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Parkinson's disease biomarkers based on α-synuclein
Muneera Fayyad1,2, Safa Salim1,2, Nour Majbour1
1Neurological Disorder Research Center, Qatar Biomedical Research Institute (QBRI), Hamad Bin Khalifa University (HBKU), Qatar Foundation, Doha, Qatar.
Journal of Neurochemistry
|July 3, 2019
Summary
Accurate Parkinson's disease diagnosis is challenging. Research focuses on alpha-synuclein (α-syn) biomarkers in bodily fluids to improve patient stratification for new therapies.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Biochemistry
- Medical Diagnostics
Background:
- Parkinson's disease (PD) is a prevalent neurodegenerative disorder, second only to Alzheimer's disease.
- Accurate in-life diagnosis of PD is crucial for effective patient stratification in clinical trials.
- Current diagnostic challenges hinder the development of disease-modifying therapies for PD.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review advancements in Parkinson's disease biomarker discovery.
- To highlight the role of alpha-synuclein (α-syn) and its various conformers as potential biomarkers.
- To discuss novel assays and the complexities in evaluating α-syn in biofluids and tissues.
Main Methods:
- Review of current literature on Parkinson's disease biomarker research.
- Focus on assays for detecting alpha-synuclein (α-syn) conformers.
- Analysis of the challenges in evaluating α-syn diversity in biological samples.
Main Results:
- Alpha-synuclein (α-syn) is a key protein implicated in Parkinson's disease pathology.
- Significant progress has been made in developing assays to detect α-syn conformers.
- Evaluating the diverse conformers of α-syn presents ongoing complexities.
Conclusions:
- Effective biomarkers for Parkinson's disease are urgently needed for improved diagnosis and treatment.
- Alpha-synuclein (α-syn) shows promise as a biomarker, but its diverse forms require further investigation.
- Novel assay development is critical for accurate α-syn evaluation and patient stratification.