Researchers at the University of Chile and University of Pittsburgh developed a new, noninvasive technology that may diagnose Alzheimer's disease before symptoms appear. The research was published in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease.

The technology detects the pathological oligomeric forms of tau protein in blood platelets in patients with Alzheimer's and other neurodegenerative diseases. The ratio of the abnormal tau and normal tau protein can differentiate Alzheimer's patients from normal controls.

This research means that pathological forms of tau proteins in platelets are associated with lower brain volume in areas that are connected to Alzheimer's. Those areas include the left medial and right anterior cingulate gyri, right cerebellum, right thalamus, left frontal cortex and right parahippocampal region.
The new technology can detect and determine the progression of Alzheimer's, as well as identify the pathology before clinical symptoms present, and the researchers are hopeful that it will play a vital role in the development of preventive therapies.

This is also a step forward in the use of peripheral biomarkers for research studies on the complexity of Alzheimer's pathology. It may also help researchers understand the pathophysiology of other neurodegenerative diseases in which tau proteins play an important role.

A University of Pennsylvania study also published in JAD found that administering a "sniff test" can more accurately diagnose Alzheimer's. It may also be able to detect mild cognitive impairment, which can progress to Alzheimer's after a few years.

The researchers plan to study whether protein markers for Alzheimer's can be detected in a patient's nasal fluid. That could potentially provide an even earlier diagnosis of the disease.

Business Affairs Homepage