Young Plasma Infusions Significantly Improve Clinical Symptoms and UPDRS Scores in Patients with Parkinson’s Disease

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In both preclinical and clinical studies, transfusions of plasma from young individuals have been reported to ameliorate aspects of neurodegeneration. This study was designed as a preliminary test of the hypothesis that plasma transfusions from young donors might benefit Parkinson’s patients. 19 patients were allocated to receive either 2-liters of plasma from young donors, in two doses spaced two days apart, or two doses of placebo. For the next 24 weeks, this double-blind study evaluated changes on a modified MDS-UPDRS scale, along with blood tests and other observations. Adverse events possibly related to transfusion were mild rise in blood pressure and urticaria. A t-test on the changes in the sum of UPDRS subscales 1-3 showed that the plasma patients did better than the placebo patients (p = 0.03*). For patients given yFFP® (young Fresh Frozen Plasma), the estimated decrease in the sum of scales 1-3 was 7.1 (95% conf. interval 4.3 to 9.9). Our results give a preliminary indication that young plasma transfusions reduce Parkinson’s symptoms and have a place in treatment of these patients. (NCT 04202757).

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