability. Little is known about the mechanisms underlying neuronal degeneration in PD and currently, no treatment is available to halt disease progression in PD.
The pathophysiological characterisation of phenomena occurring in the time window between the pathological start of the disease and the onset of motor symptoms is crucial to develop potential neuroprotective agents.
Several genes have been discovered providing important insights on the pathogenesis of PD. Mutations of Leucine-rich repeat kinase 2 (LRRK2) are associated with 2-5% of all PD cases in North American Caucasians. LRRK2 is an enzyme that in humans is encoded by the autosomal dominant Parkinson's disease-8 (PARK8) gene, which is associated with an increased risk of PD.
Clinical and digital biomarkers, blood and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomarkers and molecular positron emission tomography (PET) imaging, with specific radioligands, provide invaluable insights to help understand and characterise disease pathophysiology.
The investigators aim to characterize molecular phenomena underlying LRRK2 PD with the hope of providing further insights into possible mechanisms taking place in PD and to help identify targets for disease-modifying therapeutics.
Investigators
Eligibility Criteria
Inclusion Criteria
- •Women of child-bearing potential must use protocol-defined contraceptive measures and must have a negative β-hCG test at screening. For sexually active subjects (except females of non-childbearing potential), condoms should be used in addition to other birth control methods during the study, for 15 days after the last dose of investigational drug, and for 3 months after the last administration of PET or SPECT ligands. All male subjects must agree to refrain from donating sperm during the study, for 15 days following the last dose of investigational drug, and for 3 months after the last administration of PET or SPECT ligands. It is important that male subjects not impregnate others while in the study.
- •Adequate visual and auditory acuity to complete the psychological testing.
- •Idiopathic PD group
- •Clinical diagnosis of Parkinson's disease meeting the Movement Disorder Society Clinical Diagnostic Criteria (i.e. not induced by drugs or other diseases or carriers of PD risk genes such as LRRK2, SNCA, PARK2 etc.).
- •Hoehn and Yahr scale stage 1 or
- •Patients who are drug-naïve (never been treated with dopamine agonists or levodopa) or on dopamine replacement therapy.
- •Patients who have received the diagnosis of idiopathic PD within three years for drug-naïve patients or within eight years for patients on dopamine replacement therapy.
- •LRRK2 PD group
- •Clinical diagnosis of Parkinson's disease meeting the Movement Disorder Society Clinical Diagnostic Criteria and genetic confirmation of being carriers of LRRK2 PD risk genes, diagnosed after the age of 30 years.
- •Hoehn and Yahr scale stage 1 or
Exclusion Criteria
- •Patients who had previous surgery for PD (including but not limited to deep brain stimulation \[DBS\] or cell transplantation).
- •Patients who are treated with duodopa or apomorphine.
- •Patients taking serotonin acting drugs such as antidepressants (i.e. tricyclic or selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors etc.)
- •Patients taking drugs acting on SV2A such as antiepileptics (i.e. levetiracetam or brivaracetam etc.)
- •Pregnancy or breastfeeding.
- •Patients with current or a recent history of drug or alcohol abuse/dependence.
- •Patients who have other neurological disorders and known intracranial co-morbidities such as stroke, haemorrhage, space-occupying lesions.
- •Presence of any clinically significant medical condition (including cardiovascular, respiratory, cerebrovascular, hematological, hepatic, renal, gastrointestinal, or other disease) that, based on the judgment of the investigator, is clinically unstable, is likely to deteriorate during the course of the study, could put the patient at risk because of participation in the study, could affect the subject's ability to complete the study, or could influence the study results.
- •History of suicidal behavior or active suicidal ideation.
- •Within 1 year prior to screen or between screen and baseline (Day -1), any of the following: myocardial infarction; hospitalization for congestive heart failure; hospitalization for, or symptoms of, unstable angina; or syncope not related to PD.
Outcomes
Primary Outcomes
Changes in serotonergic transmission in the ventral and dorsal raphe nuclei, and in raphe projection areas, in LRRK2-PD compared to idiopathic PD.
Time Frame: One year
The study's main outcome measure is changes in serotonergic neurotransmission within specific brain regions. This will be assessed with positron emission tomography (PET) imaging using the readioligand 11C-labeled 3-amino-4 -(2-dimethylaminomethyl-phenylsulfanyl)benzonitrile (\[11C\]DASB).