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Background: REM-sleep behavior disorder (RBD) and other non-motor symptoms such as hyposmia were proposed by the Movement Disorder Society as research criteria for prodromal Parkinson's disease (P-PD). Global cognitive deficit was later added. Objective: To compare non-motor symptoms, focusing on cognition, between a P-PD group and a matched control group. Methods: In this cross-sectional, case-control study, in a first set of analyses, we performed extensive cognitive testing on people with (n = 76) and a control group without (n = 195) probable RBD and hyposmia. Furthermore, we assessed motor and non-motor symptoms related to Parkinson's Disease (PD). After propensity score matching, we compared 62 P-PD with 62 age- and sex-matched controls. In addition, we performed regression analyses on the total sample (n = 271). In a second set of analyses, we used, a.o., the CUPRO to evaluate retrograde procedural memory and visuo-constructive functions. Results: People with P-PD showed significantly poorer performances in global cognition, visuo-constructive and executive functions, mainly in mental flexibility (p < 0.001; p = 0.004; p = 0.003), despite similar educational levels (p = 0.415). We observed significantly more motor and non-motor symptoms (p < 0.001; p = 0.004), higher scores for depression (p = 0.004) and apathy (p < 0.001) as well as lower quality of life (p < 0.001) in P-PD. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings confirm that global cognitive, executive, and visuo-constructive deficits define the P-PD group. In addition, depression, apathy, and lower quality of life were more prevalent in P-PD. If replicated in other samples, executive and visuo-constructive deficits should be considered in non-motor P-PD. Determining specific patterns will support early recognition of PD, secondary prevention of complications and the development of neuroprotective treatments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: During the COVID-19 pandemic swift implementation of research cohorts was key. While many studies focused exclusively on infected individuals, population based cohorts are essential for the follow-up of SARS-CoV-2 impact on public health. Here we present the CON-VINCE cohort, estimate the point and period prevalence of the SARS-CoV-2 infection, reflect on the spread within the Luxembourgish population, examine immune responses to SARS-CoV-2 infection and vaccination, and ascertain the impact of the pandemic on population psychological wellbeing at a nationwide level. Methods: A representative sample of the adult Luxembourgish population was enrolled. The cohort was followed-up for twelve months. SARS-CoV-2 RT-qPCR and serology were conducted at each sampling visit. The surveys included detailed epidemiological, clinical, socio-economic, and psychological data. Results: One thousand eight hundred sixty-five individuals were followed over seven visits (April 2020—June 2021) with the final weighted period prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 infection of 15%. The participants had similar risks of being infected regardless of their gender, age, employment status and education level. Vaccination increased the chances of IgG-S positivity in infected individuals. Depression, anxiety, loneliness and stress levels increased at a point of study when there were strict containment measures, returning to baseline afterwards. Conclusion: The data collected in CON-VINCE study allowed obtaining insights into the infection spread in Luxembourg, immunity build-up and the impact of the pandemic on psychological wellbeing of the population. Moreover, the study holds great translational potential, as samples stored at the biobank, together with self-reported questionnaire information, can be exploited in further research. Trial registration: Trial registration number: NCT04379297, 10 April 2020. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Deep phenotyping of Parkinson's disease (PD) is essential to investigate this fastest-growing neurodegenerative disorder. Since 2015, over 800 individuals with PD and atypical parkinsonism along with more than 800 control subjects have been recruited in the frame of the observational, monocentric, nation-wide, longitudinal-prospective Luxembourg Parkinson's study., Objective: To profile the baseline dataset and to explore risk factors, comorbidities and clinical profiles associated with PD, atypical parkinsonism and controls., Methods: Epidemiological and clinical characteristics of all 1,648 participants divided in disease and control groups were investigated. Then, a cross-sectional group comparison was performed between the three largest groups: PD, progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) and controls. Subsequently, multiple linear and logistic regression models were fitted adjusting for confounders., Results: The mean (SD) age at onset (AAO) of PD was 62.3 (11.8) years with 15% early onset (AAO < 50 years), mean disease duration 4.90 (5.16) years, male sex 66.5% and mean MDS-UPDRS III 35.2 (16.3). For PSP, the respective values were: 67.6 (8.2) years, all PSP with AAO > 50 years, 2.80 (2.62) years, 62.7% and 53.3 (19.5). The highest frequency of hyposmia was detected in PD followed by PSP and controls (72.9%; 53.2%; 14.7%), challenging the use of hyposmia as discriminating feature in PD vs. PSP. Alcohol abstinence was significantly higher in PD than controls (17.6 vs. 12.9%, p  = 0.003)., Conclusion: Luxembourg Parkinson's study constitutes a valuable resource to strengthen the understanding of complex traits in the aforementioned neurodegenerative disorders. It corroborated several previously observed clinical profiles, and provided insight on frequency of hyposmia in PSP and dietary habits, such as alcohol abstinence in PD. Clinical trial registration : clinicaltrials.gov, NCT05266872., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest. The author(s) declared that they were an editorial board member of Frontiers, at the time of submission. This had no impact on the peer review process and the final decision., (Copyright © 2023 Pavelka, Rawal, Ghosh, Pauly, Pauly, Hanff, Kolber, Jónsdóttir, Mcintyre, Azaiz, Thiry, Vilasboas, Soboleva, Giraitis, Tsurkalenko, Sapienza, Diederich, Klucken, Glaab, Aguayo, Jubal, Perquin, Vaillant, May, Gantenbein, Satagopam, Krüger and on behalf of the NCER-PD Consortium.)

Background: The analysis of the procedural memory is particularly relevant in neurodegenerative disorders like Parkinson's disease, due to the central role of the basal ganglia in procedural memory. It has been shown that anterograde procedural memory, the ability to learn a new skill, is impaired in Parkinson's disease. However, retrograde procedural memory, the long-term retention and execution of skills learned in earlier life stages, has not yet been systematically investigated in Parkinson's disease., Objective: This study aims to investigate retrograde procedural memory in people with Parkinson's disease. We hypothesized that retrograde procedural memory is impaired in people with Parkinson's disease compared to an age- and gender-matched control group., Methods: First, we developed the CUPRO evaluation system, an extended evaluation system based on the Cube Copying Test, to distinguish the cube copying procedure, representing functioning of retrograde procedural memory, and the final result, representing the visuo-constructive abilities. Development of the evaluation system included tests of discriminant validity., Results: Comparing people with typical Parkinson's disease (n = 201) with age- and gender-matched control subjects (n = 201), we identified cube copying performance to be significantly impaired in people with Parkinson's disease (p = 0.008). No significant correlation was observed between retrograde procedural memory and disease duration., Conclusion: We demonstrated lower cube copying performance in people with Parkinson's disease compared to control subjects, which suggests an impaired functioning of retrograde procedural memory in Parkinson's disease.