PPMI — Parkinson’s Precision Medicine Initiative
Overview
PPMI is a longitudinal, multisite observational study designed to identify and validate biomarkers of Parkinson’s disease onset and progression, and increasingly to support precision medicine stratification. Launched in 2010 by the Michael J. Fox Foundation as the Parkinson’s Progression Markers Initiative, it was substantially expanded in 2020 to nearly triple enrolment and add online data capture, and renamed the Parkinson’s Precision Medicine Initiative in 2026. It operates across approximately 50 clinical sites in 12 countries and has enrolled over 5,000 in-clinic participants contributing biological samples, with tens of thousands more participating online.
Data
PPMI collects clinical assessments, dopamine transporter SPECT (DaTscan), MRI, CSF, blood, urine, saliva, genetic data, and wearable sensor data. It holds a large longitudinal Parkinson’s biospecimen and data library, with data downloaded more than 2.8 million times as of 2024.
Access
Data are distributed through the LONI Image and Data Archive. Access requires free registration and a data use agreement. Biospecimen requests are handled separately through the PPMI biorepository.
Connections
- registeredIn: LONI IDA
- registeredIn: ClinicalTrials.gov
Resources
- https://www.ppmi-info.org
- https://ida.loni.usc.edu (data access via LONI IDA)
- https://doi.org/10.1016/j.parkreldis.2011.09.019 (Marek et al. 2011, original PPMI design paper)
- https://doi.org/10.1002/ana.78242 (Marek et al. 2026, Annals of Neurology, 15-year review and rename)