Progression in the LRRK2-Asssociated Parkinson Disease Population.

Importance: Few prospective longitudinal studies have evaluated the progression of Parkinson disease (PD) in patients with the leucine-rich repeat kinase 2 (LRRK2 [OMIM 609007]) mutation. Knowledge about such progression will aid clinical trials.

Objective: To determine whether the longitudinal course of PD in patients with the LRRK2 mutation differs from the longitudinal course of PD in patients without the mutation.

Glucocerebrosidase enzyme activity in GBA mutation Parkinson's disease.

Mutations in the glucocerebrosidase (GBA1) gene, the most common genetic contributor to Parkinson's disease (PD), are associated with an increased risk of PD in heterozygous and homozygous carriers. While glucocerebrosidase enzyme (GCase) activity is consistently low in Gaucher disease, there is a range of leukocyte GCase activity in healthy heterozygous GBA1 mutation carriers. To determine whether GCase activity may be a marker for PD with heterozygous GBA1 mutations (GBA1 mutation PD, GBA PD), GBA PD patients (n=15) were compared to PD patients without heterozygous GBA1 mutations (idiopathic PD; n=8), heterozygous GBA1 carriers without PD (asymptomatic carriers; n=4), and biallelic mutation carriers with PD (Gaucher disease with PD, GD1 PD; n=3) in a pilot study.