Major breakthrough in battle to treat and prevent Parkinson’s
A simple blood test could predict Parkinson’s disease seven years before symptoms appear with 100% accuracy, marking a ‘major step forward’ in diagnosis of the condition.
Parkinson’s is a progressive condition affecting the brain and nervous system. It causes the death of nerve cells, or neurons, in the part of the brain that controls movement. Those with the condition suffer from tremors, slow movement and muscle stiffness.
It is the fastest growing neurological condition in the world – 153,000 in the UK live with Parkinson’s, while around one in 37 people alive in the country today will be diagnosed with Parkinson’s in their lifetime.
However, researchers believe early prediction and diagnosis would help in finding treatments that could slow or even stop Parkinson’s.
The new test uses artificial intelligence (AI) to predict the condition based on the concentrations of eight different proteins in the blood years before physical symptoms start.
When the nerve cells in the brain die or become impaired, they lose the ability to create a chemical called dopamine.
People with Parkinson’s are currently treated with dopamine replacement therapy after they have already developed symptoms, such as tremors or slowness of movement.
It is thought that early diagnosis and treatment would help protect the dopamine-producing brain cells.
Co-first-author Dr Michael Bartl, of University Medical Centre Goettingen, said: ‘By determining eight proteins in the blood, we can identify potential Parkinson’s patients several years in advance.’
‘This means that drug therapies could potentially be given at an earlier stage, which could possibly slow down disease progression or even prevent it from occurring.’
What are the symptoms of Parkinson's disease?
The main symptoms of Parkinson’s disease are:
- involuntary shaking of particular parts of the body (tremor)
- slow movement
- stiff and inflexible muscles
A person with Parkinson’s disease can also experience a wide range of other physical and psychological symptoms.
These include:
- depression and anxiety
- balance problems (this may increase the chances of a fall)
- loss of sense of smell (anosmia)
- problems sleeping (insomnia)
- memory problems
Professor David Dexter, director of research at Parkinson’s UK, said: ‘This research, co-funded by Parkinson’s UK, represents a major step forward in the search for a definitive and patient-friendly diagnostic test for Parkinson’s.
‘Finding biological markers that can be identified and measured in the blood is much less invasive than a lumbar puncture, which is being used more and more in clinical research.’
The research, published in the journal Nature Communications, found that when a branch of AI called machine learning analysed a panel of eight blood-based biomarkers, which have different concentrations in patients with Parkinson’s, it could provide a diagnosis with 100% accuracy.
Senior author Professor Kevin Mills, of UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, said: ‘As new therapies become available to treat Parkinson’s, we need to diagnose patients before they have developed the symptoms.
‘We cannot regrow our brain cells and therefore we need to protect those that we have.
‘At present we are shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted and we need to start experimental treatments before patients develop symptoms.’
He added that with sufficient funding, it is hoped the test will be used by the NHS within two years.
The experts suggest that with further research the test could potentially distinguish between Parkinson’s and other conditions that have some early similarities, such as dementia with Lewy bodies and essential tremor.
The team also looked at whether the test could predict the likelihood of someone going on to develop Parkinson’s.
Blood from 72 patients with Rapid Eye Movement Behaviour Disorder (iRBD) was analysed, as it is known that about 75% to 80% of these people will go on to develop a synucleinopathy – a type of brain disorder caused by the abnormal build-up of a protein called alpha-synuclein in brain cells – including Parkinson’s.
The patients were followed up over 10 years and researchers say the AI predictions have so far been correct, with the team correctly predicting 16 patients would go on to develop Parkinson’s, and being able to do this up to seven years before the onset of any symptoms.
The researchers are hoping to secure funding to create a simpler test where a drop of blood can be spotted on a card and posted to the lab to investigate if it can predict Parkinson’s even earlier than the seven years before the onset of symptoms in this study.