THERAPY-Magazin
Skin test enables early Parkinson’s diagnosis
A new skin test detects alpha-synuclein deposits, enabling early and even pre-symptomatic diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease. This breakthrough may pave the way for preventative therapies and revolutionize treatment strategies.
Redaktion
THERAPY Magazin
In the past, the detection of alpha-synuclein was only possible in the brain – after the death of the patient. Now a practical skin test for early diagnosis of Parkinson’s is being used.
“This brings with it the prospect of opening up the long-awaited pre-symptomatic Parkinson’s therapy”
The Würzburg researcher team under Kathrin Doppler showed as early as 2014 that alpha-synuclein is not only deposited in the brain of Parkinson’s patients, but also in the skin. They found pathological protein aggregates in the small nerve fibres of the skin in around half the patients with Parkinson’s disease they examined. However, early diagnosis remained difficult due to non-specific symptoms. In its latest study, the team has succeeded in detecting alpha-synuclein in the prodromal phase. The protein is therefore suitable as a biomarker for diagnosing Parkinson’s in the early stage, in which the typical impairments to movement do not generally appear.
Neuroscientists led by Kathrin Doppler and Claudia Sommer from Würzburg and Wolfgang Oertel from Marburg examined 18 patients with REM sleep behaviour disorder (RBD), 25 patients with early Parkinson’s disease and 20 healthy control subjects. Sleep disorder is considered a characteristic early symptom of Parkinson’s disease. It expresses itself in aggressive dreams and conspicuous movements in dream sleep. Around 85 per cent of those affected develop Parkinson’s disease within 15 to 20 years. Deposits of alpha-synuclein are also found in the brain in cases of REM sleep behaviour disorder.
Phospho-alpha-synuclein was detected with 55.6 per cent sensitivity in 10 out of 18 RBD risk patients. With a sensitivity of 80 per cent, evidence of alpha-synuclein deposition was found in 20 out of 25 patients with early Parkinson’s disease. By contrast, no deposits were found in the healthy control subjects.
“This brings with it the prospect of opening up the long-awaited pre-symptomatic Parkinson’s therapy,” comments Günther Deuschl, an expert in Parkinson’s at the University Hospital of Schleswig-Holstein in Kiel and President of the European Academy of Neurology.
Neuroscientists led by Kathrin Doppler and Claudia Sommer from Würzburg and Wolfgang Oertel from Marburg examined 18 patients with REM sleep behaviour disorder (RBD), 25 patients with early Parkinson’s disease and 20 healthy control subjects. Sleep disorder is considered a characteristic early symptom of Parkinson’s disease. It expresses itself in aggressive dreams and conspicuous movements in dream sleep. Around 85 per cent of those affected develop Parkinson’s disease within 15 to 20 years. Deposits of alpha-synuclein are also found in the brain in cases of REM sleep behaviour disorder.
Phospho-alpha-synuclein was detected with 55.6 per cent sensitivity in 10 out of 18 RBD risk patients. With a sensitivity of 80 per cent, evidence of alpha-synuclein deposition was found in 20 out of 25 patients with early Parkinson’s disease. By contrast, no deposits were found in the healthy control subjects.
“This brings with it the prospect of opening up the long-awaited pre-symptomatic Parkinson’s therapy,” comments Günther Deuschl, an expert in Parkinson’s at the University Hospital of Schleswig-Holstein in Kiel and President of the European Academy of Neurology.
Redaktion
THERAPY Magazin
References:
- Doppler K et al. Dermal phospho-alpha-synuclein deposits confirm REM sleep behaviour disorder as prodromal Parkinson’s disease. Acta Neuropathologica, April 2017, Volume 133, Issue 4, pp 535–545
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