Scientists have developed a new technology that could help diagnose Parkinson’s disease before symptoms appear and speed up the search for treatments.
Parkinson’s disease is difficult to diagnose because there are currently no specific tests for the condition. Symptoms vary, and many other diseases have similar symptoms, meaning the condition can often be misdiagnosed.
Now US scientists say they have found a way to detect the accumulation of abnormal proteins associated with the disease before symptoms appear. Their findings were published in The Lancet Neurology.
Research appears to confirm that the method, known as the alphaSyn-SAA seed amplification assay (alphaSyn-SAA), can accurately identify individuals at risk of developing the disease. The findings could pave the way for early detection, diagnosis and treatment of Parkinson’s disease.
Worldwide, the prevalence of the condition has doubled in the past 25 years, with as many as 10 million people affected by the disease.
Professor Andrew Sideroff of the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and lead author of the study said: “Identifying an effective biomarker for the pathogenesis of Parkinson’s disease could have profound implications, possibly allowing us to treat the way we treat Parkinson’s disease.” diagnose people with this condition. Early on, identify the best treatments for different patient subgroups and accelerate clinical trials.”
Parkinson’s disease is caused by the accumulation of abnormal proteins known as alphaSyn or alpha-synuclein in the brain and nervous system. This buildup is thought to occur years before physical symptoms such as tremors, slowness of movement or muscle stiffness appear.
The study, which included 1,123 participants, is one of the largest studies to date to evaluate the benefit of alphaSyn-SAA technology.
The group included individuals diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, those at risk with GBA and LRRK2 genetic variants associated with the condition, and prodromal individuals who showed early non-motor symptoms such as sleep disturbance or loss of smell.
The procedure involves taking samples of the fluid surrounding the brain and spinal cord from each study participant and then analyzing the sample in a lab to look for alpha-synuclein.
The test amplifies small amounts of these proteins, a pathological feature of Parkinson’s disease, which can be detected using standard laboratory methods.
The study confirmed that this technology can not only accurately identify people with Parkinson’s disease, but also identify high-risk individuals with early non-motor symptoms before they are diagnosed.
Source: The Guardian
Source: Arabic RT
