How a Single Neuron Type Shapes Parkinson’s

By Office of the President | Jan 6, 2026

More than one million Americans live with tremors, slowed movement, and speech changes caused by Parkinson’s disease. For many, even everyday actions, such as buttoning a shirt, lifting a mug, or steadying a foot on the first step, become challenging. The human cost is significant. The economic burden is substantial, with national estimates reaching tens of billions of dollars each year in medical care and lost productivity. Early diagnosis and coordinated, multidisciplinary care play critical roles in slowing functional decline and supporting long-term independence.

Scientists have long sought to understand what drives the disease’s most recognizable motor symptoms. A central question involves abnormal “beta wave” signals in the brain’s movement centers that increase as Parkinson’s progresses. While researchers could observe these signals, the biological mechanisms that initiate them remained unclear.

A recent study led by Downstate neuroscientists, Donald W. Doherty, Ph.D. and William W. Lytton, Ph.D., helps clarify this process. Supported by the U.S. National Science Foundation’s ACCESS program and conducted using the Expanse supercomputer at UC San Diego’s Supercomputer Center, the project was carried out in collaboration with the Aligning Science Across Parkinson’s Collaborative Research Network, of which Downstate is a partner.

Using large-scale computational modeling, the research team simulated how Parkinson’s-related changes affect motor circuits in the brain. Their results show that reduced activity in a specific group of neurons disrupts signaling patterns that typically support coordinated movement. Even limited changes within this network can interfere with motor control.

These findings have implications for treatment strategies. Many current therapies focus on restoring dopamine levels or stimulating broad regions of the brain. By identifying a discrete cell population associated with motor dysfunction, this research supports approaches that target disease mechanisms rather than merely managing symptoms.

Published in npj Parkinson’s Disease, an open-access journal from Nature, and conducted with collaborators from Georgetown University Medical Center and Emory University, the study contributes to a more detailed understanding of Parkinson’s disease. It informs the development of more targeted interventions.

These findings illustrate how computational neuroscience and collaborative research can inform the future of Parkinson’s care. By integrating high-performance computing with systems-level brain science, Downstate investigators are helping to support the development of more precise therapeutic strategies aimed at preserving function and independence for people living with Parkinson’s disease.