Photo: Jose Antoinne | Unsplash
Researchers have developed a simple and “cost-effective” blood test capable of detecting Parkinson’s disease long before symptoms emerge, according to a study. 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 (about $106 USD), 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”.
|
|
More:
