Researchers have developed a simple and “cost-effective” blood test capable of detecting Parkinson’s disease long before symptoms emerge, according to a study.
About 153,000 people live with Parkinson’s in the UK, and scientists who undertook the research said the test could “revolutionise” an early diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease, “paving the way for timely interventions and improved patient outcomes”.
Parkinson’s is a progressive neurological condition in which nerve cells in the brain are lost over time. This leads to a reduction of the chemical dopamine which plays an important part in controlling movement.
This new test, which the Times reports costs £80, analyses small pieces of genetic material known as transfer RNA fragments (tRFs) in the blood, focusing on a repetitive RNA sequence that accumulates in Parkinson’s patients.
It also looks at a parallel decline in mitochondrial RNA, which deteriorates as the disease progresses. Mitochondria exist inside cells and generate energy.
By measuring the ratio between these biomarkers, researchers said the test “offers a highly accurate, non-invasive, rapid and affordable diagnostic tool, providing hope for early interventions and treatments that could change the course of the disease”.
www.theguardian.com
