Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41826284›Full record

Trial reportSignal transduction and targeted therapy2026

Gut microbiota modulation via repeated donor fecal transplantation improves motor and gastrointestinal symptoms in drug-naïve Parkinson's disease: a randomized phase 2 trial.

Rui Zhang, Renyi Feng, Jiuqi Wang, Yongkang Chen, Han Liu, Qingyong Zhu, Haiyan Tian, Chi Qin, Junfang Teng, Beisha Tang and 5 more

Abstract readRandomized Controlled TrialClinical Trial, Phase II
In one paragraph

Trial report in Signal transduction and targeted therapy, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Review
  2. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

15 authors.

Rui Zhang *Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China.
Renyi Feng *Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China.
Jiuqi WangDepartment of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China.
Yongkang ChenDepartment of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, Henan, China.
Han LiuDepartment of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, Henan, China.
Qingyong ZhuDepartment of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, Henan, China.
Haiyan TianDepartment of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, Henan, China.
Chi QinDepartment of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, Henan, China.
Junfang TengDepartment of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, Henan, China.
Beisha TangDepartment of Neurology, Multi-Omics Research Center for Brain Disorders, the First Affiliated Hospital, University of South China, Hengyang, Hunan, China.
Min WuDrug Discovery Center, Wenzhou Institute University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wenzhou, Zhejiang, China.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1205-982X
Jinsheng ZengDepartment of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China. zengjsh@mail.sysu.edu.cn.
Erxi WuNeuroscience Institute and Department of Neurosurgery, Baylor Scott & White Health, Temple, TX, USA. Erxi.Wu@Bswhealth.org.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-1680-3639
Xuebing DingDepartment of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China. dingxb6@mail.sysu.edu.cn.
Xuejing WangDepartment of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China. wangxj279@mail.sysu.edu.cn.

Funding

National Natural Science Foundation of China (National Science Foundation of China) 82122022,82471272, 82171248, 82471350, 82201407National Natural Science Foundation of China (National Science Foundation of China) 82130035, 82371308National Natural Science Foundation of China (National Science Foundation of China) 82201407Sun Yat-sen University (SYSU) R04017
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The gut-brain axis is increasingly recognized as a critical contributor to Parkinson's disease (PD) pathogenesis, yet the therapeutic impact of microbiota modulation remains unclear due to lack of clinical trials in drug-naïve patients. We conducted a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled phase 2 trial to evaluate the safety, tolerability, and efficacy of repeated donor fecal microbiota transplantation (dFMT) in de novo PD. FMT was administered for seven days (200 mL on days 1-3; 50 mL on days 4-7) per 4-week cycle. Seventy-two patients were randomized 1:1 to receive dFMT or autologous FMT (aFMT), and 66 completed the trial. At 35 weeks, the dFMT group showed significant improvement in motor symptoms (mean change in Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale [UPDRS] III: -3.8 vs. +0.1; p = 0.0001) and a substantially greater reduction in constipation severity (dFMT vs. aFMT: -6.5 vs. -0.7; p < 0.0001), accompanied by improved quality-of-life scores. Microbiome profiling revealed greater similarity to donor composition and a marked reduction in Escherichia-Shigella, correlating with decreased colonic α-synuclein aggregation (r = 0.3775, p = 0.0277), supporting a gut-brain mechanistic link. Biochemical analyses showed elevated fecal dopamine and 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid levels, while histological assessments demonstrated strengthened epithelial barrier integrity with increased E-cadherin expression. All adverse events were mild and self-limited; no serious treatment-related events were observed. These findings demonstrate that repeated dFMT is safe, well tolerated, and yields clinically meaningful motor and gastrointestinal improvements in drug-naïve PD, providing integrated mechanistic and clinical evidence that microbiota-targeted modulation represents a promising nonpharmacologic therapeutic strategy for neurodegenerative disease. Trial registration: Chinese Clinical Trial Registry, ChiCTR2200064151.

Indexed as

ConstipationFecal Microbiota TransplantationGastrointestinal MicrobiomeParkinson DiseaseAgedDouble-Blind MethodFemaleHumansMaleMiddle AgedQuality of Life

Identifiers

PMID41826284
PMCPMC12987940

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.