Advertise on podcast: Talking Parkinson’s Research (formerly NosPRIG Pod)

Description

Talking Parkinson's Research began as part of The North of Scotland Parkinson’s Research Interest Group (NoSPRIG) who are one of a nationwide network of research groups supporting Parkinson’s UK by increasing awareness and involvement in research at a regional level. The aim of the series was initially to focus on Parkinson’s research from a Scottish perspective and highlight some of the work being in Scotland to find out more about the mechanisms of this complex disease. Much to our surprise the podcast quickly became popular and by it's third year was attracting listeners in 70 countries. In response to that global audience, in 2026 we began to feature international researchers. The podcast is produced and presented by Dr Julie Jones from the School of Health Sciences at the Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen, and Helga Macfarlane, a former broadcast news producer who has Early Onset Parkinson's. We hope you find our episodes entertaining and informative. Any feedback would be much appreciated - email: [email protected]. Thank you for listening!

Unlock Talking Parkinson’s Research (formerly NosPRIG Pod) podcast Email contact info,
Listeners & Audience details

Email contact information

Direct podcast contact details

Listeners

Audience numbers & engagement insights

Audience details

Podcast Insights

Podcast episodes

Check latest episodes from Talking Parkinson’s Research (formerly NosPRIG Pod) podcast

Toolkit to Support Difficult Prognosis Dialogue/Prognostic Modelling - Dr Lis Grey, Bristol University

2026/10/15

The focus of Talking Parkinson's research this month is a fabulous research project aimed at developing a toolbox of measures to support patients, carers and clinicians with difficult conversations involving prognosis that are an important part of patient-centred care. Chief Investigator Dr Lis Grey from the University of Bristol and her multi-disciplinary team aim to develop a range of resources, including the use of personalised prognostic modelling to encourage and support shared decision making in the planning of future care.

Sleep and the Glymphatic System - Dr Ian Harrison, Principal Research Fellow, UCL

2026/09/17

This episode of Talking Parkinson's Research focusses one of the most common and troubling non-motor symptoms facing people with Parkinson's - problems related to sleep. Quality of life is so impacted that many rate if as their number one research priority. We were delighted to welcome one of the UK's leading researchers in the field of sleep, to our virtual studio to hear about his ground breaking work. Dr Ian Harrison, a Principal Research Fellow at UCL, has been investigating the mechanisms of sleep in neurodegenerative diseases, in particular the role of the glymphatic system, which may also be implicated in the progression of Parkinson's.

The role of the Immune System - Dr Caroline Williams-Gray, University of Cambridge

2026/08/20

This month we are heading into new territory with an area of research we haven’t explored at all before. The role of the immune system until relatively recently was never given much attention, as it wasn’t thought to have any real relevance to Parkinson’s. However, our guest in this episode has discovered that isn’t the case, and there are, in fact, important links between immune responses and the progression of the disease. Dr Caroline Williams-Gray, Principal Research Associate at the University of Cambridge, carried out long term studies following people with Parkinson’s and uncovered previously unknown connections which are helping to answer one of the biggest questions - why does Parkinson's develop differently from person to person. She is now focussing on inflammatory changes in the brain, which are thought to have particular relevance to those who go on to develop Dementia.

Falls - Dr Natalie Allen, Assoc Prof in Neuro-Physiotherapy, Uni of Sydney, Australia.

2026/07/16

In this episode we take a look at one of the most significant risks facing people with Parkinson's. The incidence of falling is far higher than the general population, and Dr Natalie Allen has done a wealth of research into the many reasons why it is such a problem amongst the Parkinson's community. She has been looking into ways of improving people's mobility and awareness of their environment to make them safer, and is in the process of formulating effective interventions to further reduce the fall rate.

Exercise Interventions: Prof Hanan Khalil, Qatar University

2026/06/18

Exercise is often described as being one of the most important tools for managing Parkinson’s, yet many people find it difficult to start or sustain. In the podcast's first international episode Dr Hanan Khalil, Professor in Physiotherapy at Qatar University explains her extensive research into the barriers that can prevent people with Parkinson's from exercising regularly and keeping it up, and her examination of what kind of interventions are most effective at helping them. Join Dr Julie Jones from the Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen and Helga Macfarlane, who has lived with Parkinson's for twelve years, to find out more.

Growning Brain Cells - Dr Charmaine Lang

2026/05/21

One of the challenges facing so much Parkinson's research is that it is incredibly difficult to study the dopamine producing cells which are failing, because they are buried deep within the brain. To overcome this problem Dr Charmaine Lang from the University of Oxford harvests skin cells from people with Parkinson's in order to grow them into brain cells in the laboratory and study them. She hopes to be able to identify a process which can protect them from damage, ultimately providing vital information towards the development of new treatments.

WPD Special Podcast Compilation

2026/04/11

In this World Parkinson's Day Special Episode Julie and Helga look back at a selection of the diverse range of Parkinson's research projects the podcast has featured. Listen for news about some big changes ahead for the podcast which is now listened to in more than seventy countries worldwide. This World Parkinson's Day Julie and Helga's message is 'Together we can all help research projects progress towards new treatments and a cure. Volunteer to take part today!'

Mitochondria - Professor Heather Mortiboys

2026/03/19

Professor Heather Mortiboys, Head of Neuroscience and Deputy Dean of the School of Medicine and Population Health at the University of Sheffield is pushing the boundaries of Parkinson's research and drug discovery from every direction. With a particular focus on mitochondria, she has been at the cutting edge of pre-clinical and clinical research, working with cells to develop to models for testing drug compounds. Heather champions public and patient involvement throughout her work and is also deeply committed to mentorship and education, and dedicates significant time to early-career researchers.

Parkinson's UK Virtual Biotech - Dr Lynsey Bilsland

2026/02/19

Parkinson's UK Virtual Biotech launched in 2017 funded by donors from across the world, with the aim of speeding up research to reduce the timescale for finding new treatments from decades down to years. Over £130m has been invested in high-potential early-stage projects, many of which are now 'coming-of-age' and in the final stages of clinical trials. Dr Lynsey Bilsland is the new Managing Director at the helm of the Virtual Biotech, and the person who's going to lead it into its exciting next phase. Julie and Helga met Lynsey to find out more about her new role and what lies ahead.

Moving Forward with PD, Mental Health - Becca Hunsdon

2026/01/15

To start the fourth series of the podcast we are turning our focus towards the much neglected area of mental health related research. Just over a year ago Becca Hunsdon from the University of Reading began recruiting participants for her PhD project ‘Moving Forward’, exploring a new online group programme she’d developed to offer psychological support and improve quality of life for people with Parkinson’s. Podcast co-presenter Helga Macfarlane volunteered to take part having never been involved in anything like it before. Over the following eight weeks she found huge value in Becca’s sessions, so along with podcast host Dr Julie Jones invited her into the studio to find out the thinking behind its group based online set-up and how, with her own psychotherapy input weaved throughout, it explores mood, emotions and coping, and reconnects participants with their values to support them through unhelpful thoughts and feelings.

Landmark Project - Prof David Dexter and Prof Michael Johnson

2025/12/18

Landmark is a ground-breaking research programme aimed at accelerating the search for new treatments by applying cutting edge techniques to gain a new level of insight at cellular level into the changes Parkinson's causes in the brain. Principal investigator Professor Michael Johnson from Imperial College London explains the need across the global research community for the new high quality datasets his team will produce. The project will use tissue samples from the Parkinson's UK Brain Bank, which was set up 22 years ago as a result of the remarkable foresight of Professor David Dexter, who is now the charity's Director of Research. He explains what it was like to see his vision come to fruition when Landmark was launched. The three year research programme brings together a Parkinson's UK led consortium of four major pharmaceutical companies - GSK, Novartis, Roche, and UCB, plus Imperial College London, which was made possible with £4m of funding from the Gatsby charitable foundation. https://profiles.imperial.ac.uk/m.johnson

Parkinson's Prevalence Data - Caroline Rassell and Lance Lee, Parkinson's UK

2025/11/20

Parkinson’s UK have published the results of an unprecedented study that’s provided a wealth of new detail into the condition in the UK today. Eighteen million patient records were analysed uncovering the key issues facing the one hundred and sixty-six thousand people with the condition in this country and highlighting up to twenty-one thousand more with no treatment or support while they wait to be diagnosed. With the help of Caroline Rassell, CEO of Parkinson's UK and Lance Lee, the charity's Analytics and Insights Lead, we examine the methodology behind the collection of a data set of this magnitude, how the millions of pieces of information are harmonised to reach accurate results. We also hear how patient privacy is protected when medical records are used for research of this kind and some of the implications of the information the survey has uncovered. If you would like to read more about the research click on this link: https://www.parkinsons.org.uk/research/research-blog/our-research/parkinsons-uk-what-do-we-know

Predict-PD Study - Professor Alastair Noyce, Principal Investigator

2025/10/16

The ground-breaking Predict-PD study has been gathering valuable information from thirteen thousand volunteers for 15 years, in an effort to find ways of identifying those people most at risk of developing Parkinson’s. We catch up with progress so far and find out how the project is continually growing and swapping information with other researchers as science moves ever closer towards the establishing the causes of the world’s fastest growing neurological disorder. Dr Alastair Noyce, the Principal Investigator, is Professor of Neurology and Neuroepidemiology at the Queen Mary University of London. If you are interested in volunteering to take part or just want to find out more, you can do so using this link: https://predictpd.com/en

Professor Suzanne Reeves, Chief Investigator TOPHAT Trial

2025/09/18

We are delighted to be focusing this month's episode on a research project that is actively recruiting patient participants all across the UK. The investigation, based at University College London, is looking at whether a medicine currently used to treat nausea and vomiting caused by some cancer treatments, could also help people with Parkinson's and Lewy Body Dementia who experience hallucinations. Read Maria and Desmond's experience of taking part in the Top Hat trial: Blog: https://www.parkinsons.org.uk/research/research-blog/ask-expert/research-reduce-hallucinations-desmond-and-marias-story #Link to Take Part Hub recruitment page: https://www.parkinsons.org.uk/research/top-hat-trial-licensed-drug-parkinsons-hallucination-treatment

Oral Health - Jessie Tebbutt, NIHR Doctoral Fellow in Special Care Dentistry, University of Sheffield

2025/08/21

In this episode we're turning our attention to a long overlooked area of Parkinson's research; oral health. Despite its importance, little is known about how oral health issues affect quality of life for people living with the condition. Jessie Tebbutt, NIHR Doctoral Clinical Fellow in Special Care Dentistry at the University of Sheffield, has been exploring the existing evidence on the oral health experiences of those with Parkinson's, and identifying key gaps in the current knowledge with a view to helping shape future research priorities.