It is still largely unknown what causes this insidious disease over which the patient gradually loses his ability to move.
A person with Parkinson’s disease performing therapeutic movements. (illustration) (AFP / ERIC PIERMONT)
Knowledge regarding Parkinson’s disease is progressing: the accumulation of a protein, alpha-synuclein, in the brain is indeed linked to certain forms of the disease, confirms a study published on Thursday 13 April. A discovery that potentially opens the way to an early diagnosis of this pathology.
The high presence of this protein in the cerebrospinal fluid, which bathes the brain, is “very precise (to identify) the typical forms of Parkinson’s disease”, summarizes this study published in the
Lancet Neurology
and led by American neurologist Andrew Siderowf.
Parkinson’s disease is, along with Alzheimer’s,
one of the main pathologies to strike the brain.
But it is still largely unknown what causes this insidious evil over which the patient gradually loses his ability to move. However, several factors are known to be associated with the disease. Among the latter, it has been known for several years that patients often present with α-synuclein aggregates.
The study of
Lancet Neurology
which has the advantage of being the first of its kind carried out with hundreds of patients, confirms that by testing for the high presence of this protein, the disease can be largely identified.
However, the results are unevenly accurate.
. In patients carrying a genetic mutation – known as LRRK2 – associated with certain forms of Parkinson’s, the presence of aggregates is less systematic.
Still far from a concrete application
In any case, we are
still far from setting up a “biological” test
Parkinson’s disease, which is currently only diagnosed by its visible symptoms. In particular, it would be necessary to determine whether the technique works as well with blood tests, which are much easier to perform than those of the cerebrospinal fluid.
But this study “lays the foundations for a biological diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease”, judge, in a commentary also published by the
Lancet Neurology
researchers who did not participate in this work, the neurologists Daniela Berg and Christine Klein.
For them, it is now proven that the role of a-synuclein “changes the game in the diagnosis, research and clinical trials of Parkinson’s disease”.
They find it particularly interesting that the researchers also measured the presence of a high concentration of a-synuclein
in patients with early signs of Parkinson’s disease
in particular a weakening of the sense of smell, without this being yet proven.
