Diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease by protein markers
Researchers at King's College London and Proteome Sciences, working under the guidance of Professor Simon Lovestone, have identified a complex of 10 blood proteins that can be used for early diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease.
To date, Alzheimer's disease is incurable. According to a number of experts, many clinical studies of potential drugs for the treatment of this disease end in failure due to too late initiation of therapy. It is quite possible that the inclusion in clinical studies of patients with early stages of Alzheimer's disease will allow us to find drugs that slow down the progression of the disease.
When conducting the study, the authors used data collected within the framework of three independent international papers. In total, they analyzed the content of 26 proteins associated with Alzheimer's disease in 1,149 blood samples, 476 of which belonged to patients with Alzheimer's disease, 220 to patients with moderate cognitive impairment and 452 to people without dementia. 476 participants from different groups underwent magnetic resonance imaging of the brain.
As a result, the existence of a pronounced relationship between the levels of 16 of the 26 analyzed proteins and a decrease in brain volume in both Alzheimer's disease and moderate cognitive impairment was revealed.
At the second stage of the work, the researchers conducted a series of tests aimed at identifying proteins suitable for use as markers of the progression of moderate cognitive impairment to Alzheimer's disease. As a result, a combination of 10 proteins was identified, allowing 87% accuracy to predict the transition from one state to another within a year.
Currently, the authors are looking for commercial partners to develop a test suitable for use in clinical practice.
Article Hye A.et al. Plasma proteins predict conversion to dementia from prodromal disease is published in the journal Alzheimer's and Dementia.
Evgeniya Ryabtseva
Portal "Eternal youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru based on the materials of King's College London:
Significant step towards blood test for Alzheimer's.
08.07.2014